Syncro 4&4 Discussion and Q&A last answered over 2 years ago.
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Simon Baxter wrote:I've driven loads, to be honest I can see the attraction but I personally find them too light, like driving around on wet leaves on a cobbled street.
Scary on corners as you have zero feedback and you can't tell if your sliding or not.
Horses for courses.
And then there's the insurance issue they will not pay out a penny if you fit a corsa or pug kit to your vehicle
Again another interesting point, dam near every Syncro on the road has been subject to an alteration that is not stock. So if a power steering alteration is declared to insurance then ...
Has anybody had this agreed by their insurance? I'm with Adrian Flux and very tempted as I have a dodgy shoulder/neck and parking can be a right pain.
All I ask is for the chance to prove that money won't make me happy.
PC 52 Wrote
What is the experience like off road?
With a non power steering set up, hit a rock and the steering potentially whips out of your hands.
With standard power steering, hit a rock and it tries to whip away but the driver does have more control.
That is in our experience though.
So how does the epas system respond to rock hitting, steering wheel whipping, off road?
I left the EPAS on when we went to Salisbury Plains recently. The overgrown lane was bonkers, lots of ruts, rocks and tree roots sticking out. I don't remember the wheel jumping out of my hand. If it was going to, I'm sure this lane would have made it happen.
As far as insurance goes, how far will the insurers take any alterations. Would 15" rims instead of 14" void the insurance, or LT mirrors, or retro fitted genuine seat swivels?
All these items have insurance certified for their original vehicles as do the Corsa B steering racks.
PeninsulaKid
New vans are great but they just ain't got no soul!
Peninsulakid wrote:As far as insurance goes, how far will the insurers take any alterations. Would 15" rims instead of 14" void the insurance, or LT mirrors, or retro fitted genuine seat swivels?
All these items have insurance certified for their original vehicles as do the Corsa B steering racks.
Y'know how the insurers all ask if the vehicle's been modified from standard? Do you tell 'em a lie at that point?
Peninsulakid wrote:As far as insurance goes, how far will the insurers take any alterations. Would 15" rims instead of 14" void the insurance, or LT mirrors, or retro fitted genuine seat swivels?
All these items have insurance certified for their original vehicles as do the Corsa B steering racks.
Y'know how the insurers all ask if the vehicle's been modified from standard? Do you tell 'em a lie at that point?
I was thinking about getting one of these kits for my lt35 van I rang the insurance they said straight away no. Engineers report might be the way forward. As for insurance they will get out of paying if they can. My van has an agreed value of £7.000 it's got 215 75 15 tyres on Mercedes rims it should have 185 14 tyres on vw rims they would not pay a penny if I had an accident. As for mirrors I don't know. My mate was making developing rock and roll beds they wanted £20.000 plus a van for crash testing so he could market them properly As for a corsa steering rack who knows? I think they might question it
syncro multivan, syncro caravelle, syncro sika, various t3 and lots of audi's
mot falia wrote:they would not pay a penny if I had an accident.
The worst possible case is much worse than that. They can't escape paying their third party liabilities in the event of a claim, but they can then reclaim them from you. So if you're held liable for a big personal injury - say, somebody young and "promising" left badly brain damaged - they will pay, potentially millions, then sue you for it...
For somebody who's selling directly safety-related modifications - brakes, seats/seatbelts, steering - that's a very real risk, since the policy holder's lawyers could easily say "Well, hold on a minute - these were sold as being suitable" and counter-sue them. Public liability and evidence of safety testing is just common sense.
watch this vid at 7 min 50 secs to see the difference crossing a rocky river bed. me first with eps and jed going through after
me. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCrlSZ47KEY" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
it`s a big round cage and there`s too many animals in it for my liking. To help address this ring lee on 07977 765818.
mot falia wrote:they would not pay a penny if I had an accident.
Public liability and evidence of safety testing is just common sense.
I have been spouting on about this type of thing for years on this forum but no one takes a blind bit of notice. If you manufacture something for sale without testing or liability insurance you are asking for trouble! One day someone will get caught out!
To my knowledge, the key thing is that these systems:
1. Do not have a collapsible element in the column to protect the driver in the event of a hard front collision.
2.The steering inner column has been cut and welded, with no testing of the process or quality certification for materials or anything else.
3.The epas system is designed and tested for a specific application i.e. a small car. Not a 35 year old design, 1-ton payload van.
..lee.. wrote:What if they have been tested, and are covered by liability insurance?
Well then you're OK
Yeah that's ok if it has been tested in a t25 not a vauxall coffin
By "they", I think we all assumed that Lee meant "the conversion", rather than "the original parts". After all, the original parts in their original car must have been tested and approved for them to be on the marked in the first place.
there are companies out there who can do this sort of conversion fully TUV, insurance approved, certified and backed by liability insurance, but they start at £2k plus the vat, fully integrated incorporating the collapsible element and adjustable
