[GTO]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

What are the economics involved in getting a car moved on flat-bed tow trucks vs. those that simply hook up one end?

Originally Posted by nitrous

There's a critical point missed here.
Affordability.
Can the non-german owners afford a flat bed?

Between 0 - 30% difference.

Originally Posted by sanjayatarizona

When you buy a German , you experience extreme pleasure and extreme pain in equal proportions. I should know

How about sharing your experience?

Originally Posted by Dose

And does this mean you are dumping your C-class? Do tell.

Been discussed on my thread. In short, no I'm keeping her. While she hasn't broken down on the road yet (read = no flatbed), the car has been quite the devil.

It's a pity there is no smilie for eating popcorn. I love your Merc repair stories. A true love-hate relationship.

Expensive entertainment for you, I can tell you that

Originally Posted by speedmiester

The reason majority of the German luxury cars breakdown is because of cramming unwanted gizmos in the car.
Do we really need all these gizmos?

Not only gizmos, these cars suffer from shoddy mechanical parts as well. The E250, E280 and 525 pictured above had mechanical failures, not electronic. My Benz has had an equal share of both.

Originally Posted by Pankaj401

My friends Honda City was towed last year for around 2500 rupees IIRC. Someone had intentionally cut the rear left brake line.

Not really the car's fault, is it? Though I'm sure Japanese cars need towing services too, their breakdowns are surely not as frequent as the Germans.

[himanshugoswami]

Dont have a picture, but a couple of months back saw a Volvo S80 on a flatbed at the JVLR near Powai lake.

[theragingbull]

I had faced a problem with my Polo just 15 days after delivery. VW advised me to bring it to the workshop on a flatbed. But I insisted on first getting the car checked by a VW technician. So after 3 days of frantic calls, the guy came and the problem was resolved at my place itself. (Read here)

There's absolutely no doubt that Japs are more reliable cars than Germans!

[khoj]

The reason for using the flat beds is simple. You cannot tow a rear drive/ all wheel drive vehicle not even if you shift to neutral without creating additional mayhem within the drive train. Lifting the car from the rear would mean you will end up scraping everything up front from the bumper, to the condenser, radiator, sump, gear box housing etc etc. Further the vehicle being towed is exposed to taking hits from moving traffic. The insurance companies too with their new all inclusive, zero depreciation, NCB retainer policies will not appreciate the additional damages.

Now a days due to the reasons above tow trucks have become a necessity and are easily available. The rates too should come down as the competition increases. Recently the battery on my front wheel drive Cedia died and Mitsubishi's On Road assistance offered to send in a flat bed truck if their mechanic (who reached the stranded car in approx half an hour) was not able to get it started and moving. In fact my OHC's manual of circa '98 also recommended a flat bed and had a graphic illustration specifically crossing out the tow truck. The fact these trucks were not around then is another story and the fact that the OHC never broke down, Na never ever yet another.

It is not so much about the cost upfront but the power train design of RWD/AWD vehicles and the hidden expenses that may result out of towing that necessitate the use of flat beds. Of course in an year or so it will become mandatory by the insurance companies too, that you cannot tow your vehicle. If you tow they will deny your claim outright. How the traffic police will manage the towing then is another thing to watch out for. The low quality clamps that they use on wrongly parked vehicles have already scratched the alloys on my Swift.

BTW the title of this thread makes it a prime candidate for the 'official jokes thread'

[agspins]

I quite agree with KHOJ, Not so clear pic, but a last gen 7 series on a flatbed...

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by vipul_singh

The cost of Towing with a "crane truck" was Rs. 1600, while that of a flatbad truck was Rs. 3000 - a difference of just Rs. 1400.

Originally Posted by GTO

Between 0 - 30% difference.

Two very widely varying differences - 0-30% to 87.5%. If the estimates that GTO puts forward are correct, we can expect the price difference to neutralize in a year or two, when more flat-bed trucks come on the scene, and all folks requiring their cars to be moved bodily would much prefer flat-beds to cranes. I'm sure this owner would...

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Attachment 421097

Attachment 421098

Attachment 421099

OTOH, with Vipul's estimate, one cannot foresee such a thing happening soon.

Or is this a price difference we are seeing between Mumbai and Delhi?

[MCR]

what a thread. Also makes for a fantastic business proposition, buying flat bed truck that is. I have seen quiet a few BMW 5 and 7 series being transported on Mysore - Bangalore road.My father once joked that we should transport our car on flatbed trucks rather than driving, considering the nightmare of traffic in Bangalore, on seeing a BMW 5 series on flatbed truck. Recently when BHPian Hemanth.anand went for a test drive of Polo, it seems that the sales executive commented that no TD is required since it is a German engineered car. May be the sales executive meant that the car would be transported/ delivered to home on a flatbed truck. Jokes apart, its very sad sight and definitely very heart breaking for the owner. I guess German cars are more concentrated on features rather than on reliability. Its like buying a showpiece for your garage

[Sn1p3r]

I recently used flatbed for Rs 1200 (with bill) for 6 years old Accent ;-) I am sure that wont count for Korean's brownie points. Is that too high a price in Gurgaon or was the person generous to see it was a old Accent :-D

The clutch went kaput, my wifey was pleasantly driving with Axl Rose playing at top of his voice.

