War on cars

[warthog1]

Very swish! That stem ….cough cough…..

Too long, too high?
That is the stem it came with. -6° 120mm. Works with it as low as it will go. At that height the bar to saddle drop is only a few mm less than the TCR it is replacing. Got those narrower bars that are 135mm drop in the drops so if I want speed in the drops it is very similar or perhaps even lower. Speed is less in supply than it used to be though

[CmdrBiggles]

^^I miss reading your posts F&O.

How you doin Warty? Did I read you got yourself a canyon hereabouts?

Doing ok thanks mate. I thought about a Canyon but , there was a wait, unsure how easy to change bar/stem for fit and it was 105 di2. Got a Merida Reacto that was in the local shop for less and with Ultegra di2. Very happy

What bike shop(s)??
I can remember Daryl Gilmour's and Hardings...what else is in Bendigo nowadays?
Asking because of potential trip to goldfields in Spring with a ride out to Rushworth. Last did that (Rushy-Bendigo) 34 years ago on a loaded-to-the-hilt touring bike!

[warthog1]

What bike shop(s)??
I can remember Daryl Gilmour's and Hardings...what else is in Bendigo nowadays?
Asking because of potential trip to goldfields in Spring with a ride out to Rushworth. Last did that (Rushy-Bendigo) 34 years ago on a loaded-to-the-hilt touring bike!

There are a few. That was from what used to be Hardings, now called Bicycle Centre Bendigo. There is also Giant Bendigo and 3 others I think.

[DavidS]

I don't have a problem with large SUVs if they are used for towing something big, or needed for a tradie.

My issue is the ones that drive around town on the school run and do little or nothing else. Plenty of them in the bayside suburbs of Melbourne have never seen a dirt road or towed anything.

DS

Does your bike have all purpose flat bars or racer style drops?

Both of my current bikes have drops, which are not just for racing, drops also appear on touring bikes. My previous bike, which I recently donated had flat bars.

Your point?

My drop bar bikes:
- do not weigh tonnes more than the flat bar.
- do not use way more fossil fuel than the flat bar, in fact, they burn no fossil fuel.
- are not more dangerous to other road users.
- do not handle worse than a flat bar or need more braking distance.

Do you think it is reasonable to use a bloody great truck to take the kids to school? Do SUVs impress you as they are driven around the 'burbs and never see a road which might use their capabilities?

As I said, I have no problem with SUVs and 4WDs which are used for the purpose they are designed (nice of you to edit my post by the way), but I don't like the fact that so many people now buy SUVs instead of sedans or wagons like we used to. I don't think there is suddenly a greater need for vehicles which can go off road, after all, a conventional sedan will take you down 99.9% of roads with ease.

DS

[brumby33]

I don't have a problem with large SUVs if they are used for towing something big, or needed for a tradie.

My issue is the ones that drive around town on the school run and do little or nothing else. Plenty of them in the bayside suburbs of Melbourne have never seen a dirt road or towed anything.

DS

Does your bike have all purpose flat bars or racer style drops?

Both of my current bikes have drops, which are not just for racing, drops also appear on touring bikes. My previous bike, which I recently donated had flat bars.

Your point?

My drop bar bikes:
- do not weigh tonnes more than the flat bar.
- do not use way more fossil fuel than the flat bar, in fact, they burn no fossil fuel.
- are not more dangerous to other road users.
- do not handle worse than a flat bar or need more braking distance.

Do you think it is reasonable to use a bloody great truck to take the kids to school? Do SUVs impress you as they are driven around the 'burbs and never see a road which might use their capabilities?

As I said, I have no problem with SUVs and 4WDs which are used for the purpose they are designed (nice of you to edit my post by the way), but I don't like the fact that so many people now buy SUVs instead of sedans or wagons like we used to. I don't think there is suddenly a greater need for vehicles which can go off road, after all, a conventional sedan will take you down 99.9% of roads with ease.

DS

I so wish that the traditional Station Wagon came back in fashion but i don't know if it'll ever happen, I think they were so much better than a SUV because many of the so called SUVs are no more than a glorified jacked up hatchback, often built on the chassis of a small car like the Mazda 3 or 6, have bugger all space in them unless they are the really big ones from Mercedes and BMW.......but there's hardly any makers now except Volvo and Skoda that make a true wagon.
I think they were much more better to slide a full sized bicycle in the back without taking the wheels off. I don't really want a Euro wagon because those things cost a small fortune for servicing and repair and takes a long time for parts to come over from Europe.
Probably the only recent SUV that could probably be suitable would be the newer style Nissan X-Trail or Subaru Outback. My 2014 Corolla hatch falls a bit short due to having front pannier racks on the Vivente, they would dig into the back of the passenger seat.....I once had a Mitsubishi Sigma wagon and that was a great useful car. To buy something suitable now, I would have to go even older than my little Toyota.

brumby33

[warthog1]

My wife has a 2017 Tucson. For a smallish car it has a bit of room in the back



Looks a bit SUVish but it is just front wheel drive with a bit of extra ride height. I like the extra ride height. Good for speed humps and steep driveway approaches and exits.

