Easter road trip to pick up a Z3

[mrscalex]

I'm hiring a car transporter over the first part of Easter, popping the kids in and we're having a road trip, via Blackpool, to pick up a Z3 from Scotland. The deposit is paid on the car but I won't tempt fate by saying anything else yet.

My usual transporter guy wanted £500 from Swindon to Scotland which is a fair price but I couldn't justify it. So I'm still paying the same sort of money over 3 days with hire and fuel but we get a little break/adventure into the bargain.

Hiring is very specialised and there's nothing in the Swindon area. So I'm picking up from Newport, South Wales tomorrow evening.

Thought it would be fun to document the trip. And it might help anyone else thinking of hiring.

If the post goes quiet at any point you know something disastrous has happened and I'm too ashamed to say!

I think there will be some interesting challenges. Not least the fact I've had to take a chance on the car itself as it wasn't viable to look beforehand. And it's the most I've ever spent on one!

 

[Jack Ratt]

Great idea and I for one will look forward to your reports. You're probably aware that I'm currently working to get my car back on the road and because it's by no means a certainty I'll be successful, I'm currently looking all over the UK for a possible replacement car. When my car failed while I was travelling in Europe last June, BMW in Brugge said my car was unrepairable, and the RAC trailered it back home to Truro. I'm convinced, and praying at the same time that it's only a head gasket issue. I should know it's fate this weekend, so I may be doing the same as you in the next few weeks..

 

[Sean d]

Good luck Robert, hope it turns out to be as good as it sounds.

 

[andyglym]

Intrigued, look forward to seeing pics etc.

 

[Ianmc]

The kids will love it. My father used to do breakdown recovery at weekends for extra money when I was small and I loved going out on the truck - it was an ex army recovery lorry with a huge crane. Enjoy the trip.

 

[5harp3y]

Good luck with the trip, have fun!

 

[Jjim]

Sounds like a great adventure for the family.

I bought a Z3 unseen last year and trailered it from Bath to Mansfield.



Hope you have a safe trip and the car is as good as you hope.

Looking forward to the reports

 

[colb]

Glad you found a transporter was it the one in Newport I suggested?

 

[Sp02zbr]

I bought this unseen from Scotland and he delivered it to Birmingham.

Couldn’t bring myself to fetch it. Was to far

 

[PHILIP BAXTER]

Good luck on your journey. It will be great fun for you all. Hope the car is a blinder.

 

[How 29]

Good luck and hope all goes well. Safe trip.

 

[Low Rider]

I bought this unseen from Scotland and he delivered it to Birmingham.

Couldn’t bring myself to fetch it. Was to far

Calendar image I'm thinking

 

[Sp02zbr]

This my favourite

 

[BillyB]

Good luck @mrscalex safe journey busy weekend on the roads. If you had been anywhere near Edinburgh I could have said hello.

 

[mrscalex]

Thanks all.

Not the best of starts. Was due to pick it up at 5pm tomorrow. Now they have said it's either after 7pm or before 8am! 7pm is way too late to head off up north in holiday traffic. So I'll have to leave Swindon at 6.30am tomorrow to pick it up.

I'm thinking of sticking Cookies my Titan Silver 2.2 on the back rather than leave her in Newport over Easter. I have to come back to Swindon anyway to pick the kids up for a 4pm start.

Either way I have meetings in the office in Bristol during the day so they're now going to have a transporter parked up amongst the cars! That will give 'em something to look at! Especially with Cookies on the back!

 

[t-tony]

I hope you all enjoy the trip Rob, I used to do "Recovery" with my late Dad-in-law, some local, some not so. Trust the car you've bought is a good one mate.

Tony.

 

[mrscalex]

Well I woke up at 3am this morning and couldn't get back to sleep. I'd love to say it was from the excitement of it all but to be honest it was from the stress the hirer had caused by forcing me to pick it up before 8am. Also in my head it had grown to the length of a 40T artic and I'd become apprehensive about driving it.

Anyway. I left Swindon at 6.15am and was back home at my PC for work by 9.15am.

It is a long beast but the visibility is very good, much better than my 3 GT. So I just have to be careful.

 

[mrscalex]

Glad you found a transporter was it the one in Newport I suggested?

Yes. Funny set-up that company has. They appear to just be booking agents for individuals with transporters. On the list of locations on their website there are places that have now closed/ceased. Newport is not on the list but it does come up in the 'nearest to me search'.

 

[Ianmc]

Looks like with a car on the far back the cab would be airborne!

 

[mrscalex]

Looks like with a car on the far back the cab would be airborne!

I think that's why you always see cars loaded front first so there's more weight at the front. They didn't tell me to do that but I've never seen a car loaded the other way.