Today I decided to do the OWUT on my 05 SE. It's been 10K miles since the last test. Last time I recorded a time of 55 seconds, which prompted me to buy some VCU fluid for a refurb.
Today's test was considerably different from last time, but not how I would have expected. The time today was 40 seconds, using the same lever and same weight.
So somehow my VCU has freed up, not stiffened as I would have expected.
I did the test 3 times, just to make sure I'd not messed up, but 40 seconds is correct.
Looks like I'll be putting off the refurb for a while longer yet.
I also decided to test some £10.95 drop links from EBay. The box shows them as OE quality, but I guess time will tell on that front. I've recorded the date fitted and mileage so I can report back on here when or if they fail.
They look to be of reasonable quality, so time will tell.
I also fitted a replacement aerial and down lead as my original down lead was open circuit somewhere in the wire and the aerial was rusted into the base, making removal impossible. I decided against spending LR prices on replacement items and chose a £7 Amazon full kit instead. It works perfectly and now picks up all the available stations in stereo no less. So that was well worth the few quid, as long is it doesn't leak like the last one had in the past.