Tank Driving Experiences

  We had the best day ever! We booked the Private Tank Crush experience as an 80th birthday present for my Dad-in-Law. He was a tank commander in his... read more army days, so he thoroughly enjoyed playing with his favourite toys again, as did the rest of the family. We were very well looked after; the instructor was very knowledgeable and made sure the whole family was included in the experience. We are definitely going again!

  Truly amazing experience at tanks a lot.
My husband done the full monty experience day and it was beyond words..
Whole day was brilliant.. everything about it was just so... read more much fun, seeing him driving the tanks, our daughter being able to sit in passenger hatch, staff are brilliant as well full of knowledge, epic banter and I’ve got to say huge thank you to 2 team members Wayne & Dan when they found out my daughter has an obsession with defenders they made her day by showing her around some on site and taking her on little passenger tour to see how they drive can’t thank you both enough!!
Thank you to rest of team as well we can’t wait to come back

  The tank driving instruction was excellent, and my grandsons picked it up very quickly, only one of whom had a driving licence!
The whole day was filled with fun in... read more a hospitable and safe manner.
My wife and I were so pleased with the whole day that in a few years our next set of Grandsons will receive the same treat.
The ancillary activities plus the food and beverage were of a high standard.
We will be back!

  Had an amazing day. Purchased the Full Month for my wife and my 14 Yr old son and I were spectators but felt included in the whole day.
I would... read more definitely recommend these guys as a day to remember. Excellent value for money.

  A birthday gift to remember.
Great place, brilliant people and superb fun. Will definitely do again. Thanks all for an experience I will never forget.

  My wife bought a Half Day Tank Driving experience for me and then came along as a spectator too. What an incredible (half)day, I got to drive an FV432 armoured... read more personnel carrier, an Abbot self-propelled gun and a Springer 4x4 buggy (not technically tanks if you want to get particular, but definitely good enough).
You also get a talk about the history of fire-arms and a quick run through various types of guns and explosives up to the modern day in the Armoury room which has many deactivated guns hanging on the walls, there's a surprising variety too.

As you drive the vehicles you get scored (out of 10) and the person at the end of the day with the highest score gets to drive a Chieftain main battle tank and crush a car. I was one point of winning but standing outside to watch the carnage is just as fun I reckon.

Spectators have to pay £20 extra but they do get a lot for their money. My wife got to ride in the back of a FV432 with us to the driving area and then got to sit in the commander position of the Abbot as I drove it around. We even had enough time for her to drive a Springer too.

There was tea, coffee, juice and biscuits available at no extra charge all day long. Staff we're all extremely friendly, helpful and knowledgeable.

  Absolute cracking day at #tanksalotltd, drove a few big boys toys and learnt a bit of gun technology from the armourer.
Well worth a visit.

Professionally looked... read more after at every stage. Refreshments on tap at the mess house, really knowledgeable staff, that explained the vehicles and how to drive them.
Plus all the other random questions thrown at them, which they had time to engage with all that wanted to ask and learn.

The site is awash with military vehicles of varying sizes, each more interesting than the last, loved the chance to get up close to some of the biggest armoured vehicles in the country. The car crush was epic. I need to get me one of those tanks for parking on our street.

... and then to top it all they have got a Tardis!! (Which would look amazing in my garden, but the Mrs objected, might have to have a chat with Nick)

These guys are also helping the Ukrainian war effort by supplying refurbished tanks, armoured vehicles and machine guns.

The vehicles we drove were under test for refurbing and then sending over for service in the Ukraine.

Feeling quite proud that I have done my little bit to stick two fingers up to Putin.
Cheers guys keep up the fantastic work.
We will be returning and bringing a few friends.

  Fabulous day at tanks-a-lot. Was so cool driving amazing vehicles. Food and staff were really helpful and insightful, cannot recommend this experience enough. Worth every penny!

