THE FIAT UNO TOUR CAR NEWSLETTER
©Johan du Toit
APRIL 2019
Issue No: 6
FEEDBACK FROM NEWSLETTER No: 5.............
Question 2:
I'm really pleased that my readers enjoyed the March Newsletter with the Tour planning.
“Do you really get a good nights rest when Stealth camping? How do you choose the perfect place? We tried it... and we couldn't sleep at all! We just carried on driving through the night!”
The tour will start almost at the end of April, meaning the tour report will be covered in the May newsletter. Obviously the tour planning created a lot of questions from my readers. I decided with this issue to answer your questions!
Yes, I do have a proper nights rest! Remember “stealth” is part of my experience with that framework! I have a pump attendant or security guard watching me!
TOP 10 QUESTIONS FROM MY READERS:
I ask permission to sleep in my car at a place and use driver fatigue as excuse.
Question 1:
Question 3:
The first question from Louis... “How do you find these budget campsites?... Wherever I go, I get smoked with expensive camp rates... especially in the Western Cape!”
“Is the space inside your car really big enough?”
I had the same question from other people. I am camping now for many years and over time I just discovered the more affordable places. The area of City of Cape Town and the coast campsites are all real expensive! The moment you go into the Boland area... prices go a more affordable. Avoid municipal caravan parks and go for private owned campsites where you as a single can negotiate a single person rate. Ultimately the choice is yours. If I'm not happy with a campsite... I move on! You cant stay and then decide to complain the next day! Make your choice on arrival at that campsite! I go a lot and the “feeling” or attitude I get from the management and owners.
The space is small... but with a motorcycle tour, I had no space and slept in a small tent! So from the bike, my tour car is a “step up”! Should you go from a caravan to a tour car, that is a “step down” and you most probably would find a tour car too small! Photo: My 250 Loncin on tour... I did the Kalahari
THE FIAT UNO TOUR CAR NEWSLETTER
©Johan du Toit
and Namibia on this! Just imagine all the space I now have with my Uno Tour Car! I did Namibia with the cruiser motorcycle... The luggage and tent was the same... The only difference was that the cruiser was more comfortable … less rider fatigue... and faster!
APRIL 2019
Issue No: 6
On some trips like the planned tour, I travel with touring friends whom I travelled before. Like with the planned tour, the entire touring party is old tour friends and we respect each others personal choices! Question 7: “How do you handle breakdowns and repairs on tour?” Before each long tour I do a proper service of my car. I do most of that myself. Did the same with the bikes. My car is straight forward, “non computer” old school... type of car and if well maintained... don't give problems. Any small problem, I can fix myself.
Question 4: “How do you manage to tour on such a small budget? We cant even do a weekend for that money!” On my motorcycles I got anything between 20 and 25 kilos on a litre of petrol. When I looked at the tour car concept, I went for the smallest possible car... My Uno can manage 20 kilos per litre. Fuel is your biggest tour expense! The rest is discipline with your budget! Question 5: “Do you book campsites in advance?” No! I never book any campsite in advance. On a tour “turning point”, such as Namibia, I will inform a place that I intend to stay in the period... as example, the 4th week of April... without a fixed day. This gives me the freedom to tour and travel at my own pace and discover new places! Question 6: “Do you always travel alone? Where's your partner?” Isn't it lonely to travel alone?” I prefer to travel alone. I'm single since 1994 and like my introvert lifestyle. I like to meet people on tour, but prefer to travel and camp alone. That's my choice!
I have to add, I do tour with a “emergency fund” in case something major happens. Question 8: “What do you like most... Stealth, Off the Grid, or caravan park campsites” ? I like all... It depends on my trip... what I feel like to do. One thing I can assure you... I don't like full campsites during holiday seasons! Then I rather stay at home! Question 9: “Why do you keep your newsletters private? Why don't you publish them somewhere? I do my newsletters for my friends only. I don't like public attention and prefer my own privacy! Same with my photography. I know what I do with my photos and I'm real happy to keep things this way! Question 10: “Why don't you build tour-cars? Surely you can make some money doing that?” No! I build only two tour cars thus far... my own and helped a lady to build hers. There isn't any plan and each one can design and build his own tour vehicle as he likes it! These are the top 10 questions that most ask. There are other questions like best and worst campsites and so on... but these were chosen.
THE FIAT UNO TOUR CAR NEWSLETTER
©Johan du Toit
APRIL 2019
Issue No: 6
Comment on Question No:6. You tour with people that you know. These people become your Touring Buddies... more than friends. You learn to respect their privacy during the camp or tour. Each individual couple have their own privacy that needs to be maintained. Some people just can't get it that there are some subjects not to be discussed on tour.... Religion, sex and politics. After the evenings “get together” each one greet with have a good night! After that don't bother the friends while their lights is on. It is essential to allow the couple to have their private time! In the mornings, never go around with wake-up calls! That sucks big time! In the mornings each group will do their own morning routine and eventually all will join in again! These are fine lines that needs to be respected!
I keep my car closed! YET, I keep things inside neat and clean should someone want to see my tour car inside! TRIP REPORT FOR APRIL Short trip to Cape Town! I had to do some important stuff in CT and tried city stealth for the first time. I'm not happy in big cities but this time the stealth was perfect!
Keep your camp neat and clean! I still have nightmares about camping with someone else and that campsite looked like a “camp explosion”! There was crap lying around everywhere and what bothered me most was laundry and towels hanging on the trees! Most campsites have this placed on a sign somewhere... don't make washing lines or hang stuff on trees! My cover photo for this newsletter show clearly how I cover my camp!
I will use my gazebo with one side closed to the public view! I can actually cover another side, but most of the time that is not necessary as I would use some natural boundary found at the campsite! Once someone enter my little area, it still look neat and clean with the minimum stuff outside!
I had the idea to take night photos of Table Mountain but the parking areas was all paid parking and I wasn't going to spend money on that!
THE FIAT UNO TOUR CAR NEWSLETTER
ŠJohan du Toit
APRIL 2019
Issue No: 6
Finally I stealth at the place where I needed to be. The next day I went to Strand to collect my car parts. As it was still early enough I decided to head back home. A 2 day trip covering just over 800 km. I need to start rewiring my car before the end of April for the tour! The sooner the better! VIDEO WITH THIS NEWSLETTER. In this Tour car TV video I decided to show tips using the internet to plan a short trip and Shoutouts to my friends. As I did Q&A's in this newsletter, I'll make another video about my choice to tour with a car vs a Van! I will make a video on rewiring my car and will see where to use it... maybe in the tour edition as part of vehicle maintenance... Not sure yet... but look forward to that!
I asked Nick and Sarah if I may add them here in my special group of Touring Friends!
Photos: From Nick and Sarah and the boys!
TOURING FRIENDS This month in Touring Friends... Meet...
the exPAWers Nick, Sarah and the two boys!
These Touring Friends change my morning routine! Every morning, during my coffee, I watch their videos! Just awesome! Nick, Sarah and the two boys went on a 7 month tour of Europe in their awesome camper van! Nick and Sarah are also very practical in keeping up maintenance on the van! They have awesome tips and worth watching each video on aspects about van-life. They got everything covered!
Click on the link and follow their awesome adventures! Thanks for the photos guy's! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCasvDNJLIOD OEO1YBNKBnGQ Photo's and content... ŠJohan du Toit