1972 Mercedes W108 280SE 4.5
Discussion
alabbasi said:
That distributor green wire looks shot and new ones are quite expensive. If you're going to to get rid of the points and go with Petronix, save the ICU and sell it on ebay. It should more than pay for a Petronix setup.
Well, I still have the CDI setup 
.It's time I updated this once
.I got a little sick of the Farage plates. And so I got a quality set of new ones! Not cheap, but not a bad looking set either.
I almost went with ones like on my Stag, but I think I made the right choice in the end.
But, let's get back on track. After all, there are always flies in the ointment. Like most stories, I had great intentions, but it wasn't to be.
It all started with me changing the air filter. From RockAuto, I ordered a 'Standard Motor Products' Filter. Over here, a Mann filter was £50+. Sure, I know it's a Mercedes, but even a CSL filter isn't much pricier than that, and I know which filter is rarer out of the two, and it isn't the Merc item! So, I took a gamble. Would the new filter be much worse?
No! And I would be in for a surprise!
Yup, the new filter was also a Mann filter, of the same type too! When compared to the old filter, it was clear that the old one had seen better days! So it was a case of being out with the old and in with the new:
With that done, it was time to move onto the HT leads! While my car ran fine, the HT leads were in a bit of a state! It was clear that with half of them having insulation tape on them, they were well past their best.
It all started with me changing the air filter. From RockAuto, I ordered a 'Standard Motor Products' Filter. Over here, a Mann filter was £50+. Sure, I know it's a Mercedes, but even a CSL filter isn't much pricier than that, and I know which filter is rarer out of the two, and it isn't the Merc item! So, I took a gamble. Would the new filter be much worse?
No! And I would be in for a surprise!
Yup, the new filter was also a Mann filter, of the same type too! When compared to the old filter, it was clear that the old one had seen better days! So it was a case of being out with the old and in with the new:
With that done, it was time to move onto the HT leads! While my car ran fine, the HT leads were in a bit of a state! It was clear that with half of them having insulation tape on them, they were well past their best.
This wasn't really a surprise to me! When I searched online, decent HT leads from Bosch were £120+ and specific to the V8 only. Not a great price, but not the worst I've seen for HT leads! Obviously, I wasn't too keen on splashing out for them! However, when a set of Denso HT leads popped up from RockAuto, I decided to give them a go at £60, and I must say that the quality of the them is very impressive! Certainly better than the Magnecors I've purchased for other cars
But would the car drive differently? It certainly would! From starting on the button, it now started even more positively and seemed a little more responsive! Almost as if the car had got rid of a hangover! Was it a success? You bet it was!
While the car seemed to be running well, it gave me a bit of a scare on the bank holiday weekend! After getting a new dizzy cap, I fitted it onto the car. It was in a better state compared to what I removed. At this point, it can only go swimmingly, surely?
Well, that's what we were all expecting! But our survey said EH ERRRHHHH
Yup! I went from a running car to one that wouldn't start. I mean, it wouldn't even attempt to start up, after very briefly running for 1 second. When I came to check for a spark from the coil, I could see that it had 12V at the coil, but no spark coming from it! How was this possible? What kind of witchcraft was this? I then put the old dizzy cap on in blind faith, hoping for the best. Was it a futile exercise? Probably. But it still wouldn't spark!
Eventually, it fired up when it randomly got a spark back. But, it wasn't perfect! The car decided that it wanted a flirtation of iffy running with me. In town, it cut out cleaning for 1 second, before catching and firing up again! This is not what you want when you are wishing to take a car to France or Goodwood! I was tempted to treat it as a one off, but it seemed Googling a non-starting 4.5 would make me question a few things!
Basically, these cars run a strange ignition sytem as follows:
-Ignition (Transistor) Box to take the load off the points
-Points and condensor, albeit the latter is put in as a redundancy measure and isn't needed with the above box. Mercedes even say this now.
-From the Ignition box, 2 ballast resistors (1 is a 0.6Ohm, the other a 0.4 Ohm) run in series to the coil, with a starter feed bypassing one of the ballast resistors
It seems the transistor box after time can form poor connections internally and cause iffy running! The way I saw it, I had a few choices:
-Keep the system as it is : I didn't really trust the igntion side after that scare. Am I overreacting? Maybe? But I also don't want to break down on a motorway to Goodwood or France either!
-Fit a secondhand item ; I may still have the same issue
-Go electronic : Naturally, i can switch the points out for a hall-effect system or go all out with a Nodiz setup
What would I end up doing? Well, we'll see. What would you folks have done in the above?
The two ballast resistors are wired as such so that one will send power to the coil while cranking and the other will send power to the coil when running. In short, if one goes bad then it would behave exactly as you indicated where it would act like it wants to start but never catch.
Don't crank too much. The injectors are still firing, I blew up a back box that way (literally blew it wide open) on one of those.
Don't crank too much. The injectors are still firing, I blew up a back box that way (literally blew it wide open) on one of those.
I didn't crank it as the issue seemed to fix itself, but I no longer trusted the car. So, back to the dilemma.
A few people were saying I'd devalue the car and lose the orginilaity! I make no secret about being a tinkerer, but I do also know one thing! To enjoy a car, first you have to trust the car! Not having it moving will naturally compromise that [img]//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png" alt=";)" class="smile[/img].
So, how would I resolve this? Simple.
Get a means of removing that complexity for something a little more reliable! Sure, people say points are easier and can get you back home, but when you have a system with a fancy box in that's knocking on 50 years old, I think I can be excused [img alt=";)" class="smile" src="//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png[/img].
I tried to look for less fancier options but it seems Pertronix are about the only people who make a conversion kit for my Mercedes. I had two choices on how I wired up the Pertronix system:
[ul type="disc[/img]
[li]Ditch the points but keep the ignition box and ballast resistors. Seeing as I didn't trust the ignition box and they seem to go wrong, I wasn't keen to do that![/li]
[li]Lose the ignition box, ballast resistors and coil and go with a coil compatible with the Pertronix setup[/li]
[/ul]
Well, you can guess what I did! I originally planned on going with a normal looking, but higher energy/lower impedance Ignitior II coil, but then choices can be the bane of our lives. Upon playing with the Pertronix configurator, I spotted that I could get a Pertronix Ingitor HV coil. It offered more volts, a lower impedance and I noticed that it was an epoxy coil ; the other 'normal' looking epoxy Ignitor II coil seemed tricky to find anyway! Naturally, this left me with a dilemna, and like anyone in this situation, logic soon went out of the window!
As it turned out, not a walk in the park. Not terrible, but I was creating more work for myself, which I seem to enjoy doing!
