Rich

That's just bonkers! I've only put petrol in the Accord twice since the change and not even a full tank. I do 10 miles a day going to work and back so didn't notice any difference the first time but I did on Wednesday when I was literally watching the fuel guage drop like a stone!

Would it really drop that much? That's not good in a 2.4L petrol! They are determined to get petrol and diesel cars off the road aren't they. I've switched to Esso E0 in the MX5 but I doubt it's worth it for the Accord. The extra price paid for Supreme fuel won't give me that many more miles. Maybe I should try a tankful and see though.

You know what, I can't remember if I actually cleaned the rear brakes up from my last post but they've been fine since! Passed the MOT on Wednesday. Despite some battle scars on the bodywork he said the car mechanically is in great condition. I did 155 miles, mainly at 50-70mph on motorways and dual carriageways. This only returned 23mpg, which is down a little. Usually it would do 26-27 on a trip like that. That cost me £40 with petrol now being £1.46 a litre! ☹️ The oil change is due, which I'll be doing in a couple of weeks and I'll replace the air filter. I've only done 2k miles in the last year. I changed the oil to 5w40 last year which has been ok but I'm now going to switch to 0w30. A 20L bottle is just under £70 delivered (with a code) and will do me for 4 years. 5L bottles are £26+, even more from places like ECP, so it'll leave me plenty for top ups too. https://www.lubetechshop.co.uk/product/optima-fs-0w30-fully-synthetic-engine-oil-acea-a5-b5-a1-b1-api-sl-cf/

I was taking the car off the road this weekend for winter but I have decided to do it at the end of November now. Usually I leave the fuel tank empty but will fill it up this time. Do I need to use a stabiliser? These seem to be aimed at cars using E5/E10 fuel but now I've switched to Esso Supreme, which is actually E0 I'm wondering if I actually need it? It will be off the road for 4 or 5 months. If I do is this one ok or are there better ones? I didn't get around to looking at the front chassis rails so that will be a job for next year. But nothing is going to stop the rust unless it's cut out and new metal welded in! The alloys are corroding more so I may get those refurbished over winter or have a go myself. But they're getting bad so may need a professional job done.

That's what I was thinking so no need for brakes if you can't ride it 😁

Could you even ride that, the seat looks too far away from the handles!

Blast from the past! How are you Mark?

It's America! Looks like the plate is hidden behind the pole. Wouldn't want to be in a rear end crash in that though! 😲

It's called retro, lots of things from years a go are making a comeback, some under the guise of modern technology 🙂

The truck is painted on the doors! 😉

We have a landline, it costs no more to have it so might as well. It's good for emergencies and people who live in rural areas still need them cos of the crap mobile signals!

It's just a holder shaped like an old rotary dial phone.

Very retro, I like that 😎

It's going to be awesome when it's finished. Not cheap but will definitely be worth it 🙂 How do you insure you ICE, I assume separately from the car or with a modified specialist?

That really doesn't surprise me! 😂 I'm struggling to understand how it happened in a lodge as you normally don't have locks on the bedrooms. Unless other people were staying in it too like a shared one?

I went through my AA policy documents yesterday and came across the part for NCB. They accept up to 20 years, so if you're with a company who only give 9 years it's definitely worth chasing them up for a letter stating how many you actually have. Yes the difference is only 5% between 9 and 20 years but that's better in my pocket than theirs! 🙂

I emailed Hastings again, seems they didn't explain very well. They uploaded my letter of 15 years to their system, not my online account. Once my policy finishes I need to email again and they'll send me a letter stating I have 17 years. I renewed the insurance last night with the AA. I'll never understand insurance systems but the cheapest comparison price with just roadside breakdown was £266. Top cashback offer £45 so I did another quote directly and it was £288 without the breakdown cover! Then I went through TCB to confused.com and did another new quote which was the same price of £266. They offer £35 cashback. Clicked through to the AA and checked the details. They had my job title completely wrong so I changed that and the quote dropped to £230 with breakdown. I opted for recovery too which added another £15 but hopefully the cashback covers that. Although it's not tracked yet!

Have you queried it? How many years did you say you have? I emailed Hastings my letter of 15 years from 2 years a go. They replied saying they've uploaded proof of 15 years to my account, (they haven't!) and when my policy ends they'll upload another with 17 years. So hopefully they will and I won't have to chase them for it!

No compulsory excess. I always set voluntary to £0 as increasing it only reduces the premiums by a few quid. I'd rather pay that than risk paying hundreds in excess. Yes I always protect my NCB too. The car is not even worth £1k so there's no way I'm chancing it with £500 excess. I may get £45 cashback with the AA too so if the quote is similar going directly to them it won't be too bad. The AA allows you to type in the number of years NCB you have, so I entered 17. Tescos is also the same. There are a few other companies that accept more than 9 years. Who are you with? I've not heard of anyone giving money off for renewing online 👍 Is that right then?

So it's that time of year again. Cancelled the Lexus insurance as the car is going and was on the phone for 30 minutes with Hastings going through everything only for them to give me an even higher quote than the renewal once the claim had been added. The missus needs to be a named driver on my car although she hasn't driven it for 3 years. The claim for the CAT has increased my premium by £40+, but it's the excess that is shocking. It's gone from £0 to £250+ with the majority apart from the AA, which is £100. Ridiculous that even a named driver can have that much of an affect with a claim. Before the claim I was going to go with Aviva for £215 and £0 excess. They now want £270 and £500 excess!! 😲 Back on the subject of NCB, Hastings have refused to do a letter stating the true number of years we have. I have 17 years but they will only state 9 or over. If I put 9 years in to the details the quote is £10 more expensive than with 17 years so it obviously makes a difference. So what am I supposed to do to prove I have 17 years of NCB. What if I make a claim and they ask for proof. It's such a stupid system, wouldn't it be better if all insurance companies just honoured the same maximum amount of NCB.

I've had my MX5 for 6 years and it's only ever had the Toyos on them. The previous owner had them fitted and I don't do a lot of mileage so they're not even half worn. They are super grippy in the dry thanks to the WIM fast road setup, but then most tyres should be. In the wet it's a different story! I take the car off the road for winter but from next year I'll be doing more mileage in it and will replace them. As they're 15" rims tyres are fairly cheap, even for something like Michelin Pilot Sport. Reading a few quick reviews on the T1R they're not any better than the TR1 I have. Is this the first set of Toyos you've had on the car?

I have the TR1s on my MK2 and they are the worst tyre I've ever used in the wet. I try to avoid wet weather driving now as they're so bad. I've had a couple of scary moments with them. I'm replacing them asap. If the T1R are based on those then I would seriously consider changing the tyres too. Being a light RWD sports car the more grippy the tyre the better IMO.

Welcome to WIM Andy 🙂 Out of interest what tyres are on the car?

I think E10 fuel has been around for years in other countries so yes there is probably little to worry about. Like you say Steve I bet the majority wouldn't even check their cars anyway. Do you know if the tank on the MX5 is plastic or metal? I think the MK2 is the same as the MK1 you had. I'll start filling it up over winter though, it will save messing with jerry cans too! Do you use a fuel stabiliser, if so what one? The car definitely starts better with the S5 battery, I should've replaced it years a go!

I think it's a metal tank but I'm not sure, I can't seem to find an answer online. On the MX5 forums, owners say they do it both ways. I've just left it more or less empty to avoid having to put a stabiliser in. So I stick 5 litres of fresh fuel in when I start it up over winter and then go fill up when it's had a run. I've just filled the car up with Esso supreme, £1.55 a litre! 😢