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FX4 Fairway Taxi – £300


Sam Glover

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I bought this shitbanger a few months ago for £500, but I’ve failed to bond with it. The Fairway is ruined by the extra mechanical bits they fitted to try to fool people into thinking it’s not a 1950s tractor, plus it lacks the grimy metropolitan interior aesthetics and dystopian smells of proper FX4s. On the plus side, it has balljoints at the front instead of kingpins.

 
It’s MoT’d until October 13th and it’s more-or-less roadworthy.
 
There’s a fair bit of rust. I haven’t inspected it too critically, but I think there’s very little – if any – that’d fail an MoT. The sills are practically nonexistent, but they’re non-structural bolt-on panels.
 
The auto 'box is a bit whiney when hot. I haven't tried changing the fluid... or checked the level, for that matter.
 
The fuelling system is in need of a going-over. It’s got a fucktarded retrofit EGR system and it’d be all the better for having this (perfectly legally) removed. I fiddled with the throttle to make it open further and go faster. This was a success, but it now leaves a robust black smokescreen when you give it hammer. There’s also a light knocking from one cylinder, which I’m 95% sure is combustion-related.
 
There are certainly some minor ailments that I haven't noticed or mentioned.
 
In short: it’s not very good but it is very cheap.
 
It’s near Cirencester.
 
Sam
 
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I've always wanted one of these! Luckily I don't have the cash or the skills/balls to take one on!

From memory of when these things were current and plying the roads with hackney licences, neither did the average taxi fettler; most were good from afar but up close had wobtastic repairs on all trailing edges and constant eruptions of the iron oxide kind bubbling through the Stevie Wonder paintwork.

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It's very difficult to insure these as a private vehicle.  Older ones can probably be wangled onto a classic policy, but newer ones are a bit in limbo.  That's where a trader's policy comes in handy. :)

 

In fact were it not for Scrappy McScrapface going all tightwad on me, I'd be looking at train prices to Cirencester right about now. :angry:

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Trader's policies don't like them either, ask me how I found that out :(

 

You can get private policies, sadly I've forgotten who to use. The problem stems from the fact* that they think you'll use it as a cab. My trade policy company steadfastly refused insurance even though I sent pictures of the 'not for hire or reward' decals I had made.

In fact, they even said private hire taxis were not allowed on the policy, so technically a plated Mondeo or Vectra etc was off limits, even if just a part-ex or sale job.

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Trader's policies don't like them either, ask me how I found that out :(

 

You can get private policies, sadly I've forgotten who to use. The problem stems from the fact* that they think you'll use it as a cab. My trade policy company steadfastly refused insurance even though I sent pictures of the 'not for hire or reward' decals I had made.

In fact, they even said private hire taxis were not allowed on the policy, so technically a plated Mondeo or Vectra etc was off limits, even if just a part-ex or sale job.

I s'pose it must depend on the policy then - I've had three Metrocabs on mine over the years and they never batted an eyelid.

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I came up against this a few years back when I found one for sale silly cheap in Aberdeen. Glad I checked insurance first...

 

Pretty sure it was Lancaster I was with back then, they would cover it - but wanted something utterly ridiculous like £1200 a year for the privilege, which is more than I was paying for the other four cars in total. Suffice to say I didn't buy it.

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I remember doing my work experience in a taxi garage when these were brand new, the boot floor is made in two sections so they are cheaper to fix when rear ended.

 

Guy I worked with on the bodywork side used to lock us in the spray booth when doing a big job and we'd get well stoned on his high quality Nepalese weed :-D

 

It's got to be worth more in bits but that's not AS is it  

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Ideal for picking up attractive women who haven't got the sufficient fare for the journey.

 

These would be ideal if you'd got four kids or something, close the sliding window thing and then you'll not have to listen to inane questions like how many miles is it. That's assuming you could hear them over the din of the engine at 60mph.

 

Re the insurance, couldn't you demonstrate it's no longer used for hackney carriage by taking the hire light of the front, I'm sure they did a private car version of the FX4R that didn't have this.

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I had one of these.I insured it via Peter Best or FJ I thing. Either way it was insurable quite easily.

 

Great ponderous old things to drive, people asked me for directions, nobody pulled in front of me or tried to cut me off, motorways are slowly conquered. Great turning circle. 

 

Basically a body bolted on a chassis. They do like to rust for shits and giggles though. 

 

I did like mine. 

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I had one of these.I insured it via Peter Best or FJ I thing. Either way it was insurable quite easily.

 

Great ponderous old things to drive, people asked me for directions, nobody pulled in front of me or tried to cut me off, motorways are slowly conquered. Great turning circle. 

 

Basically a body bolted on a chassis. They do like to rust for shits and giggles though. 

 

I did like mine.

 

I remember when I bought that and you said it'd only cruise about 50-55mph and I mentally did that twizzly finger round my head looney sign, thinking I'd get on the motorway and do 65-70.

How very right you were :(

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