Many members, family and friends use Faraday pouches to protect their car key signal from being “stolen”. Is yours still effective? Do you test it? I had a surprise at the University last Sunday morning. Walking up to my car, I was able to open the door, and then realised that the key fob was still inside the Faraday pouch. Ouch, that shouldn’t happen!
At home I tried a new pouch, and it worked perfectly. Luckily all our car keys are stored in a metal box at home, so the only risk was when we were out in the cars. The message is to test your pouch regularly. In my case the metal strands in the lining seem to have worn out. Online advice says a Faraday pouch can stop working because of material wear, poor sealing, small tears or holes, or damage from frequent use. Even damp can affect its performance.
Elon Musk has launched the new Tesla Roadster to the public, including a “flying car” version. Will it ever become a reality, or is it just a publicity stunt? The demonstration car carries a 600-litre air tank feeding ten nozzles around the body, and that is what hopped it over the other cars. There was no driver in the car. The Performance version, without thrusters, is the one that could be taken seriously, because it is closer to something that could be made and sold. However, if you have a spare £245,000 as a deposit for the thruster car, that will put you on the waiting list, but there is no delivery date.
Faults with more than 150 smart motorway speed cameras apparently remain unresolved. The independent review commissioned by the Transport Secretary after the issue emerged in December 2025 (due to report within 18 weeks) has not yet published its findings. The technical problem is a delay in communication between the speed cameras and the variable speed limit signs. A camera can keep registering an earlier speed limit for around ten seconds after the displayed limit has changed. For example, a driver could see a sign raising the limit from 40mph to 60mph while the camera is still operating against the previous 40mph limit. This mismatch has led to drivers being wrongly identified as speeding.
Government advice is that drivers should keep following the speed limits displayed on road signs, including variable limits on smart motorways. A camera fault does not mean a posted limit can be ignored, and police enforcement remains in place. If you receive a speeding notice and believe it may be incorrect, check the details carefully and follow the official process for challenging it. Keep any relevant correspondence and evidence, and pay attention to the deadlines stated in the notice.
Finally, bookings for our Christmas dinner are worryingly slow, and some of our regular attendees are not able to join us this year. If you are a regular attendee and cannot be with us, please let us know as soon as you can through the Contact page. In fairness to the venue and to the entertainer, if we have to cancel we should do so as early as possible. If you can confirm your attendance, we can take your menu details up to Friday 20 November. I hope regulars and new members and friends will join us to make the evening a successful start to the Christmas period. Full details are on the Events page.
Roy Sammons