I owe you a low calorie Lobster dinner.
Volkswagen Phaeton Long Wheel Base Limousine.
Update: Went to water the flowers and noticed something hanging under the Jeep. It was a bit of the fanbelt. The parts stores close for the weekend in five minutes time. That's us buggered for the weekend. Volkswagen fanbelts never break, of course.
I don't mean to sound like Judas Iscariot, but (referencing previous post) how many starving kids could you feed for $30,000?
ReplyDeleteOr the devil's advocate. Point taken, I will feel guilty every time I drive it.
DeleteDon't feel guilty, Hippo. You have to look after your own family first. You will make a big profit when you sell so you can feed anyone you want to.
DeleteI wasn't suggesting that feeling guilty was something I couldn't cope with... Jesus, I'm a man!
DeleteSo true !!
Deletethat fan belt is a sign. you have to buy the VW!
ReplyDeleteI had best buy a new fanbelt first, I don't think the family will wait for the VW.
DeleteI've been hunting for the scene in Dirty Harry where the psycho shouts "Bastard VW!" at a car that was blocking his escape, but I'm afraid You Tube has let me down. Rolls-Royce is the only make of German car I'd travel in!
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of films, didn't I see a relative of yours driving a Ferrari California in the original Pink Panther?
DeleteI think that's the one my oldest son has; I should have recognised it. Shit.
ReplyDeleteIf the boy bought it second hand, he's a canny lad.
DeleteNice car but even here in the US they are not that common. Best import a mechanic with it as well. What about parts availability in Angola? Remember what a hassle it was to get spares for the Jeep in a country it was never marketed? And lately VW has the uncanny habit of coming up with some convoluted solutions so that parts are not conventional at all. Like a long skinny battery about 3 inches deep by 6 inches tall by 2 feet long that fits in a narrow pocket between the engine and firewall and you guessed it, only available thought VW dealerships. The all wheel drive is a big nightmare as well. Blow a tire (tyre for you Brits) and you will have to buy a full set, because the differentials depend on having exactly the same diameter tires and should you put one new one on it it will be different enough form the 3 worn ones it will kill the electronic controlled dif in a short while. Spare yourself the trouble and buy whats available locally.
ReplyDeleteThere is nothing available locally, everything is imported.
DeleteSo you don't like VW then?
Be interested to know which VW has a battery of the size you describe!
Being part of the Volkswagen Audi Group, VAG, the 4 Motion AWD offered on VWs and Audis was a joint development going back decades and with millions of satisfied customers, clearly very reliable. According to your information, having a flat and then fitting the spare wheel issued with the vehicle would destroy its differential. The minor difference in rolling radius occasioned by different tread depths would result in one wheel spinning slightly faster than the other on the same axle in a straight line but even with all four tyres of identical size, every time the car turns, the wheels spin at different rates which, with a solid axle, causes tyre skip, uneven wear or lock ups. Hence the use of differentials which, as their name suggests, absorb differential rotation. A straight forward mechanical differential will always transfer power to the faster rotating wheel which is why on a two wheel drive car stuck in mud, it is the wheel that has no grip that spins. A two wheel drive car is actually only one wheel drive, it is just that the drive switches between driven wheels. Similarly, a four wheel drive car is really only a two wheel drive car as it is only one wheel on each axle that is being driven at any one time. The use of limited slip differentials, as the name suggests, limits the slip of the driven wheel so that if it loses grip some power is transferred to the other wheel. A diff lock, again as the name suggests, locks the diff so that equal amounts of power are transferred to both wheels on the axle. This is why you should never drive a vehicle with diff lock engaged on anything but a very loose or slippery surface (such as mud, sand or snow) otherwise you will bugger up the diff.
Au contraire, however much a luddite, I am a fan of VWs, having started with my 75 Super Beetle, followed by a 75 Micro-bus, then an 84 Golf I put 350 thousand miles on and most recently I own an 02 VW Jetta wagon. When we bought the used Jetta 6 years ago we looked at buying the Passat wagon but even though I liked it very much I shied away due to it highly complex systems and being the 1.8 liter turbo charged engine. When the turbo goes its about 3 grand to replace, Not an uncommon problem. Besides with that sort of power I would be out of a license in no time flat. It also had the weird proprietary battery I described before. And as a rule I work on my own cars I want to keep them as basic as possible so we opted for the used Jetta with the same older 2 liter engine 4 cyl that kept going through hell and back in my first Golf.
