Green lane capable camper

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Nomad64

Full Member
Nov 21, 2015
1,072
593
UK
My point is that in the mountains around the fiat plant the most popular car was the fiat panda 4x4. It got a reputation for just getting through whatever conditions it encountered. I had also heard that they were good cars for country use. Plus panda cars are known for longevity too. Dear John column in the DT when I was a kid asked for readers with high mileage cars to write in with mileage and model. In the top 5 fiat panda counted 2 or 3 iirc.

I won't disagree with you about the capability of 4x4 FIAT Pandas on the rough stuff - in 2013 a mildly modified one drove from Cape Town to London in just under 11 days (FWIW it took me nearly three and a half years!);

http://www.evo.co.uk/fiat/panda/13010/fiat-panda-beats-the-cape-town-to-london-record

and can embarrass a Defender in the mud;


but I would have to take issue with them being "known for their longevity" - a GF had one back in the early 1990s and I swear that you could see the rust eating the bodywork in realtime! Maybe things have changed but FIAT auto-electrics still have a shaky reputation.

Not sure that this is of much help to the OP though!
 

Paul_B

Bushcrafter through and through
Jul 14, 2008
6,154
1,546
Cumbria
Probably right about that but that survey I remember reading in the Telegraph (probably Saturday in one of the sections) the column by honest John giving the results of his request for readers to write in with the mileage, make and model of their car if they thought it was impressive. He listed top ten and fiat panda featured strongly in that list. Probably outliers then. It would have been about 1990 I think. Certainly back in the day of writing in with paper letter.
 

Wayne

Mod
Mod
Dec 7, 2003
3,750
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www.forestknights.co.uk
I won't disagree with you about the capability of 4x4 FIAT Pandas on the rough stuff - in 2013 a mildly modified one drove from Cape Town to London in just under 11 days (FWIW it took me nearly three and a half years!);

http://www.evo.co.uk/fiat/panda/13010/fiat-panda-beats-the-cape-town-to-london-record

and can embarrass a Defender in the mud;


but I would have to take issue with them being "known for their longevity" - a GF had one back in the early 1990s and I swear that you could see the rust eating the bodywork in realtime! Maybe things have changed but FIAT auto-electrics still have a shaky reputation.

Not sure that this is of much help to the OP though!

All the fiats I have known have gone to the scrap yard because of electrical failure. The do rust but not any worse than a ford KA.

The ultimate small car for off road is the Citroen 2CV. Proper peasants car.
 
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Nice65

Brilliant!
Apr 16, 2009
6,440
2,862
W.Sussex
All the fiats I have known have gone to the scrap yard because of electrical failure. The do rust but not any worse than a ford KA.

The ultimate small car for off road is the Citroen 2CV. Proper peasants car.

Yup. The Sahara was the 4x4 version, but I’ve seen the 2wd versions with the pizza cutter tyres pull through all sorts of stuff.


Even used in chop shop mode by the Pompiers on forest tracks with no turn arounds.

80160197-_D896-4674-_B152-6_AE656233_D5_C.jpg
 
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tracker1972

Forager
Jun 21, 2008
247
58
51
Matlock
We have an old Westfalia campervan. Look up Sven Hedin by them. Has a shower with a portaloo in it. High top but not coach-built so no extra low/long bodywork. Rear wheel drive but has only ever needed rescuing once from a boggy field and that was just with a couple of mats that we borrowed and has always performed better than front wheel drive vans as at least the weight is on the driven wheels.
I love ours even in its currently slightly ratty state. Only problem you may have is that the only 3 point belts are in the front. We are rapidly running out of options for securing the kids as the 4 belts in the back are lap belts. Perfectly legal, just would rather have the kids in 3 point seats so by the end of the summer we are going to be moving Sven on. Otherwise though, could be a great choice (then of course, you night decide to move the running gear from a 4x4 Lt into it and you have a proper dream vehicle!)

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Janne

Sent off - Not allowed to play
Feb 10, 2016
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Grand Cayman, Norway, Sweden
You can install 3 point belts yourself, it is easy! The middle seating place can be tricky to install a 3 point belt on, depends on the contruction of the back support.

It is also (fairly) easy to install 3 harnesses in the back, this option can be easier if the rear seat is a bench.
 

tracker1972

Forager
Jun 21, 2008
247
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Matlock
You can install 3 point belts yourself, it is easy! The middle seating place can be tricky to install a 3 point belt on, depends on the contruction of the back support.

It is also (fairly) easy to install 3 harnesses in the back, this option can be easier if the rear seat is a bench.
With no access to the floor without removing all the plumbing and electrical kit (that has been "adapted" by a variety of owners over the last 35 years) and no access to the vehicle skin without stripping 50% of the interior including the stuff that supports the shower/bathroom cubicle that had remained intact for the last 35 years without leaking or being damaged? I could try and fit them to the other bench seat, then I'd just have to remove the custom LPG installation that the previous owners fitted in order to access the floor there...
I can do up bolts and drill holes and have removed sections of the interior for things like replacing the boiler but this would need so much stripping that I'm not ready to risk trashing it myself.

That said, one could work for the OP...

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Janne

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Feb 10, 2016
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Grand Cayman, Norway, Sweden
Your van looks nice!

Lap belts? It is amazing they are still legal. I guess they are better than no belt.

What is the next vehicle you want to buy?
 
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didicoy

Full Member
Mar 7, 2013
541
12
fens
I have a Pinzgauer all terain (go anywhere) motorhome auto, turbo diesel 6 x 6 on the fly. It is slightly longer wheelbase than the Landrover 110 and approximately 12 feet high. Inc rooftop luggage rail
It has a full wetroom, manual/12volt sea toilet, washbasin, shower. LPG hot water and central heating (which can also heat the radiators from the engine)
4 x fresh water tanks, 1 x grey water tank, 1 x black tank. Raise and lower double bed, (stowed in ceiling above cab and rear facing bench seat) single 7’ long bed)
Seating (with seatbelts) for 6
Roof-top observation deck. Onboard generator. Kitchen area, sink, 4 ring hob, I have removed 3 way fridge and LPG oven.
Wind out awning N/S and full awning room for O/S
It’s a absolute pleasure to drive on or off road.
I fitted simex jungle trekker 2 tyres on a spare set of tubed rims and they are very noisy on tarmac, but with the windows closed, sound less like a Lancaster bomber on the tarmac runway. However I bought a set of six wheelspacers that allow me to fit Landrover discovery wheels and tyres for lighter road/ off road use.
 
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Janne

Sent off - Not allowed to play
Feb 10, 2016
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Grand Cayman, Norway, Sweden
Hands on heart, how many of us have driven our off road capable vehicles off road, not counting gravel roads and camping ground lawns and similar?

In Scandinavia it is illegal to drive offroad except on designated courses.
In UK you are not even allowed to walk on somebody else's land.....
Green lanes are short stretches, and I guess you can not overnight there?

My Mercedes 'G655 Kurt Knispel' is coming together. The wheels arrived yesterday, so now the fun bit starts!

Engine/gearbox/transferbox fitting and mounting first.
 
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Buckshot

Mod
Mod
Jan 19, 2004
6,466
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Oxford
Hands on heart, how many of us have driven our off road capable vehicles off road, not counting gravel roads and camping ground lawns and similar?

In Scandinavia it is illegal to drive offroad except on designated courses.


Yes actually I do and have driven off road a lot
Maybe don't judge by others by your own standards?
 

Janne

Sent off - Not allowed to play
Feb 10, 2016
12,330
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Grand Cayman, Norway, Sweden
You are lucky to be able to do that. Most people can only do a bit of greenlaning, which is not off road. Which the OP asked about.
Many vehicles can do that.

I could only off road drive in UK on designated tracks, the one outside Maidstone was closest to me.

I am not judging anybody. Read my posts again.
What do you mean by ‘standards’?
 
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Broch

Life Member
Jan 18, 2009
7,983
7,760
Mid Wales
www.mont-hmg.co.uk
Hands on heart, how many of us have driven our off road capable vehicles off road, not counting gravel roads and camping ground lawns and similar?

Mmmm…. does the Tunisian, Algerian and Moroccan Sahara, the Namib and the Australian Outback deserts count? Or the 4x4 response rescues in Powys in deep snow, or getting beyond the headland on many beaches to camp in seclusion, or driving the snow covered roads in Norway and Scotland count?

There is quite a network of 'Green Lanes' in the UK that you could not do in anything but a good 4x4. I have a lot near me and they are good fun and one or two demand quite a bit of skill to negotiate.

But, I agree, many people do not use their 4x4s off road. They're still driving a safer car in general :)
 

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