Diary of an Ordinary Van

[Vee4]

Points mean prizes ...

Re. your old '69, why does it say CAR on one door and VAN on the other?

Thanks to everyone for the enquiries and apologies for taking a while to satisfy your curiosity - I'm still struggling to return to my 'normal' routine after doing the accounts. I will be out on the road in the Ordinary Van this afternoon ...

I'm thinking of awarding points for the best suggestion. The prize (virtual, of course) will be taken from Humphrey Lyttelton's selection offered in the long-running BBC Radio series I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue. This week's prize is just the thing for the stylish letter writer who regularly uses the M25 - it's a personalised stationery vehicle.

I'll give the full details when the van is featured in the 'Genesis' series. It will be probably be number six, depending on whether or not I include the CALV.

Clue: stuartrobbie is thinking along the right lines.

[trigger]

I know, it's a Caravan, Car & Van

[Altransit]

Is it a note reminding the driver as to which end the caravan attaches

[Vee4]

I know, it's a Caravan, Car & Van

Is it a note reminding the driver as to which end the caravan attaches

Good suggestions, and your prize(s) will be a cup of Ace Corner coffee at the next meet. The answer is more prosaic and I'll reveal it now, so that Forum members can sleep easily until the 'Genesis ...' series is published.



The old '69 was an ex-rental van and it was sign-written (proper hand-painting) with the company's name and

CAR - MINIBUS - VAN

in letters so large that they ran the full length of the van. When I painted the sides with Halford's aerosols, I just had to leave the doors ...

[ake]

I know, it's a Caravan, Car & Van

Is it a note reminding the driver as to which end the caravan attaches

Good suggestions, and your prize(s) will be a cup of Ace Corner coffee at the next meet. The answer is more prosaic and I'll reveal it now, so that Forum members can sleep easily until the 'Genesis ...' series is published.



The old '69 was an ex-rental van and it was sign-written (proper hand-painting) with the company's name and

CAR - MINIBUS - VAN

in letters so large that they ran the full length of the van. When I painted the sides with Halford's aerosols, I just had to leave the doors ...

Good answer

[Vee4]

Here are the results of the Ordinary Van's Economy Run. I had been hoping for better, possibly above 40 MPG, but there's no point in burying bad news (the excuses will come later).

Miles covered: 1731
Fuel purchased (full tank to full tank) in UK gallons*: 44.69
Overall MPG: 17.31/44.69 = 38.73



The Run was not off to a good start and I wasn't able to use the tactics of the manufacturer's teams who took part in the official Economy Run (for which see some of the references given here and previously). All I can say is that, for the best 'gas mileage', I wouldn't travel with 300kg of equipment and a passenger, there and back; neither would I tak' the scenic route. But if I didn't, there would have been no point in going!

On return to London, and attempting to fill up, the filling station's pump was acting up and by the time I found the best way to hold it so the check valve didn't keep operating, it timed out anyway. Enquiring at the cash desk, I was told, "Ah yes, none of the taxi drivers will use that pump." This further conspired against a good MPG result.

Here are some links to interesting articles about (and pictures from) some of the Economy Runs in the USA in the 50's and 60's:

http://www.automotivetraveler.com/index ... Itemid=362

http://automobileandamericanlife.blogsp ... art-i.html

* USA readers please remember that a UK gallon is larger than a US gallon. Both are 8 pints but the UK pint has 20 fluid ounces, whereas the US pint has 16 fluid ounces, which makes a kind of sense if you think of 16 ounces (weight) to the pound.

[Altransit]

38.73 is a good result for mixed driving I think

The best I can get from mine is 36, and thats on a steady motorway run at 60-70mph. But then it does weigh nearly 2000kg with just a driver in it

[ake]

I average 25mpg in my van

[Altransit]

I average 25mpg in my van

Yes well, you boy racers with your remaps ..........

[ake]

Boy

[Vee4]

I average 25mpg in my van

You could book a Ford Econo Check! I received an e-mail from my dealer offering this for the Ordinary Van, at the standard price (no favouritism for the OV).



The cynic might say:

(1) It's a way for Ford to acquire a huge amount of performance data at their customer's expense:

viewtopic.php?p=637293#p637293

(2) Van drivers are already the safest and most economical drivers:

http://www.staveleyhead.co.uk/newsartic ... icleId=813

I'm thinking of having a respray - and the Van ...

http://www.admiral.com/surveys/surveyOv ... rRoadUsers

(3) There is a 'disconnect' between what drivers say about fuel economy and what they actually do:

http://www.ecolane.co.uk/projectspublications.php

[ake]

I have always believed that people embellish there MPG figures And I also know that if i slowed down a little I could acheive 30mpg without much difficulty, maybe one day I will

[Vee4]

It's a short 1948 cartoon from Famous Studios which was also the home of the Popeye series. About birds flying south for the winter, it features a cameo appearance by Buzzy the Crow and a sing-along (karaoke style) version of Alabamy Bound. You can watch it on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EskyYj9cgRk), so turn down the lights, imagine that you are in a movie theater and tuck into the popcorn.

Anyway, with lower outside temperatures, it is time to check the tyre pressures.

From June 2010:

The Ordinary Van Tyres: Pirelli Citynet Plus 195/70 R15C 104/102R 8PR (factory fitted)

Handbook recommended pressures:
Normal load: 52 (3.6) front, 61 (4.2) rear
Full load: 54 (3.7) front, 61 (4.2) rear

I have been running 55 (3.8 ) front and 55 (3.8 ) rear, with good results. I rarely run with a full load.

This is the first FWD van in my ownership, so I was interested to see how the wear would even out between front and rear. On the Mk5, it was quite even, and any changes or rotations were as a result of punctures.

Tread depth at 13,000 miles:

Front: 8.5 mm
Rear: 9.0 mm
Spare: 9.5 mm (unused)

October update at 21,000 miles:

Front: 7.5 mm
Rear: 8.5 mm
Spare: 9.5 mm (still unused)

Thus the wear rate on the front is approximately 1 mm per 10,000 miles, and approximately 0.5 mm on the rear.

I will need to rotate the tyres (yes, I know they do rotate on their own) soon if I'm going to keep the full set for the longest possible time. To keep things even, it would need to be done quite regularly - the handbook recommends 9,000 to 12,000 miles, front to rear. But then what to do about the spare ...

This is a topic I won't tire of revisiting.

[redcube]

I just read the hole lot a good read inded

At lease your tyres aren't wearing down like mine are

[madmark_50484]

I hope you dont get worn out keep mentioning tyres its very easy to get tire'd