By buying the larger coil, I'd have to make a mounting plate to secure it to the original fixing holes. So, not a real biggy in the grand scheme of things [img]//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png" class="smile" alt=";)[/img]. There was another issue with going electronic, that I've created for myself, but I'll come to that later [img]//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png" alt=";)" class="smile[/img].
First, I'd remove the old system. Upon removing the parts, more and more issues seemed to arise.
Looking at stuff on the car, all seemed to be OK. A bit dirty but OK. I didn't look that carefully mind you, and in a relatively cramped engine bay, it's hard to see alot anyway! Some will see an issue here, and it's not the fact the ballast resistor is away from the bodywork. It was very hot to the touch too, but I understand that is normal.
It was then time to liberate the entire Ignition system from the car, but not without loosening off the power steering pump. Yes, I did just say that, but why would I loosen it?
The reason is that the points wire at some point had been pinched by the pump, probably during a belt change I'd have said, given that the pump's movements are adjustable. This may well have been a factor for why the car was losing spark:
The second thing I noticed was the ballast resistor, and initially I thought I was responsible, until I saw the above photos off my camera. I guess taking photos can be handy at times
Yup, the resistor had cracked. It seems to have been cracked for quite some time, and yes, my Merc had two of them! It looks to have been cracked for quite some time going by the look of it. So, maybe it was the right call to be changing all of the parts! Maybe the points were bad!
Looking at the points, they're by far the worst set I've seen. They had some very minor marks, but I've seen cars run fine with much worse points present. Just as well as Bosch points alone are around £30 for this. You can go cheaper, but I've also been bitten by cheap points in the past, so it was another plus point for the Pertronix system!
Finally, I changed the spark plugs. In all honesty, the old ones didn't look too bad, but it seems that like the plugs in my W124, the Bosch items were resistored, which is what the aftermarket catalogues say is true. It's funny, as Mercedes sell the non-resistored plugs to Joe Public. As a result, the non-resistored NGK BP6EYs went into the Merc.
So, with all of these changes, would it start? Well, I'll leave that for another time.
A few people were saying I'd devalue the car and lose the orginilaity! I make no secret about being a tinkerer, but I do also know one thing! To enjoy a car, first you have to trust the car! Not having it moving will naturally compromise that [img]//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png" alt=";)" class="smile[/img].
So, how would I resolve this? Simple.
Get a means of removing that complexity for something a little more reliable! Sure, people say points are easier and can get you back home, but when you have a system with a fancy box in that's knocking on 50 years old, I think I can be excused [img alt=";)" class="smile" src="//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png[/img].
I tried to look for less fancier options but it seems Pertronix are about the only people who make a conversion kit for my Mercedes. I had two choices on how I wired up the Pertronix system:
[ul type="disc[/img]
[li]Ditch the points but keep the ignition box and ballast resistors. Seeing as I didn't trust the ignition box and they seem to go wrong, I wasn't keen to do that![/li]
[li]Lose the ignition box, ballast resistors and coil and go with a coil compatible with the Pertronix setup[/li]
[/ul]
Well, you can guess what I did! I originally planned on going with a normal looking, but higher energy/lower impedance Ignitior II coil, but then choices can be the bane of our lives. Upon playing with the Pertronix configurator, I spotted that I could get a Pertronix Ingitor HV coil. It offered more volts, a lower impedance and I noticed that it was an epoxy coil ; the other 'normal' looking epoxy Ignitor II coil seemed tricky to find anyway! Naturally, this left me with a dilemna, and like anyone in this situation, logic soon went out of the window!
As it turned out, not a walk in the park. Not terrible, but I was creating more work for myself, which I seem to enjoy doing!
By buying the larger coil, I'd have to make a mounting plate to secure it to the original fixing holes. So, not a real biggy in the grand scheme of things [img]//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png" class="smile" alt=";)[/img]. There was another issue with going electronic, that I've created for myself, but I'll come to that later [img]//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png" alt=";)" class="smile[/img].
First, I'd remove the old system. Upon removing the parts, more and more issues seemed to arise.
Looking at stuff on the car, all seemed to be OK. A bit dirty but OK. I didn't look that carefully mind you, and in a relatively cramped engine bay, it's hard to see alot anyway! Some will see an issue here, and it's not the fact the ballast resistor is away from the bodywork. It was very hot to the touch too, but I understand that is normal.
It was then time to liberate the entire Ignition system from the car, but not without loosening off the power steering pump. Yes, I did just say that, but why would I loosen it?
The reason is that the points wire at some point had been pinched by the pump, probably during a belt change I'd have said, given that the pump's movements are adjustable. This may well have been a factor for why the car was losing spark:
The second thing I noticed was the ballast resistor, and initially I thought I was responsible, until I saw the above photos off my camera. I guess taking photos can be handy at times
Yup, the resistor had cracked. It seems to have been cracked for quite some time, and yes, my Merc had two of them! It looks to have been cracked for quite some time going by the look of it. So, maybe it was the right call to be changing all of the parts! Maybe the points were bad!
Looking at the points, they're by far the worst set I've seen. They had some very minor marks, but I've seen cars run fine with much worse points present. Just as well as Bosch points alone are around £30 for this. You can go cheaper, but I've also been bitten by cheap points in the past, so it was another plus point for the Pertronix system!
Finally, I changed the spark plugs. In all honesty, the old ones didn't look too bad, but it seems that like the plugs in my W124, the Bosch items were resistored, which is what the aftermarket catalogues say is true. It's funny, as Mercedes sell the non-resistored plugs to Joe Public. As a result, the non-resistored NGK BP6EYs went into the Merc.
So, with all of these changes, would it start? Well, I'll leave that for another time
.It's good to see you think that Electronix Ignition is the way forward, especially with the Pertronix setup, as you mentioned earlier
But before I could tackle the Pertronix Setup, I changed the power steering filter. For some reason, Mercedes seem to like their filters ; most other cars have them, but they are built into the reservoir, meaning the reservoir either has to be cleaned or replaced.
Since this was a replaceable one, I changed it. However, I could not find an aftermarket supplier for one of these, so Mercedes it was in this case.
So, let's get back to the ignition system. When I initially tested the setup to see if it would work, I literally threw the setup into the car, twisting wires together where I thought it would take more than 1 minute to do a decent job.
Yes, it really did have an element of RoadKill about it! Once I determined that it would work, I got to work on tidying it up. The issues I had were
-Ignitor II ignition power wires were way too short
-Ignition 12V feed was miles away from the coil ; it fed the box before, not the coil power
-Mounting the coil itself
They needed to be made longer.
So, how would I start resolving this simple issue? Well, I went out and got more stuff, and ended spending a good hour on doing the job in the end! I didn't even solder the wires together! While I know some others here don't like soldering due to the wire being unable to flex, thus the wire can fatigure and break, I went with crimping this time, albeit with a difference.
First off I crimped the wire. I was going to solder the wire to the very end of the terminal, but in the end I ended up running some Super glue over the connection, thus help in waterproofing it going forwards. On top of this, I ended up using the crimps provided by Pertronix for the ignition coil ; I may change these to a similar style to the above, but I must say their crimps seem to be a level above the crappy generic Red, Yellow and Blue items, with the wire being secure. Again, I ran over the bare bit of the connection with glue.
Eventually, it looked something like this:
So, not bad! It could be better, but at least it looks vaguely tidy, and near enough unoticeable. But there is one more thing to add to this story.
Yup, I put a connector in place, thus allowing for the distributor to be removed easily if it needs to be.
As a result, I was rewarded with better hot starting, and possibly even a perkier engine,and the surge issues became a thing of the past. At least I thought for a long time.
But before I could tackle the Pertronix Setup, I changed the power steering filter. For some reason, Mercedes seem to like their filters ; most other cars have them, but they are built into the reservoir, meaning the reservoir either has to be cleaned or replaced.
Since this was a replaceable one, I changed it. However, I could not find an aftermarket supplier for one of these, so Mercedes it was in this case
.So, let's get back to the ignition system. When I initially tested the setup to see if it would work, I literally threw the setup into the car, twisting wires together where I thought it would take more than 1 minute to do a decent job.
Yes, it really did have an element of RoadKill about it! Once I determined that it would work, I got to work on tidying it up. The issues I had were
-Ignitor II ignition power wires were way too short
-Ignition 12V feed was miles away from the coil ; it fed the box before, not the coil power
-Mounting the coil itself
They needed to be made longer.
So, how would I start resolving this simple issue? Well, I went out and got more stuff, and ended spending a good hour on doing the job in the end! I didn't even solder the wires together! While I know some others here don't like soldering due to the wire being unable to flex, thus the wire can fatigure and break, I went with crimping this time, albeit with a difference
.First off I crimped the wire. I was going to solder the wire to the very end of the terminal, but in the end I ended up running some Super glue over the connection, thus help in waterproofing it going forwards. On top of this, I ended up using the crimps provided by Pertronix for the ignition coil ; I may change these to a similar style to the above, but I must say their crimps seem to be a level above the crappy generic Red, Yellow and Blue items, with the wire being secure. Again, I ran over the bare bit of the connection with glue
.Eventually, it looked something like this:
So, not bad! It could be better, but at least it looks vaguely tidy, and near enough unoticeable. But there is one more thing to add to this story.
Yup, I put a connector in place, thus allowing for the distributor to be removed easily if it needs to be.
As a result, I was rewarded with better hot starting, and possibly even a perkier engine,and the surge issues became a thing of the past. At least I thought for a long time
.With this done, the car was ready for me to go to the Retro Rides Weekender at Goodwood. In truth, the car did not dissapoint! It cruised down happliy! The only downside was me using £100 in fuel from Warwickshire to Goodwood and back! But who when you look that cool eh?
It was not a quick thing to drive. A 3.28 Final Drive ratio (one of the tallest rear ends fitted to a Swing Axle Merc), combined with a 3 speed auto, and 200BHP propelling along a 1600kg brick through the air , it was never going to be. But it had a way about it. That tall rear end gave it it superb high speed cruisability. It just wafted and romped along at 80!
But Goodwood for me was mainly a test run. I have a bit more of a test planned for the car. A test run which went rather well. However, even from that test run, I could tell a few things would need doing:
-Sound system tweaking a little more
-No heater controls ; mine have broken off
-Steering had over 1" of free play ; It's passable for an MOT but it's not right, especially going down country lanes, in addition to always correcting it.
-Passenger window was not fully closing ; it seemed to be jumping off the end of the regulator, well kind of.
While it seems I have prioritised the sound system. I hadn't. If anything, this was very much a reverse list. The heater I knew could come in handy, but I was aware that they were meant to be a nightmare to change in the W108s ; the dashboard is effectively part of the bulkhead, meaning everything has to be removed, and then removed from the back of the dashboard. And people thought moderns were bad.
By comparison, the M3's heater controls were relocated within about an hour when I converted that to a double-DIN Headunit, and that included me taking photos, going for loo breaks, and tea breaks. So I sacked that idea off, especially with a 2 week window to do the above, with me also working all of that time.
This meant I went to the passenger window. Not only was it annoying, it also meant that water could also enter. Not good on a car that would be outside for an entire weekend, and doing many more miles than I did to Goodwood! But there was nothing for it; I had to stop procrastanating and get stuck in!
Ooohhh, look a door! But, let's get closer eh?
It looks like I have found the smoking gun eh? A broken quadrant in the regulator! Great as I now have some spare regulator assemblies!
Now, hold that thought! The observant amongst you will have noticed a few things:
-The teeth on my original regulator are OK ; it's the grease that makes them look bad
-The older regulators are made of sturdier stuff, but they came with problems of their own ; The mounting was snapped on the passenger side door, despite the regulator working like a dream, and it was missing key stops which my original one had ; it had come off a different kind of W108 ; I was told these were off a W108 3.5
So, it seemed I was back to the drawing board. Not quite. I saw that I could salvage the regulator that was on the car. The issue was that the quadrant had become warped. I managed to straighten the quadrant enough, and sure enough, I had a window that fully closed again.
So, that was one issue done. But what about the steering? The truth is the steering coupler was absolutely shot. There was no rubber left in it at all. As a result, I had miles of free play at the wheel. I'd have taken photos of the job, but something happened:
I ended up making an impromptu trip to the Nurburgring with a mate. I did say that I might not go as I knew timings would be tight anyway with me going to Laon. But I had a counteroffer made for that.
So, whilst it's not Merc related, let's have a few 'Ring shots eh?
Ooooh look, an R107
Was I wishing I bought the M3 along? You bet! This trip is the first time I've been to the 'ring and not driven around it. Sometimes, it's good to just sit back and relax and honestly, I needed it!
But, R&R wasn't going to sort my Mercedes out! However, I did have a plan for my return. It's just as well, as I was going to need that plan!
