Best Car for Carrying Gear?

[Bassfinger]

My old burner is only doing 1600 rpm at 70, and that won't get anywhere near 200!

[SteveXFR]

8 minutes ago, Bassfinger said:

My old burner is only doing 1600 rpm at 70, and that won't get anywhere near 200!

 

But will that rev to 8000rpm?

[Bassfinger]

I doubt it. Not feeling the need to compensate for my tiny schlong, and not caring what anyone else thinks, that sort of thing didn't rate whatsoever on my list of requirements. 

 

 

 

 

 

[SteveXFR]

57 minutes ago, Bassfinger said:

I doubt it. Not feeling the need to compensate for my tiny schlong, and not caring what anyone else thinks, that sort of thing didn't rate whatsoever on my list of requirements. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My point was that cruising 1600rpm in a car that redlines at 4500rpm is less relaxed than cruising at 1600rpm in a car that reclines at 8000rpm. That was the point about a high top speed being good for cruising at low speed. 

Also, it's not tiny. It's just further away than you think.

[molan]

I have a Porsche Boxster - perfect for my gear carrying needs 😂

 

Markbass 2x10 slots perfectly into the front trunk (frunk!). It’s like it’s been custom built for it. No movement whatsoever!

 

Little amp also has a cubby hole just above the cab and a bass sits in the passenger footwell. 
 

I can even add a 12” powered monitor cab in the boot if I want

 

[Bassfinger]

3 hours ago, SteveXFR said:

 

My point was that cruising 1600rpm in a car that redlines at 4500rpm is less relaxed than cruising at 1600rpm in a car that reclines at 8000rpm. That was the point about a high top speed being good for cruising at low speed. 

Also, it's not tiny. It's just further away than you think.

1600 rpm is 70mph in my old boot.

 

The jaaaaagggggg is turning around 2100 rpm at the same velocity.

 

The Jag is a mighty hot rod and in a performance battle would steal my cars lunch money and flush its head down the toilet. However, it is spinning a fair bit faster at the legal limit so the extra performance, nice as it may be, doesn't make it any more adroit at cruising.

 

And it is tiny, but ive come to terms with it.  Luckily I have a 6 inch tongue and can breathe through my ears.

[SteveXFR]

8 hours ago, Bassfinger said:

 

The jaaaaagggggg is turning around 2100 rpm at the same velocity.

 

I don't know where you read that but it's wrong. It's well under 2000 at 70mph.

[NikNik]

Old '80s Volvo Estate 

[SPHDS]

The two best cars I've had for gear lugging were probably also the most troublesome as actual transport (one certainly was.....!)
- Mk4 Astra 1.7DTi - could get all of the rig (at the time) into the boot easily, and it was pretty economical.......only problem was that it got to the point that my local garage refused to do any more work on it 'as it isn't fair on us, and it definitely isn't fair on you....' It did a headgasket (took that on the chin....), then proceeded to blow every water pipe on the engine, in series, and so overheated several times, then the turbo failed, followed by the headgasket, again.....!
- Mk1 Suzuki Ignis - Bonkers little wagon, 90hp (yes ok, not Jaaaaaaag type figures, but going through those skinny little tyres....!) Eager little buzz box, and drop the seats and you have a 4' cube to load (again, not Volvo volumes, but for half the length of a 240.....) But then it started to randomly overheat/lose coolant/be incontinent.....no rhyme or reason, never did it for the garage......Radweld didn't work.....

[NikNik]

In the mid '80s I managed to fit a 2 x 4 x 10 Trace rig into a Datsun Sunny Estate. The engine didn't like it.

[Rich]

After I passed my driving test back in the mid 18th century, my first 'car' was a Mk1 Escort van. Now that's a load lugger

[NikNik]

Who lugged gear in a Luton?

 

GO!!

[Boodang]

2 minutes ago, NikNik said:

Who lugged gear in a Luton?

 

GO!!

I've lugged gear IN Luton.... does that count?

Edited March 6, 2022 by Boodang

[SteveXFR]

2 minutes ago, NikNik said:

In the mid '80s I managed to fit a 2 x 4 x 10 Trace rig into a Datsun Sunny Estate. The engine didn't like it.

 

I've driven a sunny. I believe it had half a horsepower, maybe less. A very reliable car but dreary is an understatement. 

I've also own a Trace 4x10 and it weighed more than a collapsed star. That doesn't sound like a good combination. 

[Muzz]

Skoda Superb Estate. Greenline 1.6 diesel, so 70+ mpg driven sensibly.

 

Thanks to a BL brain fart when booking a gig from Manchester to the New Forest ('It's near Stoke, isn't it?' FFS...) we had a go at doing it all in my car. Three of us, the drumkit (not a big one, but not electric, either) PA (RCF sub and two 12" tops), lights (two sets of smallish 5 x LEDs), all the stands, guitar combo, two guitars (one acoustic in hard case), 212 bass cab and cased Walkabout head, and dual Mono gig bag with two basses. And all the leads. Averaged 65mpg over the trip, but I had to drive fairly carefully over any bumps...yeah, it'll carry quite a bit... 😀

[Lfalex v1.1]

Fiat.

