MLCrisis

And the last few: The Big Galah! View back towards Streaky Bay on the Flinders Coast - a beautiful spot, well worth a visit. The Hotel is an institution! The Head of the Bight - we saw loads of whales, really close in, but none where I could picture them and the car! The big Roo at Border Village; 90 Mile straight heading West! That's it - unless you want to see the family snaps, the Irish Dancing and the Whales (not all together, I hasten to add!). A great trip. What a fantastic country this is and what better way to see it than in one of the greatest GT cars in the world - as long as you have a cushion for your back and some extra padding for the seat. I can confirm that those GTR seats are not meant for long distances!!!! Many people said to me that the Nullabor was boring, but I found it fascinating. The wide open vistas and the changing landscape, the roadhouses with the different characters that you meet, the wildlife and the ocean, the experience of driving across timezones on amazing roads with the GTR purring and ready to roar when needed. My wife and I both found it to be a tremendous experience and a great adventure to share to celebrate our 25 years. We will do it again, I am sure. Thanks to Danny and the team at Garage 101 for helping prepare the car and thank you to all of you for your good wishes. Cheers. P.S. Total distance travelled was 7,863.5 kms. Average speed on most days was 105 km/hr.

And some more pics: Park Hyatt Hotel in Melbourne (after it was washed - the guys looked after it very well in the valet parking); The bog at Bells Beach, on the Great Ocean Road - couldn't get a pic with the beach in the background, so the bog will have to do! Port Campbell on the Great Ocean Road - a very nice little spot; A lookout near the end of the Great Ocean Road; The Big Lobster!! A lookout on the Coorong, South Australia; View from the BP Station at Port Augusta! Some signs!! More to follow.

Do you mean Ozone? (which is O3, as opposed to Oxygen molecule, which is O2). OK - some Pics. They are, in order of appearance: Norseman Railway Motel, Balladonia roadhouse, 90 mile straight heading East, Nullabor Roadhouse (x 2) and Giant Koala (somewhere in Vic). More to follow.

Kalgoorlie tonight - home tomorrow!! Last night was our first out of phone range at Madura Motel. A good roadhouse with comfortable motel units and reasonable food. A couple of cops stayed at the motel last night too and were very friendly. We saw them at breakfast and then on the road later, as they headed off after someone else with a cheery wave to us!! Went to the Head of the Bight yesterday and saw loads of whales, really close in. Amazing stuff. The whole drive across the Nullabor was interesting again. The change in scenery is fascinating. Also saw an R33 GTR, which appeared to be Bayside Blue too, which was heading East at a rate of knots! Got a wave and a "that's an R34 GTR" look!! Photos in a day or two. Cheers.

Overtaking and staying below 160 is not easy! Piccies will follow next week, when I am home and can upload them all. Cheers, guys.

You would go far in politics, with logic like that, mate! Added a picture with the Big Galah today! And a big roadtrain! At Streaky Bay Hotel tonight - fantastic little place. Cheers. :-)

That is brilliant. Sorry I didn't see it earlier!! Hey, guys. Been through. Sorry I missed getting along to Villis. Only got in at about 7.30 and was knackered. I stayed at the Hotel Grand Chancellor on Hindley Street, which was an eye-opener! I got a massive cheer from the pub across the road when I pulled up outside the hotel. I was amazed how many pubs and t#t and b#m bars you could get in such a short distance! Maybe I'll catch you next time. Currently at Port Wakefield and heading West. Had a great time at a wonderful hotel in Melbourne and a fantastic restaurant (Grossi Florentino on Bourke Street). The Great Ocean Road was fantastic, both as a driving experience and so spectacular! More in my WA thread. Saw a few Skylines and had a few waves. Every place I stopped, people commented on the car. All good. Cheers.

Hey, guys. Been through. Had a great time at a wonderful hotel in Melbourne and a fantastic restaurant (Grossi Florentino on Bourke Street). The Great Ocean Road was fantastic, both as a driving experience and so spectacular! More in my WA thread. Saw a few Skylines and had a few waves. Every place I stopped, people commented on the car. All good. Cheers.

