Life after V8Nam - it's the Pub2Pub thread...
Discussion
Further chinscratching suggests that a Citroen C6, Renault Aventime, or Lancia Thesis would be incredibly unsuitable for this trip and therefore ideal for the task.
More V8 wholesomeness complete with fake wood panelling; the car that time forgot, the awesomely awful Buick Roadmaster or its bluecollar running mate the Chevrolet Caprice.
More V8 wholesomeness complete with fake wood panelling; the car that time forgot, the awesomely awful Buick Roadmaster or its bluecollar running mate the Chevrolet Caprice.
EnglishTony said:
A motorised pub crawl? Now there's a hard sell to a sponsor.
I suggest you turn that on it's head and go for a sponsor looking to promote 0% alcohol beer flavoured driver's refreshment to lads who are keen to male chicken about but without getting bladdered in the process.
This is very true, and is something we've given a lot of thought to.I suggest you turn that on it's head and go for a sponsor looking to promote 0% alcohol beer flavoured driver's refreshment to lads who are keen to male chicken about but without getting bladdered in the process.
To offset the negative connotations, we're planning to align the expedition with one of the many 'drink responsibly' groups out there, or even launch our own 'PubZero' initiative to encourage the non-alcoholic enjoyment of pubs when driving.
Additionally, many of the premium spirit manufacturers who would be a good match for sponsorship already have their own responsible drinking campaigns which the trip could promote; for instance here's Diagio's: https://www.drinkiq.com/en-gb/
So, while the drink driving connotations implied by the 'Pub2Pub' title aren't ideal, there are ways to get around the issue, and maybe even turn it into a positive. It's all about what spin you put on it...
And rest assured, we're not planning to circumnavigate the globe in a drunken stupor - no way will the budget stretch to that!
hidetheelephants said:
Further chinscratching suggests that a Citroen C6, Renault Aventime, or Lancia Thesis would be incredibly unsuitable for this trip and therefore ideal for the task.
More V8 wholesomeness complete with fake wood panelling; the car that time forgot, the awesomely awful Buick Roadmaster or its bluecollar running mate the Chevrolet Caprice.
I've always had an irrational soft-spot for the Citroen C6; ditto the Aventime. Their newness counts against them on a trip like this though - the likelihood of an electrical fault stopping them dead in their tracks in the middle of a desert is intimidatingly high. And not just because they're French...More V8 wholesomeness complete with fake wood panelling; the car that time forgot, the awesomely awful Buick Roadmaster or its bluecollar running mate the Chevrolet Caprice.
I'm really liking the idea of a bit American barge for the support vehicle this time though. Thanks to the movie 'Hit & Run', I currently have an excessive craving for a Black 1967 Lincoln Continental, and some '60s Cadillacs would also fit the bill rather nicely...
McFarnsworth said:
Seen as you seem to favour some American iron for this trip, will you be buying the cars in the UK and shipping them to the US? Or will you do the first bit of the trip in different, more European styled, cars and buy the cars for the bulk of the trip in the US?
Assuming everything falls into place and Pub2Pub is another 2-car trip, we're planning to at least take the sports car the whole distance, as we're pitching the drive's USP as 'the longest journey ever undertaken by a sports car'.As for vehicle 2, it'd make sense to use something we already have in Europe, then buy a car in New York to complete the trip in, but from a potential sponsor's point of view, the continuity of having 'their' vehicle complete the whole journey would be an important consideration which may result in us acquiring car 2 in Europe and shipping it across the Atlantic too...
So basically, it's all a bit up in the air at this early stage - watch this space...
Quick update - it's been a fairly routine few weeks here at Pub2Pub HQ, but not without some interesting developments. Firstly, a lot of hard work has been going into our shiny new website, and in a week or two we should be at the stage when we can unveil it to the world. Once that's done, we'll be ready to start talking to potential expedition sponsors... exciting times!
In other news... well, I appear to have just bought a Renault 4 in Slovenia.
While the Renault won't be taking part in the Pub2Pub Expedition, it's likely that we'll be importing at least one of the vehicles from overseas as doing so obviously opens up a much greater range of LHD vehicles for us to choose from. With that in mind, when the chance to import a classic car from Slovenia randomly arose I jumped at it, as it'll make a perfect dry run for potentially importing a somewhat flashier Pub2Pub car from Europe at a later date.
So... I'm flying out to Slovenia to collect the beast on Sunday, and hopefully drive it the 1,500 miles back to the UK over the following few weeks. Wish me luck!
In other news... well, I appear to have just bought a Renault 4 in Slovenia.
