Sensible suggestion, but will the rear wiper work if this is the case? (The rear wiper DOES work!)

'93 110 CSW: heated rear window / screen hasn't worked since I bought the car last year.* Checked fuse OK, switch OK (I think - surprised to find 3 terminals, but it changes resistance enough when switched...) element appears to be OK (continuity good). I then had a look at the Haynes wiring...

It's how they'll pay for the scrappage scheme... ...persuade people to part with their perfectly good old cars for some 'filthy lucre', then slap a higher road tax on the replacement vehicles... :mad:

From same website: What about cars registered before 1 March 2001? Rates for cars and vans registered before 1 March 2001 are based on engine size. The rates for these cars from April 2010... - over 1549cc -- £205 (Phew!) So I'm OK (1993-reg) but it would be much fairer to pay through the fuel...

My 1993 110 CSW (200tdi) is exempt too, so are they basing it on body styles? Will they charge a hard-top/pickup but not a station wagon?

Did you have to change the wiring for the conversion? If so, I'd suggest checking this first. If the relay is electro-magnetic rather than electronic you can probably hear it 'click', but if any of the switch/earth/+ve connections (depending on how it's wired!) are faulty, it won't be working...

Have the bulbs blown? I know it's an obvious question, and extremely unlikely to take everything out at once, but if they are of a similar age they could fail at a similar time. You could use a meter to confirm (sometimes it's difficult to see if all is well). If they have all blown, either you...

I can fit an adult bike in the back of my 110 CSW, it's just a bit fiddly! Front wheel is wedged between the back seat and the 6x9 speaker bolted to the top of the wheelarch (not sure how important the latter is, but it does keep the bike upright!); back wheel is lifted in and up -- 'persuaded'...

Car electrics aren't that difficult (although I can understand your reluctance -- I feel the same way about brakes). There's another thread running at present about fitting spots (see here) -- see my comment, which includes a link to an external site describing how to do it.

A quick Google for "wiring diagram for spots" threw this up as the first link: 4x4 Spotlight Wiring Diagram This particular example shows TWO spots, and how they would be wired relative to your existing headlights. The page continues to describe everything you're likely to need to know...

LOL! I've heard of people staying together "for the sake of the kids", but this is a new one! :D

Or try a different MoT centre. Looking at the Advisories for mine from the past couple of years, they kept mentioning the seat belt wear/chafing (looks like it's a common problem, as they catch in the doors) and also the cracked front numberplate. That was for the previous owner - reported at...

Thanks, everyone, for the advice. Exhaust passed the MOT OK, so I must have done something right! The car failed on some other items, including the wipers :mad: but that's just sod's law (thankfully the garage didn't charge for fitting the wipers -- it wasn't a main dealer!:D -- as it would...

Watch the current rating of everything you use. Assuming those are standard 55/60W bulbs in the spots, each one will be drawing 5 Amps, so you need to be able to supply and switch 20A, minimum. I would run a separate supply from the battery (via a 30A? fuse) to a relay, and power the lights...

Would it be legal to fit bench or side-facing seats in the back of a 110 CSW? At present the top of the wheel-arches is plywood (!), presumably using the original fixing holes; and just to complicate matters, the outer middle seats are high-backed (so, presumably, 3-person benches won't fit?)...

I'd been trying to work out how Kw*kF*t do the job so quickly! I did use some grease, and that certainly helped, but I hadn't thought of bending the tabs back first. Stupid really, but I guess these things come with experience... Thanks - I'll try that in the morning.

Thanks for the tip Shifty. I'll remember that next time I need to use the stuff. Fortunately this time there was just enough 'squirt' to do the trick - all nuts we needed to remove came apart like a dream. (Thank you to whoever suggested its use!) Getting the old exhaust off wasn't the issue...

Well, nothing, although I won't be needing one... I only might need the oily stuff for releasing the bottom end of the down pipe, as I am presuming that that bit doesn't need changing. I think what happened was that the tail-pipe broke off first, and as that bit has the hook to support the rear...

Thanks for the reminder about PlusGas. When I saw a picture of the can it reminded me that I had bought some a little while ago -- and I found it, after some digging, in the garage -- must be 6+ years old! There's about an 1/8 of a can left, but almost no propellant :-( Unfortunately, can't...

Well, it's on order and will hopefully arrive before the weekend, as the MOT's on Monday :eek: