WE’VE sat in the back of them many a time. Far more than some of us can probably remember (damn those cheap shot offers).
But what’s an old taxi actually like up front? Cue Autocar & Motor, from 20 years ago, who actually road-tested one. Brill!
The LTI Fairway cab had just been introduced, with a new 2.7-litre Nissan diesel from the old Terrano SUV. (As an aside, the engine was the reason Japan got 200 Fairways a year, as part of a cross-trade deal. It was called Big Ben over there…)
Over here, it was a three-model range: Bronze, Silver, Gold. But medals for none of them in the sprint, it seems: 78bhp from the lumpy engine meant Autocar clocked 23.6secs for the 0-60mph dash. It could just do 80mph.
But keep it to a natural city-centre environment, and the Fairway was pretty decent in terms of response, particularly with the test car’s optional auto. Autocar didn’t, and reported the need for full-throttle use pretty much all the time. Which is why the overall eco average was a pitiful 23.9mpg.
It was a separate chassis design, with a ladder chassis using suspension ‘remarkably similar’ to an SIII Jaguar. It was designed to yield the taxi’s famed 25-foot turning circle. Less tech at the rear – just a live axle there. Maybe that’s why the Fairway pitched noticeably oat speed, while reacting sharply to city centre bumps.
There was loads of body roll, little grip, vague yet over-responsive steering and weak brakes. No wonder on the latter – they were drums all round. Discs, apparently, wouldn’t cope well in city driving…
A screwed-up, cramped driving position was politely described by Autocar as allowing drivers to ‘get only reasonably comfortable’. If you were tall, you were (ahem) screwed. But it was well laid out inside, and visibility was superb (even if fit and finish was ‘cheap and lightweight’.
Comfort was decent for those in the rear, and if you’ve ever wondered about the heating system back there, Autocar revealed it was controlled by a separate heather blower, of which the driver had on/off and fast/slow control. They could also use a dash slider to alter the temperature.
There was little space in the boot (complete with Mini-style flip-down lid); luggage was to be stored where the passenger normally sat. But the mid-range test Silver did get trick features such as a foot-operated central locking button – to stop passengers escaping the 1950s brakes, grip and handling before paying.
That wasn’t enough to stop Autocar condemning it; ‘If we were to apply our findings to a vehicle with aspirations of all-round ability, we would have no option but to criticise its behaviour. Dynamically, the cab is 30 years behind the times. Best left to the cabbies.’
Does that make paying a stiff post-club fare to the trapped driver a little easier?
Thought not.
Why did people hate the Lotus Elan?
The 58mpg MINI and my turbo engine theory
