coldel

This morning, heading towards London, actually turned off near RTPerformance in Chiswick. Got a wave! Looked very good no doubt a couple of black Zeds in convoy

I am almost shocked and always give a big wave to any white van that actually drives with any consideration for anyone else!

I know there is lack of training, quality of recruitment etc etc but for petes sake, your livelihood is to sell something. If someone walks in, you have to sell something to them if you can. Yes some are pushy, and people walk away, some are just about spot on, but its these people that do nothing, dont look at you, dont talk to you, show no interest. I just dont get it, it really isnt that difficult to get the basics down. I work for a small research company, we have to sell research to clients looking to research something. I have never had any sales training or the like I did a stats and economics degree, im a nerd, ( ) but I use my common sense, be polite, answer the questions fully, offer the client something they want not something they dont want, be professional, all just basic common sense stuff. ...if profit margins are being squeezed so much, why are these dealers not bothering? I just dont understand people sometimes edit: not directed at our dealer friend above - just a general comment!

Actually I bought a wide but shallow bag which has velcro on it, sits quite nicely in the boot with usual on the road survival bits in it. Cargo nets look ok but dont they literally mean its hard to put anything on top of them? Doesnt look like an effective use of volume!

I am trying to make it easy for them, just after a Focus around £2k-£3k just want to buy one, just go and buy it, but not trekking across town for an hour to look at a pile of crap. They really are morons for ignoring people - just plain dumb I guess.

I remember a headline in the papers about ten years ago, how a young humble nurse purchased a new Dodge Viper (£60k or something). They told how she lived on the cheap, buying cheap stuff and saved up the money to buy it. A real heart warming story...until the last paragraph where you found out that she saved something like £15k and borrowed the rest! What a joke. Was probably out there striking about pensions yesterday... ...that said I do know a lot of people are using credit cards to pay for everything now, but using the cashback on them (a couple of percent) they then just pay off the full amount end of each month without interest and gain the extra. They have self control though.

Clarkson! Saying what the majority think about the minority's actions. Albeit in Clarksons own special way. http://news.sky.com/home/uk-news/article/16121698

I email off to about 4 or 5 this morning about some cars I might be interested in - none respond. I call one up, he says oh yeah got your email yeah its here come look blah blah blah. Now, are we not in recession, are car dealers doing so well they can ignore potential customers? What bugs me the most is that he said he prefers using the phone etc etc, then I said, why do you put the option to email if you are never going to respond to it? The sound of silence was deafening. /endrant

Paid £8.5k for mine at the start of the year, so far I have bought Clutch and flywheel, £650 Rear clicky axle kit £350 New alloys and tyres (planned to do this anyway and saw a good deal!) £1000 Those first two dont include labour. You gotta have cash on the hip to pay out quite quickly for repairs otherwise you have a very expensive toy sitting useless outside your place. You can moderate fuel but can you suddenly draw £1000 out the bank if a clutch goes?

Isnt there a carbon engine cover going on one of the part out sales threads?

You guys! Tried ebay, found the odd one took a look and they were shocking. Rang another one yesterday, he said it was immaculate, i quizzed him about how immaculate it was and he finally said there was a tiny dent in the passenger side door. So he sent me a photo, it wasnt the dent (which wasnt tiny) I was most worried about, it was the half of the wing mirror that was missing that caught my eye. Text him about it and he left a voice mail saying 'oh yeah, well spotted, I forgot about that' - i mean how do you 'forget' your wing mirror is in pieces. No idea what else is wrong with it so going to can it, if he cant be upfront what else is he hiding.

OK, a bit of a punt! But have been hunting around for a little Focus for Becks to tootle about in. Looking for a facelift series 1 so late plate 51 onwards. Not worried about engine size would like Zetec or Ghia looking to spend circa £2k. Keep seeing a few about but they seem to get snapped up pretty sharpish, been to see some others and the 'great condition' actually turns out that they have gouges in the paintwork or covered in dents If anyone is thinking of selling one, or has seen one about much appreciated to point me in right direction Oh and nothing more than 70k miles. Cheers Col

Yeah I know, it almost prompted me to go out get some! Have got them everywhere, had to have a dig around to make sure nothing was left inside!

