De-icing cars taken outside Banstead and Caterham homes
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-surrey-11868561
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tough peanuts
and the insurance wont pay out-good
i was freezing my nimbles this morning defrosting the truck
i didnt leave it to warm me nuts as i knew it could be stolen
too many idiots get driving licences these days and insurance is still too cheap for numpties
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I agree too. Took me twenty minutes this morning to clear the frozen ice and my hands were almost burning. You have to be very silly to leave the engine running. If the car is parked on the street it is ilegal too.
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I realised a while ago that I can retire for a coffee while warming up the old Land Rover and just leave the Disklok on (any old LR without one gets stolen whether you leave it running with the keys in or not).
De-icing is such a pain at the moment I've seriously thought about getting another for the CRV. Even after the scraping, one can't drive off for several minutes and the freezing leather fairly smites at the nether parts until the bum warmer gets going.
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>> just leave the Disklok on
That's what I do.
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It's amazing just how many times this happens, there must be a lot of opportunists/tea leafs about,
never really heard of it,' in my day'
Get the violins out :)
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>>It's amazing just how many times this happens,
>>
Be further amazed
Two more cars left unattended and with their engines running while they de-iced have been stolen from driveways in Surrey.
A Rav4 and a Polo. Standards are dropping as is the brain power ?
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-surrey-11914026
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>>Two more cars left unattended and with their engines running while they de-iced have been stolen<<
I was going to leave my car to de ice with the engine running yesterday, but decided against it due to this thread :)
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You could have used your spare keys, Dog.
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>>You could have used your spare keys, Dog.<<
Yeah, I'm iffy about electronic keys C/S, knowing my luck fail to unlock or somesuch, the car is usually in the garage but - I like Z's idea of bunging a fan heater in the car for 10 mins to defrost it ...
as long as you remember to remove it b4 driving orf :}
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I fill an old plastic 2 litre container with luke warm water, and pour it over the windscreen and other windows. Simples. It helps to add some de-icer in these conditions, or wipe the water off with a scraper before it refreezes. I suppose in some places you might have to take care not to create an area of ice on the ground.
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I gave up with the warm water thing years ago. I found that it refroze on the wipers and stopped them flexing, as well as freezing on the ground and becoming a hazard.
I'm using Holts de-icer at the moment when the frost is thick and scrape-resistant, but I'm not really impressed with it - it refreezes instantly if I set off too soon. I find it works better if I keep the tin on the Rayburn but I'm a bit worried it might go pop.
I'm thinking I might try some neat washer anti-freeze in a trigger spray. It was -6 this morning.
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I stick an electric heater in mine for 20 mins before i go out, works a treat.
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>> I stick an electric heater in mine for 20 mins before i go out, works a treat.
I put the car in the garage overnight. That too also works a treat and doesn't burn 20 mins worth of electric ;o)
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Maybe but my car wont fit, would otherwise!
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There are so many people who don't garage their cars (assuming they fit of course) because they are full of junk, which some people seem to attract as if suffering from a form of OCD.
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>> I stick an electric heater in mine for 20 mins before i go out, works
>> a treat.
>>
I'll second that:
Heater in.
Breakfast.
Warm car, clear windows.
The only delay is winding the extension lead back into the garage (which is full of Morris 1000 and other clutter).
At work overnight, a section of damp proof membrane sheeting over the windscreen makes things a lot easier in the morning. But it must be said there's little chance of vandalism or mischief here.
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>> the garage (which is full>> of Morris 1000 and other clutter).
>>
>>
Which Moggie have you got? I bought a 1960 convertible some 18 months ago.
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A strong solution of normal screenwash in a trigger spray might do the trick.
I've got one of those scrapers with the sleeve on it so you don't get cold or wet while scraping. Keep forgetting to add more screenwash to the water bottle so it is less likely to freeze. Handily the windscreen blower vents are directly under the wipers when they park. I leave the disklok on if I start the car. Not dumb enough to go back indoors though!
