Best smoker barges 1-5 large [vol11]

[Pothole]

Krikkit said:

Absolutely agreed Lowtimer - as an 80s child I remember being ferried around in a knackered Talbot Solara, a Mini Traveller and a Montego Estate while my parents were hard-up, all with the structural integrity of wet cardboard.

My Dad's first car was a Moskvich (in Moscow) followed by a Standard 10...

[SpeckledJim]

RenesisEvo said:

Krikkit said:

SpeckledJim said:

bob-lad said:

I wonder where the crossover is safety-wise between even a mid-sized modern and a lovely older Jaguar / Mercedes barge.

I appreciate this is probably heresy within these hallowed pages but as I'm looking for a replacement vehicle for Mrs-lad, it's a consideration.

Whilst I'm sure she'd be happy pottering between committee meetings in a Bentley Eight for some reason I feel I'd be somewhat envious.

I think basically everything before, say, 2005 will be less safe in a crash than a new Clio.

That's a tricky question - hitting a wall/solid object then yes, the Clio will be very safe by comparison... In the real world the weight of the cars has a significant influence - a W220 will fair much better in a head-on collision against a Range Rover than a small city car.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExQUGk12S8U

Realistically, if you have safety in mind, Volvo.

Realistically, if you have safety in mind, driver training.

That wont make me feel any better when a drunk driver concertinas an inadequately strong old car.

[Stegel]

Re crash safety, I've had two off road crashes as a driver, and in each case the car "did its job" and I walked out - I'm pretty sure I would not have been so lucky in an older car of the type I spent time in as a child. It has made me crash safety conscious, and I'd be reluctant to tootle around in old British sports cars for example. A client gave me a spirited ride in an XK120 drophead some years ago - my abiding memory is no seat belts and lots of hard edges!

[bob-lad]

I think the old barge plans for the Mrs are fading.

It turns out that she prefers that V8 A6 Avant from a page or so back. Or the Volvo estate from pages before that. So something newish and safer but still bargy

[bob-lad]

Stegel said:

Re crash safety, I've had two off road crashes as a driver, and in each case the car "did its job" and I walked out - I'm pretty sure I would not have been so lucky in an older car of the type I spent time in as a child. It has made me crash safety conscious, and I'd be reluctant to tootle around in old British sports cars for example. A client gave me a spirited ride in an XK120 drophead some years ago - my abiding memory is no seat belts and lots of hard edges!

My 2000MY XKR was written off whilst stationary. A Doris in her Clio rear ended me at 60ish. I walked away, she needed paramedics.

The Jag "did its job", as you say.

ETA: Thanks for all the safety thoughts, btw.

Edited by bob-lad on Tuesday 17th January 20:01

[carinaman]

Not for me as it's a post 2006 pricey road tax barge, but it's been reduced and it's 4WD, almost 300bhp and it's nighthawk black pearl:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...

[sussexcoast]

Thank you everyone for your replies (re. bmw 325 compact). I shall take on all your advice when/if I go for a test drive.

I'm amused by the fact that it's considered too small to be a barge (quite rightly), and will get myself over to the dedicated PH thread (of which I was previously unaware).

[Max M4X WW]

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

[harrykul]

Oof! Love that: super colours and m paras. Beautiful.

[WilkoIW]

That is lovely and in great condition considering the mileage.

[hornetrider]

Nice colour but 3k, 213000 miles and 'great investment' does not compute.

[hornetrider]

No MOT history for that plate either.

[Jodyone]

carinaman said:

Not for me as it's a post 2006 pricey road tax barge, but it's been reduced and it's 4WD, almost 300bhp and it's nighthawk black pearl:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...

I've never felt the extra 300 or so on the VED for cars like this to be much of an obstacle, presenting as a drop in the ocean of the annual car-spend for most people (myself very much included). If I was preparing to confront it again on a recent car, I'd definitely be considering one of these Hondas: the last Accord I had (90's) was a splendidly made thing that endured general disinterested abuse with good grace.

That seems like very optimistic pricing though, unless this is some kind of craved special edition. Surely the market for decade-old legends is contained within this thread, and then only a subset.

[anonymous-user]

hornetrider said:

No MOT history for that plate either.

Fake/dealer/ put on retention

[hornetrider]

sleepera6 said:

hornetrider said:

No MOT history for that plate either.

Fake/dealer/ put on retention

Guy says he's owned it for 6 years and the plate is being removed. I'd expect to see history for that plate.

[Biglips]

idiotgap said:

derin100 said:

mondayo said:

After my failed attempt to view this car last Sunday, it's been relisted. It's a E350 estate.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/201783645962?_trksid=p20...

Seller emailed last night with the following....so far I've resisted gloating and I told you so, type emails.
"Hi,
I held the car for a week and can you believe it that joker didn't show up.
Anyway car is still available if it's not too late. "
On a slightly related note, the vendor claimed she'd taken a holding deposit prior to taking it off the ebay. Would one assume that they've now lost that deposit?

