Cheap Car/Van Challenge

WillDAQ

WillDAQ

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Joined
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Location
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Ok guys and gals, looking for some suggestions here...

In September me and a mate are going to be attempting to support a ten day bike ride of the length of the UK. We're not going to be talking the smart as while it will carry out luggage it's not going to be able to carry spare bike parts or any injured cyclists, thus defeating the point of going.

So we need wheels that will carry a decent load over 1800 miles. Simple right, rent a van or a camper van... well yes, but that's not very Top Gear is it, and I did say "attempt to". Therefore we're setting a budget of ?500 to purchase a car/van/thing capable of making the distance (and another ?500 to fix it along the way...).

A few key questions:
- Anyone done anything like this before?
- Any recommendations on forms of transport?
- Anyone want to sell us a car or van for ?500?
- Are we insane (maybe don't answer this one)?
 
Get an Audi 100 Avant (C3 aka slob-audi). Big, huge, comfortable, should be rust free, cheap at this point and should work just fine. And it it doesn't, it's just entertainment.
 
avanti said:
You can rent a modern van for less, why buy some old piece of shit and risk breaking down somewhere? I'm sure the bikers wouldn't appreciate waiting wounded in a ditch for hours while you guys try to start a old transit...
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You make a good point about van rental. I've spent a chunk of the day looking at van rentals and i've finally found some that are suitably within budget. That said, it's hardly going to make for the most interesting 10 days. In terms of leaving people in ditches, we're not intending to be driving along behind them as it stands. Most likely we'll meet up each evening for restock / parts changes.
 
If you are a true top gear fan how could you resist not trying this out? Sounds like a blast and would beat a new rental any day. Do what the TG boys would do. Take the challenge
 
Unlike a rental, you can sell it at the end. /justification

It's a daft idea. Please go through with it and tell us how it turns out! (sorry no recommendations as the market is a bit different over here)
 
Hell yeah! roadtrip! petrolhead style, daft and compleetly unneccissary since you can just rent whatever you need, or borrow something reliable from someone you know, but for all that TopGear has thought you, buy an old clunker and see where you end up with it. ( just keep in mind you lot don't have a supportcrew following you in Range-Rovers)

As for vehicle sudgestions, I don't care what anybody or any focking survey sais , this generation of transit is indestructable:
Ford-Transit_8647101.jpg

Ton's of em still on the road dispite the hard lives they had.....that's saying something.
 
Cowboy said:
this generation of transit is indestructable:
Ford-Transit_8647101.jpg
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I beg to differ (with rust, and downright abuse being the main problem) ... and you won?t get one for that kind of money. For that kind of money, they all go to africa these days.

I?d suggest looking for a 1990ies people carrier - renault Espace, Eurovan (Peugeot 807 and Citroen, Fiat models) ... or a chrysler voyager, Pontiac Trans Sport ... the cheap ones should be well within budget ... have lots of space, seats (or throw them out) ... and they drive a hell of a lot better than a Transit-Van ...
 
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541471416_9122d5c5e0.jpg

Perhaps not better then a transit, but more, uhm, exciting :D
 
Jens said:
541471416_9122d5c5e0.jpg

Perhaps not better then a transit, but more, uhm, exciting :D
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:lol:

On the plus side ... some chicken-whire, some matte black paint ... and there?s the meanest looking tank for under whatever-they-charge-for-tanks-these-days Money ...

Cowboy said:
I was pretty sure you would :p
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:D damn, you?ve got me all figured out there ...
 
Interrobang said:
I beg to differ (with rust, and downright abuse being the main problem) ... and you won?t get one for that kind of money. For that kind of money, they all go to africa these days.

I?d suggest looking for a 1990ies people carrier - renault Espace, Eurovan (Peugeot 807 and Citroen, Fiat models) ... or a chrysler voyager, Pontiac Trans Sport ... the cheap ones should be well within budget ... have lots of space, seats (or throw them out) ... and they drive a hell of a lot better than a Transit-Van ...
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They sold Trans Sports in enough numbers over there that there might be some left? They're pretty much all gone here (I've seen one in the past five years) and they were inexplicably popular in this country.

Also, what the hell is the tank, apart from awesome?
 
2Billion said:
They sold Trans Sports in enough numbers over there that there might be some left? They're pretty much all gone here (I've seen one in the past five years) and they were inexplicably popular in this country.
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They were sold in europe as the Opel/Vauxhall Sintra. After people saw the horrid crash test scores, sales plummeted.

The fact that the vans platform was designed for global use was a slight disadvantage for the GM minis as the vans were narrower than the competition in NA, even with the last generation models.

As for seeing them around, they are still a popular sight on central PA roads.
/knows WAY too much about minivans...:
 
rickhamilton620 said:
They were sold in europe as the Opel/Vauxhall Sintra. After people saw the horrid crash test scores, sales plummeted.

The fact that the vans platform was designed for global use was a slight disadvantage for the GM minis as the vans were narrower than the competition in NA, even with the last generation models.

As for seeing them around, they are still a popular sight on central PA roads.
/knows WAY too much about minivans...:
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I will now astound you by knowing more useless information about minivans!

That is not a Trans Sport. Well, it was for about a year, give or take, but they dropped the Trans Sport badge and called it the Pontiac Montana pretty much immediately afterwards - there was a strange transition period as they switched the name, I wonder if they just had too many badges lying around. They also tried to pretend it was an SUV by photographing it dirty, in spite of it being FWD. So the Trans Sport should apply mostly to the dustbusters, which were even sold in Europe as the Trans Sport if memory serves, though I'll be amazed if they sold in high enough numbers to actually have survivors (or, erm, at all, they were REALLY bad). The Montana is still common around here, but the dustbusters have pretty well disappeared.
 
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2Billion said:
I will now astound you by knowing more useless information about minivans!

That is not a Trans Sport. Well, it was for about a year, give or take, but they dropped the Trans Sport badge and called it the Pontiac Montana pretty much immediately afterwards - there was a strange transition period as they switched the name, I wonder if they just had too many badges lying around. They also tried to pretend it was an SUV by photographing it dirty, in spite of it being FWD. So the Trans Sport should apply mostly to the dustbusters, which were even sold in Europe as the Trans Sport if memory serves, though I'll be amazed if they sold in high enough numbers to actually have survivors (or, erm, at all, they were REALLY bad). The Montana is still common around here, but the dustbusters have pretty well disappeared.
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Ah that one. I see, totally didn't realize that they sold the dustbusters in Europe as well. Yeah those are way more elusive around here, although I still see a few from time to time. Most of the ones I see are fairly high spec models with the power sliding door. :p :D
 
I'm just curious why on earth they decided to badge it a Pontiac in Europe. Did that brand even have a presence there? And yeah, the Euro one was a Silhouette but since the only difference between models was the side cladding and front bumper it didn't actually make that much of a difference, though I personally thought that the Silhouette's bumper was the worst of the trio (which is like comparing the smell of three different farts, admittedly).

Alas, they never officially made this version:

transvertible-001-900.jpg
 
2Billion said:
I'm just curious why on earth they decided to badge it a Pontiac in Europe. Did that brand even have a presence there? And yeah, the Euro one was a Silhouette but since the only difference between models was the side cladding and front bumper it didn't actually make that much of a difference, though I personally thought that the Silhouette's bumper was the worst of the trio (which is like comparing the smell of three different farts, admittedly).

Alas, they never officially made this version:

transvertible-001-900.jpg
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hmm..Transvertable or TG's convertible Espace...Decisions, Decisions. :p
 
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