Multipla.

 

Fugly.

 

But you can get a pallet board in one, and the diesel ones (like my old one) can do nigh on 700 miles on a tank driven carefully. 

If you're a power trio, you can all sit 3 abreast on the front and all of everyone's gear will go in the back ( with the rear seats out. Yes. They come right out.)

 

Everyone used to mock mine. Until they wanted something big moving. 

 

Everyone would mock mine. But, as a wise man never said;

 

"Revenge is a dish best served in an IKEA car park"

Edited March 6, 2022 by Lfalex v1.1

[Woodinblack]

We used to have one of those as a company vehicle to move demo equipment round.

It was good and really secure as you could leave stuff in it - noone would assumed if you owned anything of value you would be driving a multipla!

 

[Dad3353]

1 hour ago, NikNik said:

Who lugged gear in a Luton?

 

GO!!

 

Nah, lutons are for wimps...

 

[Rich]

1 hour ago, Dad3353 said:

 

We may as well stop the thread now. Nobody's going to post anything cooler than this.

[lozkerr]

I'd love to suggest a Land Rover Defender, as I have one and I love it to bits.

 

Except that I can't. They're like an inverse Tardis - much smaller on the inside than the out. Especially if it's a 90 station wagon, which mine is. The wheel arches protrude into the body, and when you have to fold up the seats, the internal space is a lot smaller than it might look from outside. The rear seats can be removed if you're happy unbolting them from inside the rear wheel arches. Chances are the nuts will be rusted solid.

 

I can get my backline - Eden Metro, 118 cab, WTP600 backup amp, pedal board and a bag of electric string - in OK, with the basses on top and a bag of stage clothes, make-up and assorted gubbins stuffed into a corner, leaving room for me in the driving seat and my SO in the passenger seat. With some Tetris skills, I can squeeze a small lighting rig in as well. But that's about it. If the gig needs the full lighting rig or the PA, it's van hire time. @la bamwill confirm that getting a powerful PA into a Landy is... um... challenging 😊

I have thought about replacing the Landy with something like a Vauxhall Zafira - the rear seats fold flat, transforming it into a van with windows. But the thing is, that truck is my baby and I love it to bits. I'm currently thinking about converting a horse box to a gear trailer - security locks, wheel clamps, tracker, lining it with marine ply backed by razor wire to lacerate any scrote who decides to try to cut their way in - as a folding ramp would be ideal for wheeling flight cases in and out. Only snag is that I'd need to find somewhere to store it.

Edited March 6, 2022 by lozkerr
forgot something important

[Downunderwonder]

8 hours ago, SteveXFR said:

 

I've driven a sunny. I believe it had half a horsepower, maybe less. A very reliable car but dreary is an understatement. 

I've also own a Trace 4x10 and it weighed more than a collapsed star. That doesn't sound like a good combination. 

I had it's descendant model from early 90's, full on station wagon in miniature. That thing was a springer spaniel in sheep's clothing with a 1600 twin cam motor. Out on the highway it had very good ability to sneak up on fancy motors dawdling and blow past on the corner exit before they could boot it and cut me off.

 

I think the most I carried in one go was rack of amp plus double bass & fretless in case plus 2x15 and music stand.

[NikNik]

10 hours ago, SteveXFR said:

 

I've driven a sunny. I believe it had half a horsepower, maybe less. A very reliable car but dreary is an understatement. 

I've also own a Trace 4x10 and it weighed more than a collapsed star. That doesn't sound like a good combination. 

I think it was a 900. No oomph whatsoever  but I could run it on 2 star. 

 

 

Good job you never owned an Ampeg 8 x10, eh?  You'd have collapsed into its gravity well. Which might have been a good thing.

 

 

Edited March 7, 2022 by NikNik

[xgsjx]

I used to get my bass, a 2x10 combo, a pedal board & an acoustic guitar in one of these with he top down.

No room for a passenger though.

 

 

[phil.c60]

I still use my 20 year old Nissan Almera. Barefaced Compact, two 12" PA speakers and stands, PA desk, LM3 and all the cables plus my bass fit perfectly. Along with my wife in the front seat. According to We Buy Any Old Donkey it's worth the princely sum of £124, so no one is going to steal it and I don't care if I come back and find another ding in it either. MOT'd with no advisories last November, so that's me for another year!

 

[SteveXFR]

1 hour ago, NikNik said:

I think it was a 900. No oomph whatsoever  but I could run it on 2 star. 

 

 

Good job you never owned an Ampeg 8 x10, eh?  You'd have collapsed into its gravity well. Which might have been a good thing.

 

 

 

I quit my last band when the two guitarists demanded that I bought an SVT with 8x10 and got it within their three week deadline. 

The Trace cab was heavy enough. If you threw things at it they'd get trapped in orbit.