Jump to content
RMweb
 

For those interested in old cars.


DDolfelin

Recommended Posts

An old hippy, I've always loved camper vans (mine have all been VWs: T2 to T5 inclusive)

 

Here's a tiny Bedford Rascal still looking loved and good for its age in 'Narch'  - it must be like sleeping in N gauge. (For bus enthusiasts thats the old Eastern Counties HQ in the background - neo Georgian rather than Art Deco)

dhig

post-21705-0-98678100-1434360616_thumb.jpg

  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Saw this in the local news this morning. One less old Roller on the road.

 

Rather an insane disregard of towing weights...

I wonder if speed had anything to do with accident?  I only ask because of the number of times I have been overtaken on a motorway by  vehicles towing  trailers at speeds of well over the limit. I was always told the only way to get out of a "tank slapper" was to accelerate, may not be an option if you are already near Mark 1.

I'm glad no-one was hurt except a wallet. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I wonder if speed had anything to do with accident?

More likely to do with towing a long heavy Rolls with a short light Rav4. The Rolls is nearly twice the weight of the little Toyota.

 

I doubt the poor thing could get up any kind of speed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Corniche itself weighs 2.185 tonnes. (2 tons 4cwt)

The trailer has to be at least 0.150 tonnes (3cwt).

The Rav4 (swb) weighs circa 1.150 Tonnes (1 ton 3cwt).

The Gross Weight would thus have been a minimum of 3.485 Tonnes (3 tons 10cwt).

 

Now mindful the 'rule of thumb' is Towed weight approx. 85% of Car weight..... = gross 2.15 Tonnes (2 tons 3cwt).

Yes I know some people go 100%, but......

Oh, that's less than the Corniche by itself.

If the minimum weight I've shown at 3.485 Tonnes was more.... 

...... then it will exceed the max. 3.500 Tonnes allowed on a Class BE Driving license.

 

I would have thought the Insurance Company would be bordering on not paying out on this.

 

I certainly would not tow a trailer with 2 Tonnes on it with my Rav4 anyway, anyday.

I tow a 1934 Austin 7 around on my trailer, that's approx 150 kgs trailer plus 600 kgs A7,

I'm happy with that with approx 80 kgs on my towbar..

Edited by Penlan
Link to comment
Share on other sites

A Rolls Royce would be about the limit on a Land Rover,let alone a Tonka toy. My own Royce weighs in at 3.25 tons so any transport required would be a slide back truck. I certainly don't think that the trailer was up to it

Edited by Catweasel
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Even my  21 year old Daihatsu Fourtrak..which has a manufacturer's plated towing weight of 3.5 tonnes....would be hard pushed with the roller.

 

No problem stopping it..as the brakes are well over-sized for the size of vehicle alone....

 

I suspect the trailer in question was not balanced out correctly [too much weight to the rear...should have emptied the champagne cupboards] either....even a twin axle trailer needs at least 75kg of nose weight.

 

The RAV4 really is but a car...rather than a stout towing vehicle.  

 

4x4 isn't at all necessary....maybe a stout tranny-type van would have been better?

 

Maybe even as cheap to buy a dog-eared flatbed summat off eBay....even for the one trip?  I'd sooner not tow a trailer.....rather have a solo vehicle.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

....The RAV4 really is but a car...rather than a stout towing vehicle.  .....

 

I've seen RAV4s towing horse trailers (with equine on board) and they don't look at all happy with anything hitched to the back even though a horse weighs far less than a Rolls.

 

At the end of the day, I surmise that the fella who came a cropper with the Rolls didn't want to shell out the £150 or so that it costs to hire a proper transporter for the day, on the basis that his RAV4 had towed other cars before. He only needed to be unlucky once. That day was the "once".

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

At the end of the day, I surmise that the fella who came a cropper with the Rolls didn't want to shell out the £150 or so that it costs to hire a proper transporter for the day

More than a day... He was off to Spain with it!

 

and got four miles.

 

 

Can't help feeling the best option would have been to fit a tow bar to the Rolls.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Even my  21 year old Daihatsu Fourtrak..which has a manufacturer's plated towing weight of 3.5 tonnes....

 

......The RAV4 really is but a car...rather than a stout towing vehicle.  

The Fourtrak is the favoured small towing vehicle by local contractors in west Cornwall,

they pay a premium to get hold of them, there's a waiting list at 'GMO Motors' in PZ.

 

Absolutely agree re. Rav4 is 'nout but a car, and I have two LWB's, both Mk1's.  

I much prefer the manual to the auto, especially for towing.

Edited by Penlan
Link to comment
Share on other sites

An old hippy, I've always loved camper vans (mine have all been VWs: T2 to T5 inclusive)

 

Here's a tiny Bedford Rascal still looking loved and good for its age in 'Narch'  - it must be like sleeping in N gauge. (For bus enthusiasts thats the old Eastern Counties HQ in the background - neo Georgian rather than Art Deco)

dhig

 

 

Bedford rascal - remember those.

 

Back in my gas board days, several rascals were bought by North West Gas for use by the gas fitters. One day 2 brand new ones were parked outside the main office being inspected by top brass. One of the fitters, Tommy, was a bit portly, and one of the (rough) distribution lads shouted "Hey, Tommy, you'll need two of those vans, one for each buttock" !!

 

Laughter all round though the transport officer was NOT amused !!!

 

Good little vans though.

 

Brit15

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Is his insurer going to pay out at all?

 

If the RR car was not owned by the driver, then a claim would be expected, and paid out, by the insurer, to the RR owner...The insurer would then seek to recover the cost from the Toyota driver?

 

Either way, the driver is stuffed??

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

Bedford rascal - remember those.

 

 

Excellent machines...the Suzuki one being the same.......IMHO, the Suzuki Supercarry [Rascal] is the van British Leyland should have made to replace the minivan...[and maybe they could have done..under licence? The Supercarry had predecessors!]

 

My last ex-wife bought me a £300 wonder, Supercarry van...pretty much as a wheelbarrow. As a family we found it an excellent machine.....incredible load space area, access from rear, both sides, etc....a proper lorry chassis [unlike its competitors like DAi-hatsu]...with a proper lorry back axle.  My kids loved it..and used to fight to get  the front seat! It had its faults...like 30+mpgs....but it wasn't slow for its engine size!   It had an extremely narrow width, which was incredibly useful in urban areas....and once carried 60 paving slabs [a freebie, if I could take 'em away] in one go...maybe more!  

 

It went the way of the world [scrap heap] eventually, due to changing MoT rules [the 30 cm rule?] where a hole in the driver's floor was ignored one year...but not the next...or the next...and so on. I got fed up with welding the welding.

 

I used to use it as a 'mobile' work bench too...having a vice bolted to the floor at one side door.  Once it ceased to be road legal..it became a secure, lockable shed for me.  I still have the axle, gearbox and stuff.....

 

I'd love another one......

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thought it wasn't a good idea to tow an automatic car?

I mean put the Toyota on the trailer and tow it with the Rolls.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A Rolls Royce would be about the limit on a Land Rover,let alone a Tonka toy. My own Royce weighs in at 3.25 tons so any transport required would be a slide back truck. I certainly don't think that the trailer was up to it

At last someone who knows the proper short name for a Rolls Royce. Rolls was just a bloody salesman.

 

Impeccable taste in dogs too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Premium

Saw this in the local news this morning. One less old Roller on the road.

 

Rather an insane disregard of towing weights...

 

 

I wonder if speed had anything to do with accident?  I only ask because of the number of times I have been overtaken on a motorway by  vehicles towing  trailers at speeds of well over the limit. I was always told the only way to get out of a "tank slapper" was to accelerate, may not be an option if you are already near Mark 1.

I'm glad no-one was hurt except a wallet. 

To increase the speed is the worst thing you can do as it only increases the oscillations, in fact an increase in speed of 5% will increase the oscillations by at least 10%. The only option is to ease off gradually until the oscillations cease. Best of all of course is to keep your speed down, thats why there are speed limits for towing trailers. Add to the fact that the trailer empty would be near the weight limit for the size of car towing it I'm surprised he made four miles.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Premium

An old hippy, I've always loved camper vans (mine have all been VWs: T2 to T5 inclusive)

 

Here's a tiny Bedford Rascal still looking loved and good for its age in 'Narch'  - it must be like sleeping in N gauge. (For bus enthusiasts thats the old Eastern Counties HQ in the background - neo Georgian rather than Art Deco)

dhig

attachicon.gifBedford Rascal.jpg

I had one many years ago, properly fitted with windows and passenger seats with seat belts. The Suzuki Carryall that followed it was exactly the same van with a short bonnet and the front axle moved forward to in the front of the cab. It still retained the engine under the passenger seat.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

At last someone who knows the proper short name for a Rolls Royce.

And is the proper short name for a Stuttgart car a Benz or a Merc ?

There's an African tribe called the Wa Benzi; the little Wa Benzi ditty my kids used to sing at school in Ghana was 'been to, car full, frig full'.

And an undertaker in Lewisham used to advertize 'Benz black coffins'. :jester:

dhig

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...