A well-equipped and not so old vehicle would be nice to have, but from a perspective of a relatively small unit with a fairly small vehicle park I believe it is somewhat riskier, as a single hit from an FPV drone can knock-off that not so cheap MEDEVAC. So, an alternative would be to buy another SUV/pick-up truck (Navarra etc.), because the current ones are partly used for evacuation instead of transporting only ammo/stuff, plus one minivan, like an older 4x4 VW Sharan (those are rare, but they do exist) or VW Transporter. Sure, they would not be that good and convenient, but could be repainted, rear seats removed and used for evacuations as well. One downside is they most likely should be old enough for the estimated budget and as we see and know old cars usually require more extensive and expensive repair to be done. It consumes money and time but losing such a car would not be detrimental to the ongoing operations because of the increased number of vehicles in a unit. And BTW, I hope it was done the previous times and, in any case, it does not guarantee anything, but it could be useful to spend some time and money for inspecting the car in a service and asking/hiring an experienced person to test the car, so that some problems (like a turbine failure) could potentially be avoided. The chargers and winter tires are a must and I’m not sure a single spare tire for a vehicle is enough.
The aim is to get a car that is already equipped as an ambulance: i.e. has all the basic equipment installed.
Sadly, running inspections in situ, before the car is already in Ukraine, is hard to organise, because every car is arriving from some other country. For example, Navara was from the UK, Sportage from Germany. I do hope the ambulance car might be from Austria, and I'll be able to inspect it before we pay.
Unfortunately, that's all 'life': nothing is perfect.
BTW, while a single mortar battery is small, that's right, its cars are shared by several neighbouring units (or at least they're underway as 'whoever around' needs them). And, from what I've got to hear, seems the entire battalion has only one ambulance car left, right now. Thus, any additional example would be 100% improvement.
In at least some countries (e.g. UK) it's an accepted practice to have a mechanic perform a "pre-purchase inspection" on a used vehicle before you commit to buying it, whether by taking the vehicle to a workshop or calling out a mobile mechanic. The local automobile organisation may offer this service too. If the inspection uncovers undisclosed problems you might still make the purchase but you will know what needs fixing (it'll be cheaper to do the work in Ukraine) and can the use the information as a lever in price negotiations.
Perhaps there are mechanics in the Ukrainian diaspora or supporters who, if near enough, would be willing to do an inspection for free.
Money sent. I also got the Anastasiia account prompt.
Question: I haven't been in a position to fix vehicles in about 30 years. Would it be difficult to adapt the suspension of the Mercedes to be more suitable for SUV use? My understanding is that most SUVs are "off-road" in a rhetorical manner at best, so with some adjustments to the suspension, tires/wheels, undercarriage protection, it might make the Mercedes a bit more flexible for (maybe) not much more money. Of course, that may make the vehicle so unsteady and unbalanced as to be almost impossible to drive. Anyway, just a thought on how to make it more useful/flexible.
Thanks for the update. Is the PayPal the one for Anastasia? That was so userfriendly.
Yes, it is. Thx a lot!
Good. I hope my donations makes it through then.
I'll check with Anastasiia.
A well-equipped and not so old vehicle would be nice to have, but from a perspective of a relatively small unit with a fairly small vehicle park I believe it is somewhat riskier, as a single hit from an FPV drone can knock-off that not so cheap MEDEVAC. So, an alternative would be to buy another SUV/pick-up truck (Navarra etc.), because the current ones are partly used for evacuation instead of transporting only ammo/stuff, plus one minivan, like an older 4x4 VW Sharan (those are rare, but they do exist) or VW Transporter. Sure, they would not be that good and convenient, but could be repainted, rear seats removed and used for evacuations as well. One downside is they most likely should be old enough for the estimated budget and as we see and know old cars usually require more extensive and expensive repair to be done. It consumes money and time but losing such a car would not be detrimental to the ongoing operations because of the increased number of vehicles in a unit. And BTW, I hope it was done the previous times and, in any case, it does not guarantee anything, but it could be useful to spend some time and money for inspecting the car in a service and asking/hiring an experienced person to test the car, so that some problems (like a turbine failure) could potentially be avoided. The chargers and winter tires are a must and I’m not sure a single spare tire for a vehicle is enough.
Thanks for tips!
The aim is to get a car that is already equipped as an ambulance: i.e. has all the basic equipment installed.
Sadly, running inspections in situ, before the car is already in Ukraine, is hard to organise, because every car is arriving from some other country. For example, Navara was from the UK, Sportage from Germany. I do hope the ambulance car might be from Austria, and I'll be able to inspect it before we pay.
Unfortunately, that's all 'life': nothing is perfect.
BTW, while a single mortar battery is small, that's right, its cars are shared by several neighbouring units (or at least they're underway as 'whoever around' needs them). And, from what I've got to hear, seems the entire battalion has only one ambulance car left, right now. Thus, any additional example would be 100% improvement.
In at least some countries (e.g. UK) it's an accepted practice to have a mechanic perform a "pre-purchase inspection" on a used vehicle before you commit to buying it, whether by taking the vehicle to a workshop or calling out a mobile mechanic. The local automobile organisation may offer this service too. If the inspection uncovers undisclosed problems you might still make the purchase but you will know what needs fixing (it'll be cheaper to do the work in Ukraine) and can the use the information as a lever in price negotiations.
Perhaps there are mechanics in the Ukrainian diaspora or supporters who, if near enough, would be willing to do an inspection for free.
usual ammount sendt :-)
Thanks!
Tom: what about American, Canadian, Australian (and others) Surplus Military Vehicles Auction/Sales sites????
Good idea. Must check them too.
Woo-Hoo....Martin's brain did good today (pats self on head)
:o)
Joining you call again Tom with my few drops
Money sent. I also got the Anastasiia account prompt.
Question: I haven't been in a position to fix vehicles in about 30 years. Would it be difficult to adapt the suspension of the Mercedes to be more suitable for SUV use? My understanding is that most SUVs are "off-road" in a rhetorical manner at best, so with some adjustments to the suspension, tires/wheels, undercarriage protection, it might make the Mercedes a bit more flexible for (maybe) not much more money. Of course, that may make the vehicle so unsteady and unbalanced as to be almost impossible to drive. Anyway, just a thought on how to make it more useful/flexible.
Done, and thanks for the update
Дуже дякую за підтримку.