Thread: Winston's first Big Car Journey!

Originally Posted by NCarver

Well that was a new phrase on me! I have to say that I am very disappointed, however. An estate car sounds very grand. I had visions of some "lord of the manor" sort of vehicle. Not a wagon. Station wagons are not considered very stylish here, so most manufacturers want to call them "crossovers" (half car, half SUV) if possible. (I note that one of our cars is actually a wagon too.)

My husband is big car enthusiast but we only drive a small compact car a VW Polo as we really don't use the car a whole lot.

I know estate cars to be popular with salemen and families with dogs as they can pile everything in the back!

I think cars on this side of the atlantic cars tend to be much smaller then the U.S.
My husband and I rented a car in Boston a few years ago to drive up to my aunt in N.H and my husband was in his element as he got a "dodge" with a huge engine size.

I actually always thought station wagons were what we call "pick up trucks"


Estate Cars - Car Reviews - Motoring news - Latest cars - Telegraph

Ncarver: It really is funny the differences in english/U.S English, and then of course Irish/english can be a whole different ball game altogether!
I've caught myself writing things and then deleting them, because I though perhaps somebody elsewhere. wouldn't have a clue what I was talking about

and then add in the australianisms too...

What the US would call a pick-up truck we in oz call a ute or a trayback.

And I couldn't imagine being without a car, especially in a country town. Everything is just too far away. And we drive big cars... well we have a Toyota Landcruiser but we also have a small run around... Holden Astra.
But then, we also don't have any public transport here either.

Don't think they are particularly attractive cars - we have a Volvo Estate - it's practical though with three children and two dogs! We have a large dog crate in the back. Does drink the petrol though. I'd like to get a Land Rover Diesel - when I can afford it. I'd love an American car as they are so much bigger than British but don't think the roads here are big enough for them

Originally Posted by IrishKitty

I think cars on this side of the atlantic cars tend to be much smaller then the U.S.

Estate Cars - Car Reviews - Motoring news - Latest cars - Telegraph

Ncarver: It really is funny the differences in english/U.S English, and then of course Irish/english can be a whole different ball game altogether!
I've caught myself writing things and then deleting them, because I though perhaps somebody elsewhere. wouldn't have a clue what I was talking about

Yes, our cars are larger because gasoline is cheaper here. There have been some big changes over the last 5 years though due to the bout of $4/gal gas (er petrol?}.

My British English isn't as good as I thought. Reading the car reviews, I kept saying, what? "Instrument binnacle??" "Stainless-steel skid plates???" I can guess what binnacle probably means, but absolutely no idea what a "skid plate" might be. Didn't think cars were supposed to skid.

We of course watch quite a few BBC shows, but "Irish English?" That should be quite amusing and confusing.

[QUOTE=NCarver;1540]

My British English isn't as good as I thought. Reading the car reviews, I kept saying, what? "Instrument binnacle??" "Stainless-steel skid plates???" I can guess what binnacle probably means, but absolutely no idea what a "skid plate" might be. Didn't think cars were supposed to skid.

LOL, well I'm not sure this is down to you not understanding British English, I was born and bred here and I still haven't got a clue, in saying that though I am a woman and as men all over the world will tell you we know nothing about cars ! - I however, beg to differ on this one, I have a black one and it has 4 wheels !

Wow! I am born and bred in the UK and I still haven't a clue what a binnacle is, despite living with a house full of petrol heads! Our Mazda 6 is great cos it tows our caravan really well and has the built in dog guard. Not the most attractive however I would agree! Our old boy Harley likes to roam free (I know this is illegal!) in any car and loves it! He sits on a passangers knee and watches the world go by! He is a much better traveller than my 2 kids!

I looked up definition of binnacle: A case that supports and protects a ship's compass, located near the helm. I guess that as I had assumed, the "instrument binnacle" is what we would call the "instrument panel" on a car.

Trip Update!

We departed Dublin on Saturday morning with Winston all tucked up in his basket.
We had some protesting but as we reached open road, the protesting stopped and he became engrossed with the trees on the side of the road.

We reached the half-way point and stopped for some tea and beans and toast in a roadside cafe. We left him in the car and when we came back out he was fast asleep in his basket.
We had a much quieter leg to the West

On arrival we had to separate the resident top house dog from Winston. We left the family terrier in the dining room and Winston had full run of the sitting-room. He was fascinated with sitting on the window and looking out at the birds at ground level. My Mum has loads of birds in the garden and as there was snow forecast, it was bitterly cold.
By Monday we had introduced him to the dog in the same room. They were just getting used to each other when we had to leave, which was a shame.

The trip back to Dublin was a different matter. Winston meowed loudly for about 1 hour. He was certainly not stressed but was certainly moaning .He was more difficult on this leg of the journey however after the halfway stop at the cafe, we put on some music from Mali and he was quiet the whole way back to Dublin

I think he is very glad to be home but did enjoy his weekend away

It's good to hear had a good trip.