It was not a quick thing to drive. A 3.28 Final Drive ratio (one of the tallest rear ends fitted to a Swing Axle Merc), combined with a 3 speed auto, and 200BHP propelling along a 1600kg brick through the air , it was never going to be
. But it had a way about it. That tall rear end gave it it superb high speed cruisability. It just wafted and romped along at 80!But Goodwood for me was mainly a test run. I have a bit more of a test planned for the car. A test run which went rather well. However, even from that test run, I could tell a few things would need doing:
-Sound system tweaking a little more
-No heater controls ; mine have broken off
-Steering had over 1" of free play ; It's passable for an MOT but it's not right, especially going down country lanes, in addition to always correcting it.
-Passenger window was not fully closing ; it seemed to be jumping off the end of the regulator, well kind of.
While it seems I have prioritised the sound system. I hadn't. If anything, this was very much a reverse list. The heater I knew could come in handy, but I was aware that they were meant to be a nightmare to change in the W108s ; the dashboard is effectively part of the bulkhead, meaning everything has to be removed, and then removed from the back of the dashboard. And people thought moderns were bad.
By comparison, the M3's heater controls were relocated within about an hour when I converted that to a double-DIN Headunit, and that included me taking photos, going for loo breaks, and tea breaks
. So I sacked that idea off, especially with a 2 week window to do the above, with me also working all of that time.This meant I went to the passenger window. Not only was it annoying, it also meant that water could also enter. Not good on a car that would be outside for an entire weekend, and doing many more miles than I did to Goodwood! But there was nothing for it; I had to stop procrastanating and get stuck in!
Ooohhh, look a door! But, let's get closer eh?
It looks like I have found the smoking gun eh? A broken quadrant in the regulator! Great as I now have some spare regulator assemblies!
Now, hold that thought! The observant amongst you will have noticed a few things:
-The teeth on my original regulator are OK ; it's the grease that makes them look bad
-The older regulators are made of sturdier stuff, but they came with problems of their own ; The mounting was snapped on the passenger side door, despite the regulator working like a dream, and it was missing key stops which my original one had ; it had come off a different kind of W108 ; I was told these were off a W108 3.5
So, it seemed I was back to the drawing board. Not quite. I saw that I could salvage the regulator that was on the car. The issue was that the quadrant had become warped. I managed to straighten the quadrant enough, and sure enough, I had a window that fully closed again.
So, that was one issue done. But what about the steering? The truth is the steering coupler was absolutely shot. There was no rubber left in it at all. As a result, I had miles of free play at the wheel. I'd have taken photos of the job, but something happened:
I ended up making an impromptu trip to the Nurburgring with a mate. I did say that I might not go as I knew timings would be tight anyway with me going to Laon. But I had a counteroffer made for that
.So, whilst it's not Merc related, let's have a few 'Ring shots eh?
Ooooh look, an R107
Was I wishing I bought the M3 along? You bet! This trip is the first time I've been to the 'ring and not driven around it. Sometimes, it's good to just sit back and relax and honestly, I needed it!
But, R&R wasn't going to sort my Mercedes out! However, I did have a plan for my return
. It's just as well, as I was going to need that plan!Window regulators interchange with the W114/W115 regulator and are available new. Heater lever handles break on all US spec cars. They are designed differently on the US cars to break on impact in the event that a child flies between the seats under hard breaking. The Euro spec cars hold up much better and will poke the kids eye out even today. Replacements are available.
Which ignition setup are you referring to?
The stock system is a points-assisted system. It had a CDI box to regulate the spark, which the points acting as a 'switch', thus not taking any real load. For this reason, the points last quite some time in an M117 engine.
The system the car now has is a simple replacement which is available for all manner of classic cars. Most classic cars just have points going to the coil, which controls the spark and the charging time of the ignition coil. With the Petronix setup, there is a Hall effect sensor in the dizzy (fitted by yourself) which gives the signal as to when to fire the coil.
With this being an Ignitor II setup, it can do variable Dwell depending on RPM, compared to the constant dwell angle of points (charging time of the ignition coil or even turn it off if you leave the keys in the ignition too, which can often kill an ignition coil.
The E-Core coil is basically an uprated coil. I like Epoxy coils as they don't tend to run as hot as an oil cooled coil. But in this case, the Bosch coils are wax filled. With the electromagnets being outside, it also helps them to become more efficient; imagine it as a larger version of a modern with a coil on plug coil. With this coil, the coil has never got hot, which the old one used to. For me, that's an improvement, which helps coil life and longevity.
The stock system is a points-assisted system. It had a CDI box to regulate the spark, which the points acting as a 'switch', thus not taking any real load. For this reason, the points last quite some time in an M117 engine.
The system the car now has is a simple replacement which is available for all manner of classic cars. Most classic cars just have points going to the coil, which controls the spark and the charging time of the ignition coil. With the Petronix setup, there is a Hall effect sensor in the dizzy (fitted by yourself) which gives the signal as to when to fire the coil.
With this being an Ignitor II setup, it can do variable Dwell depending on RPM, compared to the constant dwell angle of points (charging time of the ignition coil or even turn it off if you leave the keys in the ignition too, which can often kill an ignition coil.
The E-Core coil is basically an uprated coil. I like Epoxy coils as they don't tend to run as hot as an oil cooled coil. But in this case, the Bosch coils are wax filled. With the electromagnets being outside, it also helps them to become more efficient; imagine it as a larger version of a modern with a coil on plug coil. With this coil, the coil has never got hot, which the old one used to. For me, that's an improvement, which helps coil life and longevity.
The one area I didn't like of the car was the steering. It was vague! I've driven Land Rovers that are worse, but that's not really the point here [img]//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png" alt=";)" class="smile[/img]. With me driving it, that was one thing. But for my friends to drive it, that's another. It had to be right. I may be used to driving old crap, but it doesn't mean others should suffer my burden!
I'd have loved to have taken photos of this, and I will include some photos later, but a few things prevented me:
-I was pretty sleep deprived ; I got back at 4:30am in the morning, and had enough kip to ensure I didn't do anything stupod[/li]
-I was lacking time ; 4 days away from driving day![/li]
-Remember that favour I mentioned because I went to Germany? It was to borrow the
Naturally, I got on with the job, with some helpful muscle to hand.
One thing I was told was that this job was a pain in the proverbial. Alot of this stemmed from people's reluctance to drop the steering box. What the guides didn't mention was how the coupler shield within the car would be a royal pain in the proverbial to remove! Most manufacturers would have put the coupling inside the car, as they do these days. They'd also have made the shield stay in with a few bolt. If it was an overengineered car, maybe double. Mercedes? Try 10! They were all a pain to get to and while I got them out I knew I'd struggle to get them back in again. But that could wait eh?
