Vans

[John]

How did people used to manage with the old Transit First Generation and Bedford CF vans?

Every tradesman seems to be driving a huge long wheelbase van now - sometimes for the trivialist of roles. (Couldn't stop today at a disabled drop off at the hospital as the Coffee Machine Stocking LWB Van was blocked

2 spaces)

Milk deliveries to corner Co-op and Tesco Local are by 32ton Artics.

Planners are allowing narrower roads - houses are built on bends and around junctions. Delivery drivers will definately stop by the front doors.

[Fredxx]

Except while vans may have shrunk their payload has often increased.

That is also a bug-bear of mine. If they ban parking on pavements, the alternative is to convert pavement to road.

[Jethro_uk]

Photo:twitter before you've walked on 10 paces. Sometimes works, sometimes doesn't. Make sure you get the logo in the picture, plus the registration number (just in case they want an argument).

[invalid]

It is already effectively stopped on the pavements as its ileagal to drive on them. Not many enforce it though.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I'd often wondered why modern vans seem to have such poor batteries? Even when parked up and the driver eating his sandwiches they seem to need the engine kept running.

[Brian Gaff (Sofa)]

Its worse than that Jim hes dead, sorry wrong phrase, its worse than that, they even allow residents with huge rear gardens and access to build driveways and hence stop cars parking on the road. WE have width restrictions and bus ggates around here, they have had to put cameras in since they drive around the wrong side or merely smash their way through then moan when they encounter a street too narrow for them. Many claim to be from abroad, well maybe some are, but since in the main the people tell the delivery company of restricted access, but they still try to get oversized vehicles into the road. One thing to worry about is fire vehicles since they do not seem to be getting any narrower, and I can see its s disaster waiting to happen in many residential areas where they allow building without the required infrastructure. Even the narrower refuse vehicles are having problems now. Brian

[invalid]

The west Midlands have some modified range rover type things that carry a crew of three and a bit of water. Its all you need to rescue people trapped in houses, two in breathing apparatus and one to do the other stuff.

Then they can always send more than one if needed.

[Jim GM4DHJ ...]

I remember the first review of the first Transit van stated it was like sitting in the front right of stalls of the ABC cinema ...always remember that...how times have changed..lovely wide big van it was with cool custom badges ..

[ARW]

If it's a Fiat it's because 5 minutes after turning the engine off it goes into eco mode and the radio stops working.

Now if PopMaster is on you have to keep the engine running making a mockery of Fiat's eco mode.

[John]

John [e-mail] wrote in news:XnsAAF392E0D5747trainJPlantntlworldc@81.171.92.236:

And somme dashboard tops struggle to hold a full 12months of invoices!

[Bill Wright]

Never mind that! I had two Bedford CA vans and a Ford Escort van before I graduated to to Bedford CF. My dad used to work from a Bradford van. Seen how small they are? And before that he had a motorbike and sidecar with the ladders towed behind on a pair of pram wheels.

Bill

[AJH]

Funny you should say that as my bedford CF flat bed with 2.3 petrol engine weighed in at 1.5 tonnes and had a payload of 2 tonnes, the transit tipper that I drove at work had a payload of 800kg. 200kg of this loss was the tipping gear the rest must have been diesel lump and bodywork.

The chap I occasionally work for now will not allow me to put the Canter tipper on a weighbridge with all our gear before we start work but my guess is, in common with most arboricultural contractors using 3.5 tonne tippers, it will be so close to 3.5 tonnes that by the time it has a few cubic metres of chip and logs in it will be well overloaded. AJH

[Jane Black]

Vibrators flatten the battery very quickly, stupid.

They arent all driven by gods gift to f****ng, Adam.

[The Natural Philosopher]

They used open backed vehicles of similar size.

I dont think that true. Traditional roads were very narrow - horse and cart stuff

[alan_m]

But not everyone had their personal horse and cart parked outside their house at the same time. Perhaps two or three carts in a two cart family and/or where the offspring haven't left home yet.

[John]

alan_m [e-mail]> wrote in news:h1icjuFapedU1 @mid.individual.net:

and "Ye Olde Amazon" wasn't rushing around trying to park close to front doors.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Does on my car too. But you merely switch the radio on again.

[ARW]

That will not work on a FIAT. You cannot even turn the ignition key to get the radio on.

[Max Demian]

With my old Fiat Punto you could have the radio on any time you liked - I was afraid I might leave it on and flatten the battery so I didn't bother with it most of the time.

The old radio with auxiliary and ignition on was a better way as you knew the radio only came on when you turned the key.

[ARW]

I have just noticed my Skodas dash cam it still running after a week parked up, so that cig lighter socket stays on all the time.

The Scudos cig lighter socket turns off with the engine but will work with the key turned and so is not part of the eco saving mode.