I told you she was famous

How many cars have a street named after them? When I found out there was a Dame Zara Street in a new suburban development on Canberra's outskirts, we just had to call in on our way home!

Aside from a minor overheating incident on the way up that wasn't repeated (the needle of the temperature gauge stayed in the lower third all the way home), Dame Zara behaved impeccably on the 1000-mile round trip.

Passing a digital speed-checker on the freeway just out of Melbourne, I discovered that 76mp/h on the speedo is really 'only' 108km/h. As the speed limit on the freeways is 110km/h, an indicated 80mp/h became our maximum speed (when safe and appropriate, of course). Zara had absolutely no trouble keeping up with the modern traffic, and we did our fair share of overtaking slowpokes, even pulling up hills at 4000 rpm-plus in order to pass trucks.

What's even more impressive is that our fuel consumption for the trip averaged out at about 23.5 mpg!

An 'ambitious restoration project'

Another thing we did in Canberra was to call in to see dad's friend Jim, who has had a Daimler SP250 'Dart' sportscar lurking in his garden for some years (that's Jim with the all-white beard - mine's only a third grey!).

It's a very early, A-spec car (maybe even a 1959) originally delivered to the US in left-hand-drive. Jim has done quite a bit of work on the chassis, engine and suspension; and the car seems complete (even has a spare engine and bonnet and an original hard-top); but it's still a long way from getting back on the road.

Jim's not too worried, though: he has an XJ6 and XJS Jag in the driveway and a bright red Mini under restoration to keep him busy ...

The ol' home town

We went up to Canberra to visit my parents and sister, and to belatedly celebrate my mum's 60th birthday.

On Sunday we went to Gundaroo, a village about half an hour out of town, for lunch and dad drove his recently acquired 1966 Jaguar S-type. It's a 3.8 litre manual/overdrive and after teasing us on the outskirts of Canberra by cruising along at 90km/h, he gave us a very convincing demonstration of its quite awesome acceleration by shifting down to third on his way out of one of the many roundabouts and flooring it ... we caught up eventually!

It's a very solid-looking car: completely restored interior in red leather with new carpets and polished wood; engine probably reconditioned; and decent paintwork and body. Being a very canny bargainer, dad bought it for, oh, not much more than the cost of the retrim and engine work, so he got the rest of the car 'free'!

To the Manor Born

Dame Zara has just taken us on a 1000-mile round trip to Canberra and back. On the way we stopped off at Rutherglen in northern Victoria, (yet another) renowned wine region.

The faux-Scots castle at All Saints winery (built by some homesick Scotsmen who used to work for Queen Victoria in one of her little hooses in Scotland) seemed like an appropriate background for a pic.

The lemon-drop Dart, the Beast and a Kathy amid the Dames

 
 
  

The Little River Band

Some of the DLCV gang atop a hill in the scenic You Yangs on our way to Little River

 
 
 
  

Climb every mountain

This month's DLCV run was to Little River and the You Yangs, south of Melbourne down somewhere between Geelong and Bacchus Marsh. We shan't mention 70s soft-rock legends the Little River Band, but we will mention that Marilyn attended in her early SP250, a car I've heard of for the last few months but never before seen in its striking yellow fibreglass self. We followed 'DART 60' for quite a way, and she sounded grand!

Our host for the run was Trevor, whose intriguing beast is a sort of reverse Special Sports - I think it began its life as a sedate DB18 saloon, but in a mysterious transformation in Trev's shed it became The Beast - with a handmade aluminium sports body, a wicker picnic basket for the boot and a stonking 4.2 litre Jaguar XJ engine with triple 2" SU carbs under the bonnet.

Oh, hang on 'Help was on its way' when the Lanchester of newly elected club prez Tony Dixon failed to proceed on top of a hill at the You Yangs - had to fit a Little River Band reference in there somewhere. Everyone stopped and peered under the bonnet while he churned and churned and eventually we just all got out of the way and let him coast down the hill for a hill-start.

(Speaking of high office, one is slightly humbled to admit that one has been elected to the committee of the DLCV as some sort of Minister without Portfolio ... that's what happens if you turn up to two AGMs in a row!)

We enjoyed a surprisingly good lunch at Trev's local - a sure contender for Ugliest Pub in Victoria (from the outside) - and Mizz Kathy took the big 17" wheel for the ride back up the freeway and home again (and, no, one didn't imbibe more than a single light beverage at lunch - Kathy is a certified Daimler Dame and is more than happy to be in charge).

Pictures will follow when the InterWebThingy is being more cooperative!