What tow vehicle
Discussion
Long story short, I have a 25% stake in a LDV 400, stuck in first gear, stuck on a small island in Greece. It's stuck there cos it's stuck in first gear and the ferry only has a door at one end and nowhere to turn round. It's been stuck there since 2004.
For reasons I'm not quite sure of, I really want it back. Obviously, driving it back isn't practical, not least because it's been sitting in an olive grove for over a decade. So I'm going to have to recover it back.
It's probably fairly heavy, but would probably squeak in at less than 3.5t when placed on a suitable trailer. It may not, but for the sake of argument, let's say it does. Having done some actual research it seems that trailers weigh less than a tonne, and LDV 400s weigh about 1700 kg exactly 1834 kg, so I don't need to tow quite as much as I thought. 3t towing capacity would be fine, 2800 kg would be doable as long as I'm careful about the trailer I select.
IIRC, the owner of the olive grove has a nice old komatsu dozer, so getting it on the trailer shouldn't be an issue.
The issue is getting the trailer there. And back. Very crucial point that last bit. Must come back.
So, I need a suitable towing vehicle for the trailer. Key requirements:
Edited now I've actually done some research about what things weigh.
For reasons I'm not quite sure of, I really want it back. Obviously, driving it back isn't practical, not least because it's been sitting in an olive grove for over a decade. So I'm going to have to recover it back.
IIRC, the owner of the olive grove has a nice old komatsu dozer, so getting it on the trailer shouldn't be an issue.
The issue is getting the trailer there. And back. Very crucial point that last bit. Must come back.
So, I need a suitable towing vehicle for the trailer. Key requirements:
- Must have towing capacity of
3.5t2.8t, preferably 3t. - Must be able to get to Greece
- MUST be able to get back from Greece. Cannot emphasise that enough.
- Must be available for less than a few grand
Edited now I've actually done some research about what things weigh.
Edited by bitwrx on Friday 8th December 18:45
Edited by bitwrx on Friday 8th December 21:59
This is easily the most interesting "what car" thread I've seen in a long time!!! 
The obvious answer is a Toyota Land Cruiser, but you'll struggle to get a half-decent one for a "few grand".
A P38 Range Rover would also do the job, and many are within budget, but you may well be rolling the dice in terms of reliability. Similar story with a Discovery 1 or 2.
Another option would be an Isuzu Trooper. Reliability not a problem, but cars within your budget will have been "properly" used by horsey people, farmers, or builders.
Leftfield choice - Jeep Grand Cherokee. Though your budget might be a little tight for getting a good one.
The obvious answer is a Toyota Land Cruiser, but you'll struggle to get a half-decent one for a "few grand".
A P38 Range Rover would also do the job, and many are within budget, but you may well be rolling the dice in terms of reliability. Similar story with a Discovery 1 or 2.
Another option would be an Isuzu Trooper. Reliability not a problem, but cars within your budget will have been "properly" used by horsey people, farmers, or builders.
Leftfield choice - Jeep Grand Cherokee. Though your budget might be a little tight for getting a good one.
If you're buying a vehicle just for the job, then why not rent something.
Our local firm has a few VW Crafters that are reasonable to rent, particularly over a weekend.
Think they have other less commercial vehicles with a tow bar too.
Fairly sure they have a Ford Ranger.
Trailer hire similarly is fairly cheap too.
Renting means you have no extra insurance or running costs and will arguably be more reliable as it will be a newer vehicle.
Our local firm has a few VW Crafters that are reasonable to rent, particularly over a weekend.
Think they have other less commercial vehicles with a tow bar too.
Fairly sure they have a Ford Ranger.
Trailer hire similarly is fairly cheap too.
Renting means you have no extra insurance or running costs and will arguably be more reliable as it will be a newer vehicle.
GrumpyTwig said:
zedx19 said:
Watching purely for the comedy potential this thread has, also interested why it's there in the first place, why you only have 25% stake in it and why you want it back.
