Just out of interest, how depleted was the old seat base compared to the new?

I couldn't see see much from looking at the size but it definitely feels more supportive.

RobsterPC wrote:

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It was 10am by 15cm, loads on Amazon, mine was this one:
https://amzn.eu/d/4TKjy3X

137,400 miles and with a trip to the Alps looming I thought it was time for an oil change, the last one was done at 131k miles. Armed with a 12v oil pump, 10l of 5w30 and a fresh filter I braved the cold and gave it a go.

Lessons learnt as follows. Don't drop the cover for the oil removal tube. Its a long way down to get it back, fortunately I had a long grab tool so no real harm was done. Secondly, use the soft tube on the outlet of the oil pump, not the inlet, the auction from the pump can collapse it if it's on the inlet side and it takes a lot longer to get the oil out. Third, even if you think the amount of oil coming out is a little, if you accidentally pull the outlet tube out of the can your using, you can spray a surprising amount of oil over yourself and the car before you turn the pump off.

Aside from that, it was a quick and easy job. Next up is a change of wiper blades all round, top off all the fluids, check pressures for 4 people plus luggage and a good clean. If the weather improves I'll try and sort out the new Peltier cell for the driver's heated seat but that's a nice to have rather than mandatory.

Last edited by RobsterPC on 14th Jan 2025 12:18pm. Edited 1 time in total

Simple Tip:

Use a split ring through the cap itself via a couple of small holes in the lip and a string tether tied to the adjacent pipework on your oil tube cap. This'll prevent it dropping down to the undertray should you lose a grip of it.

I do this with all the fluid caps.

A. Fuji White / Jet 2012 4.4 TDV8 Westminster

Great tip, I'll try and remember to change that next time I do it

Wiper blades now replaced front and rear. In the process I discovered my front drivers one wasn't locked in place after the last change. And that the aero deflector has been snapped. Time for a new one, if I can find it. Aside from that, easy job and less than 5 minutes to do, once I knew what I was doing

Back from a 1,250 mile round trip to the Alps. The pre-trip work paid off and everything went smoothly, zero issues, fluids remained in the right place aside from fuel which avveraged 27.5mpg which wasn't bad for 4 blokes and a very full boot of kit. We hit over 80mpg on the way off the mountain It was around a 12 hour drive each way including food/coffee/rest stops, steady autoroute cruise at 75-80mph. I forgot to switch over the lights before we left so ended up with the bonet up in a Carrefour car park after dark for 5 mins. I couldn't find a way to switch the speedo to kph though, the andoid screen with Waze was giving us the right info though so no real issue there.

The snow chains remained unused but I was very grateful for the Conti All Seasons tyres on the few bits of snow and ice we found.


The only issue was after coming off the mountain, I had some vibration though the steering wheel on light braking. Potential warping of the disks after the drive down the mountain? I'll keep an eye on this but it already seems to be going, it seemed much better on a brief drive this morning.

Great stuff. It looks good. 2012 Vogue TDV8 in Aintree green over sand

Vibration may be the pads imprinting on the discs after a long drive then sitting unused for a week. There is nothing that can't be fixed with a hammer😜😜
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