Kilkenny Motor Club – Vintage Car Club, Kilkenny, Ireland

TIPP RALLY 2011

November 1st, 2010

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MISCELLANEOUS VEHICLES ROAD TAX

October 30th, 2010

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THE LAST TRUE RILEY

October 28th, 2010

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The story of three disaster’s, the Riley Two point Six, the Riley Pathfinder and Gerald Palmer.

The Riley Two-point Six, succeeded the Riley Pathfinder in 1957, it is a very mixed story because the Pathfinder was a true Nuffield Product, whereas the Two point six was in truth a BMC badged model.

In truth there was not a lot of difference between the two Riley’s, the main one being Nuffield’s Riley engine was dropped in favour of BMC’s “C” Series straight six of 2639cc and produced 101bhp, the other difference was that the grill was fixed on the later model, on the Pathfinder it went up with the bonnet.

Both cars had duo tone and mono tone paint jobs, they looked very stylish to say the least, but that didn’t help sell the Two point six, the total production figure for two years was 2000 cars.

It must be pointed out that the Riley and the Wolseley 6/90 series three were identical except for the badge and minor detail to the interior.

Both the cars were so bad that Leonard Lord sacked the designer one Gerald Palmer, now Gerald had been responsible for the Jowett Javelin in 1946 and as a result was offered the job of chief designer for the MG, Riley and Wolseley in 1949, obviously a man of great talent Gerald was snapped up by Vauxhall, sad as it may be he joined the team designing the Viva, he retired from the industry in 1972.

Those who came in contact with him say he was courteous and very thoughtful, he was apparently well liked, it wasn’t until his auto biography was being written it became obvious he had been eclipsed in the public eye by Alex Issigonis, though the implications of that is that Gerald Palmer
May well have been head and shoulder above, but that is conjecture.

The Riley Pathfinder, well known for it’s obsession of not actually going where the driver expected it to, so much so it was nicknamed the Ditchfinder, well that is about as good a start for any car, but it wasn’t all bad as we shall see.

The last true Nuffield designed Riley with a genuine Riley engine, the twin cam Big 4 with twin SU’s, now the car looked like a unitary bodied car, it wasn’t it had a separate steel chassis, at the back was coil springs with a pan hard rod which was a lot of the Pathfinder’s problem, at the end they actually changed to a leaf spring rear, the front had torsion bar independent system.

Braking was servo assisted drums 12inch, you could just about manage 100mph with a 0-60 time of 16.8, naturally a big car used large amount of fuel round about 20 to the gallon, there was a 4 speed manual box or later on a three speed auto.

Now the Pathfinder was a bit quirky in the gearbox area as the gear lever was stuck down on the right by the driver’s door, just the right place for it to disappear up ones trouser leg, I gather quite a few gentlemen actually fell out of the Riley very unceremoniously. Like me you are no doubt sitting there thinking what happened with Left Hand Drive cars, well from what I could gather the gear lever ended up in the centre, where it should have been in the first place. Now some of you might be Wolseley fans and I have a picture of a Wolseley 6/90 with a right hand gear change, it certainly wasn’t the norm.

The steering was cam and roller type which made it under steer to say the least. Apart from that it was a nice proportioned car and with the usual Riley elegance inside.

I would think it would be an asset to anyone’s collection of Classics, they made 5152 before it was withdrawn and the dreaded BMC badged clones arrived,

Interestingly enough the Wolseley is in very short supply according to an article there are only two known examples left which are road worthy, which is a great shame.

Right have a happy holiday and don’t forget the tractor raffle see you soon regards Ted

GOOD LUCK DANESFORT

October 28th, 2010

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THE RESULT OF THE “FIELD OF DREAMS” COMPETITION IS FRIDAY NIGHT ON THE “LATE LATE SHOW”

GAA LINGO DICTIONARY

1. Pull Thistle high – Turn your hurley side ways aim for Knee Cap and give it every pound of your body weight. – Result : Your opponent is lying flat on the ground and all you hear from the bank of supporters is PULL HARD HARD HARD!!!!!!!!!

2. Up his hole – Instruction from coach, selectors, team mates, their wives, girlfriends and children to remain in extremely close proximity to your direct opponent for the entire duration of the sporting contest.

3. An allmercyful Flake – Usually in the back of calf. Hit him An allmercyful Flake.

4. A Shemozzle – A Melee, normally around the Square.

5. Holly – eg “I gave it holly” – I put a fair bit of effort into it

6. Bollix – Pat Spillane or any Meath players or supporters

7. Mighty – very good

8. Hames – a right shite – eg. “he made a hames of that clearance”

9. Timber – intimidation of a hurling opponent – eg. “show him some timber”!

10. Lamp – a good thump – eg. “I swung for the sliotar, missed by 3 feet and lamped their fullback”

11. A Crowd – A gathering of people that watch a match and hope for random acts of violence eg. “that crowd from Meath are a right shower of shites”

12. Schkelp – To remove living tissue in the absence of surgical procedures eg – “That shite from Tipp took a schkelp out of my leg”

13. Hatchet Man – Mountainy type, uses hunter/gatherer instincts.

14. Bullin’ – angry – eg “the centre half back was bullin’ after I lamped him”

15. Bull thick – very angry – eg “the centre half back was bull thick when I lamped him again”

16. Joult – a push – eg “I gave him a joult and he has to wear a neck brace for two weeks”

17. The Comm-a-teeee – Local GAA bullshitters in general

18. Bushted – an undefined soreness eg. “Jayz me arm is bushted”

19. The Bomber – a very popular nickname for a fat, hairy GAA player

20. A hang sangwidge – consumed with tay on the sides of roads after matches in Croker or Thurles, usually contains half a pound of butter.

21. Rake – A great amount of anything, usually pints of Guinness the night before an important match

22. Namajaysus – What was that for, referee?

23. Ya-bollix-ya – Corner back’s formal recognition of a score by his opponent

24. Leh-it-in-ta-fuck-would-ya – Full forward’s appeal to a midfielder for a more timely delivery of the pass

25. Mullocker – untidy or awkward player released for matches

26. Burst the Bollix – Instruction to tackle your player.

27. Row – Disagreement involving four or more players

28. Massive Row – Disagreement involving both teams, including goalies, substitutes and supporters jumping fences

29. Running Row – A massive row that continues out in the parking area and or dressing room areas usually resolved by the Gardai.

NEW WEB SITE

October 27th, 2010

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www.driveon.ie

This site was set up to provide Irish motoring enthuasists with all the latest news and views from Ireland and around the world, aswell as videos, pictures and forums to allow users to get in contact with each other.

We want to provide impartial unbiased advise and information to our readers and members and hope to cover all aspects of the motor world be it, new car reviews, technology, products and services.

By doing this we hope motoring fans aswell as professionals in the motoring industry will use this site as a tool to find out the latest developments in the motoring world.

Driveon.ie is 100% Irish and was set up by Brian Roche. Brian is from Kilkenny City and has been working in the motor industry professionally for the last 7 years but has always had an interest in cars and everything that goes with the industry since childhood. His aim is to provide a one stop shop for everything to do with the motoring world from the serious aspects to the not so serious.

Thanks for taking the time to visit our site,

www.driveon.ie or just click driveon.ie on our “links” list

E-mark tyres

October 27th, 2010

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An e-mark confirms that the tyre meets the minimum agreed standard in relation to its dimensions, load and speed rating. Find out why it is important to have e-marked tyres.

E-mark

It is a requirement throughout the EU that motor vehicles have e-marked tyres. E-marking applies to both new and retreaded tyres. An e-mark confirms that the tyre meets the minimum EU or International (UNECE) standard in relation to its dimensions, load and speed rating.

What is an e-mark

The ‘E’ mark consists of an ‘E’ or ‘e’ followed by a number included in a circle or a rectangle. The number denotes the government’ which granted the approval. The number outside the circle or rectangle is the number of the type approval certificate issued for the tyre size and type.

Apart from tyres other replacement component parts which must be e-marked include exhaust silencers, catalytic convertors and brake pads

Why is it important to have e-marked tyres

An e-marked tyre will have been tested to ensure that the tyre has adequate tread depth and does not exhibit tread and ply separation when performing at its maximum design weight and speed.

Tyres which are not e-marked will not meet the required minimum EU or international standard. They are likely to perform less well and given the uncertainty over the quality of manufacture could be at risk of sudden and / or serious deterioration endangering both the occupants of the vehicle and other road users. For example, a tyre with tread or ply separation could be at risk of having a “blow-out” or sudden tyre deflation during driving which would cause the driver to lose control of their vehicle.

Roadworthiness check of e-mark tyres

Checking of e-marked tyres as part of the roadworthiness test is common through the EU. Since 1st April 2010, the NCT has included a check to ensure that tyres on cars are e-marked. A similar check for e-marks on HGV tyres was introduced in March of this year. This new test item was introduced because of the importance of the standard of tyres to vehicle and road safety.

The check on e-marking of tyres is one of a number of new NCT test items which were introduced following the completion of a public consultation process in 2009.

Can I check for an e-mark when I am replacing my tyres

We recommend that purchasers check new tyres for a visible e-mark. Your seller / fitter should be able to show you the e-mark. Vehicle owners should be aware that it is illegal to purchase non E-marked tyres for use on Irish roads.

What should I do if I have recently purchased tyres which are not e-marked

If you have recently had tyres fitted to your vehicle which do not have an e-mark you should return to the place of purchase and request that they be replaced with the appropriate e-marked tyres for your vehicle. It is illegal to fit non-e-marked tyres.

The Irish Tyre Industry Association (ITIA) is advising that any motorist who has purchased a non e-marked tyre from one of their members should go back to the vendor with proof of purchase.

When returning non e-marked tyres the National Consumer Agency advise that you consult the information provided on their website on the Sale of Goods Acts 1893 and 1980 (PDF)