Quick rant thread.

[Matth5 471]

1 hour ago, Olaf said:

Errr, given our current disarray with WoF testing, I'm not certain your trust/confidence is somewhat misplaced!

Equally, I'm stunned that having returned from one of the most polluted cities in the world more than 20 years ago, where we had annual emissions testing, that NZ has shied away from this.  We badly need laws protecting emissions control systems, and ensuring vehicles used on the roads conform to emmissions standards. 

I know about the issues with the WOF system and it's full of holes yes, but it's a hell of a lot better than no checks at all, I've seen how well that goes.

While we don't have emission testiong, WOF checks are supposed to fail vehicles for excessive smoke. But I still see some, presumably tradie vehicles, on the roads, I suspect dodgy/incompetent WOF inspections. Cops should be pulling them over.
Besides that I wouldn't be too concerned about the odd person with a decat exhaust (disclosure: I'm one of them) as that will only ever be done by a very tiny minority, it's not even worthwhile to do on most cars. 

[coop 261]

3 hours ago, Olaf said:

Errr, given our current disarray with WoF testing, I'm not certain your trust/confidence is somewhat misplaced!

Equally, I'm stunned that having returned from one of the most polluted cities in the world more than 20 years ago, where we had annual emissions testing, that NZ has shied away from this.  We badly need laws protecting emissions control systems, and ensuring vehicles used on the roads conform to emmissions standards. 

Why... What are we going to achieve by that? Our total population is smaller than the cities of most countries in the world. We are a drop in the ocean. To do this is only going to hurt the poor who don't have the means to repair a non conforming older vehicle that they rely on everyday day, or buy newer 'cleaner' vehicle. 

 

I'm surprised the current lot of out of touch bludgers in parliament haven't pushed for this, especially the Greens. I'm of the opinion that if they could, they'd be taxing cars relative to their engine size or claimed fuel use, and a RUC type system for all vehicles. Their hate for the motor vehicle and the freedom they give us is apparent. Hell, look at WCC and their anti car initiatives. I have a house in Island Bay and still spew every time I drive up the monstrosity that is The Parade. 

[Olaf 3314]

4 hours ago, coop said:

Why... What are we going to achieve by that? Our total population is smaller than the cities of most countries in the world. We are a drop in the ocean. To do this is only going to hurt the poor who don't have the means to repair a non conforming older vehicle that they rely on everyday day, or buy newer 'cleaner' vehicle. 

I don't buy that argument.  It functioned very well in a city with far greater contrast between rich and poor, and certainly greater poverty than anywhere in (essentially middle-class) New Zealand.  You can try and apply "poor people can't afford it" to any form of taxation; we're a welfare society so no doubt will be able to implement some scheme or benefit to help those who need it.  That it's difficult or costly is not an argument to avoid cleaning up our emissions act in our own country!   What troubles me is that without any form of positive encouragement, people aren't bothering to do the basics like change plugs and air filter.

4 hours ago, coop said:

Hell, look at WCC and their anti car initiatives. I have a house in Island Bay and still spew every time I drive up the monstrosity that is The Parade. 

I agree.  It's still a disaster zone; you have my sympathies.  We now look back at the open homes we attended (in a very nice community) when we were buying, as a lucky escape.  Who could've forseen this madness? 

 

[gjm 3258]

Most of the arguments about cars, old cars, emissions, car use and so on could be fixed... If NZ had anything vaguely approaching a public transport system. The Greens know this, but cannot see beyond their policies to a solution.
Think about it. If you want to get from Auckland to Wellington, there are two options. Car, or plane. Or coaches (with an unknown service history). Try going across to Hawkes Bay or Taranaki and your options reduce.
NZ had a half-decent train service until around 1985... The 'incipient' Hamilton-Auckland passenger service is being touted as almost revelatory, yet anyone can see the disused stations along the line. The 'issues' being discussed are presented as huge and all-but insurmountable, yet it did work. Quit finding problems. Start finding answers. (The leader of the National Party could learn a lot from that.)
The frankly ludicrous Auckland Airport-CBD rail link is an exercise in f**kwittery that I've not seen in a long, long time. What idiot thought it'd be a good idea to build a brand new line, over significant gradients, along existing roads through already built-up and out residential areas??? Build it into Manukau, connect south to Hamilton, and you've got a cheaper, easier, faster link to the country. Of course, many Aucklanders forget there's anything south of the Bombays.

Transport in NZ (North Island) is truly not a difficult problem to solve. Stop resurfacing roads with pathetic excuses for techniques. Sort the rail lines. Instigate *service* rather than penny pinching and profiteering.
The South Island is a more complex matter. The Kiwi insistence on battling adversity means access to remote areas is essential, but use of any service would, in some cases, be on an almost ad hoc basis. Roading around Kaikoura is evidence of the difficulties faced, but it's not an isolated problem.

