£618 of PC hardware.

Ouch.

All my apps + Windows = 74GB.

I've got a 256GB one in my laptop where it's the only HDD, but 128 should be enough.

I only really play Supreme Commander on my PC atm where the 4830 is more than powerful enough - a new GPU would be nice but I don't need one yet.

Would be nice to have quadruple the CPU power for VM's & coding & stuff.

It looks like my OS needs re-installing, so now is a good time for a quick upgrade.

Currently thinking...

2x2TB 7200.14 HDD's (maybe even 3x or 3TB drives)
i5 or i7 ivy bridge (I think - my friend has a 3770k and it's quick!)
Not sure on the motherboard (Gigabyte G77-D3H seems ok)
128GB SSD (Something like the Samsung 830)

Then keeping my existing ATi 4830, PSU, X-Fi and case. And running 7 until my copy of 8 turns up.

Haven't kept up with desktop CPU's for a while, what are the recommendations?

In Apple's defence, a lot of Android tablet apps are just scaled up phone apps - Facebook is the worst. On iPad it makes proper use of all the space, whereas the Android version is just the phone one but... bigger.

Quote from CheerioDM :

16 months driving ban? Is that the usual penalty?

The UK is very harsh on drink-driving (and sorry Dan - rightly so)

Quote from Scrabby :

Stooreetoo dorifto?

Not this time.

Quote from Tinytacohead :

And we ALL know how fun door panels.. AREN'T!! :gnasher:

I had to swap a door lock solenoid in my car the other the day (wouldn't remote unlock), absolute **** to get to... this is how my arm looked by the end of it.



After all that work, it locked / unlocked fine. But the door didn't open... And of course the door card is held in with several screws and clips, some of which aren't accessible with the door closed.

Cue prying the door card off and contorting my arm and covering it in bruises trying to get it open...



I *think* i've fixed it now but I was so close to getting the petrol and matches! Especially when I had to drive round climbing in from the passenger side...

I need 4 seats, but I don't neccessarily need 4 doors. Bit annoyed with my car having no boot space so (stupidly large sub not helping matters!) a "wagon" is actually sort of attractive.

Quote from Töki (HUN) :

I would go for a coupe if you don't need space. I got myself a touring and I love it (20d though).

I dont need the space, but it could come in handy. The only problem is coupe's are several £k more than than the other models.

I think my next car is going to be a facelift E46 330d - not sure on coupe vs saloon vs estate.

Opinions?

Quote from E.Reiljans :

New unlocked Playbook - $260
Nexus 7 - $249
so how exactly is Playbook better at pricing?
Also, it's cheap because it's pretty much dead.

In the UK a Nexus 7 is £199 and a 64GB Playbook is £129.

When someone comes into work looking for a tablet for ~£100, they can either get some godawful Archos tablet or the Playbook... I know which one I'd chose.

The Playbook is good for the price (it blows all Android tablets out of the water and that price point).

IME the iPad 3 is the best tablet on the market at the moment, because the UI is just so much better & slicker and all the apps are actually designed for a large screen (rather than a scaled phone app).

Not keen on the Nexus 7 personally, however for me a 7" tablet is more useful than a 10" one (I can put a 7" tablet in my pocket - I have to carry a 13" laptop with me anyway so a 10" tablet isn't really much more portable).

Having said that, I still haven't really found a tablet I've used enough to justify keeping it

Quote from logitekg25 :

Shifts well, quiet engine, no leaks, cold AC, always maintained well, but at this point I'd rather sell it someone who doesn't mind a little wrenching.

Something sounds really weird about that...

Bearing in mind car prices differ all over the world, how is the pricing compared to other cars?

Quote from logitekg25 :

i need opinions:

i am in the market for an e39 540i, and there are none affordable in good condition typically in my area. (mostly rusted to sh1te).

i live in Massachusetts and am interested in a car from Maryland. This is about an 8 hour drive one way; the guy is willing to meet me half way.

now why this one? 145k miles, service records since new, good owner, exactly what im looking for, maintained, no rust, etc.

he is asking $4000 firm. he is willing to pay to put it on a lift wherever we meet to prove to me that the car is almost perfect. (needs a passenger side regulator which he has, abs module rebuild for about $150, and the wipers dont work which is about $150 for a used motor)

i find this a phenomenal deal, even for the day trip, but my dad finds it too far, and not a good enough deal to travel that far.

would you do it for a clean example of what you will be driving for the next few years?

