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Regarding valve clearances, old-school engines with rockers would almost always
get noisier with time due to the gaps widening. Pushrod and rocker surfaces mostly.

On overhead cam engines normally the opposite is found. As time goes on
the gaps get smaller due to valve seat recession, hence a quieter engine. Not necessarily a good thing.
In most cases, adjustment will entail fitting thinner shims.

I use cable cutters like this

https://www.zoro.co.uk/shop/hand-tools/insulated-tools---pliers-and-cutters/00125-9%22-cable-cutter/p/ZT1199157X?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=shopping&utm_campaign=bs%2B%7C%2BHand%20Tools&utm_term=ZT1199157X&dev=c&utm_campaign=bs%20-%20hand%20tools%20%230&utm_medium=shopping&msclkid=7ca991c5361b1bd0c1ddf097013832ce&utm_source=bing&utm_prodid=ZT1199157Xtargetid

Hi Clifford,

Simples, don't touch the accelerator pedal , if she sounds like she may fire, release the key (or hidden starter button in my case) & try and have some control over firing/fuel supply, if you are out and about starting many times I don't think it's an issue, but if the car has been standing I like to churn the engine over first without firing to get the oil chucked around.

A bit like the other thread about modern witchcraft triumph of packaging over content cars, at least we have 'some' control over what our Beta's do!

I had, briefly, a 2019 4th Gen Mazda 3 which was a lovely car but not as much fun as the previous generation. It had adaptive cruise but it's lack of pre-emptive ability drove me nuts. When I'm driving I can see car is about to pull out and when it's going to pull back in so can can slow down or start to speed up accordingly. The computer can't do that - the car is either in front or its not so its behavior is dumb and not particularly smooth either.  I could see it being handy (if you have an auto) in a traffic jam but otherwise it just annoyed me.

The lane departure also wasn't well implemented as it tried to operate in town at 30ish and the emergency brake triggered twice for no good reason when pulling up to the back of a queue.

The worst 'smart' tech I've encountered was on an Insignia  rental car - it when driving round a bend it would conclude anyone walking on the pavement on the outside of the bend was about to be run over and scare the crap out of me with warning gongs.

Tech is great but poorly designed tech or implemented tech worse than not having it. Douglas Adams had that right, I suspect Theo does too!

Lets be honest, any car made after 1999 is pretty much the work of satan & it ain't getting better!

I agree. The amount of unnecessary, intrusive, surveilling nonsense in modern cars is totally over the top. And adding Internet connectivity to cars and thereby making them hackable was the last straw as far as I was concerned.

I'm seriously impressed with the quality and accuracy of your work, Stuart. Those are seriously good skills on display there. I know that I wouldn't have a clue where to start if I was in your position.

Thanks for the details, interestingly the fronts show in their website catalogue, but the rears do not.

Peter

Weirdly, not 10 minutes after writing this, my discs arrived from germany!  After unboxing, they look good quality and nicely protected with a coating of grease / goop.  On inspection, they are manufactured by an Italian company called "Intercar S.p.A" based in Brescia. 
www.intercar.org.
info@intercar.org
Also, I didn't pay VAT twice, which is reassuring!

Thanks Peter - I haven't had any communication whatsoever from Bielstein yet, so can't see what their invoice lists.  The discs are supposed to be arriving today, so we shall see whats in the box!

I think Bella keeps going and reciprocating the love you be give her Tim 😊
How do you trick her?