Agri Vehicles Insurance from Greenlands

Author Topic: Smalholder Cars?  (Read 9209 times)

landroverroy

  • Joined Oct 2010
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #30 on: May 28, 2018, 11:43:37 am »
I too have a Landy (Defender) as a second car, that I don't use much now. But when I do use it then I'm glad I've got it. Now that Land Rover no longer make proper Land Rovers I am planning to keep it (for ever?) as I reckon it'll keep it's price.
Sometimes it isn't just a case of how much something is costing, but about the pleasure/satisfaction you get from having it and using it at times when nothing else would be quite the same. :thumbsup:
Rules are made:
  for the guidance of wise men
  and the obedience of fools.

Womble

  • Joined Mar 2009
  • Stirlingshire, Central Scotland
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #31 on: May 28, 2018, 01:58:20 pm »
Sometimes it isn't just a case of how much something is costing, but about the pleasure/satisfaction you get from having it


Yeah, there used to be an element of that, and our Landy is still in pretty good nick for its 20 year age.


However, having now spent a full day swearing at and repeatedly assembling / disassembling the door locking mechanism, I'm starting to feel that the inevitable pain and cost of ownership is eclipsing the benefits for the limited mileage I'm doing in it!!


« Last Edit: May 28, 2018, 01:59:59 pm by Womble »
"All fungi are edible. Some fungi are only edible once." -Terry Pratchett

doganjo

  • Joined Aug 2012
  • Clackmannanshire
  • Qui? Moi?
    • ABERDON GUNDOGS for work and show
    • Facebook
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #32 on: May 28, 2018, 02:03:24 pm »
Could you buy a second hand landy for the farm and a runabout for Lynda normal use, and keep the Landy on SORN until needed - you can Sorn or Unsorn almost instantly.  Not sure if there's a limit on how often in a year though.
Always have been, always will be, a WYSIWYG - black is black, white is white - no grey in my life! But I'm mellowing in my old age

Anke

  • Joined Dec 2009
  • St Boswells, Scottish Borders
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #33 on: May 29, 2018, 09:24:17 pm »
A Renault Master van here - takes 35 bales of hay or 15 feed bags, transports goats (they hop in and out) and tows a 10ft trailer with goats/sheep in it as well. I sleep in it during shows (like the Great Yorkshire), and I am high enough in the cab to check out what sheep the neighbours have behind their hedges. Not 4x4 obviously, but we also have a small tractor to do field work or loading in the field, then transfer the trailer to the van once on the road. When it snows we just stay at home as OH refuses to get a 4x4 (his daily commute is in a Skoda Fabia Estate, that accommodates his bike in the back for the last bit of city commute)

YorkshireLass

  • Joined Mar 2010
  • Just when I thought I'd settled down...!
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #34 on: May 30, 2018, 08:54:54 pm »
Has anyone got a car-based van - Fiesta, mini Clubvan, etc? That's sort of where I'm currently investigating. More for dog, sacks of compost, maybe a lone bale of hay or wheelbarrow.

pgkevet

  • Joined Jul 2011
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #35 on: May 31, 2018, 05:51:18 am »
It often suprises me what you can get into an innocuous looking vehicle. My aged 200sx has amazing capacity with the seats down - even a 3m kitchen worktop with the tailgate tied down and only a few inches hanging out. I once went to Wicks to buy a load of 2.4m posts and timbers to build a pergola. Out in the carpark I was next to a builders white van and the guy was tying a similar load on his roof-rack.

I'm a  bit of a pi$$ taker and opened up the back.. loaded the timbers in to the guys amazement and casually said "Ain't got time for all the mate. Got work to do." And drove off.
 I have taken it over my (dry) fields but it doesn't have the clearance for ruts.
The classic workhorse used to be a volvo estate but pricey to run. I did have a berlingo van in my last business - cheap enough and OK if you don't need performance.

