Best Recovery Service for TVRs

[bjc]

Just renewed my insurance and no breakdown cover for this year.

Any opinions, silly question , on whether AA, RAC, Green Flag etc are generally better with TVR's.

Touch wood have not needed to use one in 12 months of Chim ownership but want to be on the safe side and make sure I can insist on low loader when needed.

Thanks

[shadowninja]

The AA have never been a problem for me, apart from waiting times varying a lot (depended on the job I suppose; once required towing out of a muddy patch and they didn't send a suitable truck initially ). Anyway, I'm gonna renew as it's good to have peace of mind, plus I have no complaints; just know that if I'm in trouble they're only a phone call away.

I've got home start plus normal breakdown for which they'll take you to any destination or home.

[plotloss]

When you buy a new one TVR give 12 months AA cover...

So on that basis alone I would suggest the AA.

Matt.

[raceboy]

Just to buck the tread I've never had a problem with the RAC, but I think it really just depends on the man you get sent, some are good some are not so good, so from that I'd say go with whoever can give you the best deal

>> Edited by raceboy on Monday 24th March 15:31

[plotloss]

Yeah I reckon thats about right, also depending on where you are you get an independant contractor anyway...

Matt.

[shadowninja]

raceboy said: Just to buck the tread I've never had a problem with the RAC, but I think it really just depends on the man you get sent, some are good some are not so good, so from that I'd say go with whoever can give you the best deal

>> Edited by raceboy on Monday 24th March 15:31

that reminds me. the last AA guy who turned up had an RAC patch on his coat

[Mr Freefall]

I have been told by the AA that the AA are the only recovery company to have their own low loaders. With that in mind and that those horrible lorry's that turn up with the mechanical forklift truck type things will not take any TVR, then I say AA all the time.

The way I understood it was that if the RAC came out and had to get a low loader to get you home they have to phone the local garage near to where you have broken done to come and get you.

I broke down on Christmas Day last year, and for that reason when the AA got me home on there own low loader, and tried their hardest to get Partco to get the parts out to me, I'm Sticking with the AA

Also I stand corrected if the RAC do have their own low loader, its what I was told by the AA lorry driver.

[agent006]

I think your're right about the AA having their own lowloaders. I've seen a few around, but none from anyone else.

[atg]

My Chim's splitter was flattened while loading the car onto an AA low-loader ... no big deal, but they ain't perfect.

Remeber my ex-boss almost getting his porker back having knackered the front parking in a pile of builders aggregate (how? why?). The return of the car was a classic dime bar moment. Couldn't believe the truck operator was going to press on. It was blatantly obvious the car's bodywork was going to hit the ground well before the wheels ... but he proceeded anyway with grinding and ripping sounds. So he pulled the car back onto the truck and drove off again to have it repaired once more.

[bjc]

Thanks guys I make it about 3-1 to the AA at the moment. AA were my gut feel as when I used them for a hire car they even text messaged me to let me know how far the patrol was away. Thats service!

Atg, I can imagine your bosses porker being parked and then a builders truck turning up with the aggregate and.........

[jvaughan]

AA gets my vote... been a member ever since I bought the TVR..faultless... even managed to get a large number of blade fuses out of one AA guy that came once.. told me to have ssome spares handy !. top job. as it was, it was a short on the injection loom that only shorted when going around left hand corners !

[RichB]

I had cause to use the AA for the first time with my Griff the other day and (apart from having to wait for 3 hours) they were faultless, the bloke even piut a big foam pad inder the nose to protect the lip etc. in the truck he said that because AA have TVR's corp-business he deals with quite a few TVR's so I'll be sticking with AA. Rich...

[manek]

I've used Green Flag without hassles.

[AndrewD]

I think 'it depends' seems to rule here, certainly in my experience. Generally I found the AA pretty good in my years of TVR ownership (of course, now I've got the Radical I don't need the AA ).

However, just last weekend my other half's Chimaera broke down on the A14 - the throttle cable snapped. Luckily she limped to a lay by and called the AA. They sent one of their approved contractors with a flat bed truck, but then he told us that the AA wouldn't let him load the car on the truck and take her + car home. Oh no, he had to take her to a 'place of safety' so they could send one of their own foot patrols out to see if they could fix the problem. Now I'm not being funny but she'd already been waiting by the side of a busy dual carriageway for over an hour, with 2 dogs, and wanted to get home. It's cheaper for them to inconvenience her still further by getting her to wait for the foot patrol than it is for her to be helped by their 3rd party contractor on the scene with the appropriate truck. Why they didn't send the guy with the tools in the first place is anybody's guess, but I wouldn't mind hazarding a guess that this was so they could claim they'd got to her within the hour.

All in my humble opinion, like I say I've also had the AA man who spent 4 hours on a Saturday trying to find me a battery for the Cerbie and was about the best guy I've ever met.

Suppose they are all much of a muchness in the end.

[yellowcerbie]

I was more fortunate on Sunday - see separate thread re accelerator cable, RAC turned up within 20 minutes and fixed the problem.

Having said that, the AA gives you the option of taking out a £48 cover for repairs of up to £500 - again, see earlier posting.

[Graham]

I had a fuel pipe on the chim split last week the Rac turned up in less than 30 mins, had pipe on board and replaced the line for me, and i was off on my way .. brilliant service...

[raceboy]

Well last night I had to call upon the services of the RAC
What fell off the Chimaera I hear you say?
Well nothing I was out in racegirls dads Ford Festa, took her and a mate to Nottingham for a works meal type thing, called in at a mates on the way home, got in the car to come home and nothing, ignition lights but no sound from anything, so I call the RAC they were with me in about 20 minutes (which was good as the area I was stuck in wasn't perticulaly friendly, and my mate had popped out when I had originally planned to leave), anyway 5 minutes later and a dodgy wire to the starter motor twiddled with I was on my way
So the RAC gets my vote once again