But back to the coupling! We had to tackle it Under the guidance of one of the guys, we decided to try to remove it without removing the 'box. After trying to remove the coupling that way, it became clear it wasn't going to happen. As a result, I went with my gut feeling and dropping the steering box.
This improved things much more. As soon as the coupling came off, it became clear that it really had seen better days. However, I've kept the old coupling. Strange I know! My coupling oddly enough allows the bushes to be replaced ; something quite a few of them aren't. If the new coupling goes, I'll chuck some poly bushes into this and reuse it.
Then I put the new coupling in. Many go for the cheaper URO coupling, but some peeps have safety concerns over them due to the clamping bolt positions. Given that I got a reasonable price for a new coupling from Mercedes I fitted one of those, in addition to new screws:
Yup, the access was tight. Didn't someone make a thread about how old cars were easy to work on? I wonder if they worked on a W108 or W109 before...
It was then a case of reassembling the steering system again. As I predicted, the coupler shield inside the car was a realy pig to fit on. However, it was all good. With that in mind, there was nothing else left to do, but to test drive it!
Immediately the steering felt much better! Going by the look of the steering 'box, it seems to be a recon item fitted, which is a big plus!Finally, one big problem was solved! However, the gearshifter was still shifting all of the gears right, but it seemed ever so slightly misaligned from before. If there was an Angel and a Devil on my shoulder, I really should have listened to the devil!. But this is RR, and well, we don't work that way
I went to go and adjust the linkage. As soon as I tried to, the bushing at the gearbox end simply fell apart. Was I annoyed? You bet! I now have an almost unusable gear linkage. It couldn't get Park, or hold 1st (L) or 2nd (S) manually. That left me with Drive, Neutral and Reverse. Not terrible but not great. I sometimes use 2nd to get this car to go a little quicker, so I wanted it fixed quickly!
Fortunately, Mercedes had two bushes in stock for not alot of cash. The same couldn't be said for another certain Swing-Axle Mercedes specialist or the pricing either!
With this bush done on the next day after work, the gear change still wasn't perfect, but I had 2nd gear again. There was another bushing which looked old and ropey but I didn't want to chance changing that and being left with no gears whatsoever. That bushing/rod linkage was also goin to take 2 days to get to me. Not an ideal situation.
But it did mean that I could finish off a few touches on the car. Firstly, I threw a bucket of water over it. I also then attended to something many people have noticed was missing from the car. The centre caps.
I was given a set by the guy who lent me the ramp, albeit the fitment was questionable. I was tempted to paint them up, but I knew that would take time and effort that I simply didn't have, bearing in mind it was Wednesday night, and I was leaving the day after!
So, what did I get? Some of these?
[img]http://img.retro-rides.org/i/v/chasr/2fe8d9e69689.jpg" style="max-width:100%;[/img]
OK, the wheels are a little dirty! I got some centre caps. The keen-eyed will see the shabbier ones on in the shot before. These caps I bought had an interesting story.
I was told by a certain SL specialist that I couldn't buy the caps, and only they sold the 'Mexican Hat' caps for £80! Looking on eBay, it seemed the cheapest genuine set I could get were £50 in this country for something that was decent. Turkish replicas, albeit unpainted are £20. I almost bought the latter until I called Mercedes. The price was better than the eBay items by quite a way, so they got the business in the end. It pretty worked out to being the same price as the Turkish items after delivery. And don't they look good on my Replica Mexican hats?
With that did, all that was left to do was to fill the fuel tank up. At a £100 refill, it was expensive! After picking my mates up it was time to go to Dover.
After 180 miles of travelling and £60 later (no, really, the consumption is that bad!), I was at Dover. OK, I was at Ashford the night before getting some R&R. I even had a few other cars to keep the Merc company too!
So, where exactly was I heading? That's simple. The Laon Historique. And that why folks, is why there were other cars down at the dock!
Would the trip go well? Would the car drink more than Jordan out on the lash? Would we be able to afford the fuel? All of these questions would soon be answered.
I'd have loved to have taken photos of this, and I will include some photos later, but a few things prevented me:
-I was pretty sleep deprived ; I got back at 4:30am in the morning, and had enough kip to ensure I didn't do anything stupod[/li]
-I was lacking time ; 4 days away from driving day![/li]
-Remember that favour I mentioned because I went to Germany? It was to borrow the
Naturally, I got on with the job, with some helpful muscle to hand.
One thing I was told was that this job was a pain in the proverbial. Alot of this stemmed from people's reluctance to drop the steering box. What the guides didn't mention was how the coupler shield within the car would be a royal pain in the proverbial to remove! Most manufacturers would have put the coupling inside the car, as they do these days. They'd also have made the shield stay in with a few bolt. If it was an overengineered car, maybe double. Mercedes? Try 10! They were all a pain to get to and while I got them out I knew I'd struggle to get them back in again. But that could wait eh?
But back to the coupling! We had to tackle it Under the guidance of one of the guys, we decided to try to remove it without removing the 'box. After trying to remove the coupling that way, it became clear it wasn't going to happen. As a result, I went with my gut feeling and dropping the steering box.
This improved things much more. As soon as the coupling came off, it became clear that it really had seen better days. However, I've kept the old coupling. Strange I know! My coupling oddly enough allows the bushes to be replaced ; something quite a few of them aren't. If the new coupling goes, I'll chuck some poly bushes into this and reuse it.
Then I put the new coupling in. Many go for the cheaper URO coupling, but some peeps have safety concerns over them due to the clamping bolt positions. Given that I got a reasonable price for a new coupling from Mercedes I fitted one of those, in addition to new screws:
Yup, the access was tight. Didn't someone make a thread about how old cars were easy to work on? I wonder if they worked on a W108 or W109 before...
It was then a case of reassembling the steering system again. As I predicted, the coupler shield inside the car was a realy pig to fit on. However, it was all good. With that in mind, there was nothing else left to do, but to test drive it!
Immediately the steering felt much better! Going by the look of the steering 'box, it seems to be a recon item fitted, which is a big plus!Finally, one big problem was solved! However, the gearshifter was still shifting all of the gears right, but it seemed ever so slightly misaligned from before. If there was an Angel and a Devil on my shoulder, I really should have listened to the devil!. But this is RR, and well, we don't work that way
I went to go and adjust the linkage. As soon as I tried to, the bushing at the gearbox end simply fell apart. Was I annoyed? You bet! I now have an almost unusable gear linkage. It couldn't get Park, or hold 1st (L) or 2nd (S) manually. That left me with Drive, Neutral and Reverse. Not terrible but not great. I sometimes use 2nd to get this car to go a little quicker, so I wanted it fixed quickly!
