What we expect our vehicles to do?

[NorthernRaider]

(3 December 2013, 14:54)Lightspeed Wrote: Sorry, I didn't mean to divert the thread, rather to open up other ideas on how things might be done.

Hey it was a very valid and pertinant addition to the debate and most welcome.

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Landies etc are gorgous and highly capable but two reasons ut me off them, (1) they attract attention, they are magnets to the curious and up here the light fingered as well (2) they are just a tad to big for some areas and unfortunately one of those areas is here. However thinking laterally one of the original and much much smaller series 2A 88 or 90 inch Landies would do the job quite well indeed.

and as appealing as the big 4x4s are they are anything but economical and many gurlies dont like em for the EDC drive. Mrs NR spends hours trying to get in and out of various hospital car parks all day so she likes small but rugged veh-hickles.

My bias is still towards van based cars and medium sized panel vans so far, especially ( neatly getting back on topic) when you consider what I expect my vehicle to do.

[Lightspeed]

Yep, all the way up to series 3 Landrovers are thin and able to get down very narrow lanes. The last of the thin long ones was the series 3 109"

Down side is they are completely agricultural. No power assistance on steering, and good old drum brakes all round

For reasons that are beyond me, true Land Rovers sell for silly money. I still reckon dropping £500 on an old Disco and just storing it in a garage as a prep is a viable idea. The other half doesn't have to like it at all....its just a use once and throw away tool

[NorthernRaider]

I nearly persuaded Mrs NR to invest in a fully restored series 2A short WB soft top that had been part of the civil defence stockpile. It had been fully restored with rebuilt engine and gearbox, galvanished chassis, new doors, bulkhead and heaters and a beautiful auxiliary fire service pain job, it was operating theatre spotless, but she who must be obeyed fell for the shogun pinin she is still driving now.

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My friend Phil has a Peugeot jeep and the other friend has an early Gelandwagen that they use on their Gite thingy in NW France both do huge milages to the french centrale massive and down to St etienne each year and they both say theat those vehicles thrive in bocage country..... Twats I'm jelous of them

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The Wagon R is cavernous and the Mitsy very competant, but I miss the black hole sized load area of my Transit, The Wagon R is totally dominant in the cities like Middlesbrough or Newcastle it can get to places nearly as good as a cyclist can, but its only sensibly capable in the winter for a front wheel drive car with only 70 horses to play with. The Mitsy is good for anything but tiny inside. If I had a decent budget I think I would be looking at VW T5s or similar sized vehicles, big enough to live in or bug out in in style, and small enough not to get stuck on the narrow lanes around here.

[Midnitemo]

Went from a 1.1 panda eco to 2.2 turbo diesel suv this year purely for towing purposes , miss the panda for its user friendly cheap to run compactness but love the suv for its comfort, road presence and height(heated seats!!!!!) am in the market for a general purpose lidded 7x5 trailer.

[Lightspeed]

(3 December 2013, 15:48)Midnitemo Wrote: Went from a 1.1 panda eco to 2.2 turbo diesel suv this year purely for towing purposes , miss the panda for its user friendly cheap to run compactness but love the suv for its comfort, road presence and height(heated seats!!!!!) am in the market for a general purpose lidded 7x5 trailer.

Or maybe just tow a Panda behind you with all your stuff squeezed into it!

[bigpaul]

what is it with PETROLHEADS and their Landrovers?? stepdaughter had a landrover discovery for towing the dive boat(she and husband were both diving instructors at the time), great for towing but the space inside it was MINISCULE-you could get a SMALL pallet in SIDEWAYS behind the seats but that was it!! I could get MORE into an old Renault 5 I used to drive than their Discovery!!!

[Midnitemo]

When we opted to get a towcar I considered getting a restored old landy tax exempt and on classic insurance/limited mileage just for the small number of times we would tow every year but the sums didn't add up in the end , by the time you've rented a garage for it maintained it and the fact that old cars need regular use to be reliable+ i'm not convinced my partner could or even would drive one, we bought a new powered everything suv with a lifetime 100,000 mile warranty which given current use looks to be 12 years.

[Highlander]

I still like my Santa Fe,... its never going to be a serious 4x4, but it is a reasonable 4x4, [permanent 4wd ],...giving great stability and road holding, it tows well, as if ever needed it is chunky enough to move a few others out of the way.

The rear is large even with the rear seats up, the rear seats fold almost flat down giving a massive area to load

[MaryN]

I'll stick with my nice old Landy. It does everything I ask, is surprisingly economical for such a big vehicle, and more to the point, I feel safe in it! We have hefty tyres on it for use on the field or bad weather, and it tows like a dream. It's probably old fashioned now, compared to some of the newer vehicles, but I love it to death. It's permanently filthy, has a bull bar that makes it look a bit scary and you have to hoist yourself into the cab, but, hey, it does the business

[NorthernRaider]

Regardless of what we choose folks ( trying to drift back on topic again ) its amazing what we expect of our vehicle over and above what the average member of society does, it should / must ? be taken into consideration when it comes to choosing a vehicle, especially if we are hoping to rely on that same vehicle and use it to support us after TSHTF. Not only is our choice needing to be far more selective but the extra considerations we face must also be considered.

Can you sensibly store enough fuel for it (treated)
Have you got the essential spares for it from bulbs, fuses, tyres, drive and cam belts, oil, air and fuel filters, spare wipers etc, spare pads and shoes etc?
Can it do the role you have tasked for it after TSHTF on unmaintained or badly damaged roads, does it have the power to pull or push obsticles out the way or is it small enough to get round most obsticles etc.
will the roof take the weight of the HD roofrack and extended levels of kit your possibly going to need.
Can you sleep COMFORTABLY in it without offloading it (very bad if you do have to)
Will it carry your entire family, all your luggage, plus extra fuel, extra water etc without comprimising its road handling.
Has it got run flat tyres for example many folks are urban preppers and its a dead cert that if society falls the roads and streets in urban areas are very quickly going to become debris covered with everything from broken toughened glass from abandoned vehicles and shop windows, pieces of masonry, improvised caltrops left by bad people, limbs of trees, thorny shrubs growing across the carriageway, fallen phone and power lines and the razor sharp pieces of the ceramic insulators etc.
Can it be routinely serviced EASILY or does it require weird tools and computers to make even minor repairs?

(Even cyclists seriously need to look at puncture proof tyres on their bikes before long after TSHTF)