Thing is though. The thieving scum shouldn't be taking your property even if you have left the engine running. It isn't theirs, full stop. Just because something isn't nailed down doesn't mean it is ok to be stolen.
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Teabelly said:
>> Thing is though. The thieving scum shouldn't be taking your property even if you have
>> left the engine running. It isn't theirs, full stop. Just because something isn't nailed down
>> doesn't mean it is ok to be stolen.
Quite. 'Thieving scum', says it all really.
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Mines usually blocked in by 'er's. So i can fire it up and let it warm for me while I scrape the Note's fenestres.
It's getting really bad here, i scraped enough off both cars this morning to make a snowball the size of a golf ball ! Might be the same in the morning....notice a frisson of whiteness on the car tonight.
Ted
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It will probably be snow we are scraping off tomorrow not ice (.
Took me 20 minutes to get my Panda cleared this afternoon. I then had it again this evening.
Still no snow as of yet but the geordies and yorkshire folk have sent the clouds over so it is only a matter of time.
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Don't cars come with two sets of keys these days?
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>> Don't cars come with two sets of keys these days?
>>
Yes but you can't lock the car with the second key while the transponder in the first key is talking to the software gibbins and the engine is running.
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With "keyless go" you can leave it running and keep the key in your pocket so long as you don't wander too far away.
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>>With "keyless go" you can leave it running and keep the key in your pocket so long as you don't wander too far away.
With the Scenic once the car was started you could still drive it away even if you had the key in your pocket and the missus had dropped you off at the pub and drove away.
Not that it ever happened to me........
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>>
>> With the Scenic once the car was started you could still drive it away even
>> if you had the key in your pocket and the missus had dropped you off
>> at the pub and drove away.
Had a similar thing happen to me. The sudden realisation that you have the key and she has the car results in bouncing up and down on the verge bellowing "don't turn off the engine" into the distance whilst passers by cross the road and small children hide their heads in their mothers' aprons. I found.
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>> With "keyless go" you can leave it running and keep the key in your pocket
>> so long as you don't wander too far away.
I used to do this with the Scenic, until I discovered that it would happily continue to run when out of range of the key, and as long as the thief didn't mind an intermittent "KEY NOT DETECTED" error on the dash, and didn't switch the engine off, could have driven it hundreds of miles if they'd wished.
Had the engine cut out when the key was out of range, it would have been the perfect solution to safe, unattended winter defrosts.
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>> I used to do this with the Scenic, until I discovered that it would happily continue to run when out of range of the key, and as long as the thief didn't mind an intermittent "KEY NOT DETECTED" error on the dash, and didn't switch the engine off, could have driven it hundreds of miles if they'd wished.
Is it the case for all cars those have keyless entry??
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Nothing to do with defrosting,but I was out for a walk a few weeks ago,went past a car at the side of a road,no driver in but engine idling-came back about half hour later,car in same place-still idling.I was sorely tempted to get in and drive it round a corner.
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I left my old Peugeot idling for an hour yesterday just to keep it charged up and dry inside. Mind you it was hidden behind a mountain of snow that I'd shovelled off the road and driveway.
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One could bring both keys into play.
There's a risk someone might smash a window.
Thought I read somewhere that it might be an offence to leave an unattended vehicle on a public road with its engine running.
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>>Yes but you can't lock the car with the second key
I can, but only manually.
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I walked through a new estate- cul de sac - this am.. 4 cars unattended with engines running..
I could have driven home..
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I always used to pour a bucket of water of the windscreen, until the old landlady walked out of the door an hour later and discovered that she's not cut out to be one half of Torvill and Dean.
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Raking through my wife's "cupboard of cleanliness" last night I found a handy thing. It's like a stiff-ish wiper blade on the end of a 4' pole. Think it must be for....well I'm not sure what it's for really. Cleaning windows maybe? Anyway it's just the ticket for pushing snow off the cars and their windows. I must ask her.
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>>It's like a stiff-ish wiper blade on the end of a 4' pole.
