Almost underway.......

Tomorrow is the big day that Claire and I set off for Beverley to deliver VH-MMD to its new owner!

Had some concerns about the wheel bearings, so asked Pete M if he could take the trailer to Beaurepaires and have them check it out. Due to being a bit extra-unordinary over the last few weeks, the stress of arriving and having to run around on Saturday to get final things done, did my head in. So Pete arranged for a friend of his to have a look at the wheel bearings.....dry as a "witches tit" (exact words!)  Wouldn't have made 200 kms before seizing up. That would have put a nasty kyboche on the whole exercise. So after much greasing, greasing and more greasing of four wheels, all done and ready to roll. 

Arrived at BLA to find the airfield saturated with rain and veritable "swimming pools" in front of the hangars. Decided to just pack up the car with all the boxes of the Nimbus' gear and check everything out whilst the trailer was in the hangar and see if the water would subside by Sunday. All the tow gear has to go in the car as there are no lock mechanisms for the gear in the front storage box, so a little bit hazardous to have floating bits of metal in the trailer!

Trailer checked out.....no spare tyre!  Resultant investigation and they are an old holden rim of 13" diameter. Bugger!  Will check out Beaurepaires and if no chance, will look at a few old car yards along the way. Tyres are all new though and have a repair kit and dual axle, so cross fingers.  The car is another matter.  What a nightmare just to get the spare out from under the car.  Use a screwdriver to unhitch the clamps (maybe difficult if mud and muck....grrr), then flick the latch at the front near the rear bumper (maybe difficult as very tight....grrr) then turn a screw mechanism 1.5 turns counter clockwise (need spanner....grrr) then it should (optimal word) should just slide out and down.  The video also said....good luck getting it back up!  Oh and by the way, the replaced tyre cannot go back in the slider carrier as it has to be fully deflated!  Mercedes, really??!! Obviously, they don't think their brand will ever have a flat tyre!!  Mercedes, really??!!  Claire maybe putting out a shapely leg to flag down a passing truck driver, whilst I swear and curse under the car....grrr.

Bit of help required by Rob Brown and Bruce Salter to pull open the back door of erstwhile trailer...note to self, "Self, you need to do more weight work on the biceps"!  Anyhoooo, finally door opened and played with and relocked and await the Sunday morn to head off into the "wilds of Victoria!" First stop Mildura!