On-Street Parking your V8V
Discussion
So.. I just picked up my V8V, absolutely love it and massively excited and am deciding where to store it, so wanted to ask other people's advice/experience.
I live in London, down in Greenwich, and currently have borrowed a friend's space in their secured residents parking area but this isn't a long term solution. Basically, my choices as I see them are:
i) Pay £80-100 a month for a space in a secure underground residents car park round the corner.
ii) Park on the road with a residents permit, unprotected.
iii) Get a car cover (say from www.londoncovers.com ) and put it on the road outside.
So, my questions are:
Anyone have any experience of leaving their car out on the road in london and it getting scratched, dented (or not) as a result? Worth paying for the secure parking you think?
In terms of car covers, firstly: good idea or bad idea? Secondly: can you recommend any? I'd be slightly worried about damaging the paintwork when taking the cover on or off - am I just being silly?
Thanks in advance!
PS - cor, I only drove it through central london so far but already it just put a massive massive smile on my face that wouldn't go away!
I live in London, down in Greenwich, and currently have borrowed a friend's space in their secured residents parking area but this isn't a long term solution. Basically, my choices as I see them are:
i) Pay £80-100 a month for a space in a secure underground residents car park round the corner.
ii) Park on the road with a residents permit, unprotected.
iii) Get a car cover (say from www.londoncovers.com ) and put it on the road outside.
So, my questions are:
Anyone have any experience of leaving their car out on the road in london and it getting scratched, dented (or not) as a result? Worth paying for the secure parking you think?
In terms of car covers, firstly: good idea or bad idea? Secondly: can you recommend any? I'd be slightly worried about damaging the paintwork when taking the cover on or off - am I just being silly?
Thanks in advance!
PS - cor, I only drove it through central london so far but already it just put a massive massive smile on my face that wouldn't go away!
Edited by Montezooma on Tuesday 13th April 10:12
There are 1000s of V8Vs on streets in London so it wont attract too much attention.
However, £80-100 a week is a lot cheaper than 1 vandal incident or one careless parking dent.
Forget a cover on a car in the street as it will be a pain to take on and off and will get knicked in about 5 seconds.
However, £80-100 a week is a lot cheaper than 1 vandal incident or one careless parking dent.
Forget a cover on a car in the street as it will be a pain to take on and off and will get knicked in about 5 seconds.
jdw1234 said:
Forget a cover on a car in the street as it will be a pain to take on and off and will get knicked in about 5 seconds.
In my experience a cover make the car invisible to idiots, who continually drive into it when it's on. I've had lots of damage done to the car when covered (to the point where the cover is now too torn to use).Pay for secure parking. I rent an underground space near my flat (City of London) and it was the best decision I made.
Before my V8V I had a Nissan 350Z and it was keyed - all the way down one side, resulting in three panel repsrays - once and hit while parked in a residents parking bay TWICE (once by a white van and once by a garbage truck).
Put it this way, you might sleep at night for a while, but if something happens to it, you won't sleep properly afterwards for fear it will happen again!
On the insurance front, don't assume secure parking will lower your premium. Two firms I spoke to said that most of the claims they get in London are for people bumping into other cars / concrete posts in underground car parks, so it may not have much impact on what you pay.
PS: despite having witnesses to the two occasions where my empty, parked 350Z was hit, and therefore having registration numbers for the a*sh*les who did it, the insurance company didnt get the money back and my NCB went out of the window. So pay the £100/mnth for secure parking. It's worth it.
Well done on the car by the way. I love my N400, a year into ownership.
Before my V8V I had a Nissan 350Z and it was keyed - all the way down one side, resulting in three panel repsrays - once and hit while parked in a residents parking bay TWICE (once by a white van and once by a garbage truck).
Put it this way, you might sleep at night for a while, but if something happens to it, you won't sleep properly afterwards for fear it will happen again!
On the insurance front, don't assume secure parking will lower your premium. Two firms I spoke to said that most of the claims they get in London are for people bumping into other cars / concrete posts in underground car parks, so it may not have much impact on what you pay.
PS: despite having witnesses to the two occasions where my empty, parked 350Z was hit, and therefore having registration numbers for the a*sh*les who did it, the insurance company didnt get the money back and my NCB went out of the window. So pay the £100/mnth for secure parking. It's worth it.
Well done on the car by the way. I love my N400, a year into ownership.
Edited by Stratman1 on Tuesday 13th April 13:01
The amount of scuffed and scratched supercars you see parked in London would make me want to pay for the secure parking. Insurance savings may offset the cost a little.
I saw a brand new (10 plate) Bentley Brooklands parked in small street near Harrods two weekends ago. It already had a cracked numberplate and a small scratch on the side.
I saw a brand new (10 plate) Bentley Brooklands parked in small street near Harrods two weekends ago. It already had a cracked numberplate and a small scratch on the side.
