What do you have against minivans?
-----Original Message-----
From: Jim Laurel [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Monday, May 02, 2005 1:22 PM
To: soaring@airage.com
Subject: [RCSE] Ultimate soaring car?
So, the discussion about the suitability of Corvettes for hauling
sailplanes got me to thinking more about my next choice of vehicle. It
should have the following attributes:
1) Space to haul 2 unlimited planes and a 2 meter plane + winch,
toolbox, 1 Optima battery, turnaround, radio cases + at least 1,
preferably 2 passengers
2) Fast and comfortable for those long hauls to away contests
3) Reasonable fuel economy (20-21mpg highway minimum)
4) All wheel drive, since here in Washington the passes are often a
mess, roads are often wet, and I like to ski after work in the winter.
5) Decent driving dynamics
6) Enough clearance to travel forest service roads to slope sites
7) NOT a minivan
Here's my short list:
--Volvo XC70
--Audi A6 Avant
--Audi S4 Avant (not sure if long enough)
--Dodge (Mercedes) short wheelbase Sprinter (no AWD yet, but likely for
2007 model year)
--Subaru whatchamacallit wagon
I have an old Land Rover 110 that has been a project vehicle for 2
years and is now nearing completion. Size-wise, it's about perfect,
but it is slow, lumbering, and eats high octane petrol like there's no
tomorrow (curse the DOT and EPA for not getting us decent diesel fuel
sooner; I'd love to have a nice 300 Tdi rather than the V8). Plus, the
HVAC system is useless - pretty much windows up or down. In the plus
column, however, it will get you to any slope site you like and then
some. It's also got a rooftop tent, which might be nice for those
2-day contests.
Let's hear some suggestions!
--Jim Laurel
RCSE-List facilities provided by Model Airplane News. Send "subscribe" and "unsubscribe" requests to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Please note that subscribe and unsubscribe messages must be sent in text only format with MIME turned off. Email sent from web based email such as Hotmail and AOL are generally NOT in text format