Scotsdumpy

  • Joined Jul 2012
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #36 on: May 31, 2018, 08:33:23 am »
Ahhh yes, the trusted Volvo estate! We've had several and I loved every one... with all the seats down you could get all manner of things smallholding related. In the good ol days we used to take our nanny to a billy in the estate part - just a tad smelly on the return journey though!! I don't think there is a vehicle that compares these days. We now resort to a isuzu rodeo denver double cab pick up for our only vehicle - if I clean the cab it is fine for driving non smallholding folk around and the back (with canopy) carries supplies but not animals - too high up to dismount safely. It tows a small animal traler easily and fairly economically. Parts are still easy to get. Personally I prefer my old mazda b2500 which felt a bit more substantial - the isuzu seems 'plasticy'

Foobar

  • Joined Mar 2012
  • South Wales
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #37 on: May 31, 2018, 09:52:24 am »
Have a look at the Citroen Dispatch (there are Peugeot and Toyota equivalents too). Not 4x4 (although you can get them as 4x4 in Europe), but they have some fancy seating and stowage options, plus grip control and a work site pack etc.

doganjo

  • Joined Aug 2012
  • Clackmannanshire
  • Qui? Moi?
    • ABERDON GUNDOGS for work and show
    • Facebook
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #38 on: June 02, 2018, 09:45:13 am »
Always have been, always will be, a WYSIWYG - black is black, white is white - no grey in my life! But I'm mellowing in my old age

Womble

  • Joined Mar 2009
  • Stirlingshire, Central Scotland
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #39 on: June 03, 2018, 10:51:14 pm »
Hmmm, maybe a little bit too quirky to be a daily drive for work. Also only tows a tonne if you apply the 85% rule.
I could see it being a cracking smallholder car for lots of people though!
"All fungi are edible. Some fungi are only edible once." -Terry Pratchett

Big Mat

  • Joined May 2016
  • King's Lynn, Norfolk
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #40 on: June 04, 2018, 10:45:50 pm »
We've got a Renault trafic van which I've fitted dog cages and rear seats to , it tows the trailers and you can put a couple of goats in the back if needs, it's also my partners everyday vehicle. 

I've got a ford focus estate, I had it but it does go places and will tow smaller trailers.

I did have a defender but it had an accident and I've not been able to afford to replace it since, I miss it alot and having a 4x4 is very handy at times

arobwk

  • Joined Nov 2015
  • Kernow: where 2nd-home owners rule !
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #41 on: June 18, 2018, 10:59:49 pm »
A bit late to this thread, but some thoughts:

A view held by some is that a good set of really gnarly tyres on a 2-wheel drive will get one to most places over pretty much anything.  Not tested by me, so I will not comment other than to say that I can't believe it would cope particularly well with gloopy mud no matter how gnarly the drive tyres might be.

Mention has been made of the Dacia Duster 4WD:  I have a diesel Duster of 2013 vintage (made in India). Do not buy a "made in India" version would be my recommend - early rust issues.  I've lost count, but I think I'm in for my 5th warranty rustiness-repair this July.  Dacia moved Duster production to Europe not long after (can't remember when exactly) so check, if 2nd-hand, where it was built as I seem to think Euro' build versions much better (and they will likely have a newer generation turbo diesel 1.5 engine which, I can say, will be noticeably perkier).


That said, I really do like my early Duster and, @ 55k miles, can't see myself exchanging it any time soon.  It has v good ground clearance/angles for an "SUV"; the 4WD version's 1st gear is real "bottom gear" stuff (no good for launching oneself cleanly into traffic - have to pull-out in 2nd for that).  Boot is spacious, but I have still envied a friend's 2WD Saab and now Ford estate's seat-down boot length.  Electronic 4WD control is off/auto/full-time + I went for traction control option (which can also be turned on/off):  all Nissan based.

I'm almost always fully loaded with gardening gear and frequently with roof-bar load as well:  presently I get just over 37 mpg, but I have managed some 43 mpg over extended periods with more normal use - still no where near "official" mpg figure, but still decent enough.

