Eurotunnel in an E class

[F1BHP]

I always book the high vehicle lane and have had no problems, they are always understanding, I have done this ever since I curbed my ferrari wheels about 10 years ago.
They can point all they want as long as you have booked for the high vehicle, you will have a ticket for such and they cannot argue.

 

[davidjpowell]

They will have to regulate this soon, or their high carriages will be full of low cars. Leaving people behind

 

[st13phil]

They will have to regulate this soon, or their high carriages will be full of low cars. Leaving people behind

The issue (pretty much like with car park spaces becoming too narrow) is that cars are getting wider due the combined effect of the average person being bigger than they used to be and therefore cabins are growing, and safety considerations which require better side impact protection and hence wider doors / thicker B-posts, etc. Add in modern very low profile tyres, and you can see why damage happens.

The Shuttle carriages were designed 20+ years ago and worked fine with narrower cars and taller tyres. Ultimately, Eurotunnel will have to upgrade their rolling stock to accommodate the need or will lose passengers. The carriages are starting to look distinctly shabby, but I've no idea what their projected service life is so I don't know when replacement or upgrade is planned, but everyone who travels by Eurotunnel and suffers wheel or tyre damage needs to make a formal complaint, not for the purpose of claiming money (although that would be nice!), but to make sure that it's seen as a problem by the operating company, and not just the users of the service.

 

[sjmaxwell]

Thanks for the photo of the E63, at 6"2' front track they are bloody wide and given that there is little leeway on any refurbishment on the wheels I would definitly book a wider carriage; or I'd be like a race horse at the Grand National and refuse to jump!

 

[nullogik]

Was thinking of using the Eurotunnel for the first time with the W140 before reading this thread and seeing the picture of the E63 on there. A W212 according to Wikipedia is 1854mm (73") and a W140 1886mm (74.3") width. Granted the W140 has huge sidewalls with 16" wheels though judging from the picture I think the wider carriage is a must for me. Anyone taken a W140 on the Eurotunnel?

 

[st13phil]

Thanks for the photo of the E63, at 6"2' front track they are bloody wide and given that there is little leeway on any refurbishment on the wheels I would definitly book a wider carriage; or I'd be like a race horse at the Grand National and refuse to jump!

As I said in the linked post I managed to put minor scuffs on both front rims - one on the outward leg of the trip, one on the return - because I was focussing on not catching a £700 carbon-fibre mirror pod on any of the toilet blocks

Funnily enough, I have no trouble driving Angie's R171 SLK350 through the standard carriages and it's not that much narrower. Perhaps it's a form of "target fixation" caused by the CF mirrors and hard-to-refurbish diamond-cut alloys on the E63? Mustn't get too close, mustn't get too close, mustn't get too close...

BANG!

 

[ChrisA]

I raced through the train without issue

 

[st13phil]

I raced through the train without issue

Yes, but your CLS looks like it's been cleaned with a yard broom!

 

[ItalianTuneUp]

Next time I go on it I must remember to fold the mirrors in, thus removing the distraction of concentrating on avoiding the sticking-out toilets. Then I can fully concentrate on attempting to stay centrally positioned to avoid touching the kerb!

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Our ML63 fills the gap between the kerbs. Stoopid wider track, wider wheels, and low profile tyres. We now go in the high carriage too!

 

[Nightmage]

Slightly old thread but same issue. I managed to kerb one of our wheels on the Eurotunnel the other day. The tyre seems fine and the single wheel is scuffed in a single place but I'm still really annoyed with myself but the gap either side was sub 3 inches. Will be booking the single carriage section the next time.

Does anyone know if this can throw your wheel alignment/tracking out? Seemed a bit low speed to do anything and car drives fine.

 

[Londonscottish]

It was always OK for me in my C43's, my 211 and my 212 on 17's. Then I fitted the 18's and it's pretty tricky to avoid kerbing the faces of the wheels...

I've never had tyre damage, though.

 

[Deleted member 126251]

We were bottom row in one direction and top deck coming back --- my car and tyres are pretty wide...but no problems....I angled my wing mirrors down so that I could see the edges

 

[Deleted member 6183]

I don't object to using the tunnel but on Westerly routes I do rather enjoy Commodore Class on Brittany Ferries.

 

[keith of kent]

Hi, I am the OP
I have gone from a 2010 S212 Sport (265 rears) to a 2015 S212 Sport (also with 265 rears)
The difference as far as the tunnel is concerned is that I don't now have the "gunsight on the front of the bonnet.
By looking down a line from the middle of the rear view mirror to the gunsight I could line the centre of the car up with the centre of the carriage.
I now line up in the same way with a lump of Bluetack that I place on the front centre line of the bonnet when I arrive at Eurotunnel (and remove afterwards obviously).
For me this has worked several times. There will be those who will say this is OTT and that they can drive through at 50mph without touching the perilous kerbs.
Well that's fine, if there are others like me who find it daunting and don't want to damage their P&J maybe this might help.
Happy Christmas to all

 

[BTB 500]

Got to Calais supermarket and noticed a cut and bulge in a rear tyre

I'd be surprised if nudging a smooth kerb at walking pace could cause damage like that to a tyre? Scraping an alloy rim with low profile tyres is a different matter of course!

 

[Peter103]

we travel across twice a year, just got a good deal on P&O ferries minus 25% on a saver ticket our return ticket cost £ 81:75
Same trip on Eurotunnel £162. Eurotunnel in the last couple of years has got quite expensive, and with so many delays the ferry is often quicker , and no worries over damaged wheels.

 

[Participant]

Do none of you have a 360 camera?!

 

[C43AMG]

I've always used the extra high carriage.