Hopefully he owns the best 1/4
I had an LDV 400 and your want to retrieve it is puzzling if a little understandable, I love our new van that replaced the one we had but I had a soft spot for it, it was terrible to drive, heavy and not particularly good at anything, however it was cheap, reliable and I couldn't help but enjoy driving it (even though it was terrible) you actually had to drive it, no ABS, no TC, direct shift gearbox, unassisted brakes, RWD (because PH this is important, and yes you could donut/drift in the snow).
So while I think are certifiably bonkers, good on you!
Would it not be easier to hire a flat bed if you must bring it back yourself? That's the route I would go and the route we took when the MOT expired and it needed to go 200 odd miles away for one (long story)
You could tow it on a trailer with the right vehicle but the costs involved would work or cheaper to pay to have it recovered or to use a flat bed (they are going to be marginally better fuel wise)
Either way good luck OP, I want to see updates and pictures of the trip, hell, if you time it right and I am free, I will come along with you in a support vehicle (read Camper that replaced the LDV
)
So while I think are certifiably bonkers, good on you!
Would it not be easier to hire a flat bed if you must bring it back yourself? That's the route I would go and the route we took when the MOT expired and it needed to go 200 odd miles away for one (long story)
You could tow it on a trailer with the right vehicle but the costs involved would work or cheaper to pay to have it recovered or to use a flat bed (they are going to be marginally better fuel wise)
Either way good luck OP, I want to see updates and pictures of the trip, hell, if you time it right and I am free, I will come along with you in a support vehicle (read Camper that replaced the LDV
)ZX10R NIN said:
Why not just pay a transport firm they'll probably do it for around a 1000-1500.
AlwynMike said:
If you're buying a vehicle just for the job, then why not rent something.
Our local firm has a few VW Crafters that are reasonable to rent, particularly over a weekend.
Think they have other less commercial vehicles with a tow bar too.
Fairly sure they have a Ford Ranger.
Trailer hire similarly is fairly cheap too.
Renting means you have no extra insurance or running costs and will arguably be more reliable as it will be a newer vehicle.
Our local firm has a few VW Crafters that are reasonable to rent, particularly over a weekend.
Think they have other less commercial vehicles with a tow bar too.
Fairly sure they have a Ford Ranger.
Trailer hire similarly is fairly cheap too.
Renting means you have no extra insurance or running costs and will arguably be more reliable as it will be a newer vehicle.
geeks said:
<selective quote>
You could tow it on a trailer with the right vehicle but the costs involved would work or cheaper to pay to have it recovered or to use a flat bed (they are going to be marginally better fuel wise)
</selective quote>
I think you're all looking at this with far too rational heads on. The thing cost us £1500 in 2003. When it had 5 forward gears and a reverse gear. (And -You could tow it on a trailer with the right vehicle but the costs involved would work or cheaper to pay to have it recovered or to use a flat bed (they are going to be marginally better fuel wise)
</selective quote>
incidentally - a working TV/VHS all-in-one, a PS2, a Gamecube, two gas hobs, sleeping accom for 4 smelly teenagers and a well stocked booze locker.) There's no way this will lead to a positive financial outcome. But that's not really the point.
Anyway, I don't fancy my chances of convincing hire firms that driving to Greece is cool. "Hi, yer, your trailer wheel bearing has gone. Can you bring me another one? Where? Oh, i'm just outside Igoumenitsa." And actually it's not that cheap. But yeh, it may be the most 'sensible' way to go about this fundamentally unsensible thing.
steve-5snwi said:
Would it make more sense to fix it over there and then drive it back ?
Not now, no. It's variously been used as a dormitory for migrant Albanian workers, a chicken coop and a store shed. We did try fixing it at the time. After we were repatriated by the ins co, a couple of us flew back out with a gearbox, an optimistically light bag of tools, and a loose aim of fixing the van and seeing eastern Europe on the way home. Unfortunately the gearbox was 'lost' in transit, somewhere between Athens and Corfu, according to the air freight manifests. In retrospect, if we weren't such callow youths, one of us would've left 50 euro note on the counter while he bent down to do up his shoelace and I bet, as if by magic, that the note would be gone and the gearbox would've arrived the previous day. It is Greece after all... Still, we had a passable holiday in Corfu.zedx19 said:
Watching purely for the comedy potential this thread has, also interested why it's there in the first place, why you only have 25% stake in it and why you want it back.
