Tell me about TAXIS

[HMC]

I’ve been there and done fx4s. Now they are either a pile of rust or not cheap. I’m thinking of what came after. Those LTI tx ones. they all look the same but presumably there are ones to snog/marry/avoid. Some are temptingly cheap. What about one as a family car? It helps I’m single so as long as my kids like it there’s no wife to embarrass!!!

[davehedgehog31]

I have long coveted one and will follow this with interest. 

I understand insurance can be somewhat difficult. 

[83C]

I've often fancied a Mercedes E200 in full German taxi misery spec:

MB Tex, steel wheels and that pale yellow/cream colour. I freely admit that @shedinagarden is responsible for such dark thoughts.

[HMC]

Occasionally those do crop up on e bay. Obv the colour is a clue; But mb took the taxi market very seriously with taxi specific interior options- door cards, centre console stuff that differs from a standard model. 

[UltraWomble]

They seem to vary in price from Fuck All to ££££

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1085853448520562/

[Alusilber]

55 minutes ago, 83C said:

I've often fancied a Mercedes E200 in full German taxi misery spec:

MB Tex, steel wheels and that pale yellow/cream colour. I freely admit that @shedinagarden is responsible for such dark thoughts.

German Taxi Beige = RAL 1015 Hellelfenbein (Light Ivory) apparently.

[N19]

I would assume that the ones that are just on the cusp of being unable to be plated are going to be the cheapest - no use as a taxi anymore. At the moment with the emissions changes plus the move towards the swanky electric taxis, and the whole pandemic thing presumably reducing the demand for them, I'd have thought it'd be about the best time to pick one up! 

(as an aside, non London shiters should probably keep in mind the likelihood of a glut of shite coming up for sale this time next year - must be some gold in the ULEZ) 

[Mr Laurence]

I’ve heard that insurance is a massive pain - most places won’t even give quotes, and those that do aren’t cheap

[DVee8]

Didn't @purplebargeken,run one a few years ago?

[Timewaster]

50 minutes ago, UltraWomble said:

They seem to vary in price from Fucked to ££££

Efa 🙂

[LightBulbFun]

23 minutes ago, Mr Laurence said:

I’ve heard that insurance is a massive pain - most places won’t even give quotes, and those that do aren’t cheap

someone mentioned one one of the other black cab threads on here is to look at places that insure wheelchair access  cars

because  taxies get bought as a cheap wheel chair accessible vehicle (which is pretty smart not something that ever occurred to me!)

not something I have done any research into, but figured id regurgitate it here because im all for more shitters getting black cabs given im quite the fan of them  

(would love to own an FX4 some day)

 

On 07/10/2020 at 01:44, Alan_Green said:

The companies that insure wheelchair access vehicles are cool with taxis as private cars.  The bloke from Fish Insurance said they see it all the time as it's a cheap way to get an WAV.   Yes, there's a company called Fish Insurance.    

 

[Rocket88]

I bought a TX2 about a month ago, and, touch wood, it's been as good as gold. MPGees aren't terrific, about 30 mpg plus [2.4 Duratec auto] but it will do 65/70 without sounding like it's going to explode, and the ride is acceptable. Mine's done about 330k miles, and apart from a bit of timing chain rattle first thing, seems to be sound in wind and limb. 

Got mine for £400, with 3 months MOT. Insurance can be a pain, but if you have a trade policy, they will cover them, as will Flux. Mainstream insurers aren't interested, but if you persevere, there are options.

 

[Ghosty]

5 hours ago, 83C said:

I've often fancied a Mercedes E200 in full German taxi misery spec:

MB Tex, steel wheels and that pale yellow/cream colour. I freely admit that @shedinagarden is responsible for such dark thoughts.

I inexplicably found a RAL cream LHD taxi spec E class in U Pull It a couple of years ago on Polish plates. I was confused to say the least, a decent amount of parts had been taken from it too. 

 

[83C]

https://www.autoscout24.com/offers/mercedes-benz-e-200-cdi-klima-leder-shz-dpf-azv-taxi-diesel-beige-deae053f-bfb7-46b5-b390-d08fa48927ba?cldtidx=1&cldtsrc=listPage
 

Want.

[purplebargeken]

FX4 was in my fleet a few years ago. Adrian Flux quoted me on the insurance I think.

Comfy, but a bit harsh suspension-wise. Not ideal on motorways but they are not it's natural habitat. 

Interior is hardwearing, door locks can be a bit iffy but lots on forums and such like.

The main issue is rust. Front wings especially, bonnet and rear arches IIRC.

Engines will go on for ever, mind had about 350K on the clock and ran well, just needing a small section of fuel pipe replacing.

Nobody cuts you up, piece of piss to manoeuvre around town. 

Would I again? Yep.

[Richard_FM]

I heard about someone who's parents bought a black cab to take guests to & from their B&B.

It ended up spending more time at the local garage then ferrying customers, almost every week something would go wrong.

Even when it was working it wasn't fun to drive, with the suspension better suited to city streets than winding hilly country roads.

Someone told them that most taxis are cascaded from the big cities to smaller towns & so on, & any that are sold off early tended to be clapped out.

[St.Jude]

Once the Lada is at the point where it can roll out of the garage under it's own power - as in, finished - the next plan of mine is to realise a long held dream. A Black Cab Camper Van. I have the plans for it in my head, I think the newer TX1/TX2's etc should be alright for at least a 2 person camper. But there would be some alterations to the rear of the cab.

I do like them. But I must say that the cabbies in Belfast get a raw deal, they end up getting the cast offs from London. Most of them the interior is battered. 

[wuvvum]

Don't rule out a Metrocab.  They're not as interesting to look at but the bodies don't rust, and if you get one with a Ford DI engine and manual 'box it'll go on for ever.

