What's Your Gig-mobile Like?

[hammer]

The one thing I don't like which Subaru as well as others are doing is phasing out manual transmissions. It almost impossible in this neck of the woods to purchase new Outback or Forester with anything but automatic. The CVT system Subaru uses works quite well but I miss not having more complete control to myself.

[bigredbass]

The overlord of this is a Suburban, or a Tahoe if you just need something a bit shorter.  Subs are like owning a Prevost you can park in your garage.  Almost as good as a full-size pickup, but then you can't lock up the bed of a pickup.  I like Pilots and the like, but Suburbans and Tahoes just fit full-growed men better.  Be sure and take your several volumes of George Strait's Greatest Hits and some Asleep at the Wheel for efficient operation.

I owned a early 2000's Buick LeSabre, and is insofar as I know, the only car I ever saw that had a trunk that would accept a full-size Series case, and it would also lay across the back seat with both doors shut without touching either end by just a bit.

Joey

[cozmik_cowboy]

I'd avoid the Kia, Gregory; a friend of mine had one & 15 later still refers to it as "the Korean Deathtrap". The Lovely & Charming's sister has one now; low milage & staying that way, as it's hard to put miles on something that's in the shop more than not.

Peter (who misses everything about his old Suburban except the fuel gauge....)

[edwardofhuncote]

Well, I finally made a call yesterday, and bought a 2007 Dodge Caliber R/T, kind of a 4-door hatchback crossover vehicle. Clean carfax report, and 70,000 miles. Bought it from a local college professor who was the second owner. (coincidentally, he's also a drummer) Anyway, he had bought it for a teenage son as a first car, but the kid was freaked about the manual transmission. I got it for about $1800 under book value. Spent the rest of the day doing the DMV, insurance, etc.

Pictures after I have time to detail it, but I've already tried loading several combinations of amps, cabs, and basses (including the upright) in it. Even though it doesn't have the space my old Outlander has, I think it's going to work out great. It also came with a class 1 hitch, so I could tow a small trailer if necessary.

The other finalists were: 2011 Mitsubishi Outlander. Tires were shot, and I had a bad feeling about the seller. It was a lien takeover, which seemed odd for a 6 year-old car to have a couple years left on a loan. It was exactly like mine though, just newer, so I gave it serious consideration. The other was a 2010 Honda Element. Great vehicle, but 145,000 miles was more than I wanted to think about. It was a tough call, because I really liked all that extra room. Heck, I've stayed in hotel rooms that weren't that size.

This evening's gig isn't very far away, but I'm going to give  the new-to-me gig-mobile a good trial run. Probably load some extra gear, just to see how it rides and pulls on some winding country roads. Now, where did I put that Alembic logo bumper sticker Aunt Mary sent with my last order...?

[edwardofhuncote]

Trial run went very smooth - no problem with cargo space... I tried several combinations of gear successfully, but here's how it stacked up for Saturday's gig. This is after all, a 4-door hatchback, which is almost a necessity for hauling an upright, but also pretty handy for loading up heavy stuff. For starters, my Alembic is in a hardshell case (ALWAYS travels that way), and as you can see, it fits perfectly laying flat on the backseat. Backup (rainy-day) bass in the gig bag was my Tobias Growler. My only gripe here is that dang cup-holder... right in the way. We may have to do a little jigsaw alteration on that. That Mesa Walkabout/Scout combo is my primary bass guitar rig, and weighs in at almost 80 lbs. The Acoustic Image backup amp and cab on the left are my usual upright rig. (didn't know what I'd need for this one, so I brought both... because I could.  ) Any other time, my upright would be in place of the Mesa, with the 60/40 seatback laid down. I'm guessing this was about 250 lbs altogether. 

[cozmik_cowboy]

Nicely packed!
My own point of pride is having me, anothe ~6' guy, a young lady, a D-28, a mandolin & a case & a half of imported beer in a Triumph Spitfire - with the top up.

Peter (who misses the Spit more than the 'Burb - except for the standing-by-the-road-cursing-Joe-Lucas part)

[lbpesq]

And, of course, your beer was warm, Peter ... Lucas refrigerators.

hehehehe

Bill, tgo

[cozmik_cowboy]

Naw - it was February in Northern Illinois, and the heat was Lucas, too 


Peter

[sonicus]

Meet my Ranchero GT with factory shell . I affectionately have named her "Galbani" .____ Just like that nice cheese !

[jacko]

love that Wolf. a Ranchero or an El Camino would be high on my list of USA cars if I had some spare cash.

Graeme

[cozmik_cowboy]

My big brother married his first wife when he'd just turned 18 & she was almost 17 (yeah, we be hillbillies); being a family man now, he sold his '66 Galaxie hot rod & bought a Ranchero; washed it once a week, waxed it once a month (including the bed) and wouldn't put so much a a sack of groceries back there.  Very practical vehicle........

Peter (who did, indeed, sit beside his siister-in-law at HS graduation.  Cue the banjos.)

[tbrannon]

Nice Ranchero,  Sonicus!! 

It's interesting how that body style disappeared from the American market,  yet if you head to NZ or AU, both Holden and Ford sell a TON of 'utes' modeled after that car/pickup chassis.  A lot of contractors who don't need true pickup capabilities, but need the bed and storage use them. 

[mica]

Wolf I love your Ranchero. I have a soft spot for the El Camino SS myself.

[edwardofhuncote]

Oh man, Wolf... I haven't seen one of those since high school, and I don't recall ever seeing one with a camper shell. Nice!

Interesting how the 'crossover' car seems to have evolved. I'm really enjoying my new gig-mobile so far. I've got a bunch of upright jobs coming up soon, so will snap a couple pics of that. Monday night for a rehearsal, the new/old Distillate got a ride in it.

[sonicus]

Thank you everybody for your nice comments about my Ranchero ! She is a keeper with that shell . Easy loading&unloading for equipment .  I watched and hunted for the correct fit for close to a year. 

Wolf