Going North through the Dartford tunnel today two scabby looking Lithuanian registered car transporters. I suppose it’s something we have to accept, but these were empty … so reloading for a bit of cabotage…grrr.
They often collect salvage for transporting back home.
Not as it matters, we’re just a satellite state of the EU now and the majority of the electorate must want that as they always vote for parties committed to the EU project, so a free for all it is.
used cars from the UK is a very big business around here - rhd cars are either converted into lhd or used for spare parts, as they are in much better condition and much cheaper than the cars in use here. for example, I was recently looking for some parts for my peugeot and this is what they came off of:
It won’t be cabotage, they’ll be over for accident damaged cars to take back home. You see plenty of them about. There are a couple of Polish registered 3.5t with trailers both loaded with damaged UK registered cars at the moment. They are over here every couple of weeks and stop over with the Polish air hostesses in the apartment upstairs.
Coffeeholic:
and stop over with the Polish air hostesses in the apartment upstairs.
Lucky boys then, grrrrrr.
bald bloke:
Coffeeholic:
and stop over with the Polish air hostesses in the apartment upstairs.Lucky boys then, grrrrrr.
I’ve seen the women in question and can only agree with your sentiments. 
Coffeeholic:
One of them has left his trailer somwhere but he’s loaded for home.
0
I wonder what his back axle weighs ?
Dan Punchard:
Coffeeholic:
One of them has left his trailer somewhere but he’s loaded for home.
0I wonder what his back axle weighs ?
Could be worse, he could have put the car on the other way round.
milodon:
used cars from the UK is a very big business around here - rhd cars are either converted into lhd or used for spare parts, as they are in much better condition and much cheaper than the cars in use here. for example, I was recently looking for some parts for my peugeot and this is what they came off of:
I would rather have the van on bricks than anything French.
yeah well I had this before the peugeot:
and I spent more on repairs every six months than I have spent on the peugeot in three years…
cav551:
Going North through the Dartford tunnel today two scabby looking Lithuanian registered car transporters. I suppose it’s something we have to accept, but these were empty … so reloading for a bit of cabotage…grrr.
Do you know what cabotage is? If you do, what makes you sure that this Lithuanian in question was about to do it, rather than reload old/damaged cars for Lithuania or points east, which is what they’ve been doing for years and years?
Down the road from me is salvage auction house where all the insurance write offs go and where dvla take the untaxed motors, everyday it’s full of Eastern European trucks ,vans with trailers loading cars to take back home ,
Travelling the M20 many days a week I often see transporters loaded with damaged cars making for the coast, what I do not see is full size triple deck outfits so loaded, which is the type of vehicle these were. This leads me to think that they were engaging in internal haulage; they may not have been, but if they were then it means that the last nails are being prepared for the UK haulage industry’s coffin.
cav551:
Travelling the M20 many days a week I often see transporters loaded with damaged cars making for the coast, what I do not see is full size triple deck outfits so loaded, which is the type of vehicle these were. This leads me to think that they were engaging in internal haulage; they may not have been, but if they were then it means that the last nails are being prepared for the UK haulage industry’s coffin.
The foreigners don’t run normal triple deckers like we do (though some foreign companies operating UK regd lorries do operate various designs now), they and the Irish transporters that go over usually have foreign made extending bodies that can be stretched instead, the big UK companies don’t tend to run those designs here for internal work, no need, we can run at 16’ so make use of height instead.
UK standard three decker 11+ car carriers can be run abroad as most of them are around 13’ 3" empty, but they’ll usually be limited to carrying 8 or 9 instead of 11 or 12 cars to keep the height down, no problems doing this the bodies are very versatile, its entirely possible that those Lithuanian regd triple decker bodies you saw were very tough UK built designs bought second hand during the downsizing years around 2009/10, the prime mover is a standard low cabbed tractor unit on modern designs so making unit replacement a couple of days work instead of weeks.
when I was on my 3 car I delivered to a Polish geezer
who had operating centre here for his English regged trucks
and one there for his Polish stuff
All he did was deal in ex UK damged repairable motors