>>... it's just the ticket for pushing snow off the cars and their windows.
>>
Thats a great inprovement on my spade ! I want one.
This one looks like a good version
www.amazon.co.uk/Rolson-61008-10-inch-Telescopic-Aluminium/dp/B003VIW42A/ref=sr_1_23?ie=UTF8&qid=1291112055&sr=8-23
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That's the thing Henry. Mine ( her's ) has a flat blade on one side and knobbles on the other. The whole head of it is sort of hard-ish rubber. I've become quite adept with it this morning. Should've remembered to change out of my slippers though...
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>> I've become quite adept with it this morning. Should've remembered to change out of my
>> slippers though...
You should have done what the guy does in the golf shop at the pitch and putt where I work. He ties plastic bags to his feet when he puts the flags out in muddy weather. Really looks the picture when I see him in the distance.
Still havn't asked him why he just doesn't keep a pair of wellies in the shop..
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>>Still havn't asked him why he just doesn't keep a pair of wellies in the shop..
>>
www.amazon.co.uk/Springyard-Classy-Quality-Galosh-Extra/dp/B004CFZW4S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1291118585&sr=8-1
Is what he really needs!
Galoshes is a word that is not often spoken in the land of Uggs :-)
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"This one looks like a good version"
I think with a few modifications you could use something like this to wash the car without getting out of bed. One for the Innovations catalogue I reckon.
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There's something similar in our house, Humph, probably bought years ago from one of those doorstep catalogue sellers we felt sorry for, and never - as with all such purchases - actually used. Shorter handle than yours but with a squirty cylinder built into it that I could possibly fill with neat screenwash. If only I had any idea where it might be.
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Madf you should have stolen one to order :). Maybe we should start a new cars to order thread. Actualy now it might get the website shut down :p.
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BBD may be on to something. My company provides on-site IT services in some out-of-the-way places, which involves a lot of travel, which gets expensive. Our solution to this is to breed a workforce of Mr Tickles, whose immensely long arms would enable them to fix a broken printer without leaving the depot.
But we needn't stop there. Our long-armed friends would be perfect for defrosting our clients' cars while they enjoy their breakfast inside. What do you think? The labs are hard at work and we expect a breakthrough any day now. Seize this opportunity to invest by submitting your stake to the usual Nigerian address.
};---)
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You could leave your car warming up indefinitely here, (low life free zone :-) ). Also there were two delivery vans stuck in the 12 to 18 inches of snow in the street when I went for a walk this morning, so no one will be going far.
Last edited by: Old Navy on Tue 30 Nov 10 at 12:24
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>> You could leave your car warming up indefinitely here, (low life free zone :-) ).
Where you live its a life free zone, low or otherwise.
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Most cars have two keys - why not lock the door with one key while the engine is running with the other?
Potential thieves will draw attention to themselves trying to gain access to the vehicle giving the owner an opportunity to intervene.
Alternatively why not leave the engine running with one of those locks on the steering wheel? Experienced thieves can normally get them of in a few minutes but not with the owner standing there.
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>> Madf you should have stolen one to order :). Maybe we should start a new
>> cars to order thread. Actualy now it might get the website shut down :p.
>>
Well Rattle you have a choice:
Vectra diesel c 58 reg
Mondeo estate diesel c 59
Mercedes 220cdi.. 59
And a petrol engined something.
Mostly muppets trying to warm up diesles by idling them....
PM me with your order. £2 cash please for any.. No papers..
Last edited by: madf on Tue 30 Nov 10 at 13:11
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>>>Mostly muppets trying to warm up diesles by idling them....
Why muppets?
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>> >>>Mostly muppets trying to warm up diesles by idling them....
>>
>> Why muppets?
>>
>>
If you need to ask.......
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>>If you need to ask.......
You've never driven a modern diesel... they do NOT warm up on idle. Too thermally efficient.
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>>>You've never driven a modern diesel... they do NOT warm up on idle.
