TheJoker
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« on: October 02, 2006, 12:41:08 pm » |
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Hi Guys, Well, picked my 2001 (Y-reg) Silver Grand Espace 2.2 dCi up on Saturday. I've done in the region of 150+ miles in it now and I must say I quite like it. I'll reserve full judgement until I've put more miles on it and it hasn't broken down (hehehe). I'm surprised at how quiet it is and how comfortable it is. There's still a bit of van-feeling in it, but that's probably mostly due to sitting so high up rather than van-like suspension; in fact, it handles really (well for the size). The 2.2 dCi engine seems to keep up with traffic without any problems at all - motorway cruising in the outside lane. I also took the rearmost row of seats out and I'm amazed by the size that's available in the back... awesome! Oh, and I do have one question: Where's a good point to "steal" 12V for gadgets, such as GPS'...? Somewhere under the dash or something... All well so far... Thanks for all your help!
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Grand Espace 2.2 dCi 2001 Silver KTM 990 SuperDuke R Dead: BMW K1200R
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Lennart Sorth
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« Reply #1 on: October 02, 2006, 02:52:08 pm » |
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Where's a good point to "steal" 12V for gadgets, such as GPS'...?
Congratulations on your purchase!, - I'm looking forward to your report when the two of you have got some more miles under the hood together. I must confess, I haven't yet investigated any better place to get 12V than the cigarette-lighter between the seats. My GPS has a long wire, with which the GPS unit comfortably can sit on the dash, while being connected. Be advised - if your windscreen is athermic, you might not get a good signal below it, as the coating on the windscreen shields off the radio signal. However, at least my GPS can actually also get a signal on the back seats, - I guess it looks through the polyester roof, without being shielded completely by the "Fahraday cage" chassis. I find it funny that the polyester roof causes less interference than an invisible coating on the glass - but there you have it :-) Alternatively you can fit a real antenna somewhere, and have the connector handy near the dash. But of course, if your windscreen is not athermic, then you have no problem with GPS. /Lennart
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TheJoker
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« Reply #3 on: October 03, 2006, 09:16:48 am » |
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Thanks guys!
As Lennart got me a bit worried about the GPS signals, I had to try it out last night. Luckily my girlfriends Garmin i3 is easy to just stick on the windscreen - and it worked without any problems. *phew*
Regarding the power. I noticed the fuse box at the passenger footwell - maybe that's a good point for some "stealing".
I also have a Nokia handsfree kit, but I don't have a Nokia phone. I wonder if I can change the holder of that one to fit my up-n-coming SonyEricsson P990i..?
Will, I completely agree with your thought regarding the space in this car. It's just so versatile - even if I've not yet started to load it up with all my stuff yet. But I know for sure that it'll do Ikea trips, Homebase trips, Wickes trips, camping trips, etc etc... But I'll keep my enthusiasm down a bit for now... heheh
Thanks again, guys!
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Grand Espace 2.2 dCi 2001 Silver KTM 990 SuperDuke R Dead: BMW K1200R
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Lennart Sorth
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« Reply #4 on: October 03, 2006, 12:09:43 pm » |
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I also have a Nokia handsfree kit, but I don't have a Nokia phone.
Wouldn't that contain 12V - even easier to steal ? Excellent that your GPS works, - athermic windscreens became rather popular in the final years of the JE's production. And while it probably shields off some of the heat, it is quite annoying that it also kills the GPS signals. (eg our Picassos at work are completely "GPS silent") /Lennart
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TheJoker
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« Reply #5 on: October 03, 2006, 12:26:51 pm » |
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I also have a Nokia handsfree kit, but I don't have a Nokia phone.
Wouldn't that contain 12V - even easier to steal ? Yes I think it would - I'm just a bit apprehensive to tap into already aftermarket wires. I'd feel a bit safer if I'd find the source myself But if push comes to shove, I'll probably use the hands-free kit.
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Grand Espace 2.2 dCi 2001 Silver KTM 990 SuperDuke R Dead: BMW K1200R
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Lennart Sorth
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« Reply #11 on: October 07, 2006, 05:50:50 pm » |
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Again, no problems to load in! Yes, it really is an impressive car. I recently went to a wedding, where we were to bring a japanese cherry tree as a present, and I had checked with the local gardening centre that they had such trees. They had them in "2 meter versions", which I thought sounded fine. (it matched the money we had intended to spend) When I arrived, it turned out that 2 meters is the size og the tree *before* you splice on the japaneese part, which then extends a further 2-3 meters from there ... (!) (ok, that includes the thin branches that normally curve downwards, to when placed vertically, the tree was "only" 3.5 meters tall :-) ) There I was, with the best of 4-5 meters (12-15 feet) of tree, - but leaving the tailgate window open, it was no problem at all, - in fact only a very modest part of the tree (3 feet or so) was outside. What a versatile car !
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