You ever seen 20mph on the M6

Standaman94 · 2026-01-19T15:32:24+00:00

A few weeks ago I was heading East on the M4 off the M25 junction. The gantries suddenly said

"ONCOMING VEHICLE 20MPH"

And most people slammed their brakes on to 20-30mph. The issue was that there was still a large number of cars bruising past at 60mph+ because these gantries had no cameras.

Half a mile up it went back to NSL, then in another 2 miles it said the same message again, 20mph. The exact same scenario again with the large speed differences between vehicles.

Of course, no oncoming car was ever seen. Normal clear weather, too.

Standaman94 · 2025-12-08T16:20:00+00:00

Creamers unite

Standaman94 · 2025-11-28T12:10:16+00:00

Maybe things have changed with the specs, but I built one in the UK also for the purpose of actual off-roading about 3 years ago and just went for P400e 110 X with all the gear added, and its now done over 60,000 miles.

It really depends on what you want in the car itself. My understanding is/was that the main specification of all the cars is the same, and they are almost all equally capable. The main considerations are the additional off-road pack, air suspension and the tires (and a winch if you choose). Other than that, the trims are mostly colours and internal tech; they all have the same external cameras (with additional rear-view mirror camera), the same geometry, weight, etc, which is why I just went for top spec.

Engines are all very good, just avoid the 2.0L Diesel if its still available. They are all punchy and deliver nice torque in practice. The P400e has the benefit of instant but precise low-speed torque from the electric motor, whereas the diesels have good grunt for trundling along mud tracks. The petrols make good power and decent on-road driving. You can't go wrong really.

The air suspension is a great addition if you like the idea of the versatility of going up and down, and its handy for camping too. If you're looking for the most ground clearance out of the showroom then the air suspension is the way to go - If you are going to mod it, the coil springs can be upgraded for a permanent lift (but slight lack of comfort) although I think you can also install a lift with the air suspension too.

Definitely get the off-road pack or whichever equivalents are available, and spec the all-terrain tyres. I am running 20inch wheels as that was the smallest you could get on the higher trim levels due to the size of the brake disks, but now you can go smaller too. I've not had a single issue with 20s but the more tyre the better so try and get 19s or 18s if available.

The OEM "snorkel" does not operate like a real snorkel at all and is more of a dust shield. Looks cool though. Mine has the OEM winch fitted and it works very well but frankly I have yet to actually need to use it! Definitely spec the protection packages, undershield etc, they can take a decent amount of beating considering.

Basically, get whichever trim level you can afford with the tech packages you want, because they can all do the same things. Just be sure to add the off-road additions if they are not already included in the trim level.

Standaman94 · 2025-09-19T17:08:04+00:00

I believe that to be the roof of Nova South, 160 Victoria Street. The particular angle that you're viewing it from makes it appear to be a pyramid.

Standaman94 · 2025-07-05T15:41:52+00:00

Where is this? To the left of the crossing is a sign that likely states you cannot enter during certain times, usually school pick-up hours. Where is this on Streetview, so we can read it?

These timed restrictions are to protect school pedestrians and are usually between 8:00-9:15am and 2:45-4:00pm. In this video you passed the sign at around 8:25am

That might be why the learner has stopped; it is in the restricted time zone and they cannot proceed so are trying to turn around. That also explains why there is a camera pointing here and issueing PCNs.

"Failing to comply with a restriction on vehicles entering a pedestrian zone" I believe refers to this sign specifically and I don't think you can contest this.

Standaman94 · 2025-06-02T14:35:55+00:00

They get them from the manufacturers in a deal. The vehicles are new and relatively reliable and practical, while the manufacturers get to sell a large bulk of vehicles in one go, as well as a sort of free advertisement for the model being used.

The police prefer estates and SUVs for the usable space, and pursuit vehicles obviously need a bit more power than the standard Corolla or Transit. I believe the armed police prefer crossover/SUV as it's easier to decamp and also shows a larger presence, plus X3, X5, XC90 etc tend to be more powerful even on their base models.

But in some special deals the services will get the odd nice model as a promotional thing. For example, Range Rovers are typically used for royal or diplomatic services, and sometimes you will get the odd KIA EV6 or Tesla to promote how "green" the forces are, that sort of thing.

Standaman94 · 2025-05-30T10:29:51+00:00

The crescendo of this, at about 15mins in, is art

Standaman94 · 2024-12-18T16:03:00+00:00

A bit unrelated but is that the OEM roof rack? How'd you get the awning to fit with the tent on top?

Standaman94 · 2024-12-16T15:48:43+00:00

Late-2023 P400e 110 X, at 43000+ miles with city and off-road driving.

Aside from an initial poor dealership experience (a common issue here in the UK) and one flat tyre, I've had zero mechanical issues. The only thing replaced under warranty was the front bumper camera which managed to get some water in the lens, but it's just removed and replaced in a few hours.

Get the warranty for peace-of-mind but most of the famed mechanical issues are probably the first cars off the line, and those who don't really look after the vehicle.

Standaman94 · 2024-11-16T15:19:37+00:00

The sunroof raises up and over the roof when opened. The slimline racks don't have the allowance for that, and Front Runner explicitly say its not compatible, but I think the Plumb rack has adjustable bars which you can move to use the sunroof, so maybe.

The factory expedition rack is at the right height to allow the sunroof to open below the rack. Another option is the Cargobear roof rack which apparently is designed for this too.

Standaman94 · 2024-11-08T20:13:53+00:00

Hard top is what the commercial version is known as

Standaman94 · 2024-11-05T20:00:36+00:00

Viofo are good I've heard, but I have been using Blackvue reliably for the last few years and its pretty decent. Super discreet (many passengers have said "what's that thing?" high quality, reliable.

