The one where Blue Bus gets some bling, and loses some weight

Firstly, Happy "Birthday" to my dear Bus. She came to live here one year ago today. 🎂 🎉 🍾

Blue Bus already had bling. Big 20" bling in the form of massive after-market wheels which were fitted by Hillside as part of the conversion to a campervan. I must 'fess up to blaming the previous owner for this unnecessary upgrade but I was wrong.

    (purchase day last year)

These are wheels which I hated with an irrational passion because having such a big rim means less room in the wheel arch for the really important rubbery stuff and as a result I had low-profile tyres which I dislike intensely (and are really where the irrational hate and loathing is directed).

I have muttered and grumbled about changing the wheels on my sweet van ever since I bought her, but done nothing about it other than occasionally look online at alloy wheels, utter some ear-blistering swear words accompanied by "you're having a laugh, right?" when I see the price, and then abandoning the idea for another three months. This situation would have continued for some considerable time if Himself's Aunty had not passed away last year. Unbeknown to us she had left money to each of her nieces and nephews and recently we received a small but unexpected cheque. Himself decided this should be split between us both and that as it was not enough of a sum to make a big difference to our lives it was perfectly OK to spend it on something frivolous.


He rapidly purchased some new computer equipment which I know he has wanted for ages but could not really justify and then persuaded me to get the wheels I wanted, or rather wheels of a size that meant I could have the tyres I wanted, because in my world-view tyres are one of the most important parts of a vehicle as they are what connect me (and my brakes) to terra firma. Fun Fact: I have a history of changing wheels/tyres on pretty much every vehicle I have ever owned and can get rather obsessive about it all. The staff at our local tyre specialist are either so nice to me because it is safer than disagreeing or are so nice to me because I've spent so much there over the years!

It is quite possible that no-one else will really notice much difference, but ~ I ~ know that the handling is better, the ride is smoother & more quiet, and I have twice as much tyre sidewall as before which was the whole point.



It also helped that I came across a VW parts supplier selling brand new, genuine wheels for a fraction of what the 'specialists' charge. I'm not normally one for linking to other companies but this firm have been a pleasure to deal with, they are wholly owned by a massive Audi/VW dealership in Crewe. My purchase was not straightforward and the measure of a good company is how they handle an order when things are not quick and simple. These guys were fabulous.

On the weight issue, Blue Bus came with the ubiquitous Fiamma 45S awning cassette bolted to the side. Not used it in a year, not easy to wind out on your own without risking scratching the side of the van, not my thing (and contributed to wind noise when travelling). At nearly 25kg I was concerned about my ability to help Himself remove it but the arrival of a helpful friend one afternoon meant that in less than ten minutes the offending item was off Blue Bus and sitting on the drive. Hurrah!





At some point I will need to make a decision about whether the awning stays off and we take off the brackets (which would involve filling holes and I expect the paintwork underneath them will turn out to be damaged) but that can wait. In the meantime I have covered them with some vinyl car wrap stuff which doesn't look too bad. Whether it will withstand the weather is another matter entirely (and yes, try saying that 3 times, very fast 🤣).