...first part has arrived - will have a go at fitting it - cheers Tarmc for that I blame Will personally, for letting me drive his Zed, and Jim, for letting me buy his Milltek, and Abbey for making a good deal for Berks and Uprev Bread and water over christmas it seems...

Like the point on individuals taking responsibility, I have had a few of these discussions over the last couple of years with some interesting reactions: 'You have borrowed too much, you couldnt possibly repay that much' answer ' but the government made it impossible for me to afford it without borrowing' Now, not sure how much truth there is in that, as a student I lived on £12 a week and no that wasnt in old money! I can imagine some people are seriously living in dire conditions - but its the people I have spoken to in the past about debt and they brushed it off that are complaining now that gets my goat. My wife met up with two old school friends after not seeing them for years last year. She turned up casually dressed and ordered a drink, they turned up like they were off to a wedding and ordered champers. Becks stuck to her own drinks. Turns out they were both in modest paid jobs, much lower than Becks in fact, and one had a credit card with £36k on and the other a touch less. When Becks told me my jaw almost hit the ground. You could argue that the governement could have done this and bankers could have done that - but racking up that sort of debt is stupid, utter stupidity, and still spending more... Okay banks shouldnt have made it so easy to borrow, but for gods sake people, use some brain power here. I was dumbfounded, in fact, even now shaking my head as I type!

+1 to the power n+1 where n equals infinity .. here here

Happy 54th birthday mate

Good post Rich - I would agree with most I wouldnt agree you can strike because of working more than is reasonable, at the moment I get into work at around 6:30am and finish around 7:30ish every day, I get paid 9:30-5:30 - i am doing 13 hour days minimum as the norm. Its what you have to do to keep your business alive in tough times - I am not looking to other people to bail me out. I can see why people went public sector, in the old days it was a 'job for life' etc but I dont think that will be the case ever again - I dont agree that striking to sustain that approach is correct. You are right that we shouldnt lump public sector together. As I posted earlier a small minority actually bothered to vote yes (less than a third), that doesnt even include people such as yourself who arent members of unions and are against the striking action. The vote to strike was made by a minority led by union leaders who are leading their own agenda which may or may not be for the good of their workers, that is a bit sad in my view.

I got flyeye on my car, prefer to have the internals painted though - it does look stunning with it on - but does cut down the amount of light by something like 8%-10% by all accounts

Good post Roo, nicely put. I remember a couple of years ago Sky News had a country budget simulator, you chose what was important be it education, military, etc and then ran the simulator based on the amount of money the government had - it was a no win situation, the money ran out before you could do all you wanted to do. You had to give up on some areas to maintain others.

Will the beam be pointing in the wrong direction though?

FTSE 10,000-12,000 company

Oh good grief, I have to read this tonight, sounds like a barrel of laughs and could do with cheering up

Want to get mine done too...keeping an eye out for that member

6 of one, half a dozen of the other. Nobody is taking away pensions that have already been accrued! That's the thing. Nothing is being "taken away" from anybody. Everybody now has a choice. They either stick with the proposed arrangements or they can leave and go work in a the private sector. My understanding is that everything accrued to-date stands. I totally understand that point of view, and its 'unfair' that things change, but thats how the world works things change. Jobs for life and and meaty pensions are a thing of the past, it is not sustainable business arrangement. Should you be taking that up with Mr Cameron, I dont think so, you should be hunting out the PM who was in charge when you signed up. I understand why people are fighting for pensions, of course you would, its a lovely way to see out your older years. Will you win, no, never, because it is unsustainable. Private companies that 'promised' X Y and Z to employees are cutting back, taking things away, rationalising their businesses - its happened to everyone. So, leave the public sector, get your higher paid private job (if you can find one) and then see that extra money you earn taken from you and spent holding up an unsustainable public sector pension fund and then argue the case for it PS not meant you as in you Stuarty just public sector in general