MBCNSW April 2023 Night Drive – Berowra Ferry

Last night was the monthly MBCNSW night drive.   This month was a repeat of one of the best drives we did last year.   The route takes some of my favorite driving roads in Northern Sydney – nice and twisty with almost no traffic.

The weather leading up to the drive had been excellent, but heavy rain is forecast for this weekend.  A perfect opportunity for club members to get their classic out for a nice autumn drive before the weather changes.    All these factors aligned and we had a line up of some of the best cars ever made by Mercedes Benz:

• W108:  280SE 3.5
• C107: 450SLC x2
• W116: 450SE & 450SEL 6.9
• C123: 280CE
• C126: 380SEC & 560SEC (mine)
• W/S124: 230E, 300E, 300E 2.6, E220T
• W210: E430

In addition to these Mercedes-Benz cars, we also had a guest appearance from a Lotus, and a cameo appearance by an MGB.    The 450SEL 6.9 did not actually belong to its driver – its actually a loan car from his mechanic – and what a loan car!

I covered our route in more detail last year, but the nice thing about it is that there are only a couple of short sections where there is any other traffic.   We started in North Turramurra before proceeding through the national park.   This road is open at night, which is not the case for all National Park roads in Sydney.   We then took the Berowra waters ferry, one of the five free car ferries in Sydney.    Our group was so large, we required two ferry crossings!

From there we took Cattai ridge road to Maraylya, before doubling back to Dural McDonalds via Pitt Town road.   All the cars did really well, although it was quite funny to see the Lotus in the twisty corners alongside a bunch of limousines.

As is usual with these drives, McDonalds was our final destination, primarily because its the only thing open.   Everyone made it in one group, which was great given our numbers.   The only exception was the E220T, who had always planned to peel off early, due to an early start the next day.    Speaking with everyone after the drive, everyone enjoyed the route, so I think this will be another one of our drives for next year too.   Its such a great route.