[brumby33]

My wife has a 2017 Tucson. For a smallish car it has a bit of room in the back



Looks a bit SUVish but it is just front wheel drive with a bit of extra ride height. I like the extra ride height. Good for speed humps and steep driveway approaches and exits.

Yeah Warty, the Hyundai Tucsun in it's current form is a decent size but the original Tucson of 2010 was no more than a jacked up hatch with very little room, my former neighbours had one and it was rather cramped so it had to get bigger to compete with other brands. But these SUV's are not station wagons in the true sense of the word.

[Retrobyte]

there's hardly any makers now except Volvo and Skoda that make a true wagon.
I think they were much more better to slide a full sized bicycle in the back without taking the wheels off. I don't really want a Euro wagon because those things cost a small fortune for servicing and repair and takes a long time for parts to come over from Europe.

Our Skoda Superb wagon costs no more to service than our Mazda 3. Have never had to wait for parts - it's 6 years old and the only parts needed apart from annual servicing have been a battery, tyres and brake pads/rotors - all readily available as aftermarket parts.

I hear you on the room though - it's a tardis in the back, surprisingly spacious. With the back seat down I can fit two road bikes with wheels on.

[grt046]

I have a Ford Mondeo Hatch that in my view is the best compromise I think. Road bike goes in comfortably with all wheels on.
Got to be seen to be believed the stuff I have carted with it, particularly materials for my wife's Ikebana art work.

[warthog1]

Yeah Warty, the Hyundai Tucsun in it's current form is a decent size but the original Tucson of 2010 was no more than a jacked up hatch with very little room, my former neighbours had one and it was rather cramped so it had to get bigger to compete with other brands. But these SUV's are not station wagons in the true sense of the word.

It gets labelled as an SUV despite being only front wheel drive. Just a more practical ride height, as passenger cars used to have back in the 70s and 80s. No worries about scrapes on driveways etc, unlike my Suzuki Swift and the 2 kids' 2015 and 2016 Camrys. My wife can get into it with her injured back much more easily than the other 3 I just listed.

[CmdrBiggles]

Maybe next week I'll fold down the back seats of the faithful SV6 Commodore and see if the XS TCR roadie will fit in there, with wheels still on. The MTB I sold could do it, albeit with the front wheel out and the bars turned — awkward and testy to load and unload.

I can carry humungous loads of camping and photography gear, all of which may need to be downsized from late-August. I'm going to trundle — yes, in a rear-wheel drive SV6 wagonwheels, along the lofty Blue Rag Range (!), mind you, after the snow has melted...

SIZE MATTERS...
I have noticed how vast the difference appeared in terms of space between my niece's now-sold GurlieTruk VW Tiguan AWD (2018) and my second niece's Skoda Scala Monte Carlo hatch. The Tiggy carried enormous loads when we were shifting house — to the tip/recycling depot, to St Vinnie's, back and forth between homes. Then I saw the Scala... It too carried a big load, but the puny little engine — unlike the Tiguan's, really struggled on uphills!!

[Shred11]

My theory is that it isn't so much 'speed kills' as 'momentum kills'.

Exactly. Speeding fines increase proportional to the amount that the driver exceeds the speed limit by, partly because the faster the vehicle is travelling, the more damage it will inflict on anything it hits. If a driver chooses to drive a heavier vehicle, fines for speeding, failing to stop at a red light etc should also increase with the mass of the vehicle.

Conversely, they should be lower for a vehicle with a reduced mass. Cyclists on a 10 kg bicycle mostly represent a danger to themselves if they break the road rules. Old mate in his 2,500 American ute is a danger to everyone except himself.

