Who uses their SZ in the winter/daily?
Discussion
Curious; how many here use their SZ Rollers and/or Bentleys year-round? I have been giving it consideration, seeing as how these aren't going up in value anytime soon so I may as well enjoy the bloody thing 365 days a year. Then again, I have a rusty Series III XJ6 as a winter beater, which has served me fine through the several years I've had it. Oh, I do also have a company issued car, a new Acura TL, however I am thinking of changing jobs, so that car may be out of the equation soon.
For those who expose their cars to salt, what measures have you taken to try to keep the dreaded tinworm at bay? From what I read on these pages, it seems that rear arches are typically prone to rot. Here in the midwest US of A, we do see some pretty good snowfalls each winter, and one other consideration is the fact that I live at the top of a large hill, which the XJ6 actually makes it up fairly easily even with several inches of snow on the ground, but I'm not sure how the Bent will handle it. I would fit snow tires to it given the massive amounts of torque it produces...
Since I've always stored every Bentley I've owned in the winter, I've never experienced using one in truly 'cold' weather, as in 10 degrees farenheit or thereabouts. Do these cars get 'creaky' and 'cranky' when it's that cold out or can they handle those temps ok? It's always seemed to me that they were cut for spending winters in the French Riviera, Miami or Beverly Hills.
At the end of the day, I probably won't drive the car in the winter, since I have others to use and would rather keep the Turbo R free of rust, however if I get the wild hair, I may as well go into it with both eyes open
For those who expose their cars to salt, what measures have you taken to try to keep the dreaded tinworm at bay? From what I read on these pages, it seems that rear arches are typically prone to rot. Here in the midwest US of A, we do see some pretty good snowfalls each winter, and one other consideration is the fact that I live at the top of a large hill, which the XJ6 actually makes it up fairly easily even with several inches of snow on the ground, but I'm not sure how the Bent will handle it. I would fit snow tires to it given the massive amounts of torque it produces...
Since I've always stored every Bentley I've owned in the winter, I've never experienced using one in truly 'cold' weather, as in 10 degrees farenheit or thereabouts. Do these cars get 'creaky' and 'cranky' when it's that cold out or can they handle those temps ok? It's always seemed to me that they were cut for spending winters in the French Riviera, Miami or Beverly Hills.
At the end of the day, I probably won't drive the car in the winter, since I have others to use and would rather keep the Turbo R free of rust, however if I get the wild hair, I may as well go into it with both eyes open
Edited by bergxu on Tuesday 27th September 20:42
Edited by bergxu on Tuesday 27th September 20:44
Mine is used weekly, if not daily in winter. I get under the car at the end of each summer and jet wash the underside, then apply Dynax S50 and UB to the inner wings, sills and suspension components and generally underneath the car. I did this just a couple of weeks ago, so it's ready for winter. I don't take it out in the snow though, as it's beyond useless. I tried it once and was lucky to get around the block and back home.
The worst thing about winter use in the UK is the salt though, nasty stuff for an SZ. If there are any dodgy areas with a touch of rot or exposed rust, you can actually see it getting worse and growing on an almost daily basis.
I should buy shares in Dynax, the amount of it that goes on my car each year.
The worst thing about winter use in the UK is the salt though, nasty stuff for an SZ. If there are any dodgy areas with a touch of rot or exposed rust, you can actually see it getting worse and growing on an almost daily basis.
I should buy shares in Dynax, the amount of it that goes on my car each year.
I would love to have an SZ car as a daily driver - but found 3 challenges.
The first was insurance. I live in South London and the car would live on the street. I've never made an insurance claim in 8+ years of driving and have experience of driving big/powerful cars. Despite this, no insurance company would consider it, at any price, even for TPFT. (The response from one of them was "you're bonkers" which made a pleasant change from "computer says no"
). I found this a bit strange since the market value of these cars is relatively low, they are not especially desirable to thieves, they don't catch fire any more than other cars, and they don't cause any more third party damage. Any recommendations here would be appreciated.
Second was running costs. I originally budgeted 3k per year for maintenance, but was told to double this for an SZ that is used daily and kept on the street. This puts it out of reach for me. (BG any thoughts on this?)
