question Ferret info

[diggerdog36]

Ive been looking at buying a Ferret for a few months now, but one thing I cant find any where is info on speeds and fuel economy. So, what would be a Ferrets max speed and best fuel economy (if we were to drive it to shows!!)

Also, is there any way to hook up a sankey to one??

[griff66]

best fuel mpg 9/10 mpg top speed 50 ish 40/45 seems pretty fast though!!your not meant to tow anything with them , fluid flywheel overheating issues.:cool2:

[AlienFTM]

I went through two Ferrets in UNFICYP. The former, 01EC28, was pretty damn good and I was upset when it got taken from me for overhaul and I was issued another. (Sadly over the years I have forgotten the number except that it finished with 23. We tended to refer to vehicles by their last two, though we did later have two Scorpions which finished 14, so they were 0214 and 0414 - because FD was a given.) I think 28 was a Mark 2/3 and 23 a Mark 2/4 but I could be wrong: it's 33 years ago.

 

23 was straight out of workshops and made 28 look like a wreck. About a month before end of tour, we underwent a Periodic REME Examination. I had to drive into Nicosia Airport from our DanCon outstation in the mining village of Skouriotissa. We got in, my commander (troop leader) went off to the Mess for a spot of breakfast while I sat with the REEM. Everything passed.

 

Then he jumped in to see how it drove. I commanded. He set off down the perimeter road and floored it. About halfway along there was a small uphill S-bend which he took flat-out and kept his speed through the corner and up the hill.

 

When he got out he was impressed that he had kept it at 55mph, and he had, he admitted, rather frightened himself doing it through the uphill esses, as no other vehicle in the unit had got close.

 

Last week of the tour. We repainted the Ferrets with a shiny coat of gloss white ready to provide a dash (if you'll pardon the pun) of cavalry style and elan as the entertainment for a combined B Sqn 15/19H / 1 Para medal parade on the airport runway*. 25 Ferrets lined up behind the grunts. On the right, the OC in the SSM's Mark 1, then six troops of four Mark 2s.

 

The visiting dignitary "inspected" the grunts in the way visiting dignitaries do (while the OC Para and his CSM, walking behind no doubt bollicked anyone not up to scratch) then they marched past as soldiers always do.

 

That left us sat at the back looking pretty in Scout Cars, Number 2 Dress and UN accoutrements. We drove past. Vehicle commanders were stood to attention in the turret, without headsets. Drivers wore headsets set to monitor our VHF Set. On the terminal building roof, unseen to anybody, was our SSM and an A41 manpack on our command net frequency, 48.00 MHz.

 

On his word of command all Ferrets started up (luckily!). On his next word of command we all rolled forward. Squadron Leader turned right, putting himself in front. The troops each wheeled right, maintaining line during the manoevre so that we now had six lines of four cars lined up behind the OC in column of troops. On his next word of command we started off in a big anti-clockwise circuit. As each troop approached the saluting dais, troop leader would throw one up while the three other commanders did an eyes right. It was just like any other parade except we were in Ferrets.

 

Then when we completed the lap, we simply headed for the exit until the SSM instructed us to make our individual way back to camp. I floored it and from the fourth row (fifth if you include the OC) by the time we reached the exit I had passed everybody. Troopy started kicking me in the back and shouting (because he wasn't wearing a headset). I believed he was, in the way cavalry officers do, encouraging me like a horse to go faster and get back first, which I duly did.

 

I stopped and leapt out, big grin on face. Good drive. Rommel (our pet name for Troopy, cos he had this habit of wearing issue goggles on his forehead in the style of his namesake and unlike any other Ferret commander, who just left them to rot in the side bin), not normally a violent man, all but took a swing at me. It turned out he wasn't demanding Warp Factor 8 after all, but that we stop cos he'd lost his beret. I was just mounting back up, calling him names for not holding on to his beret, ready to trog back to the airport, when my previous Troop Leader pulled up alongside and passed him his beret back.

 

I think everybody laughed but Rommel.

 

So yes. Moral of the story. If you get a fast Ferret, you've got a good 'un.

 

__________

* The airport had been closed to air traffic since the war. A couple of weeks later iirc it reopened for one day to allow the grand return of Archbishop Makarios after an accord in February between him, Denktas and Walheim of the UN over the sovereignty of the island. This grand return happened right after our A Sqn took over from us. See :

 

http://www.photius.com/countries/cyprus/government/cyprus_government_1977_makarios_denkta~1454.html

[keefer1236]

best fuel mpg 9/10 mpg top speed 50 ish 40/45 seems pretty fast though!!your not meant to tow anything with them , fluid flywheel overheating issues.:cool2:

 

Another aspect if your Ferret is manufactured before 1960 you will void your MOT exempt status...Form 112G section 30 states...

Motor vehicles first used before 1st January 1960, used unladen and not drawing a laden trailer

 

hope this helps...Keith

 

Ferret MK2/3 03 CC29

[griff66]

also mk1 are a lot lighter plus a lwr c of g!. mk1/2 u can get a couple of people in the turret while u drive, mk2/3 just the one person

Edited June 24, 2010 by griff66

[ferrettkitt]

Rather than having a Sankey hooked up stick a basket on the back over the rear deck.

 

Fuel economy they will pass anything except a petrol station.... sorry a very old joke

[barrynevuk]

We used to tow a trailer with our ferret when we had it.We towed it for 3 years with no problems. We had so much gear there was no other way of going to shows without it. I made a drop plate, and bloted to the rear armour, which had the nato hook on. I made up a metal box for the lighting block and wired it back into the conector blocks inside the crew compartment. All worked well with no problems at all.

 

 

[ferrettkitt]

We used to tow a trailer with our ferret when we had it.We towed it for 3 years with no problems. We had so much gear there was no other way of going to shows without it. I made a drop plate, and bloted to the rear armour, which had the nato hook on. I made up a metal box for the lighting block and wired it back into the conector blocks inside the crew compartment. All worked well with no problems at all.

 

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I'm sure that I bought a jack off you at Beltring one year when you had you're Ferret

[barrynevuk]

I'm sure that I bought a jack off you at Beltring one year when you had you're Ferret

Yes I think you may well have done. I did have several bits of ces that I sold off. Shame I sold it, it was a great ferret. Got a 432 now but the ferret was just as good at giving the smile factor and more practicle.

[Lewis Garner]

The B60 in our Ferret is starting to get a little tired now, she smokes quite a bit on startup, especially when warm. Still seems to have as much grunt as ever, we've had her up to the next 'notch' above 50 on the speedo, so that was pushing it some. Surely the myth of the '70mph Ferret' is a farce? You hear the stories, but I just can't believe it.

Regards, Lewis

[oily]

I've done 60mph in my saracen!:cool2: