Following a fun and moderately worthwhile charity road trip last year to Monte Carlo, I’ve signed up to do another one next year. The rules (guidelines really) are that participants should use a car that’s less than £1,000 or more than 25 years old. For 2027 the theme is ‘The Italian Job’. So, the obvious choice is some sort of Mini, and in the interest of doing the trip in moderate comfort, or at least minimum discomfort, and early BMW Mini would be the logical choice. They were launched in 2001 (we had one) and are available for less than £1,000 even if considerably newer. But does seem a somewhat predictable choice….
My next thought was something Italian, and so an Alfa Romeo But I’m wary of repeating my initial thought process for the Monte Carlo trip, which was to buy a 25 year old Audi A4 and take a trip down old company car memory lane, because I don’t want to end up with a 156, which I also briefly had as a company car back in the day.
A convertible would be nice, and indeed for the French trip I ending up subbing the A4 for an old SLK, which I still have, even though it didn’t quite meet either of the ‘rules’. No one objected... But a Panda with a canvas roof might do the job or, I guess, a Fiat 500. An Alfa convertible would be lovely, but while there’s no price limit of the car is > 25 years old I think I’d self impose a limit of £2.5/£3k to maintain a degree of jeopardy!
So, if one wanted a car to do 2,500/3000 miles over a couple of weeks that met, or was close to, the criteria and was at least tangentially linked to the theme, what other options would people suggest? Preferably one that would be reliable-ish (having had a thorough check over before departure) and easily fixable if necessary. Nice to haves would be AC and cruise control ;)
The proposed route, if it helps, is as follows:
Dunkirk >> Bastogne
Bastogne >> Fort Schoenenbourg (quick look at the Maginot Line)
Fort Schoenenbourg >> Konstanz (via Lake Constance)
Konstanz >>Locarno
Locarno >> Turin
Turin >> Tignes
Tinges >> Dijon
Dijon >> Reims
Reims >> Calais
Route avoids autoroutes as much as possible, though I’ll take my peage tag anyway. We’ll be going over rather than through the alps - the trip is in June. You’ll see from the return route through France some luggage space for local produce might also be nice to have…
|
A pininfarina designed Peugeot?
www.carrozzieri-italiani.com/the-partnership-between-peugeot-pininfarina/
306 Convertible?
406 Coupe (always fancied one of them)
|
|
The French have made some very pretty convertibles…. And the 406 has a slight Ferrari-esque look to it, if you squint! Good shout :)
|
|
I didn’t realise they were quite so cheap :) Italian, convertible, 30 years old… ticks a lot of boxes. Perhaps not reliability…but what’s the worst that can happen! Heads off to eBay to see if I can find a red one with a tan interior ;)
|
|
Don't forget GTV hard tops, too.
|
Facebook market place has thrown up this…
Over budget, unsuited to long journeys I am sure, but very very Italian :)
www.facebook.com/share/1CBabgc8CJ/?mibextid=wwXIfr
|
If you can get away with taking not much more than a toothbrush ;-)
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/147642947991
|
>> If you can get away with taking not much more than a toothbrush ;-)
>>
>> www.ebay.co.uk/itm/147642947991
>>
That would be a fabulous thing for such a trip. But from a current owner perspective, is there any more incongruous than driving a lime green Fiat X-1/9 round Grimsby I wonder :)
A wonder it hasn’t rusted away, and again, significant budget creep. But, with what I’m saving on gherkins… ;)
|
I wonder what evoked the mention of gherkins there. ;-)
It wasn't a very serious suggestion, but I always coveted an X1/9 back in the day and, with a good few "ifs", one would make a great chariot for your adventure. A toothbrush in both the back and front boot.
|
|
I’ll be travelling solo so luggage space would probably be fine! A farther / son due managed the French trip in a ‘modern’ (rather than 1950s…) MG TF. Or maybe it was an MG F. I’m not sure when its name changed :)
|
And thinking about my coveting sent me down another rabbit-hole. Another "similar" vehicle that caught my eye at the same time was the Toyota MR2.