Hi all. Half way home now, but the story from the last installment - in brief - was: Took a bit longer than intended going from Norseman to the Nullabor Roadhouse, so ended up driving the last 1.5 hours in the dark. Thanks to the sonic Shoo Roo thingoes, I managed to get there without any major encounters with wildlife. I saw a few roos on the side of the road, but they were all getting out of my way, so these things must work! I sat at 90 kph in the middle of the road, to give myself the most chance. Also managed to see a school of whales in the Bight from the road before it went dark. 90 mile straight was awesome. Managed to keep the speed under control - it really isn't the road for high speed runs! Saw a few emus. Drive into Adelaide was uneventful. Turned out that the major international class hotel that I had booked was right in the middle of the red light district! GTR got huge applause and cheers from the packed pub opposite, when I drew up. I was glad for a secure car park. Every place I stopped, the GTR attracted some comments - all approving. Only had one problem with some clown wanting to race me, as I was driving through Victoria. He clearly had disliked the fact that I had overtaken him, so he decided to double his speed and overtake me - just as we entered an 80 zone! Got to Geelong and the car had not missed a beat. Saw the last day of dancing and headed to Melbourne. I was unsure about leaving the car to the valet parking at the Park Hyatt, but when a Bentley Coupe drew up behind me, I reckoned that they had plenty to play with! They even washed it for me! Great Ocean Road was great fun - a road where you actually have to brake and change down for corners! It was just like home! They have signs telling slow vehicles to pull over and allow following traffic to pass, with bays to pull into. Problem was that some people reckoned that this did not apply to them as they were driving cars - not slow vehicles. Hello!! If you have cars behind you, then you are a slow vehicle. Fortunately there were a few places where it was possible to overtake in a car as fast as the GTR dropped to second, no matter what the lines in the middle of the road indicated (they are so conservative!). The Coorong Limestone Coast was less spectacular, but fast. Currently at the Port Wakefield Motel. Historic Port Wakefield. Yes. The less said the better! I will be posting pictures of the GTR with the Giant Koala (Victoria) and the Big Lobster (SA), amongst other sights, when I get back. Looking forward to the Westwards crossing of the Nullabor - and hoping to see some Nullabor Nympths this time! Cheers.

Thanks for the comments, once more guys. I am writing from the Norseman Railway Hotel, thanks to the miracle of a Telstra NextG thingo stuck into my laptop! More info in my thread in the WA forum, if you're interested. Main thing is that my back is not too bad, which for me is good! Added a folded towel to sit on, which helped. Car just purred - GT driving at its best. Effortless and bags of power for overtaking. Not sure NextG will work at the Nullabor Roadhouse tomorrow night - we will see. Cheers.

Thanks for the comments, once more guys. Tim, I will take a look at your suggestion. Meanwhile, I am writing from the Norseman Railway Hotel, thanks to the miracle of a Telstra NextG thingo stuck into my laptop! More info in my thread in the WA forum, if you're interested. Main thing is that my back is not too bad, which for me is good! Added a folded towel to sit on, which helped. Not sure NextG will work at the Nullabor Roadhouse tomorrow night - we will see. Cheers.

Hellooo from the Norseman Railway Hotel, thanks to the miracle of a Telstra NextG thingo stuck into my laptop! I must admit I was surprised at the extent of the coverage. I reckon I was only out of mobile range for a short while, between Kalbalda and Norseman. Managed to fill up with BP Ultimate somewhere midway between Cunderdin and Coolgardy. No 98 octane in Coolgardy, so decided to try the next roadhouse. Big mistake - at least Coolgardie had 95 octane! So half a tank of 92 plus a full bottle of Wynns Octane booster got me to Norseman, where there is a massive BP station, complete with Ultimate - and a large stock of Wynns Octane Booster, so I bought a few more. I demonstrated my electronic wizardry by changing the Power FC Hand controller to show the knock meter. All under control, under a light right foot! The drive was good. Left home much later than intended (about 9.15) and got here at 5.45. I reckon I should have bought a Lotto ticket too - the number of times I saw a cop when I was within a few km/hr of the speed limit, instead of cruising at 15 over!! I was very fortunate at one overtaking lane, because the cop, who had obviously been lying in wait, had just stopped someone else - while I steamed past overtaking a road train. The car just purred all the way. This is what a GT car is all about - effortless driving, with bags of power to overtake. I will take a piccie in the morning. Kudos to the friendly welcome at the Norseman Railway Hotel, too. Not exactly five star, but comfortable and clean. A basic gym to iron out the kinks and a good home-cooked meal with a couple of beers. Not sure NextG will work at the Nullabor Roadhouse tomorrow night - we will see. Cheers.

