Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

It drives like a massive 4x4, because that’s what it is. It’s like steering a boat. Stopping is also comparable to a boat. Parking it Is like trying to park a boat.

A T5/T6 handles much better. (And is MUCH easier to park)

And also, am I right in thinking you can’t fit your bike in the back of your merc and have to put it on the roof, yeah? So why the hell have you got an estate if you can’t even fit what you bought it for in the boot?

Why are you spending so much money on fixing everything on it if it will never be capable of doing what you want it to do? You may as well just put the bike on the roof of your Porsche!

Sell it as is.

Or see how much an engine swap is.

Preach.

I bought the Mercedes before I bought the latest bike. I like the Mercedes, so I fixed it. I’d like to have a vehicle that I can fit the new bike (and possible at least one other, and a load of luggage) into for trips to the Alps. The Mercedes can do this, but a larger vehicle would make life easier.

Things change, circumstances evolve.

Ah, I see. I thought you bought it to carry the MTB.

I think a high spec T5 that’s a few years old is really going to be the thing that’s best for the job that you want it to do, yet also being pleasant inside and Handling well. If getting a full suss MTB into it with no hassle is your top priority, then anything other than a van will not fit the bill IMHO.

If you want something that’s fast and more enjoyable to drive, then I think accepting the fact that using it to transport your MTB will always be a PITA is going to be required!

When I bought the C55 I was still mainly riding on the road. These days I should probably sell 10 or so quite nice road bikes that I never ride.

Van life does seem to be beckoning.

Well there you go - bet those 10 bikes would cover ~50% of the cost of a T5!
Win/Win.

Four Serotta, two Klein, a Silk Road Cannondale, a full NJS, 57cm Bridgestone track bike, ISP Talbot mild groad bike, how much of a T5 is that?

wanting some kind of RS6 style super van thing that has 500hp just makes absolutely zero sense whatsoever.

Speak for yourself. When I win the lottery I'm taking the RS6 to a coachwork company and getting it converted into a hi-top version.

The correct plural is serottae I think. I’d make a minor contribution to the T5 fund if you were serious about binning them.

Isn't there a speed limit on vans anyway?
They are never gonna be as fast as a car.

I think it’s called the rev limiter

3 CSi and a cross bike. I could probably release a couple of the CSi to be honest.

Not sure I can justify more bikes when my Atlanta hasn’t left the loft in the last 2 years. I think I’ve only ridden it maybe 5 times total. But it’d be nice to have an extra (extra extra extra) ‘leave at the in-laws’ bike.

I quite like these Disco 3's. What spec is the one you got, TDV6? I need a bigger car for towing the rally car about, I'd be tempted by one of these but they're all Auto in NZ, but maybe that's ok for a wafty 4x4 tow barge

I've never quite got over vans after working in bike shops for years.

2WD 3.0 turbo hiace, RWD, skinny wheels and nothing except a bike in the back (of course you don't have to take the wheels off, these things can fit 5 bikes in them wheels on), and I've had more fun in that on a gravel road than I have had in some of my more 'sporty' cars. It was considerably easier to lose rear traction in that thing in any thing I've driven since. Extra points for being able to carry a motorbike and having a super low load tray.

I'm not saying they handle well or have nice interiors, this thing barely had rear brakes, but I was happy doing long road trips in it to ride awesome places. Did get it stuck in a field once though. Good times. I feel a nice transporter I'd always care too much about, unless it's something like a t25 syncro I'd rather have a bit of beater.

If it was just to haul bikes to UK bike parks a bit of a beater would be fine, but I had a mental image of myself standing by a smoking van on the side of the autoroute looking a bit bemused, trying to work out how to get three bikes and luggage to Morzine and the van back to the UK, both at the same time.

Credit card.

Hiace is a good shout, I don't think I ever saw one in the UK... Do they even exist over there?

We've got two at work, they're fucking huge...

1KZ-TE with 250,000km on them are probably less likely to break down that an 25k mile VW TDI. We thrashed the daylights out of three of them, one had over 300k km on the clock, and the only thing I ever saw go was a starter motor.

I think the bigger problem is living with the shit interiors. I'm not sure you'd even be able to find one in the UK. You're right, a beater Transporter is probably a bit of a liability.

@Dammit have you looked into the current gen ford transit? There seems to be a tuning aftermarket for those and surely they'd fit the bill for reliable, not terrible intercontinental MTB transportation?

Leasing a new vehicle means the T6 comes out cheaper than a Transit due to depreciation being lower, I've not really had a good look at second hand ones though.

*cough*

You can even hoist your bikes in!

That's a very pimped out wheelchair bus, makes ours look pov by comparison... Can't believe how cheap it is...

I thought I’d look on Gumtree to see how the Astra would compare to other £500 cars. Fuck me, absolute scenes in the listings.

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