Sig change

Get yourself to retro-rides, that deserves 50 litres of the best vegoil and a slap with the stick.

Weren't you in an episode of Bergerac?

You back in the UK? My girlfriend is keen as hell on the idea of an old merc. I'll be watching your posts with interest.

Fraser

Yes Fraser I am and yes it is bloody freezing! This time about a fortnight ago I was looking at tropical fish and coral. Now I look into the water and I see supermarket trolleys and traffic cones. Likewise, I was enjoying the feeling of fine white sand between my toes and now I'm contemplating slippers as my toes threaten to fall off from frostbite!

The old merc idea actually came to us when we were on a tram in Melbourne and one like the one I've just bought was driving alongside. SWMBO said she really liked it and I gladly imparted the story about when a friend and I were discussing what car we'd choose to drive from the UK to China. I chose the Merc and he chose a Peugeot 504. IIRC the discussion crept into this very newsgroup.

However I doubt that you'd pick one up in Australia for as cheap as you can here (for the benefit of the group, the 200 quid banger is almost unheard of, probably due to the lack of MOT etc, although old aircooled VW vans like the one I owned are a fraction of the price) but of course you could reasonably run a decent sized petrol engine, though this 5 cylinder diesel motor does have a certain charm about it. Plus you'd be less likely to find any rust in a Down Under example!

My old boss at Ian Diffens is a total Merc freak so he'd be the one to chat to about choosing a good one...

What did it cost you?

Don't you mean Lovejoy

Heh, anywhere there's dodgy dealings, thought provoking storylines tax exiles, gritty drama and aged comedy sidekicks really.

Looks like I might have to go have a chat to him. She is probably going to buy one in the next few months. She is a mad woman. Which is why I like her. : )

Fraser