New to this...

The Mad Hat Man said:

so - yu is 21 and caught doing 140 in a 30 limit, high on drugs and ina stolen car.

Not sprising Insurance is expensive - is it? :frusty:

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I actually had an accident at about 15mph in my own vehicle...

Airflow said:

I actually had an accident at about 15mph in my own vehicle...

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Airflow all well and good asking what vehicle we recomend but what can you afford?To buy and insure.Ive got a classic cos thats what i could afford.In an ideal world id have a nice 90, but cant afford one.A classic or disco one are fairly cheap these days but both will get you most places you want to go off road.Have you considred a series?That do almost as well.Good luck and you'll get plenty of help off here.Do a search for insurance,

Airflow said:

What about more than one person in the same vehicle?

Also, (dont flame me for this!), but what abont non land rovers? Pajero, Shogun, Hilux, Landcruiser etc?

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If your budget won't stretch to insuring a Land-Rover, an obvious choice would be a Suzuki SJ410 with a 1.0 litre engine. I've never driven one myself but zook people delight in telling me how much better they are off road than a Land-Rover. If you want a Land-Rover you should give some thought to a tax exempt leaf sprung Land-Rover (pre 1973). They qualify for cheaper classic car insurance, they are very tough, easy to fix and parts availability is very good and cheap. If you don't want the engine to die in the middle of a river get a diesel.

Some of us do go greenlaning solo, but most think this is very foolish (as many people on here have told me) because they say you might injure yourself or get stuck and find it difficult to persuade somebody to come and tow you out. This is all sensible stuff, but the real reason they say "DON'T GO OUT LANING ON YOUR OWN" is because they are pussies . Having said that, if you've never been offroading before, then it makes good sense to get some off road driving lessons or go out laning with a group until you know what you're doing. It's surprising what a Land-Rover will handle, but it can also be surprising what they can't do. A Land-Rover will go a lot further and be less likely to end up on it's roof, in the hands of somebody who knows what they are doing.

Cheers for the help so far, insurance wont be the biggest issue, hoping for a £500 disco from autotrader and spend a bit of time and money on getting it up to scratch... I hear the 300 (or is it the 200?) is pretty bombproof, and better than the V8 pet.

Do standard Ord.Survery maps clearly show green lanes, or is there a decent map i can buy which will show as such?

Cheers once again everyone, apologies for being such a nooby!

Ordnance all the way.

OS maps are essential but they will not tell you if a lane is drivable, nor will they confirm its current legal status, certainly not well enough to stand up in court.
The police now have the power to confiscate your motor, so don't take chances.

Not everyone on here will agree, but a club will often have done all the hard work for you.

were are ya in the world?

Airflow said:

Cheers once again everyone, apologies for being such a nooby!

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Thats wot the forums for. You'll not go wrong with a dezul disco(200 or 300), might be on my shopping list next.

RangeyV8 said:

were are ya in the world?

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Nort West Lancashire.

Airflow said:

Nort West Lancashire.

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Oh, and where would i find the best maps of say, the lakes, bowland, north wales etc? Ideally maps that show what is legal and useable.

Id like to be planned up before i attempt it

whsmiths and the like have a collection of os maps.Ave a butchers throught the maps before ye buy em just in case there aint many lanes on there.

I dont meant to sound horribly stupid, but im guessing the lanes are marked up with the 't' as mentioned earlier?

There will be a key on the map to mark a BOAT or RUPP but they are not always legal to drive down.

If you get an OS map make sure it's a 1:25 000 scale. They're called Explorer maps and they're orange.

Gaz1336 said:

There will be a key on the map to mark a BOAT or RUPP but they are not always legal to drive down.

If you get an OS map make sure it's a 1:25 000 scale. They're called Explorer maps and they're orange.

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Cheers. Whats the gurantee to see if they are legal or not?

When you get to them, look for notices posted. If they're TRO's then you can't drive them. TRO's can appear overnight ...

Best thing is to identify a few lanes from the map, then take the map to the council offices and ask to see the definitive map for that area, then mark whether they're legal or not.

Nothing is certain and if you're in any doubt the safest option is to turn round and check with the council.

Gaz1336 said:

There will be a key on the map to mark a BOAT or RUPP but they are not always legal to drive down.

If you get an OS map make sure it's a 1:25 000 scale. They're called Explorer maps and they're orange.

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Don't forget UCRs (Unclassified county roads), They are marked by red dots on Landranger (they're O.K. too) maps and green dots on Explorer maps.

Best thing to do is decide when you wanna go, get yer motor sorted then about a week or two before put a post up here saying wanna go laning here... on this day.... who wanys to come?Hopefully you get a few more experienced bods to come with yer and show you the ropes/tow the ropes if yer get stuck.Et walla, new landy buddie.

Airflow said:

I dont meant to sound horribly stupid, but im guessing the lanes are marked up with the 't' as mentioned earlier?

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Don't worry about sounding stupid... I do it most of the time! The stupidest questions are the ones people are too afraid to ask!