Rabbers

That Tony Soprano gave his daughter Meadow an IS250 is praise enough for anybody …

Whether or not to buy winter (or perhaps all-seasons) tyres in areas with infrequent snow is largely a question of how much you are willing to pay for increased peace of mind. To have them is much the same as insuring against events that are not likely to happen but whose negative repercussions for you and your property might be serious. Also, although good winter tyres aren’t cheap, the mileage you get from them directly translates into a longer life for your normal ones with an evident partial compensatory benefit.

Seen from Italy, whose team didn’t qualify for the final stage for the second consecutive time, this World Cup has been particularly enjoyable because the otherwise inevitable excessive patriotic fervour on the part of fans and commentators was replaced by a generally more dispassionate appreciation of the quality of the play and players. Which is not to say that Italy’s participation would not have been welcome. Perhaps the only exception to this forced neutrality was what has now become a more or less traditional antipathy towards the French team (in which Italy supporters are not alone), and, of course, this has less to do with levels of footballing merit than perceptions of national arrogance.

You mean like snooker players?

I do, but very occasionally I help it along, perhaps over-impatiently.

I’ve noticed that too. I don’t know exactly what the outside temperature might be when it happens but, given the greater likelihood in rainy weather, I suspect the level of humidity is as much to blame as the temperature. Anyway, I find that hitting the recirculated air button at the first appearance of condensation will stop it.

Bernard, one or two of your cultural and social observations may be open to debate but your conclusions are not,

Patience, Bernard. Wait for the final and we’ll find out. So far I think they are just about even.

Absolutely no hate from my side, AF. People are free to use whatever additives they like whenever and for whatever purpose they like. My own experience with injector cleaner yielded no objective proof of effectiveness, so I stopped using it. My interest in MMO, such as it is, is purely for its nature as a surviving brand within a genre of American automotive advertising history.

Yes indeed. One very rarely gets the chance, and then only briefly, but drives on deep-ish crunchy virgin snow with winter tyres and the feeling of a good grip can be highly pleasurable - at least until it crosses your mind that the snow may well soon be turning into icy slush or you actually come to a road where this has already happened! Concerning FWD cars having the edge on RWD ones in snow, I have always thought so too, and was surprised to read negative comments about the ES in this regard.

I won’t disagree with that. I lived in Denmark for three years, and while it admittedly has the least harsh climate of the Scandinavian countries, I was initially surprised at how motorists appeared to take snowfalls in their stride whereas my own natural tendency was towards over-caution. Still, I also recall seeing a fair number of vehicles awaiting rescue after sliding off apparently safe stretches of road into fields and ditches.

Driving out of the garden of my house in order to reach open road entails negotiating 30m of gravel followed by 40m of cobblestones which, under snow, generally contain several hidden patches of ice. To successfully get to the top of the rise, I turn on Snow mode, turn off TRC, select D1, and proceed slowly and steadily. If I don’t turn off TRC, I can’t make it and tend to go into a wheelspin at the first patch of ice, but if I do turn it off I make the rise with no trouble beyond one or two minor tail wobbles. When I reach the open road, I turn TRC back on and, depending on the amount of snow, leave Snow on and select D3 or maybe D4 before I might finally feel comfortable with full automatic. I figured, evidently incorrectly, that turning off TRC simply reduced the transmission of power to the wheels. But, frankly, I care less about how it works than, empirically, the apparent positive effect of turning it off in my own domestic scenario,

Appears to be a heavy commitment by Toyota. A quick online search shows not only the main stand but also suites and a restaurant with the Toyota name. The main Derby Toyota dealership also has a Pride Park address, and must be very happy with all this local attention.

I have heard it said that if you have winter tyres (coded M&S with the three-peak mountain symbol) you don’t need the snow mode. I don’t subscribe to this view with my RC but maybe a FWD car handles snow better and might explain the absence of the mode in the ES. Presumably, though, you have TRC and can switch it off in order to reduce the transmission of power to the wheels if you are ever in trouble in snow.

I see from PRT68’s post in the IS300h Forum that his RC is the object of the recall for the issue with the Fuel Tank Ventilation Tube. There has so far been no such recall in Italy but this could be because last week was shortened by a national holiday. I am not overly worried but must say that I occasionally and for no apparent reason get a slight whiff of petrol in the cabin of my 2019 RC300h. Has anybody else had this issue and could it be connected to the recall in question?

Or indeed Euro 1992 when Denmark won after qualifying for the tournament only because Jugoslavia were disqualified, but I wouldn’t care to bet on history repeating itself in this instance.

Everyone likes rags-to-riches stories and has sympathy for the underdog but, to be realistic, it’s going to be Argentina v. France, reflecting a truer balance of world football power and star quality.

Wouldn’t worry too much as long as it’s only your hands. I believe there’s talk of the 2030 WC being shared between Saudi, Egypt and Greece. Shame about England going out to Les Coqs (I.e. The Frogs) but, frankly, I won’t miss the team’s virtue signalling. Surprising they don’t get knee injuries before kick-off.

Targeted climate control, of which I have no experience, sounds like a nice feature even regardless of cabin size, though I presume the “traditional” dual control function gives much the same result at the simple touch of a button.

I have often wondered if its effectiveness in the RC hasn’t got something to do with a lucky combination of windscreen angle and air direction. Not that I mean to sell the car’s designers short.

Depending on the thickness of the ice or frost, say 0.5cm max., my RC’s defogger with the cabin heating set high clears the windscreen (and side windows) sufficiently for completion by the wipers in 45-60 secs, which is only a little longer than the heated rear window takes to do its own job. So, although I was a bit worried when I first had the car, I am happy enough without the specific windscreen heater function.

I have to thank the OP for mentioning Marvel Mystery Oil and introducing me to a whole new area of car-related Americana, both graphic and literary, of which I was not previously aware. How numerous producers of automotive lubricants were wont to claim “magical” properties for their brands recently inspired a nostalgic passage by the Mexican-American writer Alfredo Vea in his 2017 novel, The Mexican Flyboy. I quote: “…He glanced again at their battered, dented cars. These Mexican laborers were single-handedly keeping the Grand Auto and Western Auto stores in business … any one [of them] could drop and disassemble a Hydro-Matic transmission using only pliers and a butter-knife. But to a man [they] preferred another method. In the garbage heap behind the main parking lot … were hundreds of cans of Mighty Motor Magic and Uncanny Tranny Wizard, Magic Barsleeks, Mandrake’s Wonder Grease, Flat Tyre Hex, Radiator Genie, and a can or two of Black Magic Motor Honey. There were bottles of Gypsy Mystery Oil, Mystic Octane Booster, and Dr. Camshaft’s Supernatural Valve Unguent. Put the word “magic” on a can full of viscous fluid and the Mexicans would snap it up by the case…”

Less of the “old” please, John.

I note that both you and John are experts on extra virgins!

Is that a puddle of dirty oil I see between OO’s boots?