Best Smoker Barges 1-5 large [Vol 7]

[Porkis]

hornetrider said:

tioaboa said:

CDI

You sure you've been lurking on this thread?!

[edo]

hornetrider said:

Curious choice to put the black grilles on it though. Easy fix but looks terrible.

agreed

[r129sl]

tioaboa said:

hornetrider said:

You sure you've been lurking on this thread?!

Yes just my pockets are smaller than you guys .... I'd love a V8 but have to settle for a straight 5 diesel!

Ian

I've always had a soft spot for these 209 CLKs. They seem anti-market with their gentle, elegant styling and absence of aggression. The 5-cylinder diesel is a super-characterful engine (as 5-cyls usually are) and lasts forever while giving both performance and economy. So a thumbs up from me. Anyway, I'm an oil burner, too, for reasons of impecuniosity and high mileage. Though it is 5.33am and I have 800miles ahead of me. 5.0litre V8 petrol SL or the diesel 124? Decisions, decisions...

[Baryonyx]

What exactly is it that you do that sees you rack up such huge mileages in your own cars?


Nice CLK above. Very elegant looking things for a smaller car. And if you insist on diesel, Mercedes are my pick.

[r129sl]

Baryonyx said:

What exactly is it that you do that sees you rack up such huge mileages in your own cars?


Nice CLK above. Very elegant looking things for a smaller car. And if you insist on diesel, Mercedes are my pick.

From Donnington Park Services: I'm a commercial barrister based in Newcastle. Unfortunately most of my clients are based somewhere else. Like Grimsby, Swansea (which is where I'm headed now), Sheffield. I go wherever they want me to go (I find myself in Swansea about once a fortnight at the moment) and the car is usually the best way to do it because of the flexibility and ability to carry large, heavy luggage. I've built up a practice on not moaning about going to far flung courts and not charging for travel time, essentially being willing and always saying "yes". It has worked well so far but as I get older (38), it is harder to bear. But it's not like going down the pit, I suppose. I've also quite a long commute, Druridge to Newcastle, about 30miles each way. And I just like driving at any opportunity. Don't know why.

I should post under my name here, I do everywhere else, but when I first came to PH I used to post in the Speed, Plod and the Law section and it just seemed sensible to be a bit more discreet.

[CampDavid]

BMW750iL

Comfort minded spec, 90K, FBMWSH, though does need a bit of bodywork

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...

[tobinen]

tioaboa said:

His 209 CLK

An excellent choice sir. I had one of these and it was a very good car. Always used to do around 43 mpg and a pleasant place to be.

[BigBen]

CampDavid said:

BMW750iL

Comfort minded spec, 90K, FBMWSH, though does need a bit of bodywork

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...

That looks shagged to me and that is in a set of pictures designed to 'sell' the car!

[Zwolf]

CampDavid said:

BMW750iL

Comfort minded spec, 90K, FBMWSH, though does need a bit of bodywork

Looks like a tip inside and out. Plus the Oxford green leather is a highly "acquired taste" in the flesh.

[hornetrider]

BigBen said:

That looks shagged to me and that is in a set of pictures designed to 'sell' the car!

If the st bodywork is abundantly evident in low res pics, then god help you if you see it in the metal.

[Birdster]

r129sl said:

Baryonyx said:

What exactly is it that you do that sees you rack up such huge mileages in your own cars?


Nice CLK above. Very elegant looking things for a smaller car. And if you insist on diesel, Mercedes are my pick.

From Donnington Park Services: I'm a commercial barrister based in Newcastle. Unfortunately most of my clients are based somewhere else. Like Grimsby, Swansea (which is where I'm headed now), Sheffield. I go wherever they want me to go (I find myself in Swansea about once a fortnight at the moment) and the car is usually the best way to do it because of the flexibility and ability to carry large, heavy luggage. I've built up a practice on not moaning about going to far flung courts and not charging for travel time, essentially being willing and always saying "yes". It has worked well so far but as I get older (38), it is harder to bear. But it's not like going down the pit, I suppose. I've also quite a long commute, Druridge to Newcastle, about 30miles each way. And I just like driving at any opportunity. Don't know why.

I should post under my name here, I do everywhere else, but when I first came to PH I used to post in the Speed, Plod and the Law section and it just seemed sensible to be a bit more discreet.

Sorry to go OT, but if you don't charge for travel I'm guessing you make the money back in repeat business/recommendations.

[sam303]

Riley Blue said:

Others will have far more experience of the A8 but mine, after four months of ownership has been nothing but good. It's a 2003, a 4.2 petrol with currently just over 68,000 on the clock. I've spent a couple of hundred replacing a headlight unit, £470 to tidy up the bodywork (dent in the roof and a damaged skirt) and had to buy a new tyre (a Scottish rock ripped open a sidewall) and it's been serviced. It's been 100% reliable in 2,500 miles though occasionally when I start it (approx. one time in six) I get a brake error light but that occurred with the previous owner, was investigated and no fault found. The brakes have been checked again and perform faultlessly.
It's not a fully loaded car, doesn't have all the bells and whistles that some have but suits me as it only gets used for longer distance trips and weekends away. Fuel economy? Don't ask. It doesn't bother me as it's only a couple of mpg worse than my '63 Riley which also gets used for long trips.
The A8 is extremely comfortable, effortless to drive and satisfies in many ways but it isn't at its best on winding B-roads; obviously really as it's such a big brute but it's hard work on the 'twisties' - but then that's not what it was intended for, on motorways it's difficult to beat, completely at ease at any speed. Tweak the suspension settings and it's good fun on A-roads but you can never forget its bulk, it's no GTI despite its power and grip.
We love it, we really do but it does like Tesco Momentum fuel - lots of it....

