Unsuitable Travels

Say hi to the new member of the family, who apparently has been named Thor 🤷.

Lots of plans and adventures awaiting this fine machine 😊 Some of them involving Elaine! 😈

Great day trip out down through the South Downs, including a visit to . Dara was very generous with his time showing us all the different camping setups in stock.

If only I had all the money in the world… 😅

Should Elaine get a roof tent? It would be a rather large hat!

Another year comes to an end. More adventures to come in 2024!

Happy New Year everyone!

Elaine’s winter refresh is making steady progress…

✅ Hidden aluminium roof

✅ Lightweight, rollcage connected roof bars.

✅ Sound deadening and thermal insulation.

✅ New floor carpets.

✅ Latest iteration of the rear kitchen.

✅ Leather bonnet strap.

✅ Upgrade of hard to find connectors to Deutsch DT.

✅ Oil and filter change.

✅ Crank sensor clean.

🔵 Denim over aluminium door cards.

A few things still left to do, but she’s certainly cleaning up nicely. The new kitchen unit is fantastic, much more versatile than any of the previous versions. Might have to do a little test outing soon.

One of Elaine’s issues has always been excessive weight (like a lot of vehicles of this description, we all like bolting more and more stuff onto them 😅).

Whilst she’s powerful, she isn’t really… So every kilo counts.

To that effect, the roof rack is gone in favour of this solution which weighs a good 60-70% less. The aluminium roof also allows for items to sit directly on it which is handy!

The old roof rack also made cleaning the soft top incredibly hard (and it shows 🫣).

Stay tuned for further lightweighting measures!

ALSO! The lathe has now started to shine, a thin wall socket was needed which I didn’t have. £20 saved, £980 to go 😅

Quite the afternoon to spend working on cars! Music in the background, coffee ☕️(or maybe a beer 🍺) and finally a break in the horrible weather!

Finally having a garage at home really gives one the opportunity to do things properly, and it shows!

Slow but steady progress. Elaine’s new aluminium roof is a bit like a drum, so some sound deadening should help!

Thermal insulation and new aluminium roof rack next!

Soft on the outside, solid on the inside… Elaine now has an aluminium roof, neatly hidden under the fabric soft top.

This will enable a new roof rack which will attach directly to the roll cage, making it capable of carrying much heavier loads up there. The factory roof rack is fine and all, but any more than a few boxes and it felt quite iffy 🫣

Also, a solid roof will allow plenty of sound deadening (of which Elaine will be receiving a lot of soon!). Anything for a quieter ride!

How amazing is this! What a masterpiece. I’d been wanting one of Lindsay’s pieces for a long time but I was waiting to find the right picture.

What a spectacular result!

Elaine is in position for at Farnborough Exhibition Centre the next four days!

It’s been a while! Very busy times lately moving to the new Unsuitable Travels HQ. Elaine finally lives at home!

So nice to finally have a garage to spanner in at home. The workshop is now 10 second walk away instead of a 20 minute drive! 😁

Plenty of projects I can now do in a more leisurely fashion, without having to rush 🧘‍♂️

So excited about this! 😁

Another year, another MOT passed with no advisories! For those not in the UK, this is the annual technical inspection that cars under 40 years old must pass.

Here’s to another year of adventures! 🥳🎉🥂🍾

Things have been quiet lately as we’re in the process of moving house… Elaine will finally have a garage at home! 🏡🚙 What a painful process it’s been… 😩

What an incredible birthday gift from my amazing wife !

This work of pyrography art by .maniart will stay with me forever.

Spoilt!

Excellent day out to the Prescott Speed Hill Climb Historique. Some drool worthy machines with a sound to match!

The drive was also fantastic, quiet back roads one excellent weather… Elaine delivered as usual!

Also… All cars should have a fridge, it’s the best thing in the world 😁❄️🍹

What a wonderful evening for a countryside drive! Roof off, warm, empty roads… Fantastic!

Absolutely magical light today, had to go out to enjoy it!

Excellent outing to the Retro Rides Weekender, nice little break from getting the house ready for moving (Unsuitable Travels HQ here we come!) and a short holiday in Marrakech (it’s a tough life I know).

Great to meet , you could not find two 2CVs with a more different focus. It’s a great demonstration of how versatile these cars are.

Excellent morning out for breakfast and coffee at . These meet-ups happen regularly and are incredibly well attended! Excellent breakfast too.

I do think I’m ready for a longer trip though… Not having to work would be nice!

I’m thinking of maybe putting a bit more effort into some videos 🤔 It’s whole other level of work though!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LluhxsYosro

A short drive to Renegade Brewery for breakfast and coffee... For some reason I decided to bolt my GoPro to an old baseball cap, seems to have worked quite well!

This car is more fun than my 911, all while staying under the speed limit!

Fun at 50mph! Pt. 2 A short drive to Renegade Brewery for breakfast and coffee... For some reason I decided to bolt my GoPro to an old baseball cap, seems to have worked quite w...

Great outing to after work!

It’s great to be doing longer drives in Elaine again. The latest updates and enginectomy really have paid off, she’s running better than ever! The noise is also down to a somewhat manageable level too 😅

Always an excellent drive up, quiet windy roads with some beautiful scenery… And no traffic 😏

An excellent day out at the Members’ Meeting with .gaumanns.abroad ! Great weather, great cars, and the noise! 🤤

#911

Happy Easter everyone! Go easy on the chocolate.

I found a massive bunny.

Elaine, meet 911. 911, meet Elaine 😁🥰

What’ a wonderful sunny day for Elaine to re-emerge!

Lights: ✅
Clutch adjustment: ✅
Leak check: ✅🫣
Brake bleed: ✅
Tyre pressures: ✅

It’s time for new adventures! It’s been a long time coming. Bring on the good weather 🌞

driving

A fantastic few days back in my home town of Castro Urdiales, in Cantabria (Northern Spain 🇪🇸)

Good weather, family, fantastic food and drink… What’s not to like! A welcome break from the preparations for the move to the new Unsuitable Travels HQ.

Now it’s time to get Elaine back up and running… Better weather is coming!

An excellent day out at Race Retro, albeit a cold one! 🥶🥶

Some fantastic traders there, all endangering my wallet, but also some incredible machines were present. From Group B to Marathon cars and everything in between…

I was very taken by the Austin Maxi of Bron Burrall and Tina Kerridge-Reynolds, which they drove from London to Mexico in 1970… What an adventure! Maybe one day Elaine will follow in their footsteps.

It was also very inspiring to see a pair of rally MG Midgets prepared by Corry Motorsport, magnificent machines!

It’s been a while since the last post! Life, work, weather… Everything gets in the way!

Managed to get out to to visit this fantastic city and finally meet up with for a beer or three. This man is clearly a bad influence, with his endless ideas for 2CV trips… I’m going to have to give up my job to accommodate 🤣

Everything must come to an end… It’s always great to go back home to see friends and family…

Just go visit , just do it. You won’t regret it, I was incredibly lucky to grow up there… One day I’ll move back!

And now… back to work! 🛫🛬🛩️