As much as I really like my Duster (bought new, because they were very new to the market), I do wonder sometimes whether a used Nissan X-Trail 4WD with 2Tonne towing capacity might have been the way I should have gone. (The X-Trail had it's own problems - according to web searches - but, then, we all know about Land Rovers too !! )

 

Womble

  • Joined Mar 2009
  • Stirlingshire, Central Scotland
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #42 on: June 19, 2018, 08:48:05 am »
Thanks both,


The research I've done so far hasn't come up with an ideal solution yet, so I'm still thinking. Small to medium 4x4s don't tend to have enough towing capacity nor boot space, whilst large 4x4s are massive, but still not as practical as the Defender on any measure except passenger comfort!


I even looked at an Octavia 4wd estate the other day, and came to the conclusion that with the right tyres, it would go just about everywhere I want it to, whilst carrying more gear than a medium SUV. The key words are of course 'just about', and I know I'd miss the Defender's capabilities. The question is, would I miss them enough to make up for the cost of running two cars?  :thinking:
 
I totally agree with you on the tyres though, arobwk. My previous car was a 2wd Focus, and was far better in icy conditions with winter tyres on than the Defender is with its big mud and snow monsters, so I can see that the same would be true of slick vs knobbly tyres over fields. At the end of the day, what stuffs you up offroad is lack of traction rather than lack of power, and even with a locking diff, you only get power to two wheels if you're skidding.
 

The good news is that my Fabia had a clean bill of health at its service yesterday (not bad for having done nearly 100,000 miles). The bad news is that I still can't figure out how to fix the door locks on the Defender, and I need to get them sorted before I can either drive it anywhere much or sell it.


So, I'm afraid I'm still thinking!!

"All fungi are edible. Some fungi are only edible once." -Terry Pratchett

bazzais

  • Joined Jan 2010
    • Allt Y Coed Farm and Campsite
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #43 on: June 20, 2018, 05:40:03 pm »
Look for a landy thats pre  1 January 1978 - saves tax and MOT costs.

Koojie

  • Joined May 2018
Re: Smalholder Cars?
« Reply #44 on: June 25, 2018, 12:18:15 am »
We had decided to move to Herefordshire/Worcestershire borders and were advised that we ought to get a high wheelbase in case of having to drive through flooded areas or be prepared to be snowed in.  We opted for a Mitsubishi Warrior pickup.  We also chose the top box with opening windows for the rear to keep chickens/feed/bedding dry.  So far any trips with chooks have been in the cab with me!   It has 3 options to run as a 4 x 4 but I usually just drive in normal mode. I think (can't remember) that it will override into 4 x 4 if it deems it necessary - but I'm not sure - it has it's auto pilot mode button switched on just in case.  We had it fitted with a tow bar for trailers/livestock transportation too.  The reverse has a camera with trailer guidelines too which is very handy.  I'll be going on a course to make sure I can handle it when the time comes. That was 2 years ago.  I have to say it handled 2 weeks in Mull very well!

Geronimo (well it is a Warrior!) runs very well considering his size.  I usually get 45 miles to the gallon (unless I have air con on down the motorway and that was 33mpg).  We are now in the process of moving . . . to Devon instead.  But apparently we could get snowed in there just as easily as we will be in a very remote area.  I have driven through small floods and at the moment my girls are in a friends' field so I off road to get to them!  Very comfy drive too - the in-laws were transported (no, not in the rear, although the thought of shoving mother-in-law in there did cross my mind) to visit my daughter some miles away - mother-in-law snored all the way home, so she was comfy enough to sleep!  I hasten to add we have the double cab version.

And for those with other hobbies - I took 3 other ladies on a quilting retreat and all of our equipment and luggage fitted in really well with room to spare - in the snow and only had to use the 4x4 mode to get out of one lady's steep driveway!

Now we need to look into meadow cutting equipment etc!

 

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