Fortunately, Mercedes had two bushes in stock for not alot of cash. The same couldn't be said for another certain Swing-Axle Mercedes specialist or the pricing either!
With this bush done on the next day after work, the gear change still wasn't perfect, but I had 2nd gear again. There was another bushing which looked old and ropey but I didn't want to chance changing that and being left with no gears whatsoever. That bushing/rod linkage was also goin to take 2 days to get to me. Not an ideal situation.
But it did mean that I could finish off a few touches on the car. Firstly, I threw a bucket of water over it. I also then attended to something many people have noticed was missing from the car. The centre caps.
I was given a set by the guy who lent me the ramp, albeit the fitment was questionable. I was tempted to paint them up, but I knew that would take time and effort that I simply didn't have, bearing in mind it was Wednesday night, and I was leaving the day after!
So, what did I get? Some of these?
[img]http://img.retro-rides.org/i/v/chasr/2fe8d9e69689.jpg" style="max-width:100%;[/img]
OK, the wheels are a little dirty! I got some centre caps. The keen-eyed will see the shabbier ones on in the shot before. These caps I bought had an interesting story.
I was told by a certain SL specialist that I couldn't buy the caps, and only they sold the 'Mexican Hat' caps for £80! Looking on eBay, it seemed the cheapest genuine set I could get were £50 in this country for something that was decent. Turkish replicas, albeit unpainted are £20. I almost bought the latter until I called Mercedes. The price was better than the eBay items by quite a way, so they got the business in the end. It pretty worked out to being the same price as the Turkish items after delivery. And don't they look good on my Replica Mexican hats?
With that did, all that was left to do was to fill the fuel tank up. At a £100 refill, it was expensive! After picking my mates up it was time to go to Dover.
After 180 miles of travelling and £60 later (no, really, the consumption is that bad!), I was at Dover. OK, I was at Ashford the night before getting some R&R. I even had a few other cars to keep the Merc company too!
So, where exactly was I heading? That's simple. The Laon Historique. And that why folks, is why there were other cars down at the dock!
Would the trip go well? Would the car drink more than Jordan out on the lash? Would we be able to afford the fuel? All of these questions would soon be answered.
So, the car made it down, and what a car!
The changes I had made were apparent, including to my passengers! The Falken tyres were gripping well, the car cruised down effortlessly, and even my friends commented on how well the Merc lit the road up at night, thanks to the Cibies and the Osram Nightbreaker bulbs; surprising given I was doing 70-80mph all of the way in addition to them being used to HID equipped cars!
The car didn't however just prove itself in being a worthy companion in being a mile destroying cruiser, it also proved itself at being incredibly thirsty! Going from Warwick to Ashford took £55. And that was before I even hit the docks! Clearly, that was going to be a theme on the trip!
In light of that, I went to doing 70MPH on the autoroutes in France, seeing if that would make a difference. With the car enjoying a drink as much as we were enjoying our time in it, we stopped off at the first stop of many on the trip. Bethume, just outside of Arras. No, really, Arras is the name of a place! Don't snigger you childish lot!
Sure, the car was looking a little dirty as I ran out of time, but it still had presence!
For the Harry Metcalfe fans here, a Jaguar Project 8 made it over! It looked great! Sure, it's not everyone's cup of teat, but it's not a bad bit of engineering :
It wasn't long before we saw some usual suspects out on the prowl:
Seeing a Mk2 jag was interesting! They are probably the closest thing to my Merc, and I still like them! This one looked great with its hint towards its sportiness. Maybe one day I'll have one; well, I can hope to can't I? A lottery maybe
Both of these cars represented a milestone in Jag's history, but for very different reasons. One for its innovation, the other for its styling
Before we knew it, the time came for us to check into our hotel, and make our way down.
I would eventually get down to Saint Quentin. This marked one difference to how I did things last year, where effectively it was a 'semi-package weekend trip'. The only thing I paid for separately last time was my fuel and food. This time I did it the way I used to do things ; separately.
This would be a pain as
-the organisers of the event, not Scenic Classic Car Tours (SCCT), are lacklustre in communicating at best! That includes calling France, emailing them, you name it! But, I did eventually get a confirmation thankfully
-Places around Laon and Saint-Quentin sold out fast ; after all, SCCT buy all of the slots near neough!
-The ferry crossing would come out of my own pocket in addition to balancing time and price, and I wouldn't get the free coffee and biscuits on the boat!
So, I'd encountered more hassle doing it this way. But compared to last year, the savings were surprising and given the car's thirst, this wasn't a bad thing! It also proved to be the right way to do it, as I got a lovely appartment to stay in, far nicer than the hotels offered last year! If there was one thing missing, you were a little further away from the socialising; after all; with SCCT booking all of the slots, the pockets of where people are is concentrated! But that's hardly a dealbreaker.
However, the fun would begin on the next day.
The changes I had made were apparent, including to my passengers! The Falken tyres were gripping well, the car cruised down effortlessly, and even my friends commented on how well the Merc lit the road up at night, thanks to the Cibies and the Osram Nightbreaker bulbs; surprising given I was doing 70-80mph all of the way in addition to them being used to HID equipped cars!
The car didn't however just prove itself in being a worthy companion in being a mile destroying cruiser, it also proved itself at being incredibly thirsty! Going from Warwick to Ashford took £55. And that was before I even hit the docks! Clearly, that was going to be a theme on the trip!
In light of that, I went to doing 70MPH on the autoroutes in France, seeing if that would make a difference. With the car enjoying a drink as much as we were enjoying our time in it, we stopped off at the first stop of many on the trip. Bethume, just outside of Arras. No, really, Arras is the name of a place! Don't snigger you childish lot!
Sure, the car was looking a little dirty as I ran out of time, but it still had presence!
For the Harry Metcalfe fans here, a Jaguar Project 8 made it over! It looked great! Sure, it's not everyone's cup of teat, but it's not a bad bit of engineering :
It wasn't long before we saw some usual suspects out on the prowl:
Seeing a Mk2 jag was interesting! They are probably the closest thing to my Merc, and I still like them! This one looked great with its hint towards its sportiness. Maybe one day I'll have one; well, I can hope to can't I? A lottery maybe
Both of these cars represented a milestone in Jag's history, but for very different reasons. One for its innovation, the other for its styling
Before we knew it, the time came for us to check into our hotel, and make our way down.
I would eventually get down to Saint Quentin. This marked one difference to how I did things last year, where effectively it was a 'semi-package weekend trip'. The only thing I paid for separately last time was my fuel and food. This time I did it the way I used to do things ; separately.
