MBCNSW August 2024 night drive – Multiple breakdowns

The August night drive was a repeat of the southwest loop we did last year.  On the night of the drive, the weather was pretty bad, so we only had a few people come on that drive.   Since the route was really good, I put it on the schedule again for this year.

After a cold winter, the day of the drive was unseasonably warm for August.    On the day of the drive, I collected my Jaguar E-Type after having a leak from the brakes repaired.    Even though it was a Mercedes-Benz Club drive, it seemed too good an opportunity not to take the Jaguar.

The drive started in Camden, which is about as far as you can drive from where I live and still remain in Sydney.   You really experience the size of the urban sprawl when you’re still in the same city after 1:40.    On arrival, I had a message from one of our members that he has suffered a breakdown and would no longer be able to make it.

I later found out he had suffered a breakdown in his W108 on the approach to the M5 tunnel.   The issue was a dead alternator.   While he was towed to a safer place after 90 minutes, it would take 5 hours to get a tow him to the mechanics shop.

As well as the stricken W108, a few people had to pull out, so we started out with six cars.   My Jaguar E-Type, an A124 E320 Cabriolet, a 300E and three W126s – a 380SEC, 380SEL and a 300SEL.   The route started out well, and we enjoyed good roads, great weather and no traffic.   I was the 3rd car in the convoy, and after a while we noticed the others were not with us.   We stopped to let them catch up, but they didn’t.   We assumed they had taken a wrong turn, and continued on the route.

When we got to the final destination, we found out the 380SEL had to pull out with fuel delivery issues.   It would run for a while then cut out.   The car had apparently had a new fuel pump and the petrol tank cleaned.   Since it had less than 1/4 of a tank, I suspect the strainer or the small hole at the bottom of the swirl pot was clogged.

With broken Mercedes littering southwest Sydney, only four of us made it to the end to the Chubby Buns burger joint.    The Jaguar made it there without incident.    We rarely have car issues on these drives, so to have two on one night is unheard of.