Thanks for the comments, guys. Got the octane booster, car is too low for the train (has to clear 110 mm, so I am about 5mm to low on the exhaust and some suspension parts!). I have got some "skins" film to fight the stone chips and a couple of cushions to fight the GTR seats - Although I have had four hours in them without complaint - maybe it is just my #ss! I may check out Villis for a quick hello, but I am expecting to want to hit the sauna and then the hay! If you do happen to see a Bayside Blue V Spec II with SAU WA stickers on it - that just might be me! Cheers.

Thanks for the comments, guys. Exhaust and some suspension is just too low for the train - but they clear 100mm! Ah well.

Hi, Guys. I am driving from Perth to Melbourne, via Adelaide and Geelong. For the reasons - see below. I am leaving Perth on Wednesday morning, 30 September and should arrive in Geelong on Saturday evening, 3rd October. I am staying at some holiday park. If anyone is around, come along and say "Hi". (Drop me a pm and I will let you know where.) Reason for the trip: My wife has taken my daughter to the National Irish Dance competition in Geelong (of all places!) this week. It just happens to be our 25th Wedding Anniversary on 6th October, the day after the dance competition ends. She said she would really like to drive the Great Ocean Road from Melbourne to Adelaide. This just happens to be hailed as one of the greatest roads in the world. I am fortunate to own one of the greatest GT cars the world has ever seen. My wife even saw the obvious connection. We just have to drive it in the GTR!! We are going to have a couple of nights in Melbourne (which will be the romantic bit, on our own!) and then head along the Great Ocean Road. Say "Hi" to us on the Great Ocean Road! So, first of all, I need to get me and the car to Geelong - which is 3,411 km from our house (approximately!). So there you go. Cheers.

Hi, Guys. I am driving from Perth to Melbourne, via Adelaide and Geelong. For the reasons - see below. I am leaving Perth on Wednesday morning, 30 September and should arrive in Adelaide on Friday evening. I am staying in a city centre hotel. If anyone is around, come along and say "Hi". (Drop me a pm and I will let you know which hotel.) Reason for the trip: My wife has taken my daughter to the National Irish Dance competition in Geelong (of all places!) this week. It just happens to be our 25th Wedding Anniversary on 6th October, the day after the dance competition ends. She said she would really like to drive the Great Ocean Road from Melbourne to Adelaide. This just happens to be hailed as one of the greatest roads in the world. I am fortunate to own one of the greatest GT cars the world has ever seen. My wife even saw the obvious connection. We just have to drive it in the GTR!! We are going to have a couple of nights in Melbourne and then head along the Great Ocean Road. So, first of all, I need to get me and the car to Geelong - which is 3,411 km from our house (approximately!). So there you go. Cheers.

Once again, thanks for the comments, Guys. I am sure that the 90 mile straight will be tempting, but I also appreciate the words of caution too. I aim to keep the high speed on the track - this trip is for cruising! Oh .. ... and thanks for the optimistic viewpoint! Roll only 14 times and burn to death. I will aim not to!! Nic_A31 - Thanks - I found the anti-Roo whistle things and now have two of them on the front, on top of the splitter in the centre grill. I suppose they are one of those things that you won't know whether they are working or not until you hit a roo! I intend to be off the road before dusk - but I know these things don't always go as planned .... .... ..... !! The car is fuelled up, two spare wheels one the back seat (with seat belts and webbing strap!), stupid space-saver spare has made way for tool kit and various spare parts, 2 x 10L jerry cans are full, various other bits and bobs ready to go in the car. Currently trying to decide on whether to take the trolley jack (very heavy) or just make do with the scissor jack. Can't get a bottle jack small enough. I will ponder tomorrow! Meanwile, Dan dropped off some SAU WA schtickers to star in the piccies on the way. Thanks, mate. Cheers.