This would be a pain as
-the organisers of the event, not Scenic Classic Car Tours (SCCT), are lacklustre in communicating at best! That includes calling France, emailing them, you name it! But, I did eventually get a confirmation thankfully
-Places around Laon and Saint-Quentin sold out fast ; after all, SCCT buy all of the slots near neough!
-The ferry crossing would come out of my own pocket in addition to balancing time and price, and I wouldn't get the free coffee and biscuits on the boat!
So, I'd encountered more hassle doing it this way. But compared to last year, the savings were surprising and given the car's thirst, this wasn't a bad thing! It also proved to be the right way to do it, as I got a lovely appartment to stay in, far nicer than the hotels offered last year! If there was one thing missing, you were a little further away from the socialising; after all; with SCCT booking all of the slots, the pockets of where people are is concentrated! But that's hardly a dealbreaker.
However, the fun would begin on the next day
.I've been a little busy. Apologies for the few of you that are reading this! But it's about time I carried on the tale!
So, the day of the rally finally crept up like a warm kitten! What would I do? That's simple. Go up to the pack collection tend to get my rally pack, and carry on. This was no different to last year. I expected it to be more of a pain but surprisingly, it was a straightforward affair.
There were also plenty of cars to see! One of the benefits of the Laon Historique is that you get to see all sorts of cars coming to and fro! And there are quite a few!
Of course, we arrive to my W108, and doesn't it look right at home in this shot?
Naturally, the tradionalist classic car owners were also present:
For those thinking all of the cars are lovely, there were a number of rolling restorations present, which is always great to see. Take this Rover P5B. This owner was pretty much fixing it along the trip!
Want more Mercs? We have a 220SE and a 200D Fintail!
Naturally, some modern stuff had crept in. One of the more interesting moderns was an Alfa 4C. A car which has divisive opinions, but one where none can disagree on the looks :
Which one sir? Left or right?
And so eventually we had to stop surveying and get on with driving! Following the rally route was interesting! It was a joy to drive the Merc around, as it cruised effortlessly everywhere! Eventually we made it Soissons!
Here's a strange one. The 914 an the MGF in my opinion have alot in common. Both were good sales success stories, and both after a while became a bit of a joke to own. Both however, helped stuggling companies get through some hard times. Obviously the 914 now has a strong following. Will the MGF follow suit? Who knows?
See what I mean about unusual stuff?
If you are thinking the classic car owners were brave in driving down, think again? Yup, this is a UK-Mercedes, and most likely a pre-war car :
There were a few Simcas at this event, which is nice to see:
403 sir? Please do! It's interesting how its successors have followed:
This car came along last year, and boy does it look great! The bodywork tells a story, and it carries its stories with such pride! It's a lovely thing:
Eventually though, it was time to head back down the rally, back to Laon:
Before we knew it, the day was over. What a day, and what cars and people!
So, the day of the rally finally crept up like a warm kitten! What would I do? That's simple. Go up to the pack collection tend to get my rally pack, and carry on. This was no different to last year. I expected it to be more of a pain but surprisingly, it was a straightforward affair
.There were also plenty of cars to see! One of the benefits of the Laon Historique is that you get to see all sorts of cars coming to and fro! And there are quite a few!
Of course, we arrive to my W108, and doesn't it look right at home in this shot?
Naturally, the tradionalist classic car owners were also present:
For those thinking all of the cars are lovely, there were a number of rolling restorations present, which is always great to see. Take this Rover P5B. This owner was pretty much fixing it along the trip!
Want more Mercs? We have a 220SE and a 200D Fintail!
Naturally, some modern stuff had crept in. One of the more interesting moderns was an Alfa 4C. A car which has divisive opinions, but one where none can disagree on the looks :
Which one sir? Left or right?
And so eventually we had to stop surveying and get on with driving! Following the rally route was interesting! It was a joy to drive the Merc around, as it cruised effortlessly everywhere! Eventually we made it Soissons!
Here's a strange one. The 914 an the MGF in my opinion have alot in common. Both were good sales success stories, and both after a while became a bit of a joke to own. Both however, helped stuggling companies get through some hard times. Obviously the 914 now has a strong following. Will the MGF follow suit? Who knows?
See what I mean about unusual stuff?
If you are thinking the classic car owners were brave in driving down, think again? Yup, this is a UK-Mercedes, and most likely a pre-war car :
There were a few Simcas at this event, which is nice to see:
403 sir? Please do! It's interesting how its successors have followed:
This car came along last year, and boy does it look great! The bodywork tells a story, and it carries its stories with such pride! It's a lovely thing:
Eventually though, it was time to head back down the rally, back to Laon:
Before we knew it, the day was over. What a day, and what cars and people!
To be fair, even with an Escort, you'll be fine. As you can see, there was a good variety of stuff about!
If this show looks like an traditionalists convention, thing again! Sure, this NSX may not be appreciated at such an event to some onlookers but it was great to see it! I doubt we'll see cars like this again:
However, it was then time to drive back through the reverse route of the rally, and weren't there some great views! No, not of my mate pretending to be a bellhop, but of the roads!
Eventually, we made it back to Laon. It's a shame the weather was being sporadic but it didn't stop people talking and breaking bread over their classics, their stories and the good times.
This is one for @dollywobbler ; I never thought I'd see a Metro turn up! Whoever thought these would be called retro and people would look at one at a show? Not me! I guess that's rust and questionable build quality for you:
This was all sorts of cool
But the time would come for me to call it a day, have a few beers and chill out in the appartment, awaiting what the next day would have in store. At least this time the car really looked the part:
If this show looks like an traditionalists convention, thing again! Sure, this NSX may not be appreciated at such an event to some onlookers but it was great to see it! I doubt we'll see cars like this again:
However, it was then time to drive back through the reverse route of the rally, and weren't there some great views! No, not of my mate pretending to be a bellhop, but of the roads!
Eventually, we made it back to Laon. It's a shame the weather was being sporadic but it didn't stop people talking and breaking bread over their classics, their stories and the good times.
This is one for @dollywobbler ; I never thought I'd see a Metro turn up! Whoever thought these would be called retro and people would look at one at a show? Not me! I guess that's rust and questionable build quality for you:
This was all sorts of cool
But the time would come for me to call it a day, have a few beers and chill out in the appartment, awaiting what the next day would have in store. At least this time the car really looked the part:
I wrote a massive story detailing this, but my PC decided it would die! Arrrrgh! So I'll try and create it again!
