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Self Drive car transporter.
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Ray White



Joined: 02 Dec 2014
Posts: 6285
Location: Derby

PostPosted: Fri Jun 07, 2019 4:39 pm    Post subject: Self Drive car transporter. Reply with quote

Has anyone hired one of these?

I recently hired a self drive car transporter for the day to collect my newly purchased MG TC from Lyndon, nr. Oakham in Rutland. I picked up the Transporter from Nottingham and collected the car without issues. I had never used this type of transport before as I had always borrowed a trailer and towed it behind the Range Rover. For £100 a day I must say it was a breeze. A most enjoyable stress free way of transporting a car. There is an electric winch if needed and wheel straps are provided.

Highly recommended.

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peter scott



Joined: 18 Dec 2007
Posts: 7113
Location: Edinburgh

PostPosted: Fri Jun 07, 2019 5:09 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

That is indeed excellent but I mustn't tell my friend who is addicted to buying cars.

Peter Very Happy
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Rootes75



Joined: 30 Apr 2013
Posts: 3785
Location: The Somerset Levels

PostPosted: Fri Jun 07, 2019 5:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

We have hired a 7.5 ton beavertail to use on Monday as we have to move some vehicles. Its £150 per day and the 3.5 ton beavertail is £100, even adding our fuel use on top its much cheaper than paying a 3rd party.
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Bitumen Boy



Joined: 26 Jan 2012
Posts: 1733
Location: Above the snow line in old Monmouthshire

PostPosted: Fri Jun 07, 2019 6:35 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

That does sound like a good option, though I have to say I would have probably been looking to simply drive the new oldie home under its own power over such a distance... or does it need some work doing?
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Ray White



Joined: 02 Dec 2014
Posts: 6285
Location: Derby

PostPosted: Fri Jun 07, 2019 6:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Bitumen Boy wrote:
That does sound like a good option, though I have to say I would have probably been looking to simply drive the new oldie home under its own power over such a distance... or does it need some work doing?


The advantage of a self drive transporter is that you can do the job of collecting the car by yourself, at a time to suit you - otherwise you need to rely on someone to drive you there or drive your car back.

As it happens, the tyres date from the 1960s and the brakes require attention. How clean is the fuel system for example.? The p/o had not driven the car since rebuilding it so reliability is an unknown quantity.

I intend to go through the car in detail to satisfy myself that it is safe and reliable before taking to the road.

When I do get the MG on the road I will be the first person to drive TC 1030 since the 1960s!!
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mikeC



Joined: 31 Jul 2009
Posts: 1771
Location: Market Warsop, Nottinghamshire

PostPosted: Fri Jun 07, 2019 8:25 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

That looks a much better bet than the kit of parts you were looking at.
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Ray White



Joined: 02 Dec 2014
Posts: 6285
Location: Derby

PostPosted: Fri Jun 07, 2019 9:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yes Mike. I had been drawn to the many expensive new parts including the powder coated chassis which had been checked for alignment and the replacement Ash frame...but I calculated that there was at least 1000 hours needed to reassemble the bits and there was no guarantee that it was all there.

You were right; at half the price it would still not be cheap. This way I can soon have the car on the road and improve on it to a higher standard.

I was just 13 years old when an acquaintance of my Dad turned up in an immaculate Red MG TC with light tan interior ...and I decided there and then that one day I would have one. Now, half a century later, I have a car like the one that so inspired that young lad.
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Ray White



Joined: 02 Dec 2014
Posts: 6285
Location: Derby

PostPosted: Fri Jun 07, 2019 10:30 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I have started a separate thread for the MG.
I hope it will be an interesting journey.

It would be helpful to chat with any other TC owners especially for the finer details.
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old iron



Joined: 22 Mar 2016
Posts: 185

PostPosted: Sat Jun 08, 2019 3:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yes I have hired transporters on a number of occasions. Just make sure that the vehicle you are collecting is not going to exceed the weight amity of the transporter. Sounds obvious I know but some pre war cars are deceiving in weight.
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Rootes75



Joined: 30 Apr 2013
Posts: 3785
Location: The Somerset Levels

PostPosted: Sat Jun 08, 2019 4:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Agreed, always check the weight and length limits of the carrying vehicle. Its a simple mistake that I have known happen.
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Penman



Joined: 23 Nov 2007
Posts: 4751
Location: Swindon, Wilts.

PostPosted: Sat Jun 08, 2019 4:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi
Would also suggest you make sure you have 4 straps bone for each wheel, I despair, when out in the one from work, the number of times I see them with only 2 in use (1 front and the other diagonally at the rear).
If the pressure down on the tyre should cause an over pressure blowout then they are left with only one holding the load.
This could be even more important with old tyres like the MG.
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badhuis



Joined: 20 Aug 2008
Posts: 1390
Location: Netherlands

PostPosted: Sat Jun 08, 2019 5:09 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Beaver tails are excellent for getting cars!
When my brother bought a Rover P5B back in the nineties we would never had gotten it out of its very narrow resting place if there was not an electric winch.






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Ray White



Joined: 02 Dec 2014
Posts: 6285
Location: Derby

PostPosted: Sat Jun 08, 2019 5:21 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The one I hired had a winch but fortunately I didn't need it. The transporter is a Vauxhall 3.5 litre and to my surprise even had a 6 speed box!

I used to drive a Ford Transit 190 (long wheelbase with twin wheels) for a living and was not expecting electric windows and a comfy seat!
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Rootes75



Joined: 30 Apr 2013
Posts: 3785
Location: The Somerset Levels

PostPosted: Tue Jun 11, 2019 10:53 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

We used a Mercedez Atego 7.5 ton beavertail yesterday, I drove it from Somerset up to Windsor to collect a car. Superb lorry, cruised along at 18-19mpg. Good strong winch that was brilliant to use as it was raining and it made it so easy.
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alastairq



Joined: 14 Oct 2016
Posts: 1950
Location: East Yorkshire

PostPosted: Tue Jun 11, 2019 11:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Weights are often overlooked...or simply presumed to be within the limits for the tow vehicle.....especially if that tow vehicle is a product of Solihull....or a fancy modern crew cab pickup truck from the far east.
Yet it amazed me how..effectively....little those vehicles are permitted to tow.
What is also often ignored is the train weight.
Ignored, because the load is sat on a trailer which is hitched up behind.......and lots of spares stuck in the back of the tow vehicle.

My old faithful for towing stuff is my daily Daihatsu Fourtrak...with its 5 3/4 tonne [as near as dammit] gross train weight..as per the weight plate in the engine bay. truly a farmer's friend..including the interior which smells of damp sheep...and a real multi-fuel engine! [I've tried, it is!]

I like the idea of hiring a beavertail..[but sadly out of my financial reach]...and even looked at a small old one for a daily runabout....[always fancied a bull-nose Mercedes].....
But, I [until recently] had a huge twin axle trailer..big enough to carry a Volvo estate...built by a Nottingham blacksmith back in the now-tax-free days....everything built in...darned thing....but, my Volvo 740 estate towed it..and even managed to stop it! Got rid recently...it was, for me, a liability too far.....[There is a house in Shropshire that had one of it's wheels in their front hedge...no idea where, it was dark & wet...and went unnoticed for quite some distance, until a toilet break, and a quick check, noticed something missing.....There was a spare wheel...but, unfortunately, not enough wheel studs left......Oi Oi, here we come! Yet another arrival home in the wee early hours...under amber flashing lights......the joys of trialling!!
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