There are a few Mk1 around (including Autotrader) that are much nearer the budget but might miss out on the local connection (unless you can add a Tokyo leg - I doubt Derby would cut the mustard), and the attractive Humberside Honk colour option.
|
Old Panda.
A few weeks ago in Asturias I saw a convoy of Fiat 127s, several
in lurid not factory spec colours. Lovely to watch.
I too coveted the X1/9.
|
Travelling solo, I'd be very happy to do that trip in this little beauty. With the addition of a Porta-Potty !
www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1115733577869996&set=pb.100083000936978.-2207520000&locale=en_GB
On Ebay now.
Ted
|
>> If you can get away with taking not much more than a toothbrush ;-)
>>
>> www.ebay.co.uk/itm/147642947991
>>
All these Italian cars!
I thought he wanted to get there?
|
|
...It's not the destination, it's the journey....
|
|
The only vehicles that broke down on the French trip were JLR products, albeit one (an old Landrover) predated JLR by many decades! A jaguar got stuck in ‘park’. The oldest car was a a 1950s beetle, the newest probably my SLK (2008). The least comfortable were probably the 2 old land rovers, and the least appropriate for mountain passes probably the Cadillac CTS. There was a Panda on that trip which made it absolutely fine :)
|
|
So why not take your old CLK, at least you'll be comfortable?
|
>> So why not take your old CLK, at least you'll be comfortable?
>>
It’s actually a SLK, with 18” wheels, a sport pack and 103,000 miles on the clock so comfortable it is not!! But the simple reason is that I fancy a change, and something vaguely linked to the theme. I rationalised subbing the Merc for the Audi on the Monte Carlo trip on the basis that rolling into Casino Square in a Mercedes roadster was more aligned to the theme, even though it didn’t technically meet the ‘rules’. So if I can find something that does fit the rules and has an Italian / Italian Job connection that I like I’ll buy it, although the Merc is there in reserve…
|
"an Italian / Italian Job connection that I like I'll buy it"
You may have trouble finding a decent one, but this ticks the Italian Job connection criteria.
ebay.io/m/vUdP6H
|
>> Following a fun and moderately worthwhile charity road trip last year to Monte Carlo, I’ve
>> signed up to do another one next year. The rules (guidelines really) are that participants
>> should use a car that’s less than £1,000 or more than 25 years old. For
>> 2027 the theme is ‘The Italian Job’...... A convertible would be nice......
So, if one wanted a car to do 2,500/3000 miles over a couple of weeks
that met...the criteria....
.....which don't seem very restrictive. Are you sure it's not ...£1000 AND more than 25yrs old?
My 1980 TR7 DHC is nearly twice that age and has never failed to start or complete a journey in all my 45 years and 70,000 miles of ownership. I would have no qualms about a summertime saunter along roads at least as good as it's used to around here of a mere 1500-2000 miles or so (according to my googlemap).
|
No, it’s under £1,000 or more than 20 years old. Guidelines rather than hard rules to be fair. I did a similar thing last year, to Monte Carlo, organised by the same bunch. For that I’d originally spent £1,250 on an orange 1999 Audi A4 1.8T Sport, but then decided a drop top would be more fun, so went in my 2008 (too new and, while not expensive, worth more than £1k at the time…) Merc SLk. The idea is to make it accessible but with a bit of jeopardy I think!!
Happy to send you a link if you want to give it a go! The landrover fail to proceed was a fuel pump issue, and the jag got stuck in park. The MG TF completed the trip, but despite having had new pads, discs and brake fluid before departure by the end of the trip it’s brakes were shot for some reason.
I like the thought of the Alfa GTV posted above, and I’m currently going down Alfa rabbit holes on eBay. So thanks for the ideas everyone :)
|
Car ideas - Bobby