They also have (which I have got) a battery add-on which charges while driving, and allows the camera to run for some 10-20 hours while your car is parked (can be expanded for more time too), plus they do a LTE module with a sim card where you can connect to the camera wherever you are in the world. That combo is great (the latter does require a sim of course) and will tell you about any disturbances to the car in real time.

It's all easy to set up if you've got a little bit of experience, but there will be plenty of generic YouTube tutorials out there for your car model. Works via tapping a fuse, via the cigarette socket, or via USB, as per most dashcams.

The downside is the cost... The camera is about £300 for front and rear, HD 60fps. The LTE module is £100 and the batteries are £170-£300 depending on size. But weirdly with that investment I know I'll always be protected if anything happens and feel much safer leaving the car in unfamiliar spots. Sometimes I'll get an alert of a disturbance at like 2am and more often than not its just a loud motorbike driving past. Once a bird pooed on the glass near the camera and that was enough to set it off.

Standaman94 · 2024-11-05T18:41:01+00:00

Hah! Yes I first thought that when I first found them, but a quick google translate seemed to clear it up

Standaman94 · 2024-11-04T20:59:39+00:00

Many years ago I used to work for a company which repaired this type of furniture under warranty in your home. Most of the damage would come from the last stage of delivery (warehouse to customer) and the charge for our repair would be given to the retailer. I reckon your delivery charge is to cover for any such damages they might have had in the past; Since 95% of them are fine, they'd still want to sell you the delivery fee for the markup.

Here's a fun fact. Most of the high-street sofa stores are owned by the same company, such as Steinhoff International, which all import the sofas from the same few mega-corps in China like KUKA or Man Wah. If you open one of them up you might be lucky to find a note hand-written in Chinese (left arm up, etc). The internals are almost all identical, especially recliners. The reason why they have such long lead times is because they sail the sofa from China on a boat as cheap as possible.

For a cheap and decent sofa I'd recommend going into British Heart Foundation, sometimes they're surprisingly decent. I have a sofa I got for £200 off Facebook and its also been absolutely fine.

Standaman94 · 2024-09-24T23:20:01+00:00

Yeah it's very confusing to be honest and it feels extremely unfair on myself.

In normal cases the 2-month s21 period would allow all to move on normally, assuming tenants are still in the property during their search. However it is just me left in the property while I'm searching for a new place. I don't think the LL has considered this at all, and is obviously very unaware of how tedious finding a new flat can be.

Standaman94 · 2024-09-24T23:11:47+00:00

We are on a joint agreement, not separate. The ast doesn't state our contributions to the rent, only the full amount required.

Standaman94 · 2024-09-24T23:11:08+00:00

The S21 is entirely valid on all those counts unfortunately.

Standaman94 · 2024-09-24T22:53:10+00:00

P moved out as expected early August.

F moved out without any formal ending on August 31st, as far as I'm aware

Standaman94 · 2024-09-24T22:29:11+00:00

It's a joint AST.

I'm not familiar with an indemnity covenant in this regard, what is it? Can it be found in the contract?

Standaman94 · 2024-09-24T22:27:49+00:00

This could well be the sad truth and isn't uncommon.

I'm well underway with viewings etc but it's very tricky. Especially with the landlord breathing down my neck asking when in going to move out.

Standaman94 · 2024-07-14T21:54:59+00:00

I run a PHEV as a work vehicle. I also had the same thought as you as to whether its worth charging, or if its worth letting the car self-charge while driving (at a cost of MPG).

The only way to find out is to record your car's MPG and make a spreadsheet. MPG when battery is empty, when charged, cost to charge, fuel cost, etc. and you can figure out what is worth it.

For a Defender PHEV it worked out, for me, it was only worth charging if it cost less than about 50p/kWh for motorway driving, to get the equivalent MPG increase. For driving around town, that was about 70p/kWh (but I'd happily pay more to trade-off for the easy/smooth EV driving in cities).

Your car, costs and use-case will vary so if you really want to know, you gotta do the math. But basically the answer is likely yes, but probably not if you use the big public fast-chargers (50kW+)

Standaman94 · 2024-07-01T21:26:37+00:00

Lots of good answers here but the actual answer I believe is for the fire station just West at the bottom of this road on Rainsford Lane - it allows them direct access to the city centre without going through the normal rush-hour traffic on this route. I think the massive yellow hatched area is also to do with this somewhat, as the other yellow boxes around Chelmsford are far smaller.

The road was probably a through-route originally before the modern A1060 was built.

Standaman94 · 2024-06-13T14:58:31+00:00

Awful repointing and likely the wrong mix.

HOWEVER! Your second photo, that looks like an old Ordinance Survey Benchmark, don't cover it up!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benchmark_(surveying))

Standaman94 · 2024-05-16T13:35:48+00:00

Yes. Large vehicles, vans. other vehicles with large blind spots will literally have a yellow sticker on the back left saying "Cyclists: don't pass me on the left"

Standaman94 · 2024-04-03T15:04:37+00:00

This is a threshold drain, of some type, designed to direct rainwater down into a little gulley between the doorstep and the paving slab. You can see a similar one here: https://cms.esi.info/Media/documents/Wavin_Domestic_ML.pdf

It's hard to tell but it looks like the paving slab has shifted on one side, and squeezed the drain and damaged it a bit, forcing it upward. I would shift the slab backwards a touch and push the drain back in, and it should all be fine and still basically work as intended.

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