The Advice Thread

[Tredman]

Yeah, but its a fairly big house and pointless heating the whole place just for me in one little room. I'd love one of those zonal heating systems, but payback would be like 40 years.

 

[The Bear]

Buy a cheap portable heater for about £40.

 

[lemonjelly]

tredman, get one of those oil filled radiators that you can move about. Great for heating individual rooms! We have one, as there's only 2 of us in our house, so frequently only 1 room needs warming rather than the whole hourse.
Also great if we go out for the night, and return and its cold. Pop the radiator on in the bedroom, and it warms quicker than the heating!

 

[Tredman]

Hmm, I'm an energy geek - I suspect if I calculated the power usage required for a portable or oil heater and then worked out the cost per hour using electricity it would probably be as cheap to heat the house using gas; might take a bit of doing as I'd need to compare on a similar day. Ultimately I'm just a cheap bastard.

 

[PPB]

So, one of the first things we have to decide on and buy is a car, hard decision. Something for tootling around in, shopping, easy for me mom to get in and out of. What are some of your top choices/suggestions? All advice appreciated....except anyone that suggests a BMW.

 

[Parkins left foot]

Have had Honda's for the last few years - incredibly reliable, well appointed & cheaper than German/French or Italian similar offerings - not exciting, but I don't need that now.

When I next change this one will probably go with a KIA of some description (Korean manufacturer) - as they are rated as good & even cheaper (plus a 7 yr warranty on them)

 

[MARKakaJIM]

Kia Cee'd I had for a pool car for a while was decent enough.

Nothing to really get excited about but it looked alright, drove well and had everything that you needed.

 

[Parkins left foot]

Kia Cee'd I had for a pool car for a while was decent enough.

Nothing to really get excited about but it looked alright, drove well and had everything that you needed.

Got a number of friends with various Kia models - & no they are not that exciting, but they are reliable, reasonably well appointed & are fairly comfortable to drive. At my time of life I just want something that starts without problems (every time) & doesn't break down - & has enough kit without going too far high tech

 

[Tredman]

My wife has a Kia Venga - sort of the MPV of the Ceed. It's a good car if a little dull.

Edit - this is her second, had the first for 6 years with no problems whatsoever.

 

[Parkins left foot]

My wife has a Kia Venga - sort of the MPV of the Ceed. It's a good car if a little dull.

That's what I will possibly look at as I'm reasonably tall & that has good headroom & enough room inside to cope with 4 adult passengers..

I'm a bit past having a mid life crisis (unless I'm going to buck the trend & live till 135) so dull I can cope with.

 

[The Bear]

Golf? Reliable and roomy enough.

 

[Deleted Cyber]

vauxhall Meriva for me. Its got a panoramic roof and plenty of storage space, loads of headroom and plenty of welly yet is reliable and reasonable on fuel. Dirt cheap to pick up too. Picked up mine at 3 years old with 10 k on the clock for 8k. Retail at 23k

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vauxhall...h=item1ef4fb95ff:g:2HwAAOSwcwdcaCvG:rk:6:pf:0

cheap as chips, easy to find parts and things dont go wrong. Service every 20k.

 

[Stan Hullis]

Only downside I guess is you have to drive around in a Vauxhall Meriva...

:run:

 

[Pablowolf]

Got a Peugeot for tootling about in which I wouldn't recommend and a Merc for work (ooooh, rhymes!) which is lovely. Now, a Merc A-Class is nice.

 

[Kenny]

A-Class might be a bit low for the older generation to get in & out with ease. The GLA is basically the A-Class on stilts so easy to get in and out of

 

[Stan Hullis]

The new A-class is a thing of beauty - especially the interior.

I'm looking into getting one through work at the moment.

 

[Kenny]

The new A-class is a thing of beauty - especially the interior.

I'm looking into getting one through work at the moment.

It is indeed. The wife was looking at them when she had to pick her works car but at the time the new style was only available in auto which she isn't keen on

 

[MARKakaJIM]

A-Class might be a bit low for the older generation to get in & out with ease. The GLA is basically the A-Class on stilts so easy to get in and out of

The GLA is not well received by the few at work who have them, one of them dislikes it to the point that it only ever gets used for work as both he and his wife would rather use their other car and pay for the fuel of a weekend rather than take advantage of the free private miles on the company car.

 

[Kenny]

The GLA is not well received by the few at work who have them, one of them dislikes it to the point that it only ever gets used for work as both he and his wife would rather use their other car and pay for the fuel of a weekend rather than take advantage of the free private miles on the company car.

I'm no car expert like Paddy McGuinness or Freddy Flintoff but I have driven the GLA a couple of times and its alreet. Comfy and drives fine and the stuff on the screen works well. My wife is quite picky on cars and she approves of it (if she didn't she would have driven back through the window of the Merc dealership...)

 

[PPB]

Cheers, gonna need something with a decent sized boot. Hubby was looking at the Evoque, but I'm not keen. Mind you I only have to sit in it, not drive it, so at the end of the day it's his choice.