Isle of Man ferry

[SpyderMatt]

I’m thinking of taking the GT4 over to IoM but am a bit concerned about boarding and exiting the Steam Packet ferry due to the pretty low front splitter. Has anyone taken a similar car on with / without problems ? And is Liverpool or Heysham a better bet ?

[bigmowley]

Depends which ferry. The fast craft which does virtually only Liverpool sailings can be very tricky. During certain tidal conditions it can be a very steep ramp and it’s also a very narrow ramp which makes an angled entry quite tricky.
The conventional (slow) boat which does almost exclusively the Heysham crossing is much better, less tide sensitive and with a much wider ramp. That said my GT4 and Spyder both have had no real problems on either boat. However my R8 track toy will only fit on the Heysham boat, I have 2 smashed front splitters to prove it.
Hope that helps.

[DarkMatter]

I recently went on the IOM ferry from Heysham to Douglas in my 987.2 Cayman S, so not as low as your GT4. The boarding crew were really good and asked me to wait to one side while the rest of the vehicles boarded, then they asked me to reverse on and park with the freight vehicles. I experienced no ground clearance problems boarding or disembarking. Mind you, on the return trip they just let me board with the other cars, but I had no clearance problems.

[Koln-RS]

Harry’s Garage IOM Trip

[SpyderMatt]

Well, all booked up for next May, via. Heysham to be safe. Can’t wait, stretch the GT4s legs over the TT course, should be a blast

[Melvynr]

You will be fine on the ferry from Heysham, if you are worried on the day, have a word with the guys at bottom of the ramp and they will use wood ramps and coconut mats for you.