whats your ideal car for a 2 week europe tour?
Discussion
I appreciate that as a 38yr old male working in IT I'm predisposed to be attracted to them (with the obligatory Oakley sunglasses) but I keep fancying the idea of a Europe tour in a T5 day van. Plenty of space for a brew in the back when I pull up on a nice beach somewhere and reasonably comfy in those big captains seats.
My missus drives an S3 convertible and I drive an S5, both of which would be more fun I'm sure but they don't have a stove you see.
My missus drives an S3 convertible and I drive an S5, both of which would be more fun I'm sure but they don't have a stove you see.
I have done exactly this in the full gambit of cars. a 6-seater crew-cab transit - fine on the motorways with cruise control and 30mpg, somewhat laboured in the alps and many times longed for something more 'fun' but was a mountain bike trip, so very practical with 5 people and 8 bikes in the back.
Done it in a stripped out trackday car with no aircon and short gearing - motorways were torture - had windows down, fan on full, still sweating in bucket seats, wore ear defenders to cope with the wind and engine noise. it was of course epic on the alpine passes, but unfortunately the majority of the time is on the motorways to get there!
Two seater sports car with a roof. probably the best to drive, you dont get heat stroke or sun burnt, but imho the best overall is a convertible sports car to get the full wide-screen alpine experience - the noise in the tunnels, the 360 degree views.
Have done it in cars that averaged 17mpg - that trip cost £1500 in fuel - to more sensible 25-30mpg cars, a noticeable difference.
so, something like a boxster/s2000/z4, 911 convertible / V8V / m3/4 convertible or a supercar, although the roads can be quite bumpy so nothing very low. fuel range is a nice to have as there are always plenty of petrol stations, just a pain having to stop often. cruise control is also really nice to have. luggage space is at a premium for two weeks so that rules out an elise or f-type.
Done it in a stripped out trackday car with no aircon and short gearing - motorways were torture - had windows down, fan on full, still sweating in bucket seats, wore ear defenders to cope with the wind and engine noise. it was of course epic on the alpine passes, but unfortunately the majority of the time is on the motorways to get there!
Two seater sports car with a roof. probably the best to drive, you dont get heat stroke or sun burnt, but imho the best overall is a convertible sports car to get the full wide-screen alpine experience - the noise in the tunnels, the 360 degree views.
Have done it in cars that averaged 17mpg - that trip cost £1500 in fuel - to more sensible 25-30mpg cars, a noticeable difference.
so, something like a boxster/s2000/z4, 911 convertible / V8V / m3/4 convertible or a supercar, although the roads can be quite bumpy so nothing very low. fuel range is a nice to have as there are always plenty of petrol stations, just a pain having to stop often. cruise control is also really nice to have. luggage space is at a premium for two weeks so that rules out an elise or f-type.
nish81 said:
lucido grigio said:
Barchetta as seen in Sweden.
Best car I've owned and steering wheel is on the European side.
Very nice. would consider picking one up if I didn't want rear seats. there was a top gear special involving one if I'm not wrong, where it won out over the mx5 and one otherBest car I've owned and steering wheel is on the European side.
Shame Hammond ruined a limited edition model....
I've done a week in Europe in an MX5 and it wasn't too bad. The heat was the main issue as the 23 year old A/C didn't work. Space wise it was fine and fitted a tent, sleeping bags and everything else we needed. Got loads of attention as well, I'm guessing they didn't sell too many NA MX5's over there.
That said, pretty much every other car mentioned in this thread would be more comfortable and better suited for it. But, you're more of a hero in an MX5!
That said, pretty much every other car mentioned in this thread would be more comfortable and better suited for it. But, you're more of a hero in an MX5!
I've just booked another one and I'll be doing it in this:
There's plenty of space and I can take pretty much anything I want.
Done it a couple of years running in this:
Which was a lot more restrictive. Very limited boot space so I had to buy a lot of stuff along the way! Still do-able, just more planning.
And done a few in this too:
Which was somewhere between the two.
You can't beat thrashing round Europe and seeing the sights, any car will do as long as you aren't living in fear of it letting you down, can't recommend it enough!
There's plenty of space and I can take pretty much anything I want.
Done it a couple of years running in this:
Which was a lot more restrictive. Very limited boot space so I had to buy a lot of stuff along the way! Still do-able, just more planning.
And done a few in this too:
Which was somewhere between the two.
You can't beat thrashing round Europe and seeing the sights, any car will do as long as you aren't living in fear of it letting you down, can't recommend it enough!
We have done a few tours in the following cars,
1. TVR Tuscan.
2. Porsche Boxster "s"
3. BMW M3 e36 cab.
4. Mercedes clk 320 cab.
The TVR drew the most attention, unsuprisingly
to an embarrasing degree, it was a worry leaving it parked and people driving alongside recording you on there phones was not for the shy and retiring.
The Merc was a comfy thing and performed lovely.
The BMW very similar but a bit stiff and a bit noisier, but the e36 M3 evo's have a very long 6th making cruising at high speed fairly relaxing.
The Boxster was faultless as you would imagine, used no oil or water in over 3000mls of fairly hard running.
The thing they all have in common are open air motoring, its the best way by far to do the tour in my opinion.
Try and buy the car the year before you plan to go and get all the remedial jobs done prior to leaving.
This will also give you a feeling as to the cars reliability.
Good luck and enjoy
1. TVR Tuscan.
2. Porsche Boxster "s"
3. BMW M3 e36 cab.
4. Mercedes clk 320 cab.
The TVR drew the most attention, unsuprisingly
to an embarrasing degree, it was a worry leaving it parked and people driving alongside recording you on there phones was not for the shy and retiring. The Merc was a comfy thing and performed lovely.
The BMW very similar but a bit stiff and a bit noisier, but the e36 M3 evo's have a very long 6th making cruising at high speed fairly relaxing.
The Boxster was faultless as you would imagine, used no oil or water in over 3000mls of fairly hard running.
The thing they all have in common are open air motoring, its the best way by far to do the tour in my opinion.
Try and buy the car the year before you plan to go and get all the remedial jobs done prior to leaving.
This will also give you a feeling as to the cars reliability.
Good luck and enjoy
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