Mega shite...Trabant 601

[scruff]

I think your "Mate" needs to grow some balls, not much of a mate to land you in it. However I for one was confused by your opening gambit -

 

After a slightly intoxicated look on ebay the other night, I slipped a cheeky bid on a trabant 601 2 stroke special ultra smokey tree hugger edition...and I won it for £252. I think my mate is going halves with me and we will both use as we already have our own cars.

 

So did you bid on it, hoping your mate would come up with the readies?

 

I have also been on the receiving end of eBay dreamers. The last one was a jobless, driving licenceless twat who had been turfed out of uni but was still living in a shared student house in the centre of Bristol with no parking. He bid on a LWB Land Rover with terminal rot and an engine in the boot - spares or brave repairs etc. No surprise when four days after the auction ended I got the email saying he couldn't afford it. It had to go as I was moving house and it ended up quickly asset stripped and scrapped. eBay don't give a fuck of course. I guess many of us have similar stories

 

I hope the vendor of the Trab isn't a shiter...

[idiotboy]

If I was nearer I'd have it...going to Yorks on the 6th Aug too, but not in my car sadly so no tow bar.

 

Its a shame as it seems a nice prospect.

[barrett]

Nice to see the Autoshite mob mentality in full effect here.

 

Obvs it's not really on committing to buy something and then dropping out at the last minute but sometimes circumstances conspire against the best of intentions. TBH Triumph1300 just seems a bit clueless about the whole thing, but It's not like he's gone out of his way to deliberately fuck the guy over is it?

 

Getting yer quotes BEFORE you bid is clearly the way to go, but as I've found out after being given the run around by a Shiply agent, it's not exactly a guarantee. Now I'm gonna be forking out a fair whack more than my initial quote, which has turned my viable worthwhile project into something slightly less so (no beer for the next couple of month is the answer).

 

We've all done stupid things whilst drunk on the evil bay and though he's not conducted himself brilliantly I don't see why the web-vultures need to jump on the guy and rip him apart for being a bit dim in this instance. He just bought a Trabant FFS, surely that's punishment enough?

[dollywobbler]

I don't think we've gone in for a public lynching here, but given how many of us have wasted HOURS with Ebay messers, I think you've got to expect some of that frustration to come through when a chap on this very forum says "Sod it. I shouldn't have bid. I'll pay him back and that's my guilt quashed."

[nigel bickle]

Got the list of 'faults' about right -didnt I?

Broken hinges, 'stiff ' brakes, chassis welding & a bit of body damage. Hah!

 

There will be loads more ''little things'' to do -like the vast majority. If you want an unrestored Trab filling you lockup for a couple of years, prior to punting it on, this looks a damn good bet!

[triumph1300]

.

[trigger]

[RedSparrow]

I think a decent Trabi will be reasonably strong money now.

In CZ kids like them, they are kind of like the old mini equivilent there, become trendy. It makes me smile to see young drivers enjoying thrashing around in the noisy little things. They are pretty popular.

Did Berlin ever go ahead with that ban on 2-stroke cars btw?

[Wilko220]

I suffer from bi-polar which I never asked for and it is a reason as why I do certain things

 

O, RITE...

 

Well that's ok then.

 

.

[Jack_Harpers_Teeth]

been reading this topic all day (on and off).

 

Have to say I think (for what it's worth) that T1300 has done the noble thing and come clean with us (though he wasn't obligated too in any shape or form), he has also offered to pay the Trab owner in as far as his expenses for the eBay listing.

 

He could of done neither, he chose to try and make some difference to an awkward situation (all of which wasn't his fault).

 

He has simply become a scape goat for people on here who have been let down by others on eBay who hasn't either made contact with the seller or simply vanished - something I think we have all experienced? It is a hazard of eBay, you almost should expect it to happen now.

 

So, give the fella a break eh?

[CreepingJesus]

^WHS. Sounds like an unfortunate confluence of factors. T1300 could've flipped the bird at the vendor, but hasn't. Give him a bit of credit for that, eh?

[dollywobbler]

Maybe so, but pulling bi-polar depression out of the bag was a bit of a low blow. Don't get me wrong, it's a bloody horrific condition (I have at friend with it, and suspicions about another) and I wouldn't wish it on anyone - I just suspect it had nowt to do with the bidding process here and was more about trying to stop the debate.

 

What's done is done though. We've all got a bit carried away with Ebay and for every time we've got to the 'are you sure' stage and actually backed down, there's always going to be a bit too much excitement and not enough thought. That's what buying cars is all about really!

[scruff]

Got the list of 'faults' about right -didnt I?

Broken hinges, 'stiff ' brakes, chassis welding & a bit of body damage. Hah!

 

There will be loads more ''little things'' to do -like the vast majority. If you want an unrestored Trab filling you lockup for a couple of years, prior to punting it on, this looks a damn good bet!

 

Are they a shit to work on then Nige.

 

I've been about the former East Germany and CZ a bit and fell in love with them, I really quite fancy one as a daft daily. As someone said earlier it's the kind of car you've got to experience just once. I don't mind a bit of spanner work.