OK. Left the car with Danny at Garage 101 today for checks on all the main fluids, hoses, belts, etc, changed the oil filter, and so on. It needed a check since having the engine change. Danny kindly provided me with a large container of pre-mixed coolant, 5L of Mobil 1, a load of hose clamps, a load of cable ties, a roll of duct tape and a spare (new) fan belt. Plus a can of Tyre-Weld and a few other goodies. All given on the basis of I will pay for anything that I use when I return. (Thanks, Danny - you and your team are stars!! ) At the weekend, I got - in no particular order - a tyre repair kit and that new camera I have been promising myself. Just got a Navman for finding my way around Adelaide, Geelong and Melbourne (can't go too far wrong on the rest of it - there's only one road!!). Work also got me a new Blackberry with a NextG modem, for hooking up the laptop (in those places where I can get a NextG Signal) and hired a satellite phone for those places where I can't! A few more things on the list to get this weekend. Tomorrow I aim to book a few motels and hotels. Then Sunday, see my wife and daughter off at the airport; Monday, pack the car; Tuesday, do three weeks work in one day; Wednesday - I am off! Photos start next week! Thanks for all the comments and good wishes. Cheers.

Erm .. ... ... no. Mine is going to be in use for a while! Cheers. P.S. Talk to Danny at Imports 101 - he will sort you.

Hank Scorpio - PM sent. Dan the Man - PM sent. Thanks for all the comments again guys. I will definitely be taking lots of piccies. One planned in my mind's eye already is the car in front of the "90 Mile Straight" sign. Also have plans for one with my Beloved driving towards me on a long straight bit (should be lots to choose from), so we get the long straight road and the GTR - alone! I only put BP 98 in it, so I am anticipating having to compromise on that somewhere along the line. Good thinking, Batman. Octane boost is on the shopping list. Any ideas where I can get one of these filter funnels? Cheers.

Thanks for the comments, guys. All appreciated. I know what you mean about the tyres, as long as I stay on tarmac. Problem is that a space-saver spare is no good when you are 250 km from anywhere, including Wupwup. With the GTR, I would prefer to have the same wheels and tyres on each axle, so if I change one, I would rather change two. They will probably just serve as extra weight, but I would rather have the peace of mind! I also take your point about the jerry cans. I have to work out what to take yet. I am reckoning on between 400 km and 500 km per tank. I reckon 12.5 litres per 100 km is a reasonable estimate, giving 440 km for 55 litres (which leaves me 5 litres insurance in a 60 litre tank). So a 10 litre jerry can would give me another 80 km. Generally, there should be fuel available at 250 km intervals or so. So as long as I don't drive past any signs that say "Last fuel for 250 km", I should be fine. On that basis, I will probably take a couple of 5 litre jerry cans, maybe three. I don't intend being on the road after dusk, to avoid running into our wonderful wildlife. So I am aiming the first couple of days to be stopped by 6.00 pm. I can drive later in the evening into either Adelaide or Geelong. Other stuff: Trolley jack / other jack Impact hammer / rattle gun (12 V - run from cigarette lighter) Water - for me and the car. A couple of cans of Tyre-Weld & a foot pump (it pays to be a pessimist!) Fan belt - plus a Boys Own Guide of how to change it on the GTR (I am advised that I don't need this on a modern car - but the pessimist thing surfaces once more!) Basic tool kit. Duct tape, 12" Stilsons and a hammer (you can fix anything with duct tape, 12" Stilsons and a hammer!) Entertainment A couple of CD books The best of ZZ Top (for when I pull into a roadhouse in Wupwup) The best of Pavarotti (for when I pull out of a roadhouse in Wupwup) Lots of peppermints Torch Camera English - South Australian dictionary UFO meter. That should do it! More when I think of it! Cheers.

