John Bonnett

I can always rely on you Clive for thinking outside the box

Indeed it does Neil. For us it has to be France and France is a big Country with so much to offer. But which part? Like you, Sue and I produced a road book with detailed instructions for each day's route. When there's a group of you a printed route is absolutely essential and it is hugely satisfying to produce. Out trips are pretty leisurely and each day is structured around coffee, lunch and afternoon tea stops (or the French equivalent). This is where Google Streetview comes into its own for identifying safe parking and the mandatory Tabac bars. So, if anyone gets lost they know where to aim for and most importantly, won't miss lunch! Here follow a few photos of places we visited. the first being what must be Brittany's best kept secret; the Parc Floral A memorable barbecue at the house of a GT6 CT member who lives in France The amazing stone rows at Carnac The WW2 U Boat pens in L'Orient And finally the Enclos Paroissiaux of Finistère We did a bit of driving as well!

To be honest, I find car shows a bit boring and for me tours and road trips are much more my scene; actually driving the car and enjoying it- using it rather than sticking it in a field along with the buffers and polishers sitting around in deck chairs. Everyone to his own but that is my preference. But not just mine, judging by at least two inspirational road trips undertaken by forum members very recently. We ourselves along with a group of friends enjoyed an excellent self-arranged tour of Brittany in May and we have just returned from taking part in the Chinon Classic; formerly known as the GP de Tours. Great things to do with the cars and they respond by providing driving pleasure and actually building reliability the more they are used. To make the experience even better it makes good sense to improve the comfort. I don't know about you, but in my view, the biggest single factor affecting fatigue on a drive is the noise level in the car. My old GT6 had a 3.27 diff and by virtue of the high gearing and low engine revs would cruise happily at 70mph with a low noise level making 300 miles in a day very easy and without undue tiredness at the end. In complete contrast the lightweight, built as a hill climber is the complete opposite. The 3.89 diff puts the revs up with consequent increase in noise level. The engine and transmission are not the only culprits however because with neutral selected noise levels are still high; 10db more than in our old and very ordinary shopping car at the same speeds. When I built the car, I lined it extensively with Dynamat and although this will take out panel drumming, additional measures are needed to insulate against low frequency noise. So, over the next months I'm going to embark on a campaign to further insulate the body in an attempt to make possible 70mph cruising in a quieter environment. I have made tests and recorded noise levels under different conditions so I'll be able to make some good comparisons as the job progresses. In case this has a wider interest, I will update this thread as the works progress.

Well done Roger, another great trip.

Great stuff Henry and Ella. A really ambitious trip and beautifully written up.