I am interested in it but don't fancy driving over 200 miles to view it, particularly as I think it's a bit on the pricey side. Are there any beards/threadists in thew Brighton area who'd like to go and have a nosey of it?

I can't help you with viewing but I have to say: "My! That really is a gorgeous looking car!" If I were in the market for a new barge I'd be seriously tempted by that...even if it is a Mercedes! (I'm still in rehab after a previous Merc experience a while back...but making progress)

Emily really knows how to take a picture too!?

Preface lift car at post-facelift price. For my money, go for one with higher miles and half the price for pre-facelift or same money post-facelift. With this one you have inflated bork potential without the cheapness offering the insurance of a warchest.

This also caught my eye. Very good looking car. I am interested. What do you think is going on with the rear foldaway seats in the boot.?Don't seem to sit correctly and no headrests? Is the load cover also broken and held in place by the seat belts or am I being paranoid? Long way to go for me if it is not right.

http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/ofMAAOSw5...

Edited by Biglips on Wednesday 18th January 08:19

[SpeckledJim]

Jodyone said:

carinaman said:

Not for me as it's a post 2006 pricey road tax barge, but it's been reduced and it's 4WD, almost 300bhp and it's nighthawk black pearl:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...

I've never felt the extra 300 or so on the VED for cars like this to be much of an obstacle, presenting as a drop in the ocean of the annual car-spend for most people (myself very much included). If I was preparing to confront it again on a recent car, I'd definitely be considering one of these Hondas: the last Accord I had (90's) was a splendidly made thing that endured general disinterested abuse with good grace.

That seems like very optimistic pricing though, unless this is some kind of craved special edition. Surely the market for decade-old legends is contained within this thread, and then only a subset.

Small subset. It's a boring no-mark that doesn't have the good grace to be either handsome or excellent.

[anonymous-user]

hornetrider said:

sleepera6 said:

hornetrider said:

No MOT history for that plate either.

Fake/dealer/ put on retention

Guy says he's owned it for 6 years and the plate is being removed. I'd expect to see history for that plate.

Hold on, I'll do a test for my plate, which was on my E39, now on retention.


Eta:

Doesn't work.

[r129sl]

Safety. First, that's the driver's responsibility, a responsibility that ought to weigh heavily on anyone with passengers or dependents. You can't abdicate it to a crash structure. Second, passive safety in a catastrophic crash is real last line of defence or one in a million stuff: looking where you're going, keeping the car well-maintained and having an interest in using the car well are arguably more important than what happens if you drive off a cliff. We all know the spike on the steering wheel argument, too. Third, many modern cars really reduce driver involvement: you can't see out of most of them and they actively discourage the use of the brain with automatic this that and the other.

I am pretty confident in any post-126 Merc (i.e., the 201, 124, 129, 202 and so on). They were designed to Euro NCAP standards long before Euro NCAP came along. The testing authorities simply adopted Mercedes' testing standards and relabelled them. They have a body shell designed by CAD; they have ABS; they have multi-link rear suspension; they have anti-intrusion bars in the doors; many of them have airbags in the steering wheel, the dashboard and the doors. About the only thing they lack is ESP (although my 129 has it and a few have ASR). As well as all that stuff, they have far, far better outward visibility than just about any modern; they have really superb cockpits and controls to aid use and reduce fatigue. And finally, perhaps most importantly, they have the right attitude: unlike the hyper-aggression of most moderns.

I do think that the biggest safety advantage we give ourselves is driving cars in which we are interested: it should mean we take an interest in driving, driving well.

How about this 190. Have we had it? I think it is a threadist's.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/122310395907?ssPageName=...

[derin100]

Krikkit said:

Absolutely agreed Lowtimer - as an 80s child I remember being ferried around in a knackered Talbot Solara, a Mini Traveller and a Montego Estate while my parents were hard-up, all with the structural integrity of wet cardboard.

I nearly added Mercedes and Saab onto my manufacturer list, but went for the default super-safe one. I know Mercedes put a lot of design effort into safety, I seem to remember a few interesting features crept into the 190 as well as the 124.

Interesting on the LS400, superficially that does look pretty good in terms of deformation. W220 looks quite good too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJb2Rv-vFXA

I agree that Lowtimer's assessment is bang on correct too.

But Krikkit...you had it easy being an '80s child! Being ferried around INSIDE those cars?!?

Being a '60s child, "after licking t'mud off pavement with us tongues" we as kids...after a day out treat walking in the 'countryside' (Farthing Downs, Coulsdon i.e now South London)...if there were too many of us kids, 3 of us would be transported home inside the boot of my parents friend's car...a Vauxhall Victor. I'm not kidding!

I'm laughing now but can you imagine the consequences and carnage of 3 kids locked in the boot if a rear-end collision had occurred?

Safety restraints?

We, as a family, didn't have a car until I was about 9-10 years old (nor an inside toilet until I left home at 19 btw). My Mum learnt and her first car was a Triumph Herald that she bought for £50. Regularly on trips, with me sitting, unrestrained in any way in the front seat, she would go around a corner and the passenger door would fly open.

You were lucky!

Edited by derin100 on Tuesday 17th January 22:35