While the Renault won't be taking part in the Pub2Pub Expedition, it's likely that we'll be importing at least one of the vehicles from overseas as doing so obviously opens up a much greater range of LHD vehicles for us to choose from. With that in mind, when the chance to import a classic car from Slovenia randomly arose I jumped at it, as it'll make a perfect dry run for potentially importing a somewhat flashier Pub2Pub car from Europe at a later date.
So... I'm flying out to Slovenia to collect the beast on Sunday, and hopefully drive it the 1,500 miles back to the UK over the following few weeks. Wish me luck!
Black_S3 said:
Now that I like! Despite being ostensibly fairly similar, it actually looks a world away from the Rolls Royce which accompanied the Corvette across Asia. And it combines the dignified charm we're after with a 6.8l turbocharged V8... I approve.
hidetheelephants said:
V12 Japanese barge insanity, or if that's too much insanity V8 bargeness is a bit milder.
Excellent suggestions - ideas don't come much more leftfield than that pair; I approve. Especially the V8 Nissan President. That actually looks pretty good value, for what it is. Any idea whether they're as much of a complicated money pit as I'm imagining?Dr G said:
Please get Ariel on board and drive across the world in a Nomad! 
But... I'd die. Quite literally, I'd die. Smiling Maybe lacks a bit in the cylinder count department, but its Italian, RWD, manual, top down motoring, no driver aids, and has a reputation for reliability that would make it quite possibly the worst choice for such a trip
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C602096#
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C602096#
It's been a pretty busy month here at Pub2Pub HQ. Firstly, the Renault 4 we bought in Slovenia has made it back to the UK, covering the 1,800 miles home in a week, in fine style and without missing a beat. The full story of it's trip home is here: https://80breakdowns.com/2016/05/29/renaulting-bac...
Since getting back to the UK, we've started the ball rolling on importing the 'Benault', and have also witnessed it fail its MOT rather impressively, meaning we basically have a restoration project on our hands which we've got to complete before we can get stuck into sourcing a trip vehicle.
In other news, if you followed the V8Nam thread, you'll be familiar with the Corvette. Well, it's back on the road this week for the first time in 18 months. And fittingly, given the name of my blog, it broke down on its very first trip, last Wednesday.
The breakdown was caused by the (brand new) rotor arm striking the inside of the (brand new) distributor cap and disintegrating the first time I hit full throttle, so didn't leave us stranded for long, but was still somewhat annoying. From Pub2Pub's point of view, it's good to have the V8Nam Vette back on the road, as it's a pretty powerful tool to show and persuade potential trip sponsors, as well as being physical proof that when we say we're going to drive around the world, we're capable of acting on it.
In other news, we've been hard at work and now have a shiny new trip website up and running, over at www.pub2pubexpedition.com - go forth and enjoy!
Edited by fivetenben on Sunday 12th June 15:08
Another great write up. Thanks for sharing. 
fivetenben said:
Since getting back to the UK, we've started the ball rolling on importing the 'Benault', and have also witnessed it fail its MOT rather impressively
Whereas in Slovenia...fivetenben said:
it needed the Slovenian equivalent of an MOT, locally recognized insurance and various other mundane things which generally cost money. However, we were lucky to be buying off someone who knew the system well enough to quickly rattle through such obstacles, and after a few hours of pen pushing and euro-peeling, the Benault was registered, insured, taxed, MOT’d and fitted with temporary numberplates
Did the Slovenian MoT actually need an inspection or did a handful of Euros do the job? I'd be interested to know what it failed on in the UK but was allowed to pass on in Slovenia. g3org3y said:
Did the Slovenian MoT actually need an inspection or did a handful of Euros do the job? I'd be interested to know what it failed on in the UK but was allowed to pass on in Slovenia.
I wasn't present for the MOT in Slovenia, so I'm guessing it may not have been the most stringent check ever; in contrast with the MOT I had done here which turned out to be possibly the most thorough MOT I've ever had done. As I bought the car from a mechanic, I have a hunch he may have been able to arrange a rather lax check-over.The main issue is that the Slovenian MOT totally missed the (rather well concealed) chassis rust around the rear suspension mounts, which I'm currently figuring out how to sort. If anyone knows a Renault 4 specialist in Devon, I'm all ears!
The other stuff it failed on in the UK isn't so much of an issue to put right - corroded brake lines, wiper & handbrake adjustment, a couple of torn CV gaiters and the fact I hadn't bolted on the fog light on tightly enough...
