slim_boy_fat
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- 29,532
- Location
- Scottish Highlands
Today I girded my loins and determined to swap over from my Winter wheels onto my alloys with Summer tyres fitted. Decent enough day and I was feeling up to the job which, to be honest, I've been putting off through a combination not feeling particularly great, laziness and general lassitude.
.
So, with a determined mien and the help of a good neighbour as 'apprentice' [maintaining social distancing, naturally
] I first set about the rear o/s wheel which has had a slow puncture for a week or two and which I've been inflating as needed. Nuts slackened, jack in and wheel removed. First thing in my face is a broken spring 
, that's three between my neighbours on either side and me....what are the odds.....
, eh?
I know that long periods of not using the car makes this more likely, and with lockdown I doubt mine has been used, except going to the surgery/chemist locally a couple of times. The springs are 6.5 years old [both were found to be broken at MOT time], but weren't BMW ones as I got the local garage to do the job and they used motor factors as suppliers.
Oh, well, nothing to be done today but put the summer rubber on and button the job up. Luckily, the spring is broken right at the last 'pigtail' turn, so there's no chance of a broken end damaging the tyre. All sorted and went to lock the car.......nope! Wouldn't lock on the fob so I had to lock using the key as the battery is doing a great impression of one of these....
The battery will be OK, it's just run down over these weeks of lock-down inactivity, and luckily I have both a spare, fully charged BMW one and a Ring charger which has the 'Start' function - so I'm spoiled for choice by way of getting her fired up. Guess what life holds in store for me tomorrow........
. The up side is the weather forecast is looking good. Every cloud and all that.....
Might have to pop into The Welder's Arms later for a consolation libation later.... 
.So, with a determined mien and the help of a good neighbour as 'apprentice' [maintaining social distancing, naturally
] I first set about the rear o/s wheel which has had a slow puncture for a week or two and which I've been inflating as needed. Nuts slackened, jack in and wheel removed. First thing in my face is a broken spring , that's three between my neighbours on either side and me....what are the odds....., eh? I know that long periods of not using the car makes this more likely, and with lockdown I doubt mine has been used, except going to the surgery/chemist locally a couple of times. The springs are 6.5 years old [both were found to be broken at MOT time], but weren't BMW ones as I got the local garage to do the job and they used motor factors as suppliers.
Oh, well, nothing to be done today but put the summer rubber on and button the job up. Luckily, the spring is broken right at the last 'pigtail' turn, so there's no chance of a broken end damaging the tyre. All sorted and went to lock the car.......nope! Wouldn't lock on the fob so I had to lock using the key as the battery is doing a great impression of one of these....
The battery will be OK, it's just run down over these weeks of lock-down inactivity, and luckily I have both a spare, fully charged BMW one and a Ring charger which has the 'Start' function - so I'm spoiled for choice by way of getting her fired up. Guess what life holds in store for me tomorrow........
. The up side is the weather forecast is looking good. Every cloud and all that.....Might have to pop into The Welder's Arms later for a consolation libation later....