[nigel bickle]

No -they're quite fun really -but you have to get into the mindset.

 

Most probs revolve around ''western'' attitudes, so a simple issue like wheel cylinders (on the earlier ones) foxes most. They need a specific puller to get the hub out of the way -then its easy; otherwise you'll spend hours of hopeless aggro -failing to succeed. And they all need cylinders- when they've sat for more than 12 months.

 

The engine can come out in 20 mins (really) -front panel is held on with 2 wing nuts, disconnect the fuel (MZ bike tap) undo the 4 bellhousing bolts (13mm) and release the engine mount. Weighs about the same as a loaded suitcase. Getting the replacement is the prob now. Ebay.de is your friend here. It'll courier relatively easily as its light compact & oil free.

 

Wings are held on with wood screws(!) under that neoprene trim. Duraplast so they crack easily -but you can swop them out in 30 mins -and they only came in a basic range of colours.

 

Hinges etc can be a swine- easiest is just to cut them off (nuts never undo) and replace via Ebay.de. Or ignore.

 

Welding is usually confined to the battery tray, inner wings (front or rear) & the chassis adjacent the rear of the front engine mount, usually just above the exhaust. Its a pretty easy -just a bit awkward.

 

I could go on. They dont engender much loyalty, and a lot of purchasers think its easy- then find it isnt. Except it is -if you're used to Eastern bloc 2 strokes.

 

Once roadlegal ,sadly the novelty soon seems to wear off, for some.

I guess the hassle of opening the bonnet to fill up with fuel, then top up with 2 stroke outweighs the humungous mpg (-unless you forget to turn off the fuel tap each night!). Despite their agility, and they are swift to around 50mph, the uncertaintly of a 2 stroke hot start, the ''weird noise'' and confusing the 2 stroke fuelling ratio often leading to vast clouds on startup, means that it swiftly gets relegated.

 

Sad really -but then who am I too talk? I've a roadlegal Barkas (just a 3 cyl Trabbiie van) -taxed ,Mot' insured, that hasnt moved in over 2 months. Still love it though!

[AeroNautiCal]

I'll give up now. I'll sort it out. This is the last of my posts on this thread... if it wasn't for my mate being a fuckwit I would have the car yet I'm getting all the shit, but nevermind, this is the internet after all, I'm used to it

 

Like I said, I won't comment anymore... I suffer from bi-polar which I never asked for and it is a reason as why I do certain things, what's your excuse for picking on people?

 

 

Whiner of the Week is, 1300 Excuses!

[RedSparrow]

Yeah, using an illness as an excuse in this case is pretty bad.

Reminds me of people who have had 'enablers' in their life who have taught them that their illness can be used as an excuse any time they make mistakes.

Or otherwise if it's so bad that it causes a person to bid without thinking on ebay, then that person probably isn't well enough to be driving.

 

Anyway, I'll stop now.

[triumph1300]

It's another case of certain people not reading things properly again isn't it, I'm not using my bi polar as an excuse for bidding on a car at all. I never once said that, I said it is the reason I do certain things, and used it as a comparison as to what your lots excuse would be for picking on me. My bi polar had nothing to do with me bidding on a bloody trabant. You just want to find more things to make a dig at don't you. Well good for you, I hope you feel a big man.

[trigger]

If you didn't wine so much people wouldn't take a dig at you, we had all this on your snotty Triumph 1300 thread when you had a pop at everyone on here, it's getting very tiresome now.

[dollywobbler]

If you didn't wine so much people wouldn't take a dig at you, we had all this on your snotty Triumph 1300 thread when you had a pop at everyone on here, it's getting very tiresome now.

 

This. But I'm going to stop now as I keep meaning to but you keep on responding! When you joined up after the original 1300 discussion, where we all poked fun, I thought "fair play to him signing up here and explaining his side of the story." But you do get awfully defensive. We're none of us perfect and I don't think any of us pretend to be.

[triumph1300]

Awfully defensive? I'm sorry for feeling the need to stick up for myself when gettin ripped into.

Can one of the mods please delete this thread as its completely off topic and just a slaggin match now.

[Wilko220]

[triumph1300]

 

yes i am...LOL

[Pete-M]

 

WTFingF? Another fucking lynching?

 

Fuxake, this is Autoshite isn't it? It still shows up as being beige on the screen... Ok, T1300 has dropped a bollock again, but shit happens. How many folk on here when they first started pissing about with old cars would know that a Trabi can be an utter disaster? To the average Joe it's some weird little Communist shit box that the East Germans, Czechs and Poles dumped all over Yoorope the minute the Berlin wall came down. To a lot of even non-shitists there's a perverse bit of sense to 'em. Plastic, two stroke, simple, cheap. The fact that they're an utter pain in the arse isn't widely known. Most people just think they're shite.

 

I wouldn't try and drive a shoddy one 100 miles or so, put it that way (although I was tempted to try and bring a B1000 back from CZ).

 

Shiply is a bit of a joke as well. Every time I try and get something shifted it ends up being a disaster. They wanted something like £270 to bring the 604 here from Norfolk, and as Barrett will confirm, they can be awkward to get things done right and there's still no guarantee Shiply will actually shift the thing.