Hoping that this doesn't jinx my run of good luck.... but i leave my car parked on the street in west london and it has been fine so far (9mths of ownership). My biggest concern was when i left it parked opposite my house and during the day whilst i was at work builders built 4 floors of scaffolding on the house overlooking it (about 6ft laterally from the car).. i had nightmares for months afterwards about one of those scaffolding joints falling on to it!
But seriously, i was concerned when i first left it on the street, and i do sometimes jump if i hear the alarm (any car alarm??) going off.. I guess that nervousness is the cost of leaving it on the street, but i have started to relax a bit.
On the insurance, my company actually said it would be more expensive to have it parked in a communal garage overnight than out on the street which seemed a bit bizarre.. when i questioned it they said that there was more scope for the car to be tampered with if it was parked in a garage...
But seriously, i was concerned when i first left it on the street, and i do sometimes jump if i hear the alarm (any car alarm??) going off.. I guess that nervousness is the cost of leaving it on the street, but i have started to relax a bit.
On the insurance, my company actually said it would be more expensive to have it parked in a communal garage overnight than out on the street which seemed a bit bizarre.. when i questioned it they said that there was more scope for the car to be tampered with if it was parked in a garage...
I live on a quiet street in Clapham and had your same dilemma. Secure spaces were going for around £100 a month looking online so I went to a nearby development and posted a note in every postbox, there seemed to be loads of empty spaces there. One chap offered me a space for free (although it was a little narrow) and I chose the best space (underground and wide) out of about 8 or 9 offers, paying £40 a month. My residents permit would be £240 a year anyway, so that's only £20 more a month extra to park securely, no dings, no scratches (apart from a cat that seems to clamber on it). I'd keep the space on whatever car I have.... so try posting some notes offering £40 a month for a space. Someone with an unused space will happily take that.
Interesting. I've had my V8 on the road in SW London (like Alphonso) for 2 years. Yes, I've had a couple of idiots (there are a lot of idiots with oversized cars for their abiities round here) shave a bit off paint off the bumpers but nothing drastic so far (touchwood). I think that the days when pond life would key a lux car (80s and 90s in particular, I certainly wouldn't have done it) seem to have thankfully gone.
if you can find a space for £100 or less a month, I'd go for it...if not take the risk.
I do like alphonso's idea of asking people in developments, makes sense. everyone near me lives in a bloody victorian terrace alas.
if you can find a space for £100 or less a month, I'd go for it...if not take the risk.
I do like alphonso's idea of asking people in developments, makes sense. everyone near me lives in a bloody victorian terrace alas.
Montezooma,
A friend who's wife works with you (I believe) pointed me at this thread - I think I live on the same v. narrow street (currently dug up?) as you and am picking up a Porsche Cayman S this week. I will be parking on street, and don't really anticipate any issues but I must confess I'm not overly protective of my cars - taking the view that whatever you do some muppet will inevitably push a trolley / open their door into you in a car park etc. If I'm right about where you're living, the houses are v. close to the street and people really do look out for each other. Also, since it's so narrow most - though not all - residents are parking pros!
Of course, there's admittedly always a risk of something happening in the absolute middle of the night, and given how narrow the road is it might be wise to fold your wing mirrors in but generally it's been a very quiet and safe road in the three years I've lived there.
Plus, if you do decide to park on the road there'll soon be at least one more sports car to split the vandalism odds...
Overgeared
EDIT: Also, no evidence for this but given the choice I suspect the average yob with destructive tendancies would probably aim for my car...
A friend who's wife works with you (I believe) pointed me at this thread - I think I live on the same v. narrow street (currently dug up?) as you and am picking up a Porsche Cayman S this week. I will be parking on street, and don't really anticipate any issues but I must confess I'm not overly protective of my cars - taking the view that whatever you do some muppet will inevitably push a trolley / open their door into you in a car park etc. If I'm right about where you're living, the houses are v. close to the street and people really do look out for each other. Also, since it's so narrow most - though not all - residents are parking pros!
Of course, there's admittedly always a risk of something happening in the absolute middle of the night, and given how narrow the road is it might be wise to fold your wing mirrors in but generally it's been a very quiet and safe road in the three years I've lived there.
Plus, if you do decide to park on the road there'll soon be at least one more sports car to split the vandalism odds...
Overgeared
EDIT: Also, no evidence for this but given the choice I suspect the average yob with destructive tendancies would probably aim for my car...
Edited by Overgeared on Monday 19th April 10:33
Hi monty,
My v8 is parked in secure underground parking under our block of flats in Greenwich. There are a few empty spaces that might be available for rent. In fact, there is a space next to mine! My V8 has been *tough wood* safe there for a last 3 years. AMOC insurer are also happy with the arrangment.
PM me and I'll discuss further.
My v8 is parked in secure underground parking under our block of flats in Greenwich. There are a few empty spaces that might be available for rent. In fact, there is a space next to mine! My V8 has been *tough wood* safe there for a last 3 years. AMOC insurer are also happy with the arrangment.
PM me and I'll discuss further.
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