DeleteAs for the bit about the difs going it is a common issue with all these newer "all wheel drive cars" around here and due to snow conditions there are a lot of them. Big difference between a 4x4 like an old FJ40 Landcruiser with manual locking hubs and levers to select 2and 4 wd high and low range and these new fangled constant all wheel drive luxury vehicles. Most popular around here are the Volvos X country and the Subaru Forester and Outback wagons. Older ones not an issue. Newer ones use electronic controls and wheel speed sensors reading and comparing wheel speed to dif speed engine rpm and a whole lot of other parameters and compensating as it sees fit. The difference in diameter seems to confuse the inputs. The computer that drives them seems to have a problem when one wheel is just a tad smaller than the others as in running a new one with three half worn ones. A spare for a short run to repair a flat is not a problem but should you actually need to replace one due to a blow out and run with one new and three worn for an extended period you can damage the difs and the control mechanisms. Not a cheap proposition. Around here tire dealers won't even sell you a single tire for one of those cars knowing the issue. Additionally many of these newer models have pressure sensors on the tires and this data is also transmitted to the computer for engine diff and gearbox adjustments. More complications and cost particularly in an environment that you don't have a technician trained in these issues with all the appropriate equipment. I am not saying that the Phaeton is like that but do cross your Ts and dot your Is before you put a big chunk of dosh in to it.
Pointless trying to convince an American of the superiority of German engineering, you guys still use feet and inches, ounces and pounds, pints and gallons. This coming from a man who drives a Jeep. Thinking about it, this is my third Jeep.
DeleteHa, yes some people never learn and come back for a second and third helping of abuse. ;-)
DeleteI'd go for the FJ-55 here
http://tlc4x4.com/sale2.asp
$70,000 for that? Again, a brand new 70 series Landcruiser with the trusty 6 in line 4.2 litre diesel, snorkel kit, leaf spring suspension, designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel but with the addition of aircon, sat nav etc. can be yours from any SA Toyota dealer for $50,000 inc taxes.
DeleteIf you are so keen, stick to the original brief and find me a luxury car with all the goodies, max 15,000 miles and only a year old for $30,000 from the main dealer.
Oh yeah, I forgot, it must have 4 wheel drive, I'll take my chances.
DeletePersonally I'd go with this one. Tough as nails and simple to repair.
ReplyDeletehttp://bringatrailer.com/2014/03/03/nicely-upgraded-1949-dodge-power-wagon/
Your tool box will only need to be a screwdriver, and a Mexican speed wrench.
But I know you'd be more exited about this one;
http://bringatrailer.com/2014/02/23/50k-mile-1970-mercedes-benz-280se-3-5-4-speed
Regarding the first suggestion, I realise you were just taking the piss. Regarding the second, yes, I do like it more but rather than buy a used one at 150,000 Euros for a condition 1, I would buy a new W111 2.8SE Coupe. Yes, you can order a new one with modern mechanicals at an eye watering 300,000 Euros. A car clearly aimed at the rare breed with Maybach money AND taste. I don't think they have many Russian or American clients. Having said that, all Americans are just Russians in suits.
DeleteI used to own an original in Germany and what much of the seller of your example has to say is crap. If his was as good as he claims, he would have stuck it through Goodings and not Ebay! I had to laugh where he says that at some stage the car has been resprayed and you can hardly tell... a class job then!
It's an awesome piece of engineering on the VW. I remember Clarkson salivating over it and recall a really interesting hinge system for the boot.
ReplyDeleteThe hinge system was a work of art. Last time I was in Germany my brother took me to the main dealer in Stuttgart so that I could have a good nose around a Phaeton. They are brilliantly engineered, the attention to detail is breathtaking. For here they would be great, all that luxury clothed in a nondescript body which will not attract old Johnny Hijacker.
DeleteI suppose with that badge, sales (and second hand values) were bound to bomb. They should have dropped the VW and just called it Phaeton. Given your taste in wristwatches, though, I fear it wouldn't be flash enough for you.
Are you still in touch with C L-P? Last I heard he had finished in Afghanistan and was with Standard Bank. Must have been a bit of a culture shock!
That's an awful long way for me to go for dinner! Does it happen to include free airport transfers in that VW ;)
ReplyDeleteThink I'll donate the Lobster dinner to those kids you help :) But they must also get a joyride in that cool car :)
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