Chris944_S2 said:
Maybe lacks a bit in the cylinder count department, but its Italian, RWD, manual, top down motoring, no driver aids, and has a reputation for reliability that would make it quite possibly the worst choice for such a trip
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C602096#
It's funny you should suggest that - I was at the Auto Classica event at Brooklands a while back and was rather taken by an '80s Maserati Quattroporte. This one, in fact:http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C602096#
So effortlessly, individually stylish, I love it... almost as much as the Lamborghini Espada that was parked nearby.
You'd be a brave person to take an '80s Maserati on a trip like this though!
With just under a year until we hit the road, it's probably a good time for an update on how things are coming along in Pub2Pub-world...
So, what's new since last time?
Well, starting on a slight tangent, the Renault 4 we picked up in Slovenia to try our hand at importing cars is progressing... slowly. The Achilles heal of these cars is rear chassis rust, and ours seems to have taken the concept and ran with it. We're aiming to have it all fixed and in for an MOT in the next few weeks, provided we can find the time.
We've got a bit more media coverage in place over the past months, both in specialist overlanding circles, and more general motoring channels. The most notable piece of exposure is on Clarkson, Hammond and May's forthcoming website - drivetribe - for which I've been selected as a contributor & 'tribe leader'. I'm not 100% sure what this entails at the moment, but I'm assuming it'll at least give us a reasonably high profile soapbox from which to spread the Pub2Pub word...
Now we've got some pretty solid media coverage in place, we've started our search for a trip car in earnest. So far, we've approached several manufacturers of Cobra replicas with a marketing proposal, and while our reception has been warm and everyone we've spoken to has been pretty enthusiastic about the project - and the USP of building a kit then undertaking the longest journey ever made in a sports car in it - a car hasn't been forthcoming yet. Fortunately, there are quite a few kit manufacturers in the UK and further afield, so we've a fair few potential avenues to pursue, with fingers crossed that one will yield an automotive sponsor.
We've also finalised our plan for funding the expedition. Firstly, once we have a vehicle we'll be seeking a headline sponsor. As well as a headline sponsor, we'll also be teaming up with product sponsors, to supply the trip with travel and overlanding equipment which matches the trip's 'lost art of travel' ethos. So far, we've got two of these onboard - eyewear & lifestyle clothing partner dewerstone, and timekeeping partner Croft Watches. Once we have a few more partners, we'll be setting up a 'style shop' on the Pub2Pub website, where in theory people will be able to purchase anything they see being used on the expedition, giving us a revenue stream when we're on the road.
So that's where we are right now - hopefully by the end of the summer we'll have a vehicle and be starting to raise the cash we need to make Pub2Pub happen... watch this space! Oh, and this space too: www.pub2pubexpedition.com
So, what's new since last time?
Well, starting on a slight tangent, the Renault 4 we picked up in Slovenia to try our hand at importing cars is progressing... slowly. The Achilles heal of these cars is rear chassis rust, and ours seems to have taken the concept and ran with it. We're aiming to have it all fixed and in for an MOT in the next few weeks, provided we can find the time.
We've got a bit more media coverage in place over the past months, both in specialist overlanding circles, and more general motoring channels. The most notable piece of exposure is on Clarkson, Hammond and May's forthcoming website - drivetribe - for which I've been selected as a contributor & 'tribe leader'. I'm not 100% sure what this entails at the moment, but I'm assuming it'll at least give us a reasonably high profile soapbox from which to spread the Pub2Pub word...
Now we've got some pretty solid media coverage in place, we've started our search for a trip car in earnest. So far, we've approached several manufacturers of Cobra replicas with a marketing proposal, and while our reception has been warm and everyone we've spoken to has been pretty enthusiastic about the project - and the USP of building a kit then undertaking the longest journey ever made in a sports car in it - a car hasn't been forthcoming yet. Fortunately, there are quite a few kit manufacturers in the UK and further afield, so we've a fair few potential avenues to pursue, with fingers crossed that one will yield an automotive sponsor.
We've also finalised our plan for funding the expedition. Firstly, once we have a vehicle we'll be seeking a headline sponsor. As well as a headline sponsor, we'll also be teaming up with product sponsors, to supply the trip with travel and overlanding equipment which matches the trip's 'lost art of travel' ethos. So far, we've got two of these onboard - eyewear & lifestyle clothing partner dewerstone, and timekeeping partner Croft Watches. Once we have a few more partners, we'll be setting up a 'style shop' on the Pub2Pub website, where in theory people will be able to purchase anything they see being used on the expedition, giving us a revenue stream when we're on the road.
So that's where we are right now - hopefully by the end of the summer we'll have a vehicle and be starting to raise the cash we need to make Pub2Pub happen... watch this space! Oh, and this space too: www.pub2pubexpedition.com
Edited by fivetenben on Saturday 30th July 15:37
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