Warwickshire Avon - Scumbags and Scrubbados

You work hard for nice things only for some scumbag wanting to try and get its hands on it. I'm talking about my Mk7 Golf R estate which has now gone. A weeks holiday, the car left on the drive in a quiet area, the patio door forced, the house searched top to toe, the tealeaf leaving empty handed, the keys were in the safe you see. If they were where I usually put them, the car would have gone. Sam a week of sleepless night as he thought the burglar might come back.

I used to enjoy fast cars and driving for that matter, but over the years especially with the family duties and the traffic and state of the roads as they are, I've been looking for something that befits my lifestyle as a frequent angler and would also put a smile on my face albeit at a more sedate pace. 99% of the time it's just me in the car and I rarely venture onto motorways.

The Golf became a hindrance as I couldn't take it where I wanted to either, the ground clearance next to bugger all and rubber bands for tyres for all but the smoothest asphalt. So when the new Suzuki Jimny appeared in the press well over a year ago now I've been keeping an eye on its progress. A limited amount to be sold in the UK and if you wanted a specific colour, 18 months to 2 years waiting list.

It's dinky in statue, with and very credible off-road credentials. Tyre profile and ground clearance to not only soak up what the road has to throw at it, but also can go where most cars would think twice. A proper body on chassis set-up with wheel articulation boarding on the ridiculous.

Also being diminutive in statue you can park on the smallest of verges and the narrowest of  tracks. I thought a Subaru Forester 2.5XT would be the answer to ones prayers but it proved to be a lemon and to be honest wasn't that nice to drive anyway.

Now with the rear seats down the load bay ideal for all ones tackle and the rod quiver fits between the seats no problem. Bags of character, and believe it or not, such the demand for a car that is different from the humdrum, new cars appearing on the secondhand market are fetching a premium.

For a long while after a test drive of the demonstrator I've not had a smile on my face for a while. Enjoyment at a sedate pace and to confirm, yes I'm definitely getting old.

The SZ5 spec has all the modern toy, from Apple CarPlay, LED headlamps with main beam assist, heated seats and cruise control, to safety feature such as lane departure warning, collision avoidance and sign recognition.

The 4X4 tech such as hill hold,hill descent and selectable 2WD, 4WD and 4WD with low ratio are in conjunction with the JB74 platforms excellent ground clearance, approach angle, ramp breakover and departure angles. The stats are up there with some much bigger offroaders, this a very capable bit of kit I tell you, despite looking like a Tonka Toy.

Luckily for me I noticed a local Vauxhall dealer adding Suzuki to their franchise and I was the first customer to put a deposit down. A car every quarter, the current waiting list 13 people. So after picking it up yesterday the first trip out was to put up some WBAS signs up at a newly acquired syndicate stretch of a the Warwickshire Avon, a stretch I had not fished before.

The Golf wouldn't get not further than the gate for fear of grounding, the Jimny a stroll in the park and where it feels at home. A bank fully open to capable cars and also no issues with night fishing, a quick nose at the swims it looks like it might hold some nice fish, the downstream end, seemingly quite deep as well.

I for one am looking forward to putting some miles on it and venture to areas I'd not considered before because of my previous car(s) limitations. The only mod I might do is ditch the current 195x80xR15 tyres and replace them with some beefier looking 215/75 R15 AT tyres, straight out the factory guise they do look a bit weedy, from front on anyway, but I'll see what the OEM factory fitted tyres are like first.

"Mick you're a tool"

"No it's A tool, A TOOL !!!!"

Cut me some slack, there is the fact I fish probably 3 times a week, sometimes more, it is my pastime after all, one that hopefully will mean I can spend more time doing. Heck I can now cope with the rutted track of the Lower Itchen without wondering if I'll make back home in one piece or not.