EDIT: also throwing in sports springs and shocks from a dinan 540 he used to have

I drove 200 miles to pick my car up, but I had an independent inspection done before I'd seen it - so I knew it was the spec I wanted and the car was ok so I could just throw him the cash and drive home.

Slightly weird he's offering to drive half way when you could just say "sorry, don't want the car"...

Quote from Crashgate3 :

Where the hell is an 18 year old getting £800 insurance in the UK? I'm 33 and married with kids, and mine is £900 with 2 years no-claims.

This years for me was £697 (aged 20 when I took it out). It's all about where you live (and in the nicest possible way - I think rural Suffolk is a "safer" bet than Manchester!)

Plus I found that a lot of insurers are very cheap... when your on a provisional. My insurance doubled (£1k -> £2k) when I passed my test!

Quote from lukelfs :

Otherwise try a car that no young person would drive

Story of my life.

Quote from ColeusRattus :

Got myself a new ride, and a "famous" one to boot. Now I too can pretend to be a star in a reasonably priced car!

Allthough it's not as sporty as the brown top gear car, as it's only the 90 bhp common rail diesel version of the CeeApostropheD.

But then, I don't need a car that's quick, but one that's economical. As I start to study again next month, I'll have to commute 180 kilometers (so 360 km per trip) to the university twice a week for the next three years. So using little fuel of a cheaper variety (as diesel's not as heavily taxed here) makes me save teh monies!



The alloy wheels came with it, as did a set of winter tyres on steel wheels, which is nice.

Also, as I both need the boot to haul stuff I need for work (as I work in youth care, that would be parasols, bikes, skis etc. for valuable spare time activities :P), and to offer comfortable backseat space for my carpool fellows, it's the "Sporty Wagon" and not the hatchback.




There's a medium sized scrape on the rear bumper, but I don't mind that, as it's all plastic underneath the paint, so no risk of rusting.

In the background is my 55 bhp Polo that will be the commuting car for my GF from now on.

And to any of you who pity me on my economical boxes: Not only are they dirt cheap to run, it's also more fun to drive a slow car quickly than to drive a quick car slowly!

My Dad has a 2010 model. It's not exactly "sporty" or "exciting", but for a far-east manufacturer, it's a fairly nice place to be and drives fairly well too!

I really should do a trackday at some point... just too scared i'll bend it

Custom braided goodness

Quote from KiRmelius :

Why didn't you cut it to pieces and sold it as scrap metal?

I sold all the good bits, then I sold the shell to a recycling company...

Quote from el pibe :

what did you do with it?

Broke it for spares

Made quite a few £ and got some handy spares for my car

Quote from Jakg :

Arrived today...

And left today...

Quote from danthebangerboy :

Beema fans, if you owned an e46 320d 9as i do) and wanted something with a bit more go, and were offered a mint condition e36 325i coupe as a swap, would you do it?

this is the car that im thinking of swapping mine for...




I think i probably will do it, but just wondered if anyone had any opinions on if its a good idea or not.

Straight swap or cash your way?

I know I certainly wouldn't want to swap to an older, less valuable, less fuel efficient car atm.

Quote from breadfan :

Here's a layman's opinion:
You can get the Gallardo kind of power from a 3 litre engine. F1 cars have around 3 litres I think and have even more power if I'm not mistaken.

F1 cars have got ~900-1000 HP from a 1.5 turbo engine, however reliability is always a concern (i.e. they would last a single race). Production wise, all I can think of was the FQ4000 - but this *had* to be run on 99RON fuel and had a service interval every 7,500 miles.

However, with big enough turbos it's possible to get pretty much any power from any engine (reliability aside).

Quote from Scrabby :

That blue does look good though

Just a serious question. Do you have a menu in your rear view mirror? Looks like buttons on the right side..

It's a monitor connected to my rear view camera

http://youtu.be/XNMsw6nl3xM?hd=1

Quote from G!NhO :

But shouldn't the piece above your radio be painted also?

It could do, but the OE finish is some of it silver, and some if it black (the stereo surround and AC panel are black from the factory).

I like the "highlight" approach.