What we expect our vehicles to do?

[Midnitemo]

at the moment my car doesn't figure in any plans , I expect it to stay exactly where it is....but i'm open to changes in circumstances.

[Highlander]

(3 December 2013, 20:53)NorthernRaider Wrote: 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)

Yes to all those questions, except for the servicing, I couldnt do that, other than `first parade Servicing`,..changing lubricants

I have not push obsticals out of the road, but I have pulled a few quite large gale blown down trees [ or parts of trees ]

.... but certainly yes to all the others

[Lightspeed]

Yes to most of those points NR.

exceptions are that there are a few achilies heels on the repair and maintenance front. I can do most things, but its impractical to be able to do everything, especially as our vehicle strategy is only to for a short time after a full collapse. Primarily the vehicle is to evacuate us to the retreat, or get us as near to it as possible. Its an expendable tool.

Also, we have normal pneumatic tyres as they are more adaptable for varied terrain. Also carry puncture repair kit, tyre irons and compressors to maintain them.

[bigpaul]

I'm not really looking at my vehicle for transport in a SHTF future, if I have to bug out and can do it in a vehicle, fine, but once we get to the BOL and maybe do a few scavenging trips then that's it, we stay on our own turf and the vehicle will become extra storage space. post SHTF I am expecting within a short time frame ALL roads, lanes and highways to quickly revert to mother nature and be totally unusable. I am expecting my future post SHTF lifestyle will be (motor) vehicle free!!

[Mongrel]

I still have the same problem with this "Car" discussion, after an event only the police and military are likely to be using, or even allowed to use the roads. Just how much fuel are you storing? Or are you planning for a short lived event?
Is it not possible using a well equipped vehicle might just encourage others to track you down? You'd be very visible with the most on foot.

And finally if not bugging out, which I'm not planning to do, I'd use my car only if pushed, to conserve fuel and avoid drawing attention.
We've a good two years supply of firewood, a reasonable stash, always could do with more! I can see us using our bicycles far more than the 4X4, down to the coast for fishing or visiting, our near neighbours , can't see me wanting to go much further during an event.
Mongrel

[PreparednessUK]

I have a hilux surf will run on cooking oil and diesel. I can fold the seats down and sleep in it or use as a van

[bigpaul]

if post SHTF the weather is anything like we have currently NO vehicle is going anywhere!

[Timelord]

I had one of those. Got rid of it quick when it let me down badly and couldn't climb a snowy track that most other 4x4's could. If you are lucky, you will have a generation 3 or one of the few of the Generation 2's that has the full 4 wheel diff lock system fitted. The standard single centre prop diff lock is no use in snow. Fine for hot climates with sand/dust/gravel etc, but no use on very slippery terrain like snow or hard packed snow that we get in these northern temperate climates. Other than that it was excellent if you could live with the poor fuel consumption.. TL

---

Post in reply to PreparednessUK about the Hilux Surf.

[Lightspeed]

Mongrel,

all good and realistic points in your post.

Especially so about drawing attention, by being one of the very few vehicles on the roads.

Your plan looks sound to me.

[Mortblanc]

Vehicle preferences can go on and on and do become either boring or unrealistic, depending on the situation at hand.

One either buys a vehicle for the apocalypse and makes it work in the real world or buys a vehicle for today and hopes to try and make it work during the apocalypse.

At least that is what this diversion from the OP has turned into.

What I ask of my vehicle today will not be its expectations if a major stoppage of reality occurs. In that case I will be driving nowhere because there should, theoretically, be nowhere to go!

In spite of that I need my vehicle and some fuel.

Once my 2500 gallons of water runs out I will be forced to go to the nearby lake and fetch water home. That will be much easier using the Jeep and trailer with pump for filling the water tanks.

It may be that while wondering about the countryside I find a treasure of materials that needs transporting back to the home place. The Jeep and trailer might be handy for that venture also.

There are also the generator capabilities of the vehicle, using its inverter as power for construction projects, emergency lighting and providing 12v power for the house if the solar panels allow the battery bank to go flat.

There are also some serious power applications the vehicle can accomplish while sitting immobile, from running a thrashing machine to a sawmill or grist mill.

Additionally, in a world full of people now afoot, having a rapid exit capability might be handy. Even over bad roads and broken asphalt making a 30 MPH escape from a 3mph pursuit seems a no brainer.

Anyone that doubts the ability of either a Jeep or a Landrover to negotiate harsh terrain has never been off-roading at anywhere near the limits of either vehicle.