[coop 261]

The difference between now and the 1980s and before is that our roads, our cars and independence have improved greatly. 

I don’t think rail will ever come back as a viable freight or passenger service (outside of the cities) for the fact we have such a small spread out population over difficult topography, and no community is self sistanable like decades gone by. Ie time sensitive pre packaged salads from Mangere are on the shelves in Invercargill and berries from Timaru are sold in Tauranga etc. 

the Hamilton - Auckland passenger rail service is a joke and the media are too scared to scrutinise. 90mins Hamilton to Papakura. Have they done any reasearch as to where Hamilton commuters work? My bet would be majority in the airport and East Tamaki areas. Requiring a connecting bus or connecting train and bus. If going to eaither of those areas, or the CBD, one is looking at a 2 hour minimum commute plus the travel time to the Hamilton station and waiting around for the train... 5 hours daily commute?!?! 

And to top it off the service is the same price Porirua to Wellington train so a huge waste of money .

 

olaf - to be honest I don’t think the Island Bay cycleway has affected house prices much or at all. It is still one of the more desirable suburbs in Wgtn. Luckily all houses on that stretch of road have ample off street parking. No argument that it has become more dangerous for every road user including cyclists, especially with cars entering and exiting a driveway. 

Im guessing you haven’t seen what they have planned for Berhampore and Newton? 

Adelaide Rd, Russel Tce, Riddiford St, Waripori St cycleway will see to loose 600 car parks! 

[lord_jagganath 421]

god damned Pohutukawa and their feckin pollen. Exposure allergies suck. 

[andrewm 236]

VTNZ failed me on my WOF as cert plate for adjustable suspension incorrectly states wheels as 18x8 F and 18x8.5 R when both are 8.5 wide.

Think because i run 245 front and 265 rear the cert guy got it wrong but that was two years ago, goodluck to me convincing him that he made a mistake and not that I changed wheels.

Also took VTNZ 4 WOF’s to notice....

 

 

[zero 1162]

16 minutes ago, andrewm said:

VTNZ failed me on my WOF as cert plate for adjustable suspension incorrectly states wheels as 18x8 F and 18x8.5 R when both are 8.5 wide.

Think because i run 245 front and 265 rear the cert guy got it wrong but that was two years ago, goodluck to me convincing him that he made a mistake and not that I changed wheels.

Also took VTNZ 4 WOF’s to notice....

 

 

Time to get a pair of crappy 18x8s just so you pass wof lol.

[M3AN 4016]

23 minutes ago, andrewm said:

VTNZ failed me on my WOF as cert plate for adjustable suspension incorrectly states wheels as 18x8 F and 18x8.5 R when both are 8.5 wide.

That's a good example of where our system totally fails, in many cases we're looking at the wrong thing. 

On 12/30/2018 at 12:50 PM, gjm said:

...No rego and no cert makes it uneconomic.

Okay, gotca. But I'd say the rego is irrelevant in this case. If a car needs a cert it needs a cert, period. Rego, WoF whatever, it needs a cert.

Anyone selling an uncertified car for road use without disclosing the compliance requirements is dodgy, period. If it could have been certified they would have certified it. Their reputation is dust, walk away.

[andrewm 236]

50 minutes ago, zero said:

Time to get a pair of crappy 18x8s just so you pass wof lol.

This is likely what i'll do while I try get cert plate sorted, dont think 28 days for a recheck is long enough even if it goes well.

New Rants

- the guy at beaurepairs that wanted two new 255 width tires but only prepared to spend $80 each. 

- The lower control arm on my C63's are knackered and they are exclusive to the c63 so they are ~$500 USD each, ... each. They are so remarkably similar to the upper control arms at $86 each....

[Matth5 471]

1 hour ago, andrewm said:

VTNZ failed me on my WOF as cert plate for adjustable suspension incorrectly states wheels as 18x8 F and 18x8.5 R when both are 8.5 wide.

Think because i run 245 front and 265 rear the cert guy got it wrong but that was two years ago, goodluck to me convincing him that he made a mistake and not that I changed wheels.

Also took VTNZ 4 WOF’s to notice....

 

 

You can't get away saying they're OE sizes (if they are)?

My car had it's standard wheels at time of cert so the plate only says 'OE' for wheels. Even though I have wider aftermarket wheels now, it has passed its WOFs. Or you could just go somewhee else, probably a good chance it'll get missed or they won't fail on it (surely some WOF guys will have some discretion?). 

[andrewm 236]

7 minutes ago, Matth5 said:

You can't get away saying they're OE sizes (if they are)?

