Strange choices for Taxis.

[Emeye]

Recently I've started to notice some strange cars being used as taxis.

Today I saw a V-reg Honda Civic VTiS (import?) at a petrol station with an LPG conversion wearing Wigan Taxi plates. This thing has sports seats, body kit and alloys.

The other day I saw an almost new Merc E-class petrol in Manchester with Taxi plates.

These seem choices to me - not your usual Skoda Octavia or Toyota Avensis Diesels.

So what strange taxi choices have you seen?

[Don1]

M5 - 'ring taxi.

[V88Dicky]

Still see an ST220 taxi knocking around my way. Got a lift in it a few months ago too. At first I thought it might have been one of those diesel charlatan STs but no, it was definitely a nice snarly 3.0 V6

[jke11y]

New merc E class the norm in central London, but have seen a couple of oddities. Most recently an old shape ML merc, with PHC discs in the window.

[Superhoop]

Bending the rules slightly? This would allow them to use bus lanes, makes them exempt from congestion charging amongst other things

I think Stephen Fry has a taxi (admittedly a black cab), although when he was Top Gear, he said he never used bus lanes (like we believe that)

[Libertine]

jke11y said:

New merc E class the norm in central London, but have seen a couple of oddities. Most recently an old shape ML merc, with PHC discs in the window.

Really? What part of London is that? Not any parts that I go to..

[poing]

There is a local taxi to me that is a Subaru Legacy Turbo which replaced the Impreza Turbo they had before it.

There is also another Citroen C5 which seems odd compared with all the Octavias.

[supra legend]

There is a Jaguar XJ taxi around here. It must be LPG

[jke11y]

Libertine said:

jke11y said:

New merc E class the norm in central London, but have seen a couple of oddities. Most recently an old shape ML merc, with PHC discs in the window.

Really? What part of London is that? Not any parts that I go to..

I live in West Hampstead and travel across to Battersea through central every day. Just about every new E class or S class I see has the tell-tale hologram discs in the back window.

[honest_delboy]

B-reg BMW 635 , i doubt it was a proper cab though, bit cramped in the back.

[MudasarKhan]

When I was doing taxi's last year, we had one chap at our firm with a Lexus IS200. Theres another firm who have 2 or 3 nearly new E Class Mercs and a few Jag's and a BMW 320d. The nicest i've seen is a Passat with R36 bodykit and upgraded sound system (DVD player etc.)

It really depends on location (and therefore fare prices) and individual preferences. My uncle will not drive anything but an auto Merc, and currently has a C220cdi. Where I am the fares are stupidly low and fares start at £1.40 and the first mile clocks at £1.80.

I've seen plenty new(ish) Audi's in Leeds, but then again they may be earning proper money to do so. Up north Avensis is a favourite and down south it seems to be Octovia's.

I was going to buy an Audi A4 1.8T for my next taxi, but the insurance went up after 1yr NCB on the Avensis diesel so no chance was I going to get reasonable insurance on a 150+ bhp motor.

[DangerousMike]

ariel atom

[Drive Blind]

I had a weekend visit to Aberdeen about 6 years ago. I couldn't believe the quality of the taxi's. Nothing over 3 years old, Skoda's, VW's, Mercs, etc certainly no Sierra's or Nissan Bluebirds.

And none of them work after midnight. We inquired about getting a taxi after closing time (2-3am) and the reply was "you'll be lucky"

Seems to be a closed shop with no new or additional taxi badges available.

To Aberdeen folks - is it still like this?

[Elskeggso]

Superhoop said:

Bending the rules slightly? This would allow them to use bus lanes, makes them exempt from congestion charging amongst other things

I think Stephen Fry has a taxi (admittedly a black cab), although when he was Top Gear, he said he never used bus lanes (like we believe that)

Apparently there is more than one Maybach registered as a taxi in London, or so I heard...

[Steve in Stoke]

Spotted this in Munich earlier this year...

[Emeye]

When I lived in Middleton a few years ago, a particularly stty part of Manchester, the taxi firm I used had some properly old motors like a MK1 diesel SEAT Toledo and a MK2 Cavalier - they were clean and reliable, but more importantly they were very cheap.

[sleep envy]

The ritz has a navy phantom with private hire stickers

[anonymous-user]

Birmingham.... Evo 8!

Apparently he charges a little extra and has a list of private clients...

[maniac0796]

All I remember seeing in Amsterdam were E classes.

It's the usual spray of diesel mondeo's and vectra's around here. The odd mercedes or skoda suberb. One company tries to be green and has some prius'.

[Torquey]

Vectra vxr around this way.
Think he may have had a vectra gsi before that.

Keep trying my luck using the company but always end up with some boring VAG instead.