Tarraco

[Gmac983]

On 28/08/2019 at 19:15, linni said:

 

Actually it`s not so bad.

Just replaced mine to Pirelli Scorpions. 379 euros + VAT for a set. I am prety sure you can get more for your kids 😂

 

On 05/02/2019 at 13:01, Markymate said:

Tarraco's boot space is 700lt with rear seats down, and 1775lts with all seats down.  Kodiaq's is 720lts and 2005lts respectively.  Kodiaq boot space with all seats up is 270lts, unfortunately couldn't find any figures for the Tarracco

 

Also 3rd row seating space is better in the kodiaq than it is in the tarraco.

[OldBoyScout]

53 minutes ago, Roottootemoot said:

I have been down to Norwich a few times. RPI Engineering supplied my Land Rover 110, an Orange  V8 Auto with LPG conversion.

I often go through Horsford, used to have grandparents at Hevingham. Took dogs for walk in woods just beyond Horsford last Saturday.

 

[Gmac983]

One tip I might offer to anyone in the position to do so... Any PCP that offers cash back for taking the deal, do so but then pay off the full financed amount within the cooling off period and pay none of the interest but keep the cash back. I obtained a little over £4000 discount on my Kodiaq by this means when combined with dealer sicount as well. The discount was about 50/50 split. 

[Ootohere]

@OldBoyScout

Chris that owns RPI is great and if you are into Motorbikes you should go see his collection.

Loved it down there and GY, so many Scots or with connections to the NE Scotland fisher families.

[OldBoyScout]

2 minutes ago, Roottootemoot said:

Chris that owns RPI is great and if you are into Motorbikes you should go see his collection.

Loved it down there and GY, so many Scots or with connections to the NE Scotland fisher families.

I'm not into motorbikes, though my brother has a small collection of them. Just wondering how long it is since you were in Horsford, as there have been some big changes to the roads recently. The old Holt road has been closed off between Norwich and Horsford to make way for the new Northern Distributor road, and getting to Horsford now is a more roundabout route involving a convoluted series of roundabouts. A new roundabout has also been installed at the other end of Horsford village where there is a new housing estate.

 

[Gmac983]

At the end of the day all of these hybrids whether they are stand alone hybrids (mainly toyota) plug-ins or range extenders they are expensive compromises. As you are paying for the complexity and additional weight of 2 drivetrains and the costly batteries, not to mention the poor efficiency once the batteries are depleted and the engine has to do all the work on its own. Until full ev becomes main stream enough to be affordable and the charging infrastructure catches up with the politicians I think I will be staying with the good old piston banger for my main car for sometime yet. (we have I think 6 maybe 8 publicly available points up here in caithness, for the whole county) an ev may be viable as a second car where I could plan my journeys around charging at home otherwise it's a hopeless idea. 

[OldBoyScout]

I think you are mostly right about the hybrids being expensive compromises, but they seem to be a good solution for taxis where there is a need for economical urban driving, range without down time and a fuel cleaner than diesel. In theory two engines will be more costly than one, but the electric motor will be relatively cheap and simple and a small petrol engine should be less costly than a larger one. Toyota who have a great reputation for reliability have mastered this technology to the point where they have the confidence to launch the new Corolla as almost hybrid only, besides offering hybrid options in their other models. 

 

[MrTrilby]

3 hours ago, Gmac983 said:

At the end of the day all of these hybrids whether they are stand alone hybrids (mainly toyota) plug-ins or range extenders they are expensive compromises. As you are paying for the complexity and additional weight of 2 drivetrains and the costly batteries, not to mention the poor efficiency once the batteries are depleted and the engine has to do all the work on its own 

 

Whilst that might be true of manufacturers late to the hybrid party such as VW, it’s very much not true of Toyota’s hybrid drivetrain. Take a look at it - it’s actually mechanically much simpler than a conventional drivetrain, which is partly why it has proven so much more reliable. No clutch, torque converter or gearbox (as such) to go wrong. The efficiency of them is anything but poor. 

 

Whilst VW’s solution is more complex, most reports on the Passat seem to suggest the 1.4TSi engine gets decent economy on long trips when the battery depletes. How well that translates to the Tarraco/Kodiaq remains to be seen. 

[OldBoyScout]

1 hour ago, MrTrilby said:

Whilst that might be true of manufacturers late to the hybrid party such as VW, it’s very much not true of Toyota’s hybrid drivetrain. Take a look at it - it’s actually mechanically much simpler than a conventional drivetrain, which is partly why it has proven so much more reliable. No clutch, torque converter or gearbox (as such) to go wrong. The efficiency of them is anything but poor. 

That's all well and good, but from reviews that I've read I find the idea of driving a car with CVT transmission a bit off-putting, not that I have ever driven one.

 

[Gmac983]

1 hour ago, MrTrilby said:

 

Whilst that might be true of manufacturers late to the hybrid party such as VW, it’s very much not true of Toyota’s hybrid drivetrain. Take a look at it - it’s actually mechanically much simpler than a conventional drivetrain, which is partly why it has proven so much more reliable. No clutch, torque converter or gearbox (as such) to go wrong. The efficiency of them is anything but poor. 

 

Whilst VW’s solution is more complex, most reports on the Passat seem to suggest the 1.4TSi engine gets decent economy on long trips when the battery depletes. How well that translates to the Tarraco/Kodiaq remains to be seen. 

 

Once the batteries have depleted the economy and performance drop off noticeably as you no longer have that "boost" from the motor(s) to help you along (or any electric only modes) and negating any advantage the hybrid might have had on fully charged batteries with the fuel economy falling to on par or in some instance less than an equivalent conventionally powered vehicles. This every bit as much applies to the Toyota range of hybrids as most of their cars are not plug-ins and rely on sufficient regenerations during each journey to charge the batteries. Also toyota uses CVTs in their hybrids so even during moderate applications of the throttle the poor engine is screaming its heart out at close to full revs so not very efficient at all in my view. For people who travel alone with no weight in the car and are prepared to drive like a saint will do well with a hybrid. However as soon as you add weight of any sort to the vehicle or attempt to make even vaguely moderate progress efficiency goes out the window. Also most hybrids loose boot space or a 7 seat option due to the location of the battery packs and have reduced towing capacity (or none at all in some cases) and like for like they're significantly more expensive. Like I said I will be waiting for the charging network to catch up with the politicians dreams before I convert.