Rod Thonger

Thanks James. Your point 2 was what I was looking for. Regards/Rod

Hello James. Many thanks to you and the team for the work you've all put in on our behalf. These matters take up a lot of time. As the owner of a Lotus Seven s4 with standard rollbar, the discussion is somewhat academic to me unfortunately. Nevertheless, out of interest, some questions - 1 are there any examples available of the effectiveness of roll bars in accidents, using any of the standard and FIA examples? 2 has any attempt been made to assess the likely results of the roll bars under stress in various day-to-day scenarios? 3 following on from 2, some sort of assessment presumably was done to give a starting point. As you say, you can't reduce the standard without opening up liability issues, but is it possible it was over-engineered in the first place? A higher standard is presumably going to be adopted each time the question is reviewed. cheers/Rod

These are now sold.

good, I'll send a message.

price reduced to £100 ......

Yes, E4

4 x Yoko AO48 tyres 185/60R13 80H. Used for one limited season of hill climb and sprint on a Lotus Seven. Tyres inspected and no cuts or scuffs, etc. Average 4mm tread all round. £150 sounds reasonable to me. I'm in Forest Row, E Sussex. cheers/Rod

Over to Handcross Sunday morning for the annual old car fest. Weather as usual – lots of rain, a bit of sunshine and a lot of strange clothing. It makes me wonder at this time every year why people still want to drive these cars. Minimal weather protection, most without heaters, some without windscreens, simple to drive generally but requiring some commitment and skill to really get the best out of them. And that is just the cars in our club. The numerous Caterhams and Lotus that turn up always give the L2B people something to look at en route. Like the 500 or so veterans blatting from London to Brighton, our cars come from all over the country and overseas, and we’ve got generous sponsors and generous members - £590 raised this year. Well done to Mark, chefs, parking marshals, Paul and his wife on the ESV and Peter. Mid Sussex area is taking the event back next year. Look out for another great display on the layby outside Handcross school, and lets really give those L2B guys something to talk about!

This AR's job has its perks. Thursday was a great day for sunshine and every day is pretty cool if you've just left your last paid day of employment. I still don't admit to being retired, too much going on. Anyway, planning a few things for our area has been getting me out in the Seven mostly, and trying to publish what we're doing for the next 6 months has been fun. The blat started in Piltdown and eventually got to Hickstead, then on to Chailey, and back to Piltdown. 45 miles and then a quick go on the driving range - golf that is. Can't help feeling that the Seven is a bit more reliable and certainly goes further. We'll be hearing more about the Piltdown Golf Club shortly - watch our Area page and our Facebook page. Cheers/Rod

Entires are now open. I've entered Saturday and posing on Sunday, hope to see some of you there. You can enter via the Plymouth Motor Club website. http://www.plymouthmotorclub.co.uk/ Scroll down the homepage until you see the large panel devoted to the Pentillie Festival of Speed. We're invited.

Hi there all in the west, and anywhere else for that matter. The first Pentillie Festival of Speed is happening 25 and 26 August. There's a hill climb on Saturday and I've tried the course. From the banks of the River Tamar past the castle and up the drive. You can see a demo and details at http://pentilliefestivalofspeed.com/. Festival beer is Ginger Tosser. Loads of other things to do. I don't have any financial interest but Ted and Sarah are friends and its the first one!

daft - oh wise ones?! Try this - mirrors on side screens are difficult to see through scratched and dirty side screens - they can also be damaged or damage the windscreen when opening the screens then - you get a better view and smaller blind spot by mounting the convex mirror further forward - during most normal driving, there's fairly small movement of the wheels - wheels to the left, you get wider view of what's behind, and your body hides a lot of scuttle mirror view - wheels to the right, you have a better view over your right shoulder anyway, the convex mirror still gives you a better view to the right and the scuttle mirror is pointing in the wrong direction. A bit of lateral thinking is good for the soul, especially on a Friday. Think about it!

Well spotted. Treat this as a back door advertisement for the clamshell club (I'm no. 14)! Remembering the old Citroens with the swivelling headlights to see round bends, you must be able to see the benefits of having the wide view behind you also.

Has anybody tried fitting a mirror to the offside cycle wing?

I'm not technical, so any comments gratefully received ... when I change from 3 to 4, taking it easy, I get a crunching noise. when I take it up to about 6000 (treated twincam)I'm getting the same with 2 to 3. What do you think? Sounds like an 'engine out' job to me? cheers/Rod