The Long Way Euround 2024 – Summary

The Long Way Euround 2024 is now the third of these big road trips in Classic cars I’ve organized.  To me an adventure like this is the best part of classic car ownership.   Its not just about owning the car, but about the experiences that come along.   Each to their own, but I really don’t understand the attraction of owning a classic that is rarely used and kept under lock and key in a garage, never to be seen.

It is the adventure and the sights a little off the beaten track that make these trips so enjoyable.   That and the camaraderie of going with a group of friends and helping each other with car problems along the way.

The actual drive is a big part of the experience, but so are the various stops along the way.   This is not possible sticking to motorways and major centers.   This year, we the Australian National Show and Shine in Euroa was the event we built the trip around, but it was only one aspect of it.   In addition, our entire group contributed to the success of the trip, whether that was building the cool poster and merch that came with it, organizing some of our visits or the many other things people volunteered to do.

During each of these trips, Adelaide in 2022, The Concours Run in 2023, or The Long Way Euround in 2024, I’ve seen parts of the country I’ve never been to, and probably wouldn’t any other way.   In all cases, the group has helped ensure that all the cars and drivers made it home safely.

Our Route

A full summary of the route is available here.   We would drive inland to the upper reaches of the Murray River, before following the river all the way to Robinvale.   From Robinvale we would head south to visit part of the Silo Art Trail, and the Grampians National Park.

After that we would take the Goldfields Way between Ballarat and Bendigo, before attending the show at Euroa and heading the scenic way to Melbourne.   After Melbourne we would hug the coast through Gippsland before heading north through the Monaro region of NSW and the Southern Tablelands.

The total distance was around 3,900km.

The Cars

A full description of each of the cars is here.  They were all Classic Mercedes from 1971 to 1994.  The main rule of the trip was that they could be any make or model, but had to be eligible for historic registration, and able to sustain 110km/h.

As with the last two trips, all cars made it back on their own four wheels, although we had to attempt various roadside repairs to keep them going.   Unlike with a modern car, on a classic you can often get by with a few bits of wire and cable ties to limp a car home.

I took my 450SLC.  I actually wasn’t planning on taking the SLC.  Circumstances meant the car I planned to take wasn’t ready, so the 450SLC got to go on its second big road trip.   This year I have done a lot of work on the car.  This included replacement timing chain and valve seals, front end bushings, front brake work and an upgraded A/C condenser.    The car was great on the twisty bits, but I had a few issues along the way.

Over 3883km, I used 528 liters of fuel.

The Drive

In order to avoid being stuck in Sydney traffic, we all made our way to Bathurst the evening before.  We rolled out of Bathurst early and proceeded to Young, passing through the towns of Blayney and Cowra. The terrain was gentle rolling hills and it was a good way to get the drive started.  We continued through Cootamundra, before taking the back roads to Gundagai, which was an enjoyable road.

After a stop at the old railway station in Gundagai, we headed south, eventually finishing in Tumbaruma for lunch.   The terrain was getting more hilly and the roads were quite enjoyable.   The best roads were in the afternoon along Lake Hume.  We really enjoyed taking our cars through these twisty sections, before finishing up at Cobram.    A more detailed overview of Day 1 can be found here.

On Day 2, we had steady rain at first, as we continued along the Murray.  That soon faded, and we cruised north, taking a stop at Echuca, and eventually making it to Robinvale for Lunch.   Along the way we watched the terrain get less green and more like the outback, as we drove along the river.

In the afternoon, we did the Silo art trail and stopped at a number of grain silos that had artworks on them, the best being the one at Sheep Hills.   The roads were almost empty and quite good here too.   A more detailed overview of day 2 can be found here.

The next morning it was quite wet and foggy as we headed into the Grampians National Park.   We saw many kangaroos and due to the weather had to go quite slowly.   What we could see of the scenery was quite good, through the fog. Unfortunately the couple of lookouts were a bit of a bust.

After breakfast, the fog cleared a bit and we were able to enjoy the road through the southern part of the Grampians.   It was around here we started having issues with the 380SEC, but were able to keep it going.

In the afternoon, a few of the group visited a metal working shop before joining the rest of the group at a Benz wrecking yard.   From there, we took the Goldfields Way, and were able to see some of the amazing buildings funded by the gold rush.  A more detailed overview of day 3 can be found here.

The next morning we headed to the show.  After that, took the best driving roads of the trip in the back way to Melbourne via Jaimeson and Eildon. These roads were twisty and allowed us to really exercise the cars.  I developed a grinding noise which I first thought was a wheel bearing, but later realized was something else.   In Melbourne, the MBCV graciously hosted us for a BBQ at their excellent club rooms, which we all really enjoyed.  A more detailed overview of day 4 can be found here.

On day 5, we hugged the coast of Gippsland, before stopping at the Gippsland Vehicle Collection in Maffra.   The museum there was quite good, and they even started one of the pre-war cars for us.   During this part of the drive, the grinding noise in my car got worse, and I wasn’t sure it was going to make it.   But after being threatened with being left in Melbourne, it quietened down. An overview of the museum can be found here.

In the afternoon, we continued along the Gippsland coast, before heading north on the Monaro Highway to Bombala where we stayed for the night.  A more detailed overview of day 5 can be found here.

On our final day, we continued north along the Monaro highway, enjoying the sweeping beings through the countryside.   We passed Canberra, and headed north towards Bathurst, taking the roads through Gunning, Crookwell and ultimately to lake Lyell where we parted ways.    These roads had long sweeping bends and great hilly terrain.  Other than the caravan menace, they were great to drive on.   The 380SEC started playing up even more here.  We eventually got the car back, and all cars made it home on their own four wheels.  A more detailed overview of day 6 can be found here.

We had covered 3,900km and it had been an amazing adventure.

The Show

The Australian National Show and Shine in Euroa was the event our trip was built around.   While the trip itself was more important than the destination, we all enjoyed the show.   They had a great variety of interesting cars, and a great laid back atmosphere of a country car show.

There was the biggest collection of Bowell’s I’ve ever seen, as well as interesting stuff like tractors, stationary engines and more.   The location was excellent and it was well worth the visit.   A more detailed overview of the show can be found here.