No, the pier is 1.5 miles from the VDC, still on the grounds of Port NEAT but it would be logistically difficult to tour a vessel.

We?ll have a slide show to show what happens before the car arrives at the VDC however as part of the Tour. It?s not the same thing but it?s almost as good as memorex.

Re your car, it could be there, yes - or you could be driving it to the tour.

 

nice. thx. please keep me updated as to the details of this event. Im looking fwd to it

all the best

 

ja, I will post a notice in the E60.net forum when we have the registration page up

 

BMW's are indeed "tethered" to the ship's deck. However, the proper terminology is "lashed." They use the screw-in eye-bolts in our front and rear bumpers (look in your tool kit). The flimsy looking nylon straps are probably good for 2,000 lbs, and each car should have four of them. I doubt very much that the tipping actually broke loose any vehicles that were still lashed. Most likely (and this is 100% speculation on my part), the damaged vehicles were already unlashed when things went wrong. When a car carrier arrives in port, the longshoremen typically unlash everything that is supposed to come off in that port. This process is relatively quick, the longies call it "drop and go" meaning they drop the lashings and go to the next vehicle rather than moving the vehicle they just unlashed. "Drop and go" also refers to the fact that the lashers (longshore category) can go home when they are done unlashing everything. While unlashing several hundred cars may take 1 to 2 hours, it will take twice that long to drive that many cars of the vessel.

The only conceivable reason why a ship would "tip over" while in port, is an error in the handling of ballast. Someone left a pump on or a valve open and forgot about it.

By the way, not to alarm you all, but in shipping, there is a "$500 per package limitation," meaning that the vessel owner's marine insurance only cover loss up to $500 per package. It is rarely enforced due to commercial considerations, but try and read the fine print on an ocean Bill of Lading...

 

the worst part is that they are selling the lightly damaged cars as brand new?

"The Salvaged Driving Machine" :thumbsdown:

 

So my ride was destroyed on the Courage...poor sap didn't know what was coming to her ...considering a 550 instead of 535...any thoughts?

 

if you are anyway getting a m aero kit, you might seriously consider the 550 - the SAT will be the perfect replacement for the manual tranny you initially ordered..

 

didn't want to wait, and the inventory on a 550 w/ sport package is slim pickins...may end up settling for staight auto, although I would prefer SAT...

 

i dont know if you have driven SAT but that thing is in my eyes worth the wait - as someone who appreciates a 6 spd tranny (since you ordered one), you will realize how nice it is to drive an automatic that uses as little of the torque converter as the SAT...

 

Just pulled the trigger on a regular auto...waited over 6 weeks for first car, no way I can wait another week, let alone 6. will consider SAT on next ride (getting a great deal since car was wrecked...cant pass it up). thanks for the input