[Parm]

since we indians now have the buying power, thanks to the growth in economic status, and we indians are buying bigger brand value expensive cars.

BUT, i have experienced that sometimes we indians dont know about all the high tech gadgets inside these expensive cars.

maybe this inexperience leads to the fault in these cars and they end up stalling them!

once i was waiting for some meeting at a Honda service centre and this one gentleman came early to take the delivery of his new honda accord. he was so early that the salesman to handover his car was not there.

so i offered to give him a detailed tour of the buttons and gadgets in his accord, since he thought i was one of the employee.

believe me guys, this guy had money but no brain to understand the things on the dashboard!

so i dont blame the cars, when they end up on a flatbed truck, driven by us indians on the indian roads.

NOTE: my comments are not to offend us indians, but the lack of knowledge of some car owners about the high end cars is a fact.

[vipul_singh]

@Sn1p3r: can you PM me the details of the flatbed truck service? Rs. 1200 seems really low!

[khoj]

@Snip3r
Just share it here on the thread , all of us can use the information as & when required(God forbid).

[vipul_singh]

On Topic: I wonder what is it that makes the German (or European) vehicles apparently less reliable? I could think of a few:

1. European component suppliers produce lower quality output than their Asian counterparts?
2. European manufacturers do not test their vehicles as much?
3. European manufacturers do not test their vehicles in varied conditions (e.g. high temperatures with high humidity), unlike the Asians?
4. European manufacturers tend to gravitate towards more complicated designs which rely on certain highly-stressed components (e.g. the HDP5 (high pressure pump) in 2nd Generation GDI engines)?
5. European manufacturers spend too much money on Comfort & Convenience systems, compared to the target selling price of their vehicles?


Can we add to/ delete from this list?

[drsnt]

Originally Posted by Parm

since we indians now have the buying power, thanks to the growth in economic status, and we indians are buying bigger brand value expensive cars.

BUT, i have experienced that sometimes we indians dont know about all the high tech gadgets inside these expensive cars.

maybe this inexperience leads to the fault in these cars and they end up stalling them!

once i was waiting for some meeting at a Honda service centre and this one gentleman came early to take the delivery of his new honda accord. he was so early that the salesman to handover his car was not there.

so i offered to give him a detailed tour of the buttons and gadgets in his accord, since he thought i was one of the employee.

believe me guys, this guy had money but no brain to understand the things on the dashboard!

so i dont blame the cars, when they end up on a flatbed truck, driven by us indians on the indian roads.

NOTE: my comments are not to offend us indians, but the lack of knowledge of some car owners about the high end cars is a fact.

Nothing personal but arent these so called gizmos or electronic wizardry meant to make a car more reliable and safer and most important of all easier to drive, can you tell me which high tech gadget will make your car go into "non working condition" if not used properly? beside the preventive measures such as fuel supply cut off in accident or ecu reducing rpm to avoid damage which have to work that way?

americans or for that matter all humans are equally ignorant of their cars as indians except few who are like members of team bhp.

as for using a flat bed truck for towing, if safer for car as well as other motorist but expensive as they are exclusively used for carrying a car where as cranes will also earn from other functions. so their field of working is very limited so thew cost of working is increased as work is less

all expensive cars are transported on flat bed, who would loose 20k of bumper for 1200 rs extra. and who would spend 1200 rs extra to save a bumper of 1000 rs (cheaper cars) and why would insurance company pay you more because you cannot transport your properly and this difference is HUGE in premium cars

[tsk13]

A feet deep or even less water-logged street; Marutis, Hyundais, Tatas, Toyotas, Hondas, Mahindras and other Reliable Cars (in Indian context) easily pass-by this 20 meters long stretch but a BRAND NEW 7 Series couldn't. Moreover, it was being readied to be towed on a Normal Tow Truck, not even a Flatbed. This pic was taken on 14th August 2010.

My uncle successfully drove his brand new Honda City (ANHC) for more than 100 meters in about 4 feet water near ISBT Kashmere Gate, Delhi. When reliability matters, apart from Indian brands Japanese and Korean rule here.

[supremeBaleno]

Funny this thread should come up today.
On my way to work today, I saw a flat-bed truck for Maruti (CARS India) - was pleasantly surprised as usually they use the tow technique.

Originally Posted by nitrous

Can the non-german owners afford a flat bed?

Since CARS India have gone for it, I guess they can.