PoshLanding - Touring UK in (C) Class - (pics heavy!)

[Christian P.]

Most of you know by now my great passion for traveling. It seems like it's been an eternity since our last adventure across Africa.

Buying a house in Lake Tahoe and fixing it for the last year or so had forced us to postpone our departure, but at last it's finally happening!

We spent so much time working on the house that we did not have the time to do any planning at all and, therefore we are playing it by ear - all we knew is we wanted to start in London with the 2012 Olympics, which is where we ended our last journey (Cape Town to London).

We hope to spend a few months in Europe/North Africa, then head to Mexico in December for the Maya Rally and then South America next year.
This trip will not follow any of the pre-defined overland routes - instead, we are just making up our own route as we go. And switching vehicles as we please...



For the first leg, we really wanted to spend some time exploring Europe, but our previous trip taught me that driving a slow and heavy Land Cruiser is not the most exciting vehicle to take on the small and curvy european roads. So we started shopping around for a cheap (max budget was 3000 pounds), reliable and economical vehicle to drive - a Mini was high on my list.

What we ended up with is not at all what I expected and possibly the most illogical choice...but sometimes a deal is to good to pass up!
The law of supply and demand has made it so you can get a immaculate petrol Benz here for about 10% of the original sticker price - with full maintenance records and current MOT.

So without further ado, I am proud to present to you our new "poshlanding" vehicle - a C320 Mercedes-Benz.

 

[Christian P.]

The C320 has the largest engine of the series - for that year. A 3.2L V6 with 215HP and about 220 pounds of torque. Should be plenty enough but unfortunately also means many more expensive stops at the fuel station. My hope is that this engine should be pretty reliable - so far we have down about 1000 miles and it's been perfect.

There was a few reasons why I decided to buy in UK and one of them is their annual MOT. Unlike CA where all they care is the emissions, they have here an detailed annual inspection on all the safety components of the car (suspension, muffler, brakes, etc, etc). This helps insure that the car is in good shape - no process is perfect but it sure helps a lot. And additionally, for this vehicle we got all the service records at the dealer - another good indicator of the condition.

I knew absolutely nothing about these cars but I have already increased my knowledge by 200%. One thing we discover is there are 2 lines - Elegance and AvantGarde. The AvantGarde has a more sporty configuration, with fake carbon fiber trim instead of fake wood - but more importantly a more sport-tuned suspension.

The body is pretty much perfect - actually, the whole car is basically brand new.

We stayed at my friends for the whole week and they have been extremely helpful with our search - the irony of shopping for a car is that you pretty much need a car to find one.

 

[MattScott]

Dibs on the car when you're not using it!

 

[Christian P.]

So enough on the car for now....let's recap the trip so far.

As initially mentioned in this thread, our starting point was the 2012 Olympic in London.

Our appartment:

Not sure what this was used for:

This is as crowded as it got. Totally manageable.

We found a great spot to watch the futball game:

Persephone carrying the torch:

I love the modern architecture, mixed up with old buildings

Us winning a gold medal - unfortunately they did not have the Canadian flag on hand so I had to revert to the British one...

 

[Christian P.]

We spent the following week shopping for cars, working and generally spending a great time with friends in London.
On Saturday it was finally time to hit the road but we did not make it very far - we stopped in Stratford-Upon-Avon.

I am sure most of you will know why this place is famous for...ice cream.

This is the house of the guy who created ice cream. I think his name was Shakespeare.

I believe this was one of his cooks, thinking about how to improve the recipe.

Based on this guy's facial expression, the first version was not very tasty.

The town is a gathering point for the narrow canal boats that people still use to roam around England - as long as you're not in a hurry.

Another great thing about UK is that you are pretty guarantee to see Defender's everywhere - in all sort of conditions.

Persephone taking a well deserved break in the park.

 

[Christian P.]

The beauty of traveling in Europe is that you don't need a guidebook - you can just drive around and you will come across interesting attractions everywhere.

On the other hand, the sad news about many of these historic buildings is the maintenance cost.
This grand house has been turned into a complex for senior citizens, complete with a trailer park in the back.

 

[ColinTheCop]

I'm kinda curious how eilean donan castle ended up in London..... :Wow1:

 

[ColinTheCop]

I'm kinda curious how eilean donan castle ended up in London..... :Wow1:

Ignore that, I see (on the spotted thread) you visited Portree, Skye.

 

[hrt4me]

I've rented a diesel Mercedes C320 several times and have been very pleased with its performance driving up and down the mountain passes in the German, Swiss and Austrian Alps

 

[Christian P.]

Our next destination was Isle of Skye, with a few quick stops in Glasgow and Manchester. Persephone had been "harassing" me for years for us to come up and visit Scotland - and she was right. It is beautiful, especially at sunset.

In Fort William, we came across this gathering of old Citroen Traction Avant, on a Rally from Edinburgh to Skye

 

[Christian P.]

So apparently the first thing to get when you arrive in Scotland is a pair of Wellies. The country will come to a halt without them.

 

[Christian P.]

I am also happy to report that this great video, brought to my attention by our English friend Martyn at Adventure Trailer, helped clarify any confusion regarding the countries of UK.

 

[chilliwak]

If you make it to Denmark pm me and I will give you my number. We could always drink a couple of beers!

 

[Christian P.]

If you make it to Denmark pm me and I will give you my number. We could always drink a couple of beers!

Thanks - Denmark is on our list so I will make sure to let you know when we pass through!

 

[Amit Malhotra]

amazing.....pics....specially the price of C320.