 

The eBay thing appears to have been a daft move. If I were in T1300's position I'd have phoned the seller and offered him the listing fee and a few quid for his troubles. I wouldn't have posted that on 'ere though. I've been let down in the past on eBay and I'd much rather someone does that than cocks on the deal entirely. If I was flogging something like a Trabi I'd fully expect to be cocked about. 'Normal' people don't buy Trabis. No offence to Nigel intended.

 

I'm still pissed off Norm got the boot from here, and T1300 is having a go at fixing his Trumpet up a bit, putting photos up etc. That's more than most of us do. A bit of friendly advice would have been a lot more helpful than grilling the poor daft sod.

 

The Bi-Polar comments were just daft.

[nigel bickle]

None taken

 

Should have bought the B1000.

[triumph1300]

To all you lot who jumped to conclusions, here is the sellers reply, so you can all get off your high horse and giving me shit

 

hello Andy, thats ok never mind, to be honest it did sound as a big challenge for you to come over here from Kent to pick the car up. any way thanks for your honesty, all best Norb

[Negative Creep]

No -they're quite fun really -but you have to get into the mindset.

 

Most probs revolve around ''western'' attitudes, so a simple issue like wheel cylinders (on the earlier ones) foxes most. They need a specific puller to get the hub out of the way -then its easy; otherwise you'll spend hours of hopeless aggro -failing to succeed. And they all need cylinders- when they've sat for more than 12 months.

 

The engine can come out in 20 mins (really) -front panel is held on with 2 wing nuts, disconnect the fuel (MZ bike tap) undo the 4 bellhousing bolts (13mm) and release the engine mount. Weighs about the same as a loaded suitcase. Getting the replacement is the prob now. Ebay.de is your friend here. It'll courier relatively easily as its light compact & oil free.

 

Wings are held on with wood screws(!) under that neoprene trim. Duraplast so they crack easily -but you can swop them out in 30 mins -and they only came in a basic range of colours.

 

Hinges etc can be a swine- easiest is just to cut them off (nuts never undo) and replace via Ebay.de. Or ignore.

 

Welding is usually confined to the battery tray, inner wings (front or rear) & the chassis adjacent the rear of the front engine mount, usually just above the exhaust. Its a pretty easy -just a bit awkward.

 

I could go on. They dont engender much loyalty, and a lot of purchasers think its easy- then find it isnt. Except it is -if you're used to Eastern bloc 2 strokes.

 

Once roadlegal ,sadly the novelty soon seems to wear off, for some.

I guess the hassle of opening the bonnet to fill up with fuel, then top up with 2 stroke outweighs the humungous mpg (-unless you forget to turn off the fuel tap each night!). Despite their agility, and they are swift to around 50mph, the uncertaintly of a 2 stroke hot start, the ''weird noise'' and confusing the 2 stroke fuelling ratio often leading to vast clouds on startup, means that it swiftly gets relegated.

 

Sad really -but then who am I too talk? I've a roadlegal Barkas (just a 3 cyl Trabbiie van) -taxed ,Mot' insured, that hasnt moved in over 2 months. Still love it though!

 

 

 

Interesting info, thanks. Sounds like just the sort of thing I'd buy and lose interest in. Naturally, I want one in my life

[Adrian_pt]

Useful thread in the end. I was thinking it might be amusing to drive a knackered but roadworthy one over from Romania. Now know better. Dacia 1300 anyone?

[barefoot]

No -they're quite fun really -but you have to get into the mindset.

 

Once roadlegal ,sadly the novelty soon seems to wear off, for some.

I guess the hassle of opening the bonnet to fill up with fuel, then top up with 2 stroke outweighs the humungous mpg (-unless you forget to turn off the fuel tap each night!). Despite their agility, and they are swift to around 50mph, the uncertaintly of a 2 stroke hot start, the ''weird noise'' and confusing the 2 stroke fuelling ratio often leading to vast clouds on startup, means that it...

 

You've forgotten to mention all the greasing points - steering & gearchange stiffen phenomenally.

MPG? - I got about 35 from mine, which I also thought was shocking.

But thanks for re-assuring me that it really was quick off the mark & amazing fun - because no-one EVER expected it to be!

 

You also failed to mention the fact that although the maximum speed was 100 kmph, your ears start to bleed at about 80.

[AeroNautiCal]

Can one of the mods please delete this thread as its completely off topic and just a slaggin match now.

 

No it isn't!

 

[Des]

Well that was fun, a nice mix of argumentation and an education in Trabbies, certainly an improvement on how it usually goes when it kicks off here, I hope all future contention can prove as enlightening.

I don't think there's any harm done re. the ebay shenanigans, anyone selling there these days and expecting or counting on it to go smoothly is just being unrealistic, ebay was great, now it sucks. The last thing I sold on my old ebay account, (just after that buyer / seller feedback incitement to timewaste thing the arseholes rolled out) was a car that finished at less than its scrap value, the buyer strung me along for a week, made a lower offer, got told where to go and then crawled home and left me a neg. That's a timewaster.