Sundays at the LH are certainly more of a chilled vibe! After all, it's a parade around the town as the above video shows. However, that's not to say it's quiet prior to that. Oh no! If people are not sinking down a coffee, a beer or a spot of lunch, they'll be admiring the cars. After all, it's not like you are lacking variety at this venue!
Here's a top tip! Want to please Remainers and Leavers? Easy, get some flags! Here I was the dictator of public relations
Got to love a Renault:
For those thinking it's concours only, think again! This Rover P5B wore its scars with pride, and I'm sure that car has some stories to tell:
Where you love or hate the F-Type, this Quaker State Tribute was a nice nod to the past:
Got to love a bit of Alpine!
Haven't got enough Technoviolet in your life? Check this out!
The bikes may have been annoying but they were certainly cool! What do you think to next year @maph2?
Two sports cars, but which one would you take home?
It's fair to say my mate loved it behind the wheel!
Up in the town, things were looking great:
That man Costello would end up making the MGB a bit of a gamechanger:
And won't you know it, I've slipped into the final day with the last few shots! That can wait for later.
Sundays at the LH are certainly more of a chilled vibe! After all, it's a parade around the town as the above video shows. However, that's not to say it's quiet prior to that. Oh no! If people are not sinking down a coffee, a beer or a spot of lunch, they'll be admiring the cars. After all, it's not like you are lacking variety at this venue!
Here's a top tip! Want to please Remainers and Leavers? Easy, get some flags! Here I was the dictator of public relations
Got to love a Renault:
For those thinking it's concours only, think again! This Rover P5B wore its scars with pride, and I'm sure that car has some stories to tell:
Where you love or hate the F-Type, this Quaker State Tribute was a nice nod to the past:
Got to love a bit of Alpine!
Haven't got enough Technoviolet in your life? Check this out!
The bikes may have been annoying but they were certainly cool! What do you think to next year @maph2?
Two sports cars, but which one would you take home?
It's fair to say my mate loved it behind the wheel!
Up in the town, things were looking great:
That man Costello would end up making the MGB a bit of a gamechanger:
And won't you know it, I've slipped into the final day with the last few shots! That can wait for later
.For some reason I forgot to update this! Times were busy when I told the story of this thread however! There wasn't even much to say!
With the final day upon us, we drove on, enjoying the trip as the video shows! We have an enthuiastic Alfa Romeo driver, and some great scenery, both with the classics and also the countryside nature itself!
As we went through the villages, the people loved seeing all of the cars going through. From a '40s Traction Avant to a 00s MX-5! There really is a mix. If you don't like the mix, there's some else you will love that you can see.
Even thought I wasn't driving, I managed to get some great shots! OK, the colour balance of the shots could be better, but I am attempting to turn a corner there now.
I kept thinking that I could have mopped that car better, with the techniques I know now, which seem to work very well. However, looking back at these shots, it did actually have a decent shine.
The AMs despite being new always seem to please the crowds. But I guess that's the AM effect:
We then made a well deserved interim spot near a river/canal. I cannot remember the museum we went to however! There was just so much to take it. Different owners, different cars, and even similar cars had different takes, all with one thing in mind ; enjoyment of actually driving the things. Isn't that what this scene is all about?
We soon began to lose our minds with all of this stuff around us!
I've never had a shot next to my own car. I do have a shot against my mate's DS! So it seemed fair that he stood next to mine this time! A bit of a missed opportunity in hindsight!
Once this venue was done with, we went to our final destination, where prior to the ferry we went to one of the few eateries open, which was a kebab house of all things! Yes I know! I have however, to this day, never seen burgers that big!
With the rather large meal finished and a food coma kicking in, we decided it would be best to see a few more cars around, before we finally left, with a good trip in mind!
Originally, I planned to next month, and I was going to book places, until the Coronavirus outbreak put that to bed in early March. The car I would have taken would not have quite the charm of this one but still be very suitable for a number on things on that trip. I am of course talking about the M3, of which there is always one of them at the event. In the first year, I saw 2 and then 1 last year, which unlike the previous 2 in 2018, was modified similar to how I plan to do mine as a long term goal.
Obviously I was planning on taking my Velosolex as well, assuming it would fit in the boot.
But alas, it was not to be this year. Maybe it's madness, but I've decided to spend the cash I saved on my US trip being cancelled and the Laon Historique on the M3 instead. At least the local businesses will be thankful and the car will be smarter for it,and not one of the rustier cars there!
With the final day upon us, we drove on, enjoying the trip as the video shows! We have an enthuiastic Alfa Romeo driver, and some great scenery, both with the classics and also the countryside nature itself!
As we went through the villages, the people loved seeing all of the cars going through. From a '40s Traction Avant to a 00s MX-5! There really is a mix. If you don't like the mix, there's some else you will love that you can see
.Even thought I wasn't driving, I managed to get some great shots! OK, the colour balance of the shots could be better, but I am attempting to turn a corner there now
.I kept thinking that I could have mopped that car better, with the techniques I know now, which seem to work very well. However, looking back at these shots, it did actually have a decent shine
.The AMs despite being new always seem to please the crowds. But I guess that's the AM effect:
We then made a well deserved interim spot near a river/canal. I cannot remember the museum we went to however! There was just so much to take it. Different owners, different cars, and even similar cars had different takes, all with one thing in mind ; enjoyment of actually driving the things. Isn't that what this scene is all about?
We soon began to lose our minds with all of this stuff around us!
I've never had a shot next to my own car. I do have a shot against my mate's DS! So it seemed fair that he stood next to mine this time! A bit of a missed opportunity in hindsight!
Once this venue was done with, we went to our final destination, where prior to the ferry we went to one of the few eateries open, which was a kebab house of all things! Yes I know! I have however, to this day, never seen burgers that big!
With the rather large meal finished and a food coma kicking in, we decided it would be best to see a few more cars around, before we finally left, with a good trip in mind!
Originally, I planned to next month, and I was going to book places, until the Coronavirus outbreak put that to bed in early March. The car I would have taken would not have quite the charm of this one but still be very suitable for a number on things on that trip. I am of course talking about the M3, of which there is always one of them at the event. In the first year, I saw 2 and then 1 last year, which unlike the previous 2 in 2018, was modified similar to how I plan to do mine as a long term goal
.Obviously I was planning on taking my Velosolex as well, assuming it would fit in the boot.
But alas, it was not to be this year. Maybe it's madness, but I've decided to spend the cash I saved on my US trip being cancelled and the Laon Historique on the M3 instead. At least the local businesses will be thankful and the car will be smarter for it,and not one of the rustier cars there!
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