SOUTH AUSTRALIA ALL CHRYSLER DAY 2006

By Gerry Rivet

            The seed had been planted well over a year ago. Or was it two years ago? The show scene had become a little stale in NSW. What did the other states have to offer?

            The Queensland show was attended by a small convoy of CAVOA’s with some very tough cars on display and a rather long drive. The Victorian Charger car club show was great, although I went there by myself. At this show I was made to feel very welcome by all but what was a special treat was being able to go for a drive with a couple of the guys after the show (thanks Michael Gionfriddo). I don’t need to mention the magnificent Chryslers on the Murray show. Which lead me to think; what did our brothers and sisters in the Aussie Mopar Capital (Adelaide) have to offer? A very quick scouting trip proved that a trip to South Australia would be quite rewarding due to the sheer amount of Chrysler products still being driven on the road.

            It was time to harvest the seed.

            Car preparation was minimal as the drag day had only been two weeks before and the car was in good nick except that it was missing a few ponies at the top end. Surely this would not affect the reliability of the car so just the rear tires were changed in an effort to help with gearing.

            With the recent fitment of a 4.11 final drive ratio combined with the 26” tall tires provided a final cruise of approx 2600rpm at 110kph with the A500 in overdrive. The car was packed with the bare minimum, plus two twenty litre jerry cans for insurance.

            An early departure at approximately 2.45am guaranteed us a traffic-free run except for a few trucks. The weather forecast was good. I had left 40psi in the tires all round as the boot also had a slant 6 cylinder head to keep the rest of the boot’s occupants company. With all this weight the car took the open road in its stride, as it was hungry to eat up the miles of tarmac. The ride was very acceptable and we pushed on hoping to get to Wagga on the first tank. We fell about thirty km shy of Wagga. The first jerry can went in as the sun was just finding the horizon. It was kind of peaceful there on the side of the road and it gave me time to ogle the cars’ lines; something I never tire of doing. BP Wagga left me $83.01 dollars lighter. I tried to do some mental arithmetic but decided it was too early for that and to not let the cost of fuel be a burden. I knew driver fatigue would not be a problem as we would need to stop about every three hours. Still, we were happy with the progress we were making. Our next stop would be Narrandera. We just topped the fuel supply right up as we knew little of what to expect out in the big brown yonder. We had left Wagga a little after 6.35am and arrived and fueled in Narrandera by 7.47am and paid out another $17.40.

            What I find fascinating is how flat the country really is. The road is single lane each way but has a speed limit of 110kph. After Wagga the scenery doesn’t change very much at all: FLAT. The car confidently ate the open road. Our next stop was Balranald. The weather was good, and with the sun mostly to our back, driving conditions were very pleasant. Caltex Balranald saw my wallet opened again for $64.00 for the motion-potion. Time was 10.36am. By now Kevin-the-tactician had started to develop a fuel strategy and was planning to roughly where we would be needing petrol again. It was a bit eerie that the amount of cars heading in the same direction was maybe 1 an hour. The road was disappointingly rough but not uncomfortable. I’m sure anyone doing this journey in a lowered car (like Maz’s Neon) would not be far from being sea sick. Needless to say there were not any another cars out there of the Charger’s vintage.

            The next port of call was to be Renmark. Although the scenery hadn’t changed much every once in a while we would catch a glimpse of the great Murray River. One day I would like to explore it in a bit more detail but it was not of importance on this mission. I took a wrong turn in Mildura and got held up by the funeral procession of one of the five Mildura kids that had been taken away so early and tragically. Kevin soon had us back on the right road and easy progress continued. By now though it was staring to really warm up and was becoming slightly uncomfortable in the Charger. Renmark looks like a nice place to spend a day or two. And $67.15 in fuel!

            Driving into Adelaide is very similar to driving into Melbourne and Canberra. The resemblance to it was kind of uncanny and you had to remind yourself that in fact you were in S.A. A small detour was made into Gawler at 3.38pm were another $44.53 was added to the tally. We didn’t really need to fill up, but now we did need a street directory and a cold drink! We could smell our destination but needed to proceed with extra caution. There were several railway lines that need crossing. On the whole, Adelaide is pretty easy to navigate around especially with Kevin onboard. I would have been truly lost without him. Driving around Adelaide is like driving in Melbourne and can be a bit tricky for Sydney-siders at first.

            We found the motel in Seaton with little effort and started to relax after a long day in the saddle. Although tired I did not feel fatigued from the car. Spirits were high as it was Kevin’s Birthday so a little drinking time was required! So off to the Chrysler Bar we head. Now for those that don’t know (as I didn’t) Tonsley Park as a suburb does not exist. Anyway after a quick phone call to a very hospitable local (a big thanks Paul Cronin) we were soon on the right way. A quick stop at the car wash and we were on the go again. The barkeep at the Chrysler Bar knew how to keep the punters spending their hard-earned; the price she was charging must have been trying to help her pay off her boob job or was she trying to help recuperate Chrysler’s lost earnings! So we had a quick look around and then decided to go for a bit of a drive into town. Most people would think spending thirteen or so hours in a car would be more than enough but not for us two.  We did a couple of laps down the main drag but by then we were really starting to get tired. We tried to stir up some of the locals but it was a bit early yet for the night life they have, or more to the point, don’t have. We showed one local in his Hiroshima screamer some Sydney hospitality then set off back for the motel for a well earned rest. What would Sunday hold?