Third was size. It is difficult to drive a car of this size in London. I used to run a LWB Jaguar XJ and that was just about manageable, but the Silver Spirit type cars are wider and about 4 inches longer. The squared-off shape is helpful in that you can see the corners of the car, but I dread to think of trying to shoehorn such a thing into a tiny multistorey parking space.
I still hope to do it one day. I would be interested in more real-life stories of SZ cars used daily.
The first was insurance. I live in South London and the car would live on the street. I've never made an insurance claim in 8+ years of driving and have experience of driving big/powerful cars. Despite this, no insurance company would consider it, at any price, even for TPFT. (The response from one of them was "you're bonkers" which made a pleasant change from "computer says no"
). I found this a bit strange since the market value of these cars is relatively low, they are not especially desirable to thieves, they don't catch fire any more than other cars, and they don't cause any more third party damage. Any recommendations here would be appreciated.Second was running costs. I originally budgeted 3k per year for maintenance, but was told to double this for an SZ that is used daily and kept on the street. This puts it out of reach for me. (BG any thoughts on this?)
Third was size. It is difficult to drive a car of this size in London. I used to run a LWB Jaguar XJ and that was just about manageable, but the Silver Spirit type cars are wider and about 4 inches longer. The squared-off shape is helpful in that you can see the corners of the car, but I dread to think of trying to shoehorn such a thing into a tiny multistorey parking space.
I still hope to do it one day. I would be interested in more real-life stories of SZ cars used daily.
Amit
depends upon your postcode. I see loads of them here in W1 where I work and they're all parked in the street. They're also the same dimensions in West London as South, so I guess you'd get used to the size Can't comment on running costs, but Atomicpunk tells me that his always starts first-time and has never had anything other than consumables at the services from Nigel Sandell. Nigel has some articles on his website about people using them daily.
Andy
depends upon your postcode. I see loads of them here in W1 where I work and they're all parked in the street. They're also the same dimensions in West London as South, so I guess you'd get used to the size
Can't comment on running costs, but Atomicpunk tells me that his always starts first-time and has never had anything other than consumables at the services from Nigel Sandell. Nigel has some articles on his website about people using them daily. Andy
AmitG said:
I originally budgeted 3k per year for maintenance, but was told to double this for an SZ that is used daily and kept on the street.
Sounds a sensible budget to me. The general consensus is that the cars that are used frequently, and as daily drivers are less trouble, so I see no need to double the service/maintenance budget. A well used car just drinks more fuel and might need brake pads a bit more often, but that's all.As for insurance, the cars are very low risk. Vandalism is probably the biggest risk, finding it keyed one morning. But even then, a scruffy car with a bit of patina might escape such an attack.
ADP68 said:
Amit
depends upon your postcode. I see loads of them here in W1 where I work and they're all parked in the street. They're also the same dimensions in West London as South, so I guess you'd get used to the size Can't comment on running costs, but Atomicpunk tells me that his always starts first-time and has never had anything other than consumables at the services from Nigel Sandell. Nigel has some articles on his website about people using them daily.
Andy
As Andy says, I've used my Spirit as a daily driver for the past couple of years. I spent a few quid on it when I first bought it, both mechanical and cosmetic, but that was factored into the purchase price. Since then, expenditure has been routine servicing plus the odd thing here and there that you would expect from a regularly used car. £2k a year is more than enough to keep on top of things.depends upon your postcode. I see loads of them here in W1 where I work and they're all parked in the street. They're also the same dimensions in West London as South, so I guess you'd get used to the size
Can't comment on running costs, but Atomicpunk tells me that his always starts first-time and has never had anything other than consumables at the services from Nigel Sandell. Nigel has some articles on his website about people using them daily. Andy
By the way, it's ace in the snow and leaves the proles in its wake.
Here it is, along with my Shadow (ex-Barings Bank!).
Balmoral Green said:
AmitG said:
I originally budgeted 3k per year for maintenance, but was told to double this for an SZ that is used daily and kept on the street.
Sounds a sensible budget to me. The general consensus is that the cars that are used frequently, and as daily drivers are less trouble, so I see no need to double the service/maintenance budget. A well used car just drinks more fuel and might need brake pads a bit more often, but that's all.As for insurance, the cars are very low risk. Vandalism is probably the biggest risk, finding it keyed one morning. But even then, a scruffy car with a bit of patina might escape such an attack.
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