Hi, all. Let's set the scene: My wife is taking my daughter to a dance competition in Geelong (of all places!) in early October. It just happens to be our 25th Wedding Anniversary on 6th October, the day after the dance competition ends. She said she would really like to drive the Great Ocean Road from Melbourne to Adelaide. This just happens to be hailed as one of the greatest roads in the world. I am fortunate to own one of the greatest GT cars the world has ever seen. My wife even saw the obvious connection. We just have to drive it in the GTR!! So, first of all, I need to get me and the car to Geelong - which is 3,411 km from our house (approximately!). Now, I looked at the Indian Pacific Railway, but the car is too low for the rail car, as checked by their official measure - a can of Coke . (Check out www.trainways.com.au and you will see they really do use a Coke can as the measure!) So I am driving over by myself, watching the last day of dancing, putting my daughter on the plane and then my Beloved and I drive back. I aim to leave Perth on 29 or 30 September 2009. I am just sorting out the stops, etc. Danny at Imports 101 is helping me to check the car out before I go. I know it's a long way to go and it will put kilometres on the car and the paint will get stonechips and I might get a flat (two spare wheels in the back seat is the plan) and ... and .... and .... But I bought this car to drive it. It seems to me that I can drive it on not one, but two of the greatest drives in the world. Nuff said! So the Great Australian Adventure continues! Anyone want to join me along the way? I will endeavour to update this thread with tales of my adventures as I go (including car preparation)! Cheers.

The "new" and "old" legislation bit was only with respect to the number of hours accompanied driving you needed to do to get your "p"s. If you had your "L"s before the change, you still only had to do 25 hours. If you only got your "L"s after the change, you have to do 100 hours, or whatever it is. When they changed the regulations regarding the two colours of "P"s, you had to display the new type and could not continue to display the old type (with a short grace period). My son had his "P"s not long before the change and he had to get red "P"s, even though he had been driving on "P"s for a couple of months. My other son had his "P"s for about 18 months and had to get greens ones. Regarding what is legal and what is not, these are set by the Australian Design Rules, or ADRs. Each state then applies their own interpretation of certain aspects - e.g. in Victoria you cannot have two mods on your intake (or something like that). So you cannot have pods and an aftermarket intercooler. In WA you can have both, as long as they are properly fitted and secured. To check more, use the "Search" button. This has been covered many times in WA. Also go look at the WA Dept. of Infrastructure and Planning website - they actually explain a lot of it (in very unhelpful language!). Cheers.

All recent Alfa Romeos have their front plates on the left side. So, if some cop tells you that you cannot have it to one side, he/she is talking through the wrong part of his/her anatomy. I am sure there is some other make around that has a side-mounted front plate, which is on the right, but I cannot remember which one! The ADRs only require that the plate is parallel to your front axle (or some other definition of straight), i.e. it cannot be angled to one side, and vertical, i.e. it cannot be sloped back. I have left mine on the middle, but the workshop moved it up, so only a third of it protrudes into the intake area. Some shims help overcome the indentation in the bar, so it can sit flat. A slight bend back at the bottom and top would help airflow. Cheers.

Interesting stuff. What about this little anomoly for an import: To gain compliance for your stock import, it has to have an Australian ADR compliant cat fitted. So the OEM one is taken off. You cannot actually get your car complied with the OEM cat. At the pits, inspector says: Oh look. This car has a non-OEM cat. You have got to go to Kosteki's for a test, which you will fail because you have a non-OEM cat, where they will charge you umpty ump hundred bucks for one of theirs. They then pass you. You meet a nice policeman who thinks your factory blowoff valve is a sidewinder missile and he issues you with a yellow sticker. You go to the pits, where the inspector says, Oh look - this car has a non-OEM cat. But it's from Kostecki's, you say. Ah but it is non-OEM, they say, so it needs testing. Return to step 3 and repeat ad infinitum. Now I know this does is a nonsensical take on all this - but some of the stuff that appears to be going on is not far off this! Cheers.