  What an absolutely amazing day on the “Full Monty” tank driving experience . Can’t recommend this highly enough
Got to drive three different types of tank along with an... read more ATV vehicle. AWESOME. Also got to experience clay pigeon shooting, flintlock and Mortar firing, survival training, And an Armoury tour. Brilliant
And to cap the day off I won driver of the day . My reward to do a car crush with the chieftain tank from the film “ Fast and Furious 6” oh WOW
Thanks so much to the incredible instructors and staff for what is an experience I will never forget
Will I go back?? You bet I will

  What a fantastic day at the "Full Monty" on Saturday
Can't recommend this highly enough, Absolutely Brillant
Got to drive three tracked vehicles/tanks and an ATV.
To say i enjoyed... read more them is an understatement
Also got to experience clay pigeon shooting, Mortar and flintlock firing, survival training and a tour of the armoury.
And if my day could get any better i won the driver of the day WEYHEY
My reward was to do a car crush in the Chieftain tank from the film "Fast and Furious 6" what an experience 100%
Many many thanks to all the instructors and staff at Tanks a lot for an incredible day
Will i be back???? YOU BET I WILL

  I took part in a ‘Full Monty tank driving experience on 27 August 2022, which costs £400. I arrived at 8:30am and left at left at 6:15pm. The activities I... read more participated in were as follows:
 8 Shots in Clay Pigeon Shooting
 Learning to build a and light a small fire
 Driving FV432 APC around a 3–5-minute course
 Driving an FV433 Self-Propelled Abbot around a 3–5-minute course
 Lunch
 Listening to a lecture about the history of guns in the ‘armoury’
 Driving a MAFV Stormer around a 5-minute course
 Driving a Springer ATV around a 2-minute course.
 One turn of firing a ‘Brown Bess’ Flintlock Land Pattern Musket.

Firstly, I should note that I am a historian of the British military, and I am currently employed as a lecturer and research fellow at a British university.

Prior to the day itself, I noticed that the description in the brochure and online is quite vague in terms of what exactly you will have a chance to drive. This is understandable as military equipment can be temperamental, especially with age. After the event and with hindsight, I would argue that this lack of specificity was quite deceitful as I did not actually drive a tank during the day. While I had the opportunity to drive four military vehicles, each of those I have listed above are armoured people carriers, mounted artillery, or buggies. Perhaps this is overly harsh, as some of the armoured vehicles I drove were turreted and would seem to be a tank to a lay person. Armoured Fighting Vehicles (AFVs) are more common, far lighter, and easier and cheaper to run and maintain than Main Battle Tanks (MBTs) To a military enthusiast it is galling to participate in a ‘tank experience’ by a company called ‘Tanks a Lot’ and not actually sit in or experience a real tank. I found it frustrating that the staff did not acknowledge this. The FV432 and FV433 ‘Abbot’ were repeatedly and consistently described as tanks, which is not an accurate representation how these vehicles are used in modern militaries.

This leads into a second point. Some of the information provided by staff about the vehicles and weapons on show was inaccurate or entirely incorrect. As a historian I ask lots of questions, and it perfectly okay to not know the answer: one person cannot know everything. What is unforgivable however is making up nonsense and passing it off as accurate information. There were several glaring errors made by staff throughout the day, which betrayed an ignorance of the subject. Perhaps the best example of this was during the lecture on the history of guns, when Rorke’s Drift was described as an infamous British defeat. On top of this, there were a number of comments made by staff about women and race that have no place in 2022. I will not call out individuals directly, but their attitude can be summarised by a top on sale in the shop. Printed on the front of the camo green top are the words: “I was beaten by a girl on tank day. She crashed on the way home”.

A third problem concerns the organisation of the day itself. Very little time is spent ‘experiencing’ armoured vehicles. In total, I spent no more than 20 minutes in the driving seat of a military vehicle, and hours upon hours were spent waiting for my turn, sat in sun on a hot clear day. No shade was provided whatsoever, and the only refreshments were made available at lunchtime and at the end of the day. Added to this, participants were required to wear military overalls over their civilian clothes. The result was sweltering, and I ended the day drenched in sweat and covered in heat rashes. The other activities provided, such as learning to build a fire, seemed designed to stretch the day out and limit the amount of fuel burnt per customer.

Given that the experience costs £400, each participant will be asked to pay £15-20 per minute in an Armoured Vehicle, and none of these are tanks. If you are really passionate about driving armoured vehicles, then perhaps this would be worth a try, but it will cost you a great deal, and for me, it is just not worth it. If you would like to learn more about military vehicles, their history and how they are used today, I would advise that you look elsewhere.

