Fresh nose, fresh eye, fresh plates

And how did it turn out with Fiona? 

The repair work didn't quite go to plan. A few posts ago I mentioned that Fiona had finally gone to the body shop to be fixed. But in fact two days later I had her back, and a new date for the work had to be arranged. The trouble was the replacement parts. What had been available when pricing up the work for an estimate in early December wasn't immediately available in mid January. But eventually she went in again, and I got her back just over a week ago. 

They made a great job of the front panel - a good colour-match; and fiddly thing to deal with on my car because of the several electrical and fluid connections to the sensors and headlamp washers held in place by it, plus of course all the clips and brackets. The new nearside headlamp looked resplendent, making the original one on the offside look in need of a refurb. (I'll have that done - another £50 - later this month) 

Here's Fiona in action at Ockley in Surrey on 26th January, showing off her new nose:

You're looking at the offside 'eye', now distinctly dowdy, although it looks nice enough in this shot. The new nearside 'eye', barely in view, is absolutely crystal-clear and showroom-fresh.

The whole job came in at slightly under the estimate given back in December: £2,297. 

There were however two flies thrashing about in the ointment. 

Once I got Fiona home, I found a water leak forward of the nearside front tyre. 

Water was somehow leaking slowly from the nearside headlamp washer hose. Presumably it had been reconnected after being forcibly pulled away in the car park accident, but had now either worked loose, or the accident had damaged it and that would need fixing. It is agreed that the bodyshop will deal with this in ten days' time, as part of the original job.

The other thing was that the bodyshop overlooked my additional, separate request to have the original registration plates replaced with fresh new ones. This was partly a cosmetic uplift, partly a wish on my part to get rid of the blue flash at one end of the front and rear plates that showed, in gold, the stars of the EU and 'GB'. These weren't appropriate post-Brexit. 'GB' had been replaced by 'UK'. (Coincidentally the Caravan and Motorhome Club have sent me a rather nice 'UK' sticker in case I am tempted to take my caravan abroad, so I won't need to buy one) Anyway, for an agreed price of £15 I got the desired new plates installed. 

In this shot from last week, the front plate has just gone on, completing the front-end work (apart from the water leak, and tarting-up the offside headlamp):

And here's Fiona with both new plates attached. They are completely plain, with standard lettering, and in my view greatly uplift her general appearance, rather in the way new alloy wheels would.

So: in the last two months Fiona has acquired new tyres, new brakes, a new front panel, a new headlamp, and now new registration plates. And will shortly get her annual service and MOT. That's a lot of attention! But as she needs to be - at the very least - absolutely roadworthy and capable of doing 15,000 miles a year without demur - and continue to do it for the next five years to 2027 - I think all of that is justified. 

She has however entered a new and final phase of her life. Those five years to 2027 will be her swan-song. She will embark on her most memorable journeys yet. But at the same time I will be extra-gentle with her, both to make her last longer, and out of huge respect for my faithful and much-loved travelling companion. I think Fiona will burst through the 200,000 mile barrier during the winter of 2024/2025. I am making it my business to see that she does so in style, still full of energy and looking great. And not as a battered hulk that can only just limp along. As I treat myself, so I treat her.