Current Status:

Mileage: 181,301

Alternator: Fixed, new from Cropredy £411
Offside Front Brake: leaking caliper fixed.
Tyres: Four new tyres £594 from Huntingdon Performance Tyres
Oil: Changed filter and oil £41
Carpets: attempted refit but failed miserably, double sided tape and Velcro don't work
Core Plug: failed on Thursday, 10 yards from home, dumped the contents of the cooling system in about 2 minutes, fortunately I have a set in my spare parts box.
Track Rod Ends: £43 changed with tyres

To do:
Carpets
Leak between exhaust manifold and exhaust pipe (again!)
Temp Gauge: still showing high, have concluded it's the gauge as I've changed everything else. (Although strangely enough for the first 30 miles after changing the alternator it was showing normal but has since reverted to type)

Apologies for the interruption to the blog, I've had a few foreign trips that have eaten into social diarising time. Chicago, Paris, Brussels and Latitude Festival.

I've had a bit of a roller-coaster ride with the car.

The alternator finally siezed, history tells me that when these mechanical devices make strange noises it is time for action. I left it too long and it finally failed on the way to work. Called the RAC, response time 1 1/2 hours, so I whipped the offending device out, dismantled it on the roadside, freed it and had it back in the car within 20 mins. It was still complaining a bit (mild screeching) but I decided to risk the journey home and called off the RAC. Had to rent a car for 24 hours as I was due to pick my daughters up that night.

Excellent service from the car hire company (www.marshallrental.co.uk), Marshalls at St Neots. I called them at 8:45 and by 9:15 they had a car delivered, thanks for getting me out of a hole! Just a shame it was a Peugeot.