It was our gap yah, pre-university. Four school friends with a simple plan: work 6 mths, buy van, kit out, travel six mths.Greece was around the mid point in distance, but only 30% of the way through time-wise. We made it as far southwest as Essaouira in Morocco, and were building up to heading to eastern Europe when the defect emerged.
I can't remember the exact details, but it went something like this:
- Last big night where we were staying in Greece. Paxos, if anyone knows it.
- Some people experiencing ecstasy for the first time.
- Injury to someone's foot causing breakup of the party.
- Driving half the length of the island v e r y s l o w l y at dawn to recover the wounded.
- (Some time later...) Hungover heads trying to figure out why we couldn't drive into town to get our breakfast (lunchtime) gyros pittas. Slow realisation that the gearbox was borked.
Anyway, consistently over the intervening years I've thought about finishing the trip. I reckon it would be ace. To do it now, I reckon I'd need about £5k of capital (towing vehicle, plus trailer), and about £2k to cover the cost of the trip. Hopefully, if everything made it back to the UK, I'd get most of my £5k back, and be able to weigh in the LDV.
PS - looks like a 400 is 1700-1800 kg empty (we had to buy the 3.5 tonner, didn't we...) Even accounting for mass lost due to corrosion and pilfering, we'd still be looking at over 3.5t when put on a self propelled car transporter. I don't have a LGV ticket, so towing it on a trailer is probably the only way.
MrAverage said:
We have an Isuzu TF, its old and done well over 200k miles. its proven itself to be a reliable workhorse to us and the farmer before us. official towing weight is 3300kg.
These can be picked up cheaply and are a very robust/well proven truck.
https://www.gumtree.com/p/cars-vans-motorbikes/isu...These can be picked up cheaply and are a very robust/well proven truck.
Like that? Me like, surprisingly.
1700kg + trailer sounds like it'd come in under 3300kg. Good shout, I'd say.
Edited by bitwrx on Friday 8th December 15:14
bitwrx said:
https://www.gumtree.com/p/cars-vans-motorbikes/isu...
Like that? Me like, surprisingly.
1700kg + trailer sounds like it'd come in under 3300kg. Good shout, I'd say.
yes one of those. like all old trucks you need to watch for rust and suspension but on the whole they've been very good to us (have a brava, tf and dmax currently)Like that? Me like, surprisingly.
1700kg + trailer sounds like it'd come in under 3300kg. Good shout, I'd say.
that one could well be worth a look if its close to you.
Cheers for the advice. Words like robust and reliable are positive indicators! I guess trooper citations are much the same truck underneath?
ETA, if so my only experience with them is that the farm I worked on in NZ had a couple for towing hay rakes. I was trying to diagnose an engine problem with one and ended up seizing it solid. Turns out the HG was f
ked, and I finished it off. Oops. Was not popular for a while.
ETA, if so my only experience with them is that the farm I worked on in NZ had a couple for towing hay rakes. I was trying to diagnose an engine problem with one and ended up seizing it solid. Turns out the HG was f
ked, and I finished it off. Oops. Was not popular for a while.Edited by bitwrx on Friday 8th December 18:50
MorganP104 said:
This is easily the most interesting "what car" thread I've seen in a long time!!!
The obvious answer is a Toyota Land Cruiser, but you'll struggle to get a half-decent one for a "few grand".
[snip]
Is a land cruiser Colorado worth having? Looks like it'd have the towing capacity, and there seem to be a few about.The obvious answer is a Toyota Land Cruiser, but you'll struggle to get a half-decent one for a "few grand".
[snip]
kieranblenk said:
Daihatsu Fourtrack? Bulletproof Jap reliability and 3.5t towing weight.
On our third fourtrak on the farm, an 86, still have the 92 & a 2001 X reg and whilst they are reliable and dependable, they're an absolute pig to drive, I would not fancy driving one to greece, they don't like anything more than 50mph for sustained periods, so low geared they're gulping diesel at an alarming rate above 50mph. If would not be fun!!!My pick would be a trooper, or an old shogun or even a T350 single wheel Transit if you can find one that isn't rotten, at least they're a decent drive!
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