Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

Ram effect is going to be negligible thanks to Senor Bernouilli and his principle, at least without extensive wind-tunnel testing. The main benefit is lower intake temperatures. Cold air is denser than hot air, so if you can get cold air into the engine you can get more air molecules into each cc of capacity. Add some extra petrol molecules and you get a bigger bang.

The NACA duct in the bonnet of my racer wasn't even a proper NACA duct (the wall profile was wrong and the edges weren't sharp enough). It was only there because it looked better than just having a hole in the bonnet. At least, I think it does:

i was going to say the only real benefit is intake temp

Mine is taking days to drain rather than hours. I'm quite happy changing the hedgehog, but based on what I've read online, I don't think that's the problem, I think it's just a dying battery.

I'm quite happy changing the hedgehog

Gotta be a euph. Gotta be.

Based solely upon interactions with middle managers of an independent German, (Ruhrgebiet), chemical company back in the '80s;
Get the 6, you don't want to be mistaken for a taxi driver.

That's EXACTLY what you want - to be mistaken for a 1995 taxi driver IN KUWAIT.

Ahh sorry, thought you said hours.... Mine was draining overnight, it was very sudden. We had gone from London to Cornwall 1 day, woke up the next day and the battery was flat.

No problem, Google just keeps bringing back this heater control issue, but I have none of the symptoms of that so I don't think it is.

Other options on slow battery drain are pointing to:

Traffic Master module
DVD drive ejecting, re-loading, and ejecting the nav disc while the car is off

I don't think it's either of those things though, but if it is I'll be upset if my new battery dies every 4 days meaning that after I find the drain I need to replace that one with another new one.

Temperature, duh, of course. Though theoretical ram air pressure recovery at 80 km/h is about a half a bar, so not entirely negligible - that's about a 50% increase in charge density, no?

Pull the fuse on that circuit and see if it happens.

Thought this was an interesting read: https://janheine.wordpress.com/2017/09/22/the-best-drivers-cars-are-50-years-old/

Why am I seeing people driving around with these tow straps hanging off their cars? Is it some kind of handkerchief code?

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Because racecar affectation.

Saw a chap with two hanging from his rear bumper the other day, presumably in case one was buried too deeply in the crash barrier.

I just picked up the MG from the garage after it having had the engine put back together. Lined and bored back upto 1860cc.

So, the good news is that it is back on the road, @brm and I can finalise the whole shebang and I can get on with enjoying it.

The bad news is that Fisher have no idea why it blew a hole in the piston in the first place. Their exhaust tests show it running the right mixture and no obvious mechanical culprits like brake servo leaks.

Not ideal as I would like to know a) why it happened and b) whether it will happen again.

Off to sanspeed on Tuesday for the rolling road and tuning to see if that sheds any light on it.

Mainly I want to investigate high rev running with lighter throttle, to simulate motorway booming, which is when it happened.

I hope it doesn't go bang again.

I'm sure you know this, but it would have been running pretty lean under those conditions, sounds like the tuner should focus on maintaining a safe fuelling margin under low load and transient load conditions. Which I'm sure they'll do.

GB sticker - will a magnetic one scratch the car to fuck?

Are GB stickers unnecessary if you have the blue Eurostripe on the end of your number plates?

Not all number plates have them. My folks have one because theirs doesn't.

@Dammit no they're fine. I think they're great. If you're really worried I guess you could put some clingfilm over the back.

The jeeb has a shadow on the paint from four weeks in the Italian sun with a magnetic one. Shit paint though.

Wonder if anyone knows the answer to this one off the top of their head - Mk2 Golf, just fixed the heater diverter doors so I now get lots of hot hot heat, for the 10 minutes it takes until the water gets up to temp and the thermostat opens up and then thats it. No more heat all journey. Any ides? All roads seem to lead to the matrix bypass valve but nobody has mentioned that the heater does function until the thermostat kicks in, its usually that the heating doesnt work at all in that case.
Tia.

Would I look a dick in a BMW i8 or is it an acceptable flashy car because it's got electricity in it?

They'll get to £60k soon and to me they look bloody spectacular for that money.

On an axis anchored at one end by Swiss Tony, and the other by George Clooney, where do you appear?

Not all number plates have them. My folks have one because theirs doesn't

Of course, my van's had a GB sticker since 3 days after I got it. Might be a cleaner solution for a nice car though.

It looks less like the Lego Apprentices Lunchtime project than the i3.