[jasonc]

The requirement for our current car was that the frame fit in the boot, with wheels removed. I ride a 58cm frame with a lot of seat post. Most cars would require dropping seats

[mikesbytes]

The dual cab traidie vehicles give the owner the ability to use one vehicle for both work and family. Suppose one expensive vehicle is a better option than two cheaper vehicles for many

[jasonc]

The dual cab traidie vehicles give the owner the ability to use one vehicle for both work and family. Suppose one expensive vehicle is a better option than two cheaper vehicles for many

I have to say I don't see many families/ homes with just a single vehicle, especially if it's a dual cab ute
There's a guy around the corner from me who has a silverado ute, a small car, and recently a 2nd motor boat in the front yard (had been one for a while)

[mikesbytes]

The dual cab traidie vehicles give the owner the ability to use one vehicle for both work and family. Suppose one expensive vehicle is a better option than two cheaper vehicles for many

I have to say I don't see many families/ homes with just a single vehicle, especially if it's a dual cab ute
There's a guy around the corner from me who has a silverado ute, a small car, and recently a 2nd motor boat in the front yard (had been one for a while)

That sounds like a scene out of "The Castle", goodness knows why they would want so many motor vehicles, think of the costs...

My plumber is the opposite, he lives in the next street to me, has just one vehicle, the dual cab plus a small trailer and takes the family away on weekends camping.

[elantra]

The dual cab traidie vehicles give the owner the ability to use one vehicle for both work and family. Suppose one expensive vehicle is a better option than two cheaper vehicles for many

I have to say I don't see many families/ homes with just a single vehicle, especially if it's a dual cab ute
There's a guy around the corner from me who has a silverado ute, a small car, and recently a 2nd motor boat in the front yard (had been one for a while)

That sounds like a scene out of "The Castle", goodness knows why they would want so many motor vehicles, think of the costs...

My plumber is the opposite, he lives in the next street to me, has just one vehicle, the dual cab plus a small trailer and takes the family away on weekends camping.

Your friend the Plumber is a shining light !

Seriously he is a man who deserves an accolade
But unfortunately is the exception rather than the rule.

Between 1990 and 2021 the number of motor vehicles registered in Australia DOUBLED- from 10 million to 20 million- and In than period of time the Australian population certainly did NOT DOUBLE.
In other words, over this period of time the number of cars owned per driving age person increased by almost 20 percent.

Now that’s not to say that this trend of increased numbers of cars per person will continue.
There are reports that the trend has slowed particularly in inner city areas because of space
limitations, cost of living constraints, and perhaps the availability of e-devices with which to commute cheaply
It is known that there was a slump in new car purchasing in the 2020-2021 financial year, presumably due to COVID.

The harsh reality is that increasing numbers of cars, and increasing SIZE of cars are trends that are slowly choking the suburbs in which many of us live.
Just ignoring these issues hoping that they will go away is not a great option.
Because if the issues are ignored is likely to get worse and worse.

Yes for sure, for those of us who live in fairdinkum rural location and rarely need to travel and park in suburban locations then you are not causing any problem.
If you are a tradie and your Ford Ranger dual cab really is the family do-it-all vehicle then you are not causing any problem.

But if you are like some solo operator tradies that I know and you have a work HiAce van AND a Hilux dual cab 4x4 which BOTH attract a tax incentive even though you can only drive ONE at a time
… well that sort of nonsense if multipled through the households and suburbs has unfortunate results

[am50em]

https://www.statista.com/statistics/632 ... habitants/

[brumby33]

I have to say I don't see many families/ homes with just a single vehicle, especially if it's a dual cab ute
There's a guy around the corner from me who has a silverado ute, a small car, and recently a 2nd motor boat in the front yard (had been one for a while)

That sounds like a scene out of "The Castle", goodness knows why they would want so many motor vehicles, think of the costs...

My plumber is the opposite, he lives in the next street to me, has just one vehicle, the dual cab plus a small trailer and takes the family away on weekends camping.

The harsh reality is that increasing numbers of cars, and increasing SIZE of cars are trends that are slowly choking the suburbs in which many of us live.
Just ignoring these issues hoping that they will go away is not a great option.
Because if the issues are ignored is likely to get worse and worse.

Yes for sure, for those of us who live in fairdinkum rural location and rarely need to travel and park in suburban locations then you are not causing any problem.
If you are a tradie and your Ford Ranger dual cab really is the family do-it-all vehicle then you are not causing any problem.

