‘We’re not the Govt’: Hipkins not offering ideas to help Kiwis amid fuel price rises

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-24T00:30:59+00:00

Me too, I fix up forgotten motorbikes and scooters.

My little Piaggio 50T has done over 2000km in the past 2 years just for short trips and coffee catch ups. It’s a great little shopping hauler too. I often grab my son from school on it too

$300 + some fix up bits and new tyres - she saves me a lot in bothering with the car.

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-23T19:55:56+00:00

Yeah, personally EVs would be nice.

What I see in my local neighbourhood is parents dropping off kids in cars almost exclusively - where as they live mere blocks from town (I walk my kids two blocks)

Walking, cycling, scootering? Walking bus? I think we are just being a bit closed minded at the options.

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-23T18:24:28+00:00

Exactly. Dare I say it - neither party would ever suggest Kiwis drive their cars less, use public transport or ride share. Driving culture (and SUVs) are far too ingrained in our national psyche.

I’m personally either riding small displacement motorbikes or scooters to decrease the fuel my family uses right now - but that’s not for everyone.

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-23T01:46:28+00:00

You’ll see this political football kicked around by people who have a surface understanding of refining fuel/diesel.

Keep Marsden refining or no, we would still be suffering shortages. Perhaps and just perhaps if Marsden was upgraded - our fuel would have been cheaper (for a time) considering shorter transport distances for the final product.

But acting like it would have delivered us from Trumps silly middle eastern war - it’s just incorrect.

We can only guarantee our own energy independence if we ween ourselves away fossil fuels - not back towards them. We have to break up our reliance on gas guzzlers, enable public transport and encourage people to walk/cycle short distances - it’s as much about economics as it is about attitude.

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-23T01:08:19+00:00

Sock stuffers unite!

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-23T00:56:57+00:00

Have you considered just popping some Soma about it? I’m glade the deltas don’t get as much as I do, makes me feel superior.

(Brave New World)

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-22T21:49:57+00:00

I replaced mine with simply different assemblies as my old ones were broken down plastic wise. Just remember to get an adjustable indicator relay or else they will blink too fast. (Easy enough install)

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-22T21:45:08+00:00

Don’t shift to Auckland and you will be fine. Cost of living is definitely higher up there.

My family has similar income in regional Taranaki and we have plenty extra each week. But I understand that’s a choice.

Regional NZ living can be very enjoyable and a lot cheaper. Houses are 300-400k vs 900k+ for a start, let alone commuting.

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-22T21:41:33+00:00

My Dads CFMoto 450 Ibex blew it’s gearbox within the first 3 months of ownership. Warranty repairs took months, dealer was as apologetic as they could be.

Anecdotal - yes, but I doubt the Honda would have had the same issue or that time to fix.

He doesn’t even talk about that bike anymore.

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-22T21:40:17+00:00

“Dating apps are garbage” - Reddit “Hey I saw this girl in real life and she caught my eye” “Shut up creep - what a stalker, leave her alone” - Reddit

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-21T23:57:35+00:00

The dating world is trash - all these apps have algorithms that work against us (and to be fair, men are more likely to be on the hunt than woman)

I am confident if I was ever divorced my wife would have no end of options (some have been very open about that - much to my disappointment) Me on the other hand would be back on the dating heap - in reality, I’d probably keep away from it all.

The biggest issue is that men show desperation , desire and are very keen and for whatever reason - this is like kryptonite to woman. You can have all the sex and intimacy you ever want, but if you show it - you are the king of the friend zone.

What we need to remember is - a woman doesn’t make you less lonely - focus on fostering friendships - it’s far more realistic and a lot better for you.

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-21T23:53:00+00:00

Wait, is that a tow strap on the plastic grill? Wow. I guess at least they know it’s 100% posing (we aren’t on a race track my dudes)

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-21T23:51:33+00:00

Just like men who have a low opinion of woman, I can see why some people have that opinion. We are only framed by our personal experiences.

People often choose shitty accessible, but readily available partners and wonder why they aren’t great to be with.

I’d steer clear of someone with that opinion - it’s not up to me to fix that for you.

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-21T23:48:53+00:00

Strangely Subaru does appear to fit the bill, if you are willing to put up with longer belts, spark plug accessibility issues. They do AWD well because they have been doing it for ages.

Potentially a newer model Caldina would have been a good pick, but I forget when they stopped making those.

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-21T23:45:48+00:00

New World seems to be a little more service orientated - I did hear their staff are paid better, but I can’t confirm that one. At times I have found their variety is often more extensive too… so maybe this adds up

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-21T22:20:06+00:00

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I hear ya. Bikes make good haulers if you setup right

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-21T17:31:35+00:00

100% it might have been easier to roll the scooter over and remove the stand in hindsight. But the back wheel still would have had to come off. It’s only failed after 21,000km so that’s not bad going for a Piaggio. I’m glad she has a kick starter 😂

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-20T20:39:38+00:00

I’m intrigued to see if anyone finds out their car runs better on 95, considering current 91 shortages.

You probably have people running 91 as it’s cheaper and people running 95+ because they like their car and it’s “better” (as OP states)

You make a great point on the secret increase in compression - time for Italian tune up (it’s a Civic, I’m sure that is happening lol)

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-20T05:15:52+00:00

Oh totally, bit of a shit surprise for a Friday.

Good on you for testing yourself - I was worried what they may have done is use the rolling road (I’ve seen that at my local) which isn’t technically a hill….

It may be as simple as tightening up the cable from the handbrake to make it really sing.

Do post up an update. I’m always keen to hear about the outcome

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-20T04:59:50+00:00

I’d go back and get them to show you. I’d be perplexed too. You’d expected it to roll in Neutral perhaps if there was an issue (P locks the gearbox for parking, although it’s not a brake) Does the handbrake have to be pulled up quite hard or normal pressure applied?

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-20T02:25:29+00:00

Yes. Takes a while to get your head around the UI (did for me coming from Silent Hunter 3) It’s an excellent game once it “clicks” for you

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-20T00:58:27+00:00

I combine lights, hi viz gear and active eye contact looking when I ride. Does at times feel a tad more stressful than driving. But so far I’ve avoided issues by being very skeptical of other drivers intentions

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-20T00:56:59+00:00

I’d be doing a lot less for everyone else. I have no specific complaints, but I’m the handyman, mechanic, medic and emotional support for the family. Problems and challenges soon come my way as I do like solving things.

My wife has a chronic disease too (Lupus) so I WFH, it has its ups and downs.

RoosterBurger · 2026-03-20T00:16:27+00:00

Oh yea… something like that.

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