Err my 11mth old C5Hdi does... took the chill right off the cabin this morning.
Err Mrs F's 4yr old C3 Hdi does too... took the chill off the cabin and defrosted the windows at 0630hrs today.
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Have they got PTC heaters ? My Ceed has and they work long before the engine gives any heat.
Last edited by: Old Navy on Tue 30 Nov 10 at 14:04
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Nope.... no special devices.
Remember I'm not claiming they get toasty like a 1966 Ford Anglia but they do warm up to a worthwhile degree.... otherwise my teen girls would never get in to go to school!
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"Remember I'm not claiming they get toasty like a 1966 Ford Anglia...."
The Ford Anglia would have taken as long to start as it does now to defrost the window of a modern car! (The equivalent Austin would have started straight away, as did my 1955 A50).
I saw and bought in Tesco a squeeze-bottle of 'Pre-icer' - never seen this before and it seems to work. It doesn't prevent ice forming but it's much easier to get off. No doubt there are other makes of this in Halfords etc.
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Mondeo heats up really quickly, Qashqai takes a wee bit longer but still warms up enough to de-frost itself while tea drinking.. But don't tell 'em Pike!
:-)
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they do NOT warm up on idle.
My Octavia 1.9 PDI does -
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As above, both of mine do too and my screen washers freeze up when I go fast and thaw out when I slow down and my aircon demists the windows even when it's cold. However, it has been proven to me beyond any reasonable doubt that this is all impossible. Am I possessed do you think?
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>> My Octavia 1.9 PDI does -
>>
Does your car have something like PTC heaters? My 1.9 VAG diesel would not heat up at tickover.
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It depends what you mean by warm up. My old Audi 80 TDi warmed up enough at tickover to defrost the windscreen (10min), which was good enough for me until I got in and drove off.
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Had to pop home in a Sprinter van this evening - last 6 miles were in 6" snow and ice - progress was so slow the engine actually cooled down to the point of losing most of the heater output. Fortunately heat returned when I got back on the (clear) motorway and got some speed up :)
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>> Had to pop home in a Sprinter van this evening - last 6 miles were
>> in 6" snow and ice - progress was so slow the engine actually cooled down
>> to the point of losing most of the heater output. Fortunately heat returned when I
>> got back on the (clear) motorway and got some speed up :)
I would have thought that in that situation, the thermostat would have closed up and retained engine core heat, keeping the heater warm. When I drive to work in cold frosty weather, my temperature gauge goes down when crossing a river, no doubt the air is sitting in a slight valley and is colder than the surrounding air. But my heater remains warm.
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>> >> My Octavia 1.9 PDI does -
>> >>
>> Does your car have something like PTC heaters? My 1.9 VAG diesel would not heat
>> up at tickover.
Don't think so. Took about 5 mins yesterday to clear screen
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>> Don't think so. Took about 5 mins yesterday to clear screen
>>
Either it was not very cold or that was fast for a diesel. More cars have PTC heaters these days, and it is not always in the spec. The diesel Ceed with climate control has them but there are many conditions that have to be met for them to operate. for example, engine revs over 700, ambient temperature <5C, coolant temperature <70C, Battery voltage over 12.5v, Blower motor on. They are fully automatic and you would not know they are fitted, apart from the relays and fuses.
Last edited by: Old Navy on Wed 1 Dec 10 at 10:07
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Checked on Briskskoda - NO PTC heater in Octavia though apparently those destined for Nordic countries are so equipped. Had no problems defrosting car so far in mornings - coldest temperature so far has been minus 5 C although most mornings around minus 1.
No frost this morning though. Have been lucky in Norwich, hardly any snow so far
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>> a modern diesel... they do NOT warm up on idle. Too thermally efficient.
Presumably then they consume no fuel at all when idling?
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>> Presumably then they consume no fuel at all when idling?
>>
Of course not FT, mine generates fuel when idling. :-)
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Defrost the car and its gone. Same old story - Bellboy