But if you are like some solo operator tradies that I know and you have a work HiAce van AND a Hilux dual cab 4x4 which BOTH attract a tax incentive even though you can only drive ONE at a time
… well that sort of nonsense if multipled through the households and suburbs has unfortunate results

Young Tradies tend to have just one car but that car acts as both the workhorse as well as the play pony and I see nothing wrong with that but when you have a heap of commercial type vehicles to a household, it becomes a problem.
My only real beef with them is that these twincab utes have become so mainstream and so huge, they've overtaken the top selling cars here in Australia as the family hack especially with the advertising on media that the Man of the family can show his manly prowess in the bush bashing along dirt trails a long way from the City where it usually lives. The makers like Toyota, Ford, Nissan and others have beefed up their utes in recent years to make them feel like they are Driving a big GMC/Ram/Silverado pick-up but in Japan, these not many twin cab utes running around and they are actual basic work vehicles for which they were made in that country. Last time I was in Japan I took notice on what type of Commercial vehicles were used and they were mainly single cab tray tops, Hiace and other brand vans and lots of little Kei Car vans to keep them under the 1,000cc market and are very cheap to register and insure.

You can bet your life, if i go into a shopping centre carpark or bunnings or somewhere there's a car park, 9 times out of 10 when you return to your car, there's a bloody big Ute or 4x4 on either side (not always parked straight) and it's so damned hard to open your car door enough to get in.....and I always check my car for dings because many of them are so careless when they open their own doors and whack it up against my car.

There's a Facebook group page called 'Albury Wodonga !! BAN ME NOW FOR SWEARING !! parkers' and if you post a vehicle parked stupidly in town, you have to blank out the number plate......Many of them are SUVs, Tradies who couldn't care less, and big Landcruiser type vehicles because someone in the household couldn't reverse the damned thing for want of trying.

cheers

brumby33

[mikesbytes]

There would be tax advantages in buying vehicles for work while still serving a personal purpose

[Retrobyte]

There would be tax advantages in buying vehicles for work while still serving a personal purpose

Instant tax deduction if you have an ABN

[Mr Purple]

I have to say I don't see many families/ homes with just a single vehicle, especially if it's a dual cab ute
There's a guy around the corner from me who has a silverado ute, a small car, and recently a 2nd motor boat in the front yard (had been one for a while)

At least they're different. Everyone in our street seems to have two Prados - always top of the line 'Kakadu' editions, usually in the same colour.

I can sort of understand why you'd want one (not need). But two? Why? At least having an enormous fat truck and a small car sort of makes sense.

[brumby33]

There would be tax advantages in buying vehicles for work while still serving a personal purpose

I'm not sure if the same rules apply but i think they do.....

Leasing is not always the best way to go because even though you can claim all the payments, the leasing Company gets to be the ones who can claim depreciation of said vehicle

Commercial Hire Purchase allows one to claim the interest portion of Payments but they have purchased it, they are the owner apart from the finance Company so therefore the owner can get the full depreciation claim on the vehicle for himself or Company.

And because they buy Commercial Vehicles such as Utes, Traytops, Vans and Trucks, the Fringe Benefit rules don't apply and they don't have to keep a logbook going to decipher Business vs Private use.

End of payment plan Ballon payments can be done on either plan and the vehicle is theirs which makes sense, you buy it out, re-register and insure it as private then you've got an offroad vehicle that was worth around 80K, probably still worth at least $35K if looked after, maybe more and then buy a newer work truck to start the process all over again.

[Retrobyte]

There would be tax advantages in buying vehicles for work while still serving a personal purpose

I'm not sure if the same rules apply but i think they do.....

Leasing is not always the best way to go because even though you can claim all the payments, the leasing Company gets to be the ones who can claim depreciation of said vehicle

There have been temporary tax rules in place for several years for ABN holders to purchase capital equipment and write off the entire purchase price as a tax deduction in year one, instead of depreciating it over several years. That was a huge incentive for tradies (or anyone with an ABN) to buy a ute for both business and personal use. That concession ended 30 June 2023.

[DavidS]

I so wish that the traditional Station Wagon came back in fashion but i don't know if it'll ever happen, I think they were so much better than a SUV because many of the so called SUVs are no more than a glorified jacked up hatchback, often built on the chassis of a small car like the Mazda 3 or 6, have bugger all space in them unless they are the really big ones from Mercedes and BMW.......but there's hardly any makers now except Volvo and Skoda that make a true wagon.

Yep, we are a 1 car family - Ford Falcon Station Wagon. One of the most practical cars ever made, especially when, like us, it is not driven very often.

I can fit a bike in the back without removing any wheels. Recently had to buy some wood, I can fit a couple of pieces at 3.3m which go right up on to the dashboard (diagonal!) and plenty of 3m pieces of wood in there.

Many years ago I had a Renault Virage wagon, it had a whopping 1.4 litre motor but it was quite long. Even with the back seat up there was a fair bit of room, with the back seat down you got a flat luggage area and you could fit large objects in it. Actually, now I think about it, that '79 Virage was the last car I actually owned as we have had 1 car ever since and they have all belonged to my partner.

DS