Thanks Riley, and also slippery, for your comments.

Riley you seem to have got a bargain - judging by the prices of petrol 4.2s on auto trader. Unless yours had a very high mileage? For example, there's one on autotrader with 114k miles, a 2004, for £6475 at a dealer in Glasgow, and that's "reduced to clear". Although anything a Glasgow second-hand car dealer tells you has to be taken with more than a pinch of salt...

Also I was wondering what mpg you are seeing? Clearly not the priority here but I'd still be interested to know. I'd hazard a guess at 19mpg? I'm getting 26 with the 745i when commuting.

[Rocksteadyeddie]

BigBen said:

CampDavid said:

BMW750iL

Comfort minded spec, 90K, FBMWSH, though does need a bit of bodywork

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...

That looks shagged to me and that is in a set of pictures designed to 'sell' the car!

You'd think he'd have at least given it the once over with a damp cloth. Not a big fan of the leather, and is that some missing dashboard pixels I spy?

[S3_Graham]

tioaboa said:

hornetrider said:

You sure you've been lurking on this thread?!

Yes just my pockets are smaller than you guys .... I'd love a V8 but have to settle for a straight 5 diesel!

Ian

They are much nicer looking than the W208 that I've just bought. Wish I could of afford to get the 209 '55!!

Threadist, does anybody know of any reasonably priced, good quality body shops in the south? I'm in the countryside between Reading and Basingstoke. Need some preventative rust repairs done on the car. Saw the car up on the ramp yesterday and 3 of the jacking points have small areas of paint missing and surface corrosion that needs tidying up, plus a front wing and a small bit on the rear window/boot surround.

Edited by S3_Graham on Wednesday 3rd September 10:44

[BGarside]

tioaboa said:

Hello All,

After lurking for sometime on this thread, and hand wringing about running an old car - all your stories have helped! So ....

I've done it! - I swapped my newer old car (Mini Cooper D), for the world of the cheap barge. I present my Mercedes CLK 270CDI only £5K, with 75,000 gentle miles on the clock,(so just run in for these engines), I'm doing lots of miles with work so this seems like a sensible idea and fun too.



The interior (grey leather) and exterior are excellent for a 11 year old car, the previous owner has put a Motorola Bluetooth in and its has built in SatNav (which I think is going to be hideously out of date). It seems to have been serviced regularly at MB and then a specialist. The previous owner seems to have loved and looked after the old thing.

Only niggles so far are, the offside mirror has one of those stick on replacements on it, and its like the hall of mirrors at the circus! and the dealer I got it from has put a taxi quality front tyre on it (Event made in China ) so that will have to go after pay day.

It drives like new I'm wafting up the motorway in comfort and getting high 40's mpg. Now I have to ask why pay more for a car when you can have all this

Nice. Elegant-looking car. Was considering one of those myself while looking at older Mercs but the complexity put me off a bit. 5-cylinder engines tend to make interesting noises too.

[idiotgap]

tioaboa said:

I've done it! - I swapped my newer old car (Mini Cooper D), for the world of the cheap barge. I present my Mercedes CLK 270CDI

I like this
Swapping a newish car for a smoker is brave and definitely threadist move (don't listen to those who pour scorn on the oil).

I applaud your choice too... I like clks and would likely run a diesel if I had to do more miles. An AMG 209 would do nicely one day though.

[r129sl]

Birdster said:

Sorry to go OT, but if you don't charge for travel I'm guessing you make the money back in repeat business/recommendations.

Exactly. And it's worth my while to be doing something in Swansea rather than nothing in Newcastle, even if I have to drive all the way ther and back. Finally, lots of business miles means lots of tax relief on car-related expenditure.

[tioaboa]

Baryonyx said:

What exactly is it that you do that sees you rack up such huge mileages in your own cars?


Nice CLK above. Very elegant looking things for a smaller car. And if you insist on diesel, Mercedes are my pick.

Thank You, myself I'm an IT Consultant and I travel UK wide on occasion - (hence tioaboa - Turn It Off and Back On Again!). My daily commute is 25 miles each way on fast dual carriageways and A-roads to the office. It needs to be diesel for the costs to add up for me. Its an improvement on the mini on motorways for noise, although did a 400 mile round trip in a day in the little thing and it was fine.

Ian

[bmthnick1981]

Rocksteadyeddie said:

BigBen said:

CampDavid said:

BMW750iL

Comfort minded spec, 90K, FBMWSH, though does need a bit of bodywork

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...

That looks shagged to me and that is in a set of pictures designed to 'sell' the car!

You'd think he'd have at least given it the once over with a damp cloth. Not a big fan of the leather, and is that some missing dashboard pixels I spy?

£1500-£2000 tops for that in my view. Undesirable (to most) interior colour and a potentially expensive bodywork repair.

[minimoog]

r129sl said:

as I get older (38)

That answers my question on whether it might have been you I saw approaching Belsay from Bolam in an immaculate blue 129 on Sunday.

Given the driver resembled none so much as Ken Russell, I now know it wasn't