To round off the day, the owner’s Rottweiler guard dog attacked my girlfriend while we attempted to leave. She is okay, but I can’t think why the dog was chained to a rope lying across the only entrance to the place.

To summarise:
 It costs £400.
 We were there nine and a half hours.
 I spent 20 minutes in total driving things.
 A dog tried to kill my girlfriend.
 I did not get to drive a tank.

Based on this, I can’t recommend.

  I took part in a ‘Full Monty tank driving experience on 27 August 2022, which costs £400. I arrived at 8:30am and left at left at 6:15pm. The activities I... read more participated in were as follows:
 8 Shots in Clay Pigeon Shooting
 Learning to build a and light a small fire
 Driving FV432 APC around a 3–5-minute course
 Driving an FV433 Self-Propelled Abbot around a 3–5-minute course
 Lunch
 Listening to a lecture about the history of guns in the ‘armoury’
 Driving a MAFV Stormer around a 5-minute course
 Driving a Springer ATV around a 2-minute course.
 One turn of firing a ‘Brown Bess’ Flintlock Land Pattern Musket.

Firstly, I should note that I am a historian of the British military, and I am currently employed as a lecturer and research fellow at a British university.

Prior to the day itself, I noticed that the description in the brochure and online is quite vague in terms of what exactly you will have a chance to drive. This is understandable as military equipment can be temperamental, especially with age. After the event and with hindsight, I would argue that this lack of specificity was quite deceitful as I did not actually drive a tank during the day. While I had the opportunity to drive four military vehicles, each of those I have listed above are armoured people carriers, mounted artillery, or buggies. Perhaps this is overly harsh, as some of the armoured vehicles I drove were turreted and would seem to be a tank to a lay person. Armoured Fighting Vehicles (AFVs) are more common, far lighter, and easier and cheaper to run and maintain than Main Battle Tanks (MBTs) To a military enthusiast it is galling to participate in a ‘tank experience’ by a company called ‘Tanks a Lot’ and not actually sit in or experience a real tank. I found it frustrating that the staff did not acknowledge this. The FV432 and FV433 ‘Abbot’ were repeatedly and consistently described as tanks, which is not an accurate representation how these vehicles are used in modern militaries.

This leads into a second point. Some of the information provided by staff about the vehicles and weapons on show was inaccurate or entirely incorrect. As a historian I ask lots of questions, and it perfectly okay to not know the answer: one person cannot know everything. What is unforgivable however is making up nonsense and passing it off as accurate information. There were several glaring errors made by staff throughout the day, which betrayed an ignorance of the subject. Perhaps the best example of this was during the lecture on the history of guns, when Rorke’s Drift was described as an infamous British defeat. On top of this, there were a number of comments made by staff about women and race that have no place in 2022. I will not call out individuals directly, but their attitude can be summarised by a top on sale in the shop. Printed on the front of the camo green top are the words: “I was beaten by a girl on tank day. She crashed on the way home”.

A third problem concerns the organisation of the day itself. Very little time is spent ‘experiencing’ armoured vehicles. In total, I spent no more than 20 minutes in the driving seat of a military vehicle, and hours upon hours were spent waiting for my turn, sat in sun on a hot clear day. No shade was provided whatsoever, and the only refreshments were made available at lunchtime and at the end of the day. Added to this, participants were required to wear military overalls over their civilian clothes. The result was sweltering, and I ended the day drenched in sweat and covered in heat rashes. The other activities provided, such as learning to build a fire, seemed designed to stretch the day out and limit the amount of fuel burnt per customer.

Given that the experience costs £400, each participant will be asked to pay £15-20 per minute in an Armoured Vehicle, and none of these are tanks. If you are really passionate about driving armoured vehicles, then perhaps this would be worth a try, but it will cost you a great deal, and for me, it is just not worth it. If you would like to learn more about military vehicles, their history and how they are used today, I would advise that you look elsewhere.

To round off the day, the owner’s Rottweiler guard dog attacked my girlfriend while we attempted to leave. She is okay, but I can’t think why the dog was chained to a rope lying across the only entrance to the place.

To summarise:
 It costs £400.
 We were there nine and a half hours.
 I spent 20 minutes in total driving things.
 A dog tried to kill my girlfriend.
 I did not get to drive a tank.

Based on this, I can’t recommend.