Your fleet running reports

[Sundayjumper]

Typically how much is a steering wheel retrim ? Mine could do with it too but it’s not a priority for now.

[John]

My last one was £150, that was a fairly simple retrim being just a thicker rim and perforated leather.

[Jimmy Choo]

It takes *ages* to dry out properly. AGES. There's a pretty thick layer of foam under the carpet and it'll be soaked right through. Make the most of the decent weather while it lasts and leave the car open when you can. Lift the carpet if you can and stick towels in to draw the moisture.

I got my 7 at the very tail end of December when simply airing it a lot wasn't an option. I was commuting an hour+ each way to a new job and even running the heater as hot as I could bear and leaving a dehumidifier in there overnight it must have taken a month to fully dry out.

Sorry

Update: 4 litres of water emptied out of the dehumidifier so far. The carpets are now damp, not soggy and no longer squidge.

[DeskJockey]

Zoe has a fresh MOT, nothing of note. It continues to do what it does well.

Do need a thorough clean and my wife kerbed the near-side front quite badly a few weeks ago, so will get it sorted.

Annoyingly the lower window trim rubbers on all four doors is lifting. It appears to be a case of TADTS, but I might see about replacement costs.

[Beany]

Car dropped off for MOT, and what with work being busy I've been neglecting it a bit, so not expecting to sail through with flying colours etc

[Beany]

Corroded brake lines at the front and the usual laundry list of advisories that I've not got around to fixing - can't argue with that. Will see when they can fit me in I guess.

[scotta]

I was taking the "Outlet" to mean the exhaust side. Not sure though.

Take them both out, swap them over, see if the error moves to the inlet ?

Did this. Error followed from outlet to inlet. Ordered a pair from your link.

[scotta]

In other news I’ve borrowed a ramp and painted the subframe with some POR-15.

[integrale_evo]

Picked up a pair of genuine bmw roof bars for the x5, both keys + fitting tool and don’t look like they’ve ever been fitted. £40 off Facebook

[DeskJockey]

Will have a towbar fitted to the Galaxy for mostly bike carrier duties (need to buy one of them too). Any recommendations?

Has rear parking sensors, so it appears that a detachable one is the thing to have, but the guidance seems mixed.

As for a bike carrier what do you use? Can't get a five bike one that looks like it'll work, but for four there are quite a few options.

[Sundayjumper]

Towbars - Westfalia are top IMO, it's what I have on on the Cayenne and I had the same on the Touareg.

OTOH, I bought a fixed Umbra towbar for the Vito and was pleasantly surprised how good it was for the money. I've no experience of their removable ones though.

Bike carriers, more than one or two on a tow bar gives me the willies, they stick out so far, it feels wrong having that mass hanging off a single point.

[Mito Man]

Can there be such a thing as a shit towbar? You’d hear about it on the news quite fast if one snapped and a caravan/trailer went flying across the road

[integrale_evo]

I’m sure they’re all ‘fine’ but having looked quite extensively at x5 ones there’s definitely a difference in the quality of bracketry and construction between them.

Bike carriers always look dodgy, but I’d have thought the load of a few bikes would be tiny compared to what it might get from a reasonable trailer / caravan. It’s more often the state of the rear suspension which looks more concerning as if there’s 4 bikes on the back there’s usually a car full of people and a boot full of luggage too!

[Jobbo]

The way the bar is mounted is much nicer looking on the more OEM tow bars. Westfalia are OEM for many German makes.

[Rich B]

Picked up a pair of genuine bmw roof bars for the x5, both keys + fitting tool and don’t look like they’ve ever been fitted. £40 off Facebook

yeah, I've always bought mine off Facebook, my M2 ones were unopened with all the single use stick on protectors and the thread clearers all there despite being described as used! They were very cheap, but more than £40!

[V8Granite]

Will have a towbar fitted to the Galaxy for mostly bike carrier duties (need to buy one of them too). Any recommendations?

Has rear parking sensors, so it appears that a detachable one is the thing to have, but the guidance seems mixed.

As for a bike carrier what do you use? Can't get a five bike one that looks like it'll work, but for four there are quite a few options.

I have a swan neck on the ML which carries a Bak Rack and a 60 kg tent or a bike rack which holds 4 bikes.

After looking at a Thule one I went and bought a Halfords one. It was sturdier, a little more fiddly to set up for 4 different sized bikes but very very stable and quality wise it’s holding up amazingly well. We strap all 4 bikes on, then strap the front pair and rear pair together.



All I do prep wise is de-grease the tow ball before I fit it.

Dave!

[DeskJockey]

Cheers all!

[scotta]

Towbars - Westfalia are top IMO, it's what I have on on the Cayenne and I had the same on the Touareg.

OTOH, I bought a fixed Umbra towbar for the Vito and was pleasantly surprised how good it was for the money. I've no experience of their removable ones though.

Bike carriers, more than one or two on a tow bar gives me the willies, they stick out so far, it feels wrong having that mass hanging off a single point.

We borrowed my mates carrier when i had the X5. Day trip to holy island with the bikes. I was very surprised with how solid they were on the towbar.

x5 Capture.JPG (109.93 KiB) Viewed 1818 times

[integrale_evo]

How do they actually work? I mean, the tow bar is a ball, so how do the carriers not pivot and swing about?

[V8Granite]

The Halfords one is a 4 piece cone, a bit like a dremel clamp. You then open it up and slide it over the ball, draw them up into the cup which tightens onto the ball. This cup also has a pinch bolt which I tighten to roughly 60nm ish.

I can stand on it at 135kg and it doesn’t move.

Dave!