Paging the European tourers (again)
in [UK Motorcycles]
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From: stephen.packer on 2 Aug 2010 06:28 Champ <news(a)champ.org.uk> wrote: > You can, and I almost posted the same response to Thomas - I've got a > prepaid Euro Travelex card, which has a PIN and works with automated > fuel pumps in France. What's the benefit of these over a 'standard' credit card?
From: ogden on 2 Aug 2010 06:33 Thomas wrote: > On Aug 2, 3:09 am, Champ <n...(a)champ.org.uk> wrote: > > On Mon, 2 Aug 2010 02:35:51 -0700 (PDT), Thomas <keens...(a)gmail.com> > > wrote: > > > > >> >The GS was perfect, flawless. Well, except for chewing up tires too > > >> >frequently. And the ridiculously tiny tank... > > >> This is a BMW G/S, yes? Tiny tank?!?!?!? > > >No matter what I did, I couldn't put 18 liters in the tank. Some > > >Harley Sportsters have bigger tanks, fer cryin out loud. And this bike > > >is supposed to go around the world? I averaged <173 miles per tank > > >and never got as much as 200 miles on a tank. One of the mods I'm > > >considering is a swap to the Adventure tank, but the kit costs ~$1500 > > >and it's a major job to do the change. > > > > Well, there's no way that I'd call 18 litres 'tiny', but I guess it's > > not huge either. > > Yeah, it's all relative. I think it's been at least 25 years since I > had a bike with a tank that small. Honda STs, KLR, etc. The KTM went onto reserve this morning after 63 miles. Nine whole litres, it took. -- ogden | gsxr1000 | ktm duke 2
From: Champ on 2 Aug 2010 06:33 On Mon, 2 Aug 2010 11:28:55 +0100, stephen.packer(a)gonemail.com wrote: >Champ <news(a)champ.org.uk> wrote: > > >> You can, and I almost posted the same response to Thomas - I've got a >> prepaid Euro Travelex card, which has a PIN and works with automated >> fuel pumps in France. >What's the benefit of these over a 'standard' credit card? Zero transaction charges when you use it. This includes ATM withdrawals too. It's sort of a cross between carrying local cash and using plastic. - you load it upfront (this is like buying the local currency). You incur the spread costs at this point - when you spend from it, it's like spending local cash, in that there's no additional costs - if you lose the card, you haven't lost the cash - you just report a stolen card, as you would for a bank or credit card - you can top it up while travelling. I like it -- Champ We declare that the splendour of the world has been enriched by a new beauty: the beauty of speed. ZX10R | Hayabusa | GPz750turbo neal at champ dot org dot uk
From: ogden on 2 Aug 2010 06:34 SIRPip wrote: > Colin Irvine wrote: > > > On Sun, 1 Aug 2010 17:33:56 -0700 (PDT), Thomas squeezed out the > > following: > > > > > One problem I'm working on is the gas situation in France (among > > > other places.) More and more gas stations are switching to 24/7 > > > credit card only operation, but US cards don't work on them. More > > > than once, I had to take wide detours to find gas, and then have to > > > talk a local into letting me rent their card. Something to think > > > about. > > > > We're spending September in Canada, and plan to use a pre-paid card > > from Travelex - which can be topped up online. It might pay you to do > > the same thing in Euros. > > Which would also obviate the small discomfort I suffered, using my > Santander <spit> debit card while in furrin. Not only did they levy a > flat rate (?1.25) charge for each "Foreign Transaction", but they also > slapped me with a small percentage charge for conversion on every > transaction, regardless of amount. > > That came to an extra 30 quid over the weekend. Not uncommon if you use a debit card abroad. Credit cards, otoh, work quite well with minimal extra cost. And the exchange rates are usually quite competitive too. -- ogden | gsxr1000 | ktm duke 2
From: Champ on 2 Aug 2010 06:35
On Mon, 2 Aug 2010 03:18:38 -0700 (PDT), Thomas <keensurf(a)gmail.com> wrote: >> >One problem I'm working on is the gas situation in France (among other >> >places.) More and more gas stations are switching to 24/7 credit card >> >only operation, but US cards don't work on them. More than once, I had >> >to take wide detours to find gas, and then have to talk a local into >> >letting me rent their card. Something to think about. >> We're spending September in Canada, and plan to use a pre-paid card >> from Travelex - which can be topped up online. It might pay you to do >> the same thing in Euros. >Ta. The issue, of course, is the microchip embedded in the card, which >US cards don't have. I'm not sure that US gas pumps can read that >chip, so they may not work over here. (Or maybe Travelex issues >different cards for different continents.) They do - see here: http://www.cashpassport.com/1/en/uk/ -- Champ We declare that the splendour of the world has been enriched by a new beauty: the beauty of speed. ZX10R | Hayabusa | GPz750turbo neal at champ dot org dot uk |