My car had it's standard wheels at time of cert so the plate only says 'OE' for wheels. Even though I have wider aftermarket wheels now, it has passed its WOFs. Or you could just go somewhee else, probably a good chance it'll get missed or they won't fail on it (surely some WOF guys will have some discretion?). 

I had inquired about this with the certifier but he insisted that wheel sizes needed to be listed as he was certifying a suspension system.

I then attempted to start a stupid argument about why then were all the other components not listed, roll bar thickness, spring thickness, number of coils, dampening settings etc. While I was waiting for some mediocre reasoning like 'because wheels are easy to change' or ' unsprung mass blah blah' I think he realised that I am a level 99 sarcastic prick and didnt even try - 'those are the rules, I didnt make them' was the best I could get out of him.

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

Dynatron alarms and their funny antics..

Got one in my wrx that now will only activate or deactivate after you  have opened a door. And the immobiliser will now kill the engine after 5 secs of closing the door.

[E30 325i Rag-Top 2956]

Aftermarket alarms are like women, they all go through a mental stage at some point!

It's only when and for how long that varies.

[Driftit 2078]

Take it out.  Install a nice hidden kill switch.

Brendan at Hope Hickman Auto Elec in Grey Lynn might be able to make it behave for you though.

Edited February 13, 2019 by Driftit

[Jacko 2153]

/RANT

 

People who do additions to their houses without council consent.

People who build houses and dont get them surveyed and therefore dont get a title.

People who build houses that leak.

People who do the above and expect to sell them and make money on their "investments"

Councils who dish out R.V with a random number generator x10 

 

/ENDRANT

 

Seriously, there is no housing crisis in Auckland. There are heaps of houses for sale, its just they're either a regulatory clusterfudge or people are wanting stupid amounts of money for them (as thats what happened in the past), or both. Councils are half the problem in both regards. 

 

 

[_ethrty-Andy_ 2132]

Councils are all of the problem, and they have got worse since property values have gone up. they just treat home owners like cash cows, endlessly increasing rates, charging someone to put on a deck or build a garage $20k plus in costs before the first sod is turned. Want a new build, cool, $90k in costs. 

And instead of maintaining the roads berms parks beaches, they go and do stupid vanity projects or solve problems that dont exist.

Only reason im not running in this years council elections is because i no longer live in new zealand, sick of this tax anyone that tries to do something with thier life to hand out to either those that cant be bothered, or some slush fund for politicians so the cycle continues.

[Young Thrash Driver 1020]

Don't worry. Phil Twyford has it sussed....

[Jacko 2153]

27 minutes ago, Young Thrash Driver said:

Don't worry. Phil Twyford has it sussed....

The only thing Phils achieved is bumped up the price of house we just sold, as it was an actual real physical house for the same price as a kiwibuilt house  

Unfortunately, due to the above, now we have no house in 3 weeks, for wife, 3 year old, and 50 kg dog (and my business) 

[Breaker 980]

We’ve been waiting to move into our new place that was finished in October that we bought in December but council haven’t completed the 224c yet. Council are definitely the problem. In the mean time the poor builder pays the interest on his ‘investment ‘ just driving up the prices, bloody ridiculous 

[richard 384]

14 hours ago, _ethrty-Andy_ said:

Councils are all of the problem, and they have got worse since property values have gone up. they just treat home owners like cash cows, endlessly increasing rates, charging someone to put on a deck or build a garage $20k plus in costs before the first sod is turned. Want a new build, cool, $90k in costs. 

And instead of maintaining the roads berms parks beaches, they go and do stupid vanity projects or solve problems that dont exist.

Only reason im not running in this years council elections is because i no longer live in new zealand, sick of this tax anyone that tries to do something with thier life to hand out to either those that cant be bothered, or some slush fund for politicians so the cycle continues.

and don't forget the 30kmh zones to over 700km of roading coming our way soon.(Auckland)

make sure you vote this year and end this nightmare

[Jacko 2153]

2 hours ago, richard said:

and don't forget the 30kmh zones to over 700km of roading coming our way soon.(Auckland)

make sure you vote this year and end this nightmare

Have been following Craig Lord, bit popularist and I havent seen any policies.. but he's an engineer and is pro-motorsport (and sanity)  https://www.craiglord.nz/

Edited March 8, 2019 by Jacko

[Young Thrash Driver 1020]

The 30km/h thing is just pissing into the wind, all that gets you is yellow knees. We need skill based driver licensing, not this lowest common denominator rubbish (and if that means I struggle to retain my own license, fine- saucer for the gander and all that).

[NZ BMW 368]

I would be happy to even be able to exceed 30km an hour in large parts of the CBD! I don’t think people will notice much difference. 

[richard 384]

Its not just the CBD

EG. Tamaki Dr proposed speed limit, 10kmh, slower than a lime scooter.