Corkin idea for a road trip

[E30Gheko]

Having just bought a cheap E30 in Dubai I'm now very seriously considering driving it to the UK, possibly even to arrive at Santa Pod this year and throw it down the strip.

It's a bonkers thought but would be a great experience. There's another English guy at work who is up for it aswell.

The trip would be roughly, drive through Saudi Arabia, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Bosnia, Slovenia, Italy, Switzerland, and finally France.

It's just an idea but with a few months to plan it I think it would be amazing to do.

What do you lot think?

[beemerbird]

Sounds fantastic, Rob. Brilliant idea

[ade36]

That would be a pretty epic journey!

[rancido64]

Sounds brilliant i'd love to do something similar at some point in the next couple of years.
From here in Dublin -> UK -> France -> Stelvio pass via teh 'ring

[Jim320i]

That sounds awesome. Whats the E30 you just picked up?

[320Touring]

Get it done rob.

I'd reckon on 5 days

[DanThe]

Do you have bullet proof glass?

[Jim320i]

Do you have bullet proof glass?

He doesnt need it, he's bulletproof the rumour has it.

[_Jay_]

Thats a legendary road trip, you have to do it!!!

[Kemix]

One word. Mission.

[E30Gheko]

That sounds awesome. Whats the E30 you just picked up?

It's a very unexciting 320i auto. Done about 100k km's.

I think 5 days might be a little optimistic and I'd want to take in some of the scenery etc on the way..

[ImysE30]

Great trip if you go ahead with it, experience of a life time

My uncle did England to Pakistan a few years ago, said it was mind blowinging good

[oomz1975]

Great idea, try & get these guys to convoy.....

[MurphyE30]

great idea, shiuld be a nice experiance if you decide to go ahead with it

[gareth]

Get it done rob.

I'd reckon on 5 days

Race?

[Felix79]

Bloody hell , that's one fecking epic road trip Gheks. If you do it in time for Santa pod I'll buy you a pint for achiving it.

Also why not do Turkey , get the ferry to Greece and then a ferry to Italy and up to France and then to Blighty?

[airborne_7]

Sounds a mega idea im doinf a road trip around europe in mine this year was hoping to get some more e30's to come along, so far me and the sport a mate with a tvr Griffith and another lad with a dodge challenger

[Gwynleym10]

Awesome idea - a road trip is the best way to really see how far you have travelled.

My biggest piece of advice though is spend as much time on it as possible, you can race at Santa Pod - but the stuff you will miss on route if you rush through you will never get back. There are some incredible people in this world!

Before you get too exited though have a look into if it will be possible to a) come into all of those countries (including Europe) on Dubai plates and if there are all the correct boarder crossings. Have a look at http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/ and http://www.africa-overland.net/Home (it also has websites for people who have traveled other places than just Africa)

You will probably need a Carnet (which is basically a passport for the car for customs).

Keep off the ferries, the land is much better if you have a car!

[mrLEE30]

Epic would be to drive to the pod and back! Got a friend who did se route from Qatar to London, will try and find his blog. Easy way is drive to Jeddah then car ferry to Italy, the rest is easy.

[E30Gheko]

Epic would be to drive to the pod and back! Got a friend who did se route from Qatar to London, will try and find his blog. Easy way is drive to Jeddah then car ferry to Italy, the rest is easy.

I wasn't planning to drive back!! lol. I'll pass the E30 on when I get there. I'm sure it would be of use to someone even if it has too many doors and the steering wheel is on the wrong side. We shall see.

I have always wanted to do something like this and it seems like the right time could be just around the corner. I will research it thoroughly over the next few weeks and make a decision. First things first, get the car and work out if it's really as up to the challenge as the driver(s) are....

[E30Gheko]

Any suggestions on essential tools and spares for such a journey would be welcomed. I know the roads through Syria, Jordan and Lebanon may not all be as forgiving on the old girl as UK roads for example.

I have a picture in my mind of a dusty E30 sporting a period roof rack carrying jerry cans of cheap middle eastern petrol and a few spare wheels, but what morsels would YOU lot consider essential to pack?

[Felix79]

Tyre repair kit incase of a puncture.
A decent jack
Spare coolent
Oil
Cable ties

[B7]

I reckon it'd be a laugh. I was out in Abu Dhabi seeing a mate working out there (he's now in Bahrain) and we thought the exact same thing. Only bringing this back. 58k miles only and truly mint. It was a cack hander though but we thought it'd be a right gas!

[320Touring]

Get it done rob.

I'd reckon on 5 days

Race?

I would if you supply the car

I reckon we can get to his pad in 4 days

[Royalratch]

No brainer - do it!

I want to do the Mongolian Rally which is almost the reverse of your trip but onward to Mongolia oddly enough.

I'd sat Eastern Europe would be far more of a worry than the Middle Eastern part.

[320Touring]

No brainer - do it!

I want to do the Mongolian Rally which is almost the reverse of your trip but onward to Mongolia oddly enough.