[Rocket88]

The TX2 is far better to drive than the FX4..... suspension is a lot better, and usually far less rusty...

[martc]

1 hour ago, sgtberbatov said:

Once the Lada is at the point where it can roll out of the garage under it's own power - as in, finished - the next plan of mine is to realise a long held dream. A Black Cab Camper Van. I have the plans for it in my head, I think the newer TX1/TX2's etc should be alright for at least a 2 person camper. But there would be some alterations to the rear of the cab.

I do like them. But I must say that the cabbies in Belfast get a raw deal, they end up getting the cast offs from London. Most of them the interior is battered. 

If you lived in Hull during the 80's your long held dream could have been fulfilled by simply putting a 'Taxi' sign on the roof of your Lada. EVERY taxi was a Lada; some snobs in City Hall wanted to ban them as, in theirs eyes, they gave a bad impresion of the city to visitors. It was pointed out that Lada gave the city (and (relatively) nearby Bridlington) much wanted employment and it wasn't just the Lada taxis which created that first impression...

.....AG = Hull reg

Hull docks in the 80's

[St.Jude]

1 hour ago, martc said:

If you lived in Hull during the 80's your long held dream could have been fulfilled by simply putting a 'Taxi' sign on the roof of your Lada. EVERY taxi was a Lada; some snobs in City Hall wanted to ban them as, in theirs eyes, they gave a bad impresion of the city to visitors. It was pointed out that Lada gave the city (and (relatively) nearby Bridlington) much wanted employment and it wasn't just the Lada taxis which created that first impression...

.....AG = Hull reg

Hull docks in the 80's

A little bit of New Zealand in Hull, as in the late 80's the USSR swapped a load of Lada's for milk and meat with New Zealand. Who then put them to use as taxis too.

[Richard_FM]

11 hours ago, wuvvum said:

Don't rule out a Metrocab.  They're not as interesting to look at but the bodies don't rust, and if you get one with a Ford DI engine and manual 'box it'll go on for ever.

Stagecoach in Stockport used to use a Metrocab painted up in their colours for staff transfers, but I've not seen it since they closed the Charles Street depot.

[martc]

22 hours ago, sgtberbatov said:

A little bit of New Zealand in Hull, as in the late 80's the USSR swapped a load of Lada's for milk and meat with New Zealand. Who then put them to use as taxis too.

There's got to be a joke about Ladas/Larders in there somewhere

.

looking sheepish

[St.Jude]

8 minutes ago, martc said:

There's got to be a joke about Ladas/Larders in there somewhere

.

looking sheepish

That pun is so good, it's baaaaaaaad.

[puddlethumper]

I reckon it's been kidnapped and is going, erm, somewhere to be used as a sex slave.

[Peter C]

On 11/2/2020 at 10:17 PM, Alusilber said:

German Taxi Beige = RAL 1015 Hellelfenbein (Light Ivory) apparently.

Check!

[Stanky]

A previous employer had one that they bought for the directors to do a charity banger* rally, then got put to work as the company hack. No-one liked it so i got to maintain* it - mostly involving keeping the battery charged and a few small jobs. I loved it, it had done 1.6 million miles according to the odometer, I had it up to about 75 on the A3 but really over 60mph pushing the accelerator just made it shake and make more noise rather than go meaningfully faster.

I had also heard that they could be a challenge to insure/expensive but also heard that they are also designed to be actually maintained - body panels bolt on for easy swaps, interiors are hard wearing and they are massively spacious for transportation of tat or people or to live out your very own FakeTaxi fantasies with some old boiler from Rhyl (other stereotypes are available).

overall 8/10 would drive someone else's again, especially if not having to pay for fuel/insurance/tax

[lesapandre]

To add to that putting these taxis into context - they are part of the whole 'Cool Britannia' era of design for better or worse.

The TX1 was selected as one of the Millennium Products by the Design Council.

I went to the launch (the canapes were very nice and the booze flowed all at government expense)  - and then all these were subsequently exhibited next to the Millennium Dome (The O2).

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millennium_product

Some of it has some nostalgia value... mixed up with The Spice Girls, the Olympic Park, Dome, Angel of the North etc etc. 

But it was a time when the UK had a bit of swagger in the design world...with the odd teething trouble (overcome). It was a good time to be involved in a lot of design projects in London even if only in a very very minor role.

 Cab was designed by Sir Kenneth Grange - great industrial designer and not at all a 'household name':

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2011/jul/17/kenneth-grange-design-in-pictures

These cabs can't get any cheaper...you must REALLY REALLY WANT ONE...

[St.Jude]

1 hour ago, lesapandre said:

To add to that putting these taxis into context - they are part of the whole 'Cool Britannia' era of design for better or worse.

The TX1 was selected as one of the Millennium Products by the Design Council.

I went to the launch (the canapes were very nice and the booze flowed all at government expense)  - and then all these were subsequently exhibited next to the Millennium Dome (The O2).

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millennium_product

Some of it has some nostalgia value... mixed up with The Spice Girls, the Olympic Park, Dome, Angel of the North etc etc. 

But it was a time when the UK had a bit of swagger in the design world...with the odd teething trouble (overcome). It was a good time to be involved in a lot of design projects in London even if only in a very very minor role.

 Cab was designed by Sir Kenneth Grange - great industrial designer and not at all a 'household name':

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2011/jul/17/kenneth-grange-design-in-pictures

These cabs can't get any cheaper...you must REALLY REALLY WANT ONE...

To think he went from designing the HST through to a mobile shagging wagon for FakeTaxi.

[Peter C]

2 minutes ago, sgtberbatov said:

To think he went from designing the HST through to a mobile shagging wagon for FakeTaxi.

What's Fake Taxi? Got any links?