which way now?
firstly let me thank you all for your contributions. it has made my choice of buying a royal lounge townie so much easier than it would seem to have been for most of you.
i currently run a 93 rover 820 vitesse which has a two litre sixteen valve twin cam turbo charged engine, delivering rocket like acceleration and not to uncomfortable 24mpg, even with the hammer down and dreadful rush hour traffic. the problem is its of an age where bits are falling off or breaking, and its average repair bill is four hundred quid a time. so i have been wondering which way to go for my next ride. i have seen a few townies driving around in bournemouth and was quite taken by the look, it’s unusual to say the least. i read with interest some of the comic and tragic stories on the web, and was not put off at the thought of pedestrian like performance of the townie, after all what ever i drive after the rover will seem like a bus, so why not a bus!
i checked out auto trader on the web, and found links to three, yes three importers in our area. the first one we visited was staggering. given that the main business of traders is to maximise the retail price by presenting vehicles at their best, i was almost put off by the appalling state of the interior. if neglected, badly stained, ripped or split seats and trim were to be expected for a twelve-year-old vehicle with an asking price of four grand, then forget it. i would be better off replacing the bits that are falling off the old rover.
however i am pleased to say that our next port of call was equally staggering for completely the opposite reason. a twelve year old townie in immaculate condition. no stains, no splits and definitely no contest. the townie looked very well cared for and as good as the day it was made. it made me feel that the extra grand was well worth it.
with a deal struck for the townie i have had the pleasure of seeking insurance. this has proved to be quite interesting as i’m sure you all know. i am forty one with 3 points on my licence for speeding on a motorway, yes i know fat chance now it would seem. anyway my insurance broker took quite some time to ring me back with a quote. my current insurer whom i have been with for many years, flatly refused to have any thing more to do with me. the only quote my broker could get was from norwich union, who wanted an eight hundred pound thatcham category one alarm system fitted and certified by an approved fitter. then and only then would they insure it for a premium of six hundred and eighty pounds with a five hundred pound excess. how i wish i could have seen my broker fall of his perch when i told him that liverpool victoria had quoted three hundred and thirty three pounds with only one hundred pounds excess for loss or damage and forty quid excess if the windscreen pops. if that wasn’t enough, they also couldn’t care less if it has an immobiliser or alarm fitted.
the only thing that really hurts now is that my wife’s twelve year old bog standard mazda is more expensive to insure than the townie. no prizes for guessing where to go for her insurance next year.
i am still unsure whether to fit an electric cooling fan and a new more reliable temp gauge to avoid the overheating problem some of you have had. i guess its a question of prevention or cure. as prevention is usually cheaper than cure i may well change it.
thanks again for all your comments and helpful advise it really has made things easy for me.
- (#5614) dave Bright, 24 Sep 02
As a fellow Royal Lounge owner let me congratulate you on your wise choice. I still had the Cat 1 installed for ease of mind and remote central locking, on letting the ins co know got a rebate. Happy cruising.
Clive
- (#5615) Clive, 24 Sep 02
Wow! The stories we've put together on the web must be pretty convincing!
What overheating problem? Better temperature indication won't stop cooling system components failing, but I agree that it'll help you spot them in time. In Ace Answers (Cooling/Temperature Gauge/Investigation & Modification) there is a cheap and quick (£1 and 20mins) mod to make the Toyota gauge much more useful.
- (#5616) Dave Mason, 24 Sep 02