I'd sat Eastern Europe would be far more of a worry than the Middle Eastern part.

The Mongolian Rally looks great fun- problem I ahd was the "selling" the car at the end- I'd want to drive it back..

As for Eastern Europe, be polite, please ignorance at their perfect english whilst issuing tickets, and be prepared to be marched at gunpoint at least once.

Its a doddle

[Gwynleym10]

RE- what spares to carry.

The two things to consider are weight and murphys law.

If you carry to much weight you will put more strain on the engine / suspension and brakes. Liquids are very heavy.

Murphys law is basically the fact that what ever spares you take, it will be the other things that break!

So in planning I think it is a good thing to take a few valuable / light weight spares, so then if anything goes wrong you will be able to swap to spares for the right parts.

Electrical stuff often seems to be quite car / engine specific meaning its usually pretty expensive if it goes wrong, a spare AFM or something like that might be useful.

Genuine rubber seals are useful things to have.

In terms of oil / coolant / fuel it really depends on the route you are going to take - have a think about where is the longest stretch were getting this kind of stuff will be difficult. On my London to Cape Town there was a stretch which was 600 odd miles which we couldn't have walked out alive - so carried enough oil/coolant for a complete change and enough fuel for 800 miles. But most of the time we would carry a pretty limited supply - oil was available in most small towns and you can just use water for coolant to get you to the next place.

Work out the range of the car fully loaded, then see really how much fuel you need. Carrying petrol in hot countries is pretty dangerous!

If you can avoid a roof rack - do, it will increase you fuel consumption dramtically and add weight.

Buy new good tyres before you leave (including spare) BF goodrich are awesome, I know some who drove around the whole of Africa (yes all around the coast) and didn't have a single puncture... They need to cope with the extra weight, so look at load ratings. My Toyo tyres had crap load ratings so the sidewalls died with the combination of extra weight and not good roads.

If you can buy new springs - potentially something that will give you a little extra clearance (or maybe fit touring rear springs) with thicker rubber pads (or potentially two on top of each other) will help.

If you fit heavy duty springs and shocks, you run the risk of breaking other parts of the suspension - which will be a pain to fix.

All in all, remember that there are mechanics everywhere who will be able to solve stuff in a way that will get you going.

Less is more.

[daimlerman]

Regarding spare to carry,Gwenleyn has done a trip into Africa so has some very good pointers,I would carry things that will leave you immobile if they fail.

Stuff like;
fuel pump relay
crank position sensor
K seal or similar
One of those magic glues that will seal alloy.

Prepairing the car;
In addition to things already suggested;
sump guard
mesh cover for the radiator

Do plenty of research and planning,then do a bit more!

Good luck...

[dimebag_from_hell]

What do you lot think?

I think it wil break down or overheat

[E30Gheko]

What do you lot think?

I think it wil break down or overheat

Haha Yeah I think u could well be right. Part of the fun in doing this sort of a trip in something like a 20 year old E30 has to be setting off unsure of whether you will actually make it or not.

Some very good advice there Gwynleym, all of which has been noted.

[dimebag_from_hell]

Part of the fun in doing this sort of a trip in something like a 20 year old E30 has to be setting off unsure of whether you will actually make it or not.

Thats how I feel driving mine into town

[mrLEE30]

When I bought my cab from Dubai, I simply filled it with fuel ,checked water and oil, put one tyre on it, opened the roof and drove 900km to Bahrain - the same day i bought it.

[E30Gheko]

The guys in work are all of the opinion that I've bought a lemon.

Everyone in Dubai appears to believe that if your car was built before 2008 then it's shite and liable to break as soon as you turn the key. Having owned about 9 E30's before I am conscious that they could be right.

[Gwynleym10]

yea ardlight (or however you spell it) is soo useful. I fixed a very leaky radiator with it and a whole host of other things... Gaffer tape is actually strong enough to tape a piece of wood around a borken suspension arm to get you home! quality zip ties will be useful for so many different things.

[mrLEE30]

Thats the exact reason I did not enjoy living in dubai, people seem more concerned with what you earn and what you drive rather than your name! The same Folk who have new cars are those with big debts as they attempt to live the lifestyle in the red. Dont fall into this trap.

I found the name of the shop where you can get all parts- but forgot it already! Just in airport on way to Qatar but back on Thursday, will get the name again then.

For the record my 320 cab after my initial expense cost me less than a couple of hundred dhs per year - in uk they suffer from the weather and rust, here that is not an issue. Enjoy the car and cash in your pocket, live to your means and never borrow, this motto has held me in good stead for 15 years working in this region, I now own my own house, four cars (sport plus 2 e39's and wides durango) all paid for. I sleep easy.

You can still live a great life in Dubai this way, and a final note next time you stop at the traffic lights - look around you and you will see loads of expensive exotic cars, I bet after a few weeks you will not even bat an eyelid at a GT2. my point is neither does anyone else- so blowing 300k on a sport car will not turn heads. And neither of us can afford one of the very few cars that really will make people gasp.

Enjoy the turd!