Diary of an Ordinary Van

[Vee4]

1/24th of the year gone already...

And still no New Year Resolution! Not strictly true, because I know what it is but haven't had time to do a write-up - watch this space. It's been a busy time and the Ordinary Van has been a big help by just being ordinary.

In return, I have finally got used to the lane change indicator system and it's been several months since I set it off inadvertently. I've mastered the alternate single flash too. The locking system is more or less second nature and I've been able to avoid sounding the horn by pressing the lock button while one of the doors is open.

Now it's time for a nice cup of tea ...

[ake]

It's always time for a nice cup of tea, I see that Sydney, Gaffer and the rest of the Tetley tea folk have been resurrected on the TV ads

[redcube]

[color=#000000]

I've always been puzzled by the second: why is the top of the window not parallel with the top of the door on the MK6 and Mk7? Is it a styling thing or is there a good practical reason?

I think i found out why the window is like this to stop the rain staying on the rubber and turning the trim green like some van do when not in use take a look at some mk5 parked for a while my mk5 was going green on the top of the window when i hadn't used it for a week

[AndyG]

The locking system is more or less second nature and I've been able to avoid sounding the horn by pressing the lock button while one of the doors is open.

Can you explain this a bit more please

Door not fully closed, press "lock" button and the horn will sound
How do you avoid the horn sounding

[Vee4]

Can you explain this a bit more please?

I'll try!



The system is set up to warn you if you try to lock the van while one of the doors is open, or at least not fully closed. As you can see, there are two unlock buttons (top), one for the cab and one for the load compartment, but there is only one lock button (below, centre). In my case, I might have wanted to do something like this: unlock and open the side loading door for access to kit in the rear, then go to get something from the cab, then try to lock the cab while the side loading door was still open. At this point, the horn would sound.

It's useful to have a warning if the van is not properly closed up for locking but I think a separate beeper would be good, because accidentally sounding the horn can be embarrassing (and appear unprofessional) when, for example, you are trying to be discreet outside a customer's house late at night. I just had to get used to the fact that I can unlock independently, but I can only lock together when all doors are fully closed.

I hope that helps! Of course, it was never a problem with the Mk5 since that had independent mechanical locks on all doors, including slam locks on the load compartment.

[Vee4]

I think I found out why the window is like this to stop the rain staying on the rubber and turning the trim green like some vans do when not in use.

I can't help thinking that the ready growth of green stuff on your Mk5 is due to the clean, fresh air in your demesne: Co. Clare, Ireland (right by the sea). The air in most UK cities is sterilised by pollutants, so stuff just won't grow.

For new readers wondering what this is all about, and why it's on the Transit Forum, not Gardener's Question Time, click on the image:

[Vee4]

A Burns Night Resolution

This could be useful for anyone who didn't make the deadline for New Year Resolutions. In most cases it will be, "Never again! Too much vegetarian haggis, too much single malt ..." But let's resolve to come back to that, because organising a Burns Night celebration can be fraught with problems:

The Ordinary Van has checked that its Sporran Licence is still valid, or not.



We should escape the haggis ban due to the choice of the vegetarian haggis so we'll need a piper to 'pipe in' the haggis:



The Ordinary Van has come up with a scheme to tap off some air from the intercooler to keep the pipes going without having to blow too hard or creating a Statutory Nuisance.

Once the haggis is ready, Mr Burns the birthday boy, will give us his Address To A Haggis:

Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o' the pudding-race!
Aboon them a' yet tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Weel are ye wordy o'a grace
As lang's my arm.

Etc.

No doubt he will read this from his Collected Works, recently requested by Alex Salmond, First Minister of Scotland, as his Desert Island Discs book choice. He couldn't really choose anything else, could he?

On the other hand, if you want to do it properly, follow the BBC Burns Night Guide, or ake's Burns Night on a Budget.

At last, The Resolution:

To get on to Ford about the rust, as previously described.

[Vee4]

The first £100 fill up!

It had to come, of course, but worth recording here:

* CITY DIESEL PUMP #3
77.000L @ £1.299 £100.02

Normally, I would have filled up before that, but I had a voucher for triple Nectar points and waited until I reached my 'home' Sainsbury's store. The trip computer said '35 miles to empty' but there was no evidence of the running out of fuel simulation. Perhaps that only starts at '0 miles to empty'.

Another Ton-Up Club ...

[ake]

Mine doesn't start the simulated misfire till there are less than 10 miles left

[blue estate]

Mine doesn't start the simulated misfire till there are less than 10 miles left

same here had the missfire under 10miles left

[Vee4]

Mine doesn't start the simulated misfire till there are less than 10 miles left

Same here had the misfire under 10 miles left

Thanks for that - useful information. It's good to know that Forum members are out there constantly testing boundaries and 'pushing the envelope'.

[redcube]

Mine doesn't start the simulated misfire till there are less than 10 miles left

My mk5 just stops when it runs out

[Vee4]

My mk5 just stops when it runs out

I bet it does. I managed to run my Mk5 for 12 years without running out of fuel although it must have been close on occasion!



It's a Smiley - you have to smile!

[Vee4]

Smiley-age technology comes to the rescue ...



Established readers will remember my disappointment when the 6000 CD wouldn't play MP3 files directly from a CD-R. However, it turns out it will play a 'multi-session' CD-RW - remember those?



That means I can make up a disc for the day's listening in the Ordinary Van and then add to it or go over it with new stuff. The NCH Express Burn software allows simple 'drag and drop' of MP3 files onto a CD-R or CD-RW. I know I could buy an MP3 player and plug it into the AUX socket. Perhaps I will eventually ...

[ake]

I use my Ipod every day in my van, via the Aux in socket, has all my albums on so I can listen to whatever takes my fancy