            I thought I would try and get an early start as the day promised to be a big one. We would need plenty of time to check the cars out and give the swap meet a through going over. As we were getting the car ready, in the distance the eager snarls could be heard as anxious owners were keen to get their cars there. What an assault on all the senses as we rounded the corner! The sights and sounds that attacked us left us speechless. One didn’t know where to look. I took a deep breath and tried to regain control of my bodily functions. We were directed where to park and made haste for the swap meet. A brief walk around the place saw us scurry back to the nearest ATM for some urgent funds. Now, the charger doesn’t have the most practical of boots and room was soon being questioned as we looked at our newly-acquired goodies. It was going to be interesting as to how we were going to travel back. We stopped buying stuff purely due to lack of room. We questioned the possibility of buying a ute so we – mainly Kev –could keep on spending.

            Speaking of Kevin, I don’t think the guy could have had a better birthday present that wasn’t illegal or immoral! Every conceivable combination of VC was present going from stock slanters through to some tough tarmac-pounders complete with 440 cubic inches of Mopar’s finest. And there was a lot more than the mouth watering VC’s. I’m not one to go looking at numbers to see if the cars are what they claim to be. A good car is a good car, regardless: who cares what is stamped on the plate. (As long as there are no lies). And to that end I have never seen so many VH Pacers. See the photos on the web site. There were a few characters there as well but that is another story.

Kevin at the All Chrysler Day in Adelaide

            The day was very relaxed with pleasant weather. One person I surely wasn’t expecting to see was Andrew Clark from Newcastle. It was good to catch up and he was in a similar position in regard to lack of useable boot space. Andrew truly is a stalwart of the Mopar community.        Unfortunately Kevin left his camera behind and my one ran out of battery. However we still managed to get a few shots but not as many as we would have liked as there was so much to ogle. The food was good. I could not have asked for a better day.

            Monday morning saw another rudely early start- a bit just before 3.00am. As much as I like night driving in the early morning I was just too fatigued to take the wheel for very long in the wee hours so it was up to Kevin to take the wheel once again, although I am sure he didn’t mind. Unfortunately I didn’t get to see much of the dawn as I was asleep. I must state that anyone doing a trip like this be sure to have a good night’s sleep the night before. I was really starting to miss my bed by now. The car was chasing the sun in the horizon and the clock was ticking. We had filled up before leaving so our first stop on the return leg was Renmark. No fuel receipt. From Renmark to Balranald we used 25 litres from the jerry can plus most of a tank. We filled up at Balranald at 9.30am at $34.71.

            There was hope of some rain on the way back but alas to no avail. On the way down the front window had to be cleaned at every fuel stop (which was often). Amazingly on the way back it was not cleaned once as it was not necessary. Traffic was still sparse but more common on the way back. One highway patrol car was spotted on the Hay Plain but otherwise numbers of the various local constabularies were not apparent. 1.20pm saw us back at Wagga and another $61.07 well spent. By this time I can guarantee you that there were absolutely no moths left in our wallets! A hot tip about a VC in the local wrecking yard saw a small detour and a quick transaction. I will also admit that each time we went past a large property with some potential classics in the back yard did see us slow down looking for that bargain buy!

            Things just kept on going from great to even greater. Next stop Marulan. From there it would just be a walk in the park. With Kevin driving my mind started to wonder how the car was traveling. How many times have the valves opened and closed? How many times had the fuel pump gone up and down? How was the oil handling it all? What about the pistons going up and down for that long?? The mind started to boggle at the marvel of it all. How many times has the tail shaft turned? And what about the wheel bearings?  Needless to say all the “Moparts” did a stellar job. And to that point a lot of the aftermarket parts proved very reliable. Marulan saw us stop to take a quick breather before we hit the outskirts of Sydney suburbia again and rejoin the rat race. Homeward bound we were. There is much pleasure in being able to enjoy your vehicle in whatever its intended capacity. It was good to be able to drive and not be driven such as is the case with these newer, sanitized, dead-feeling cars. My own view is that these newer cars have much of the pleasure of driving long removed from them, and in that regard, a loss of a sense of adventure. Sure they might be more comfortable and cheaper to run but the emotion and the passion is just not there.

            The natural high of the past 48 hours or so started to run out and thought of going back to work again soon made the mood sombre. We pulled back into Kevin’s place to unload. The front right tire was nearly completely flat. It was duly re-inflated back to 40psi with no adverse side affects. Just a hop, skip and a jump and I was soon home myself. I felt a bit down as I knew the trip was at its end all too quickly and I would have to wait to hear that sweet exhaust for hours on end again.  The low feeling was quickly replaced with a sense of achievement. We had done it. Would we do it again? You bet!

            Albury is just around the corner on the calendar. I might start making inquires as to how much a new fuel cap is worth as I think the hinges are worn on mine! I am pumped. At the club meeting the other night Michael raised a very good point. We had traveled less than a third of the distance across Australia. I am thinking Tasmania or Perth next year.

Any takers?

            I will admit that Kevin, after being there ten minutes, had already planned for next year to go back to Adelaide.

            I think I will join him!