Triumph touring

[valencia]

Oh, glad to say, the oil leak has stopped

[johnnydog]

Stunning scenery Michael. I think a road trip undertaken in a Triumph rather than a modern car adds to the enjoyment of the whole adventure. Last big trip abroad in OJAG was in the late 80's when I went to La Rochelle (via the Saint- Nazaire bridge) which was an great experience, and then the following year we went to the Loire Valley - all with the caravan ( and the children!) in tow. Another road trip in a Triumph into Europe without the children (couldn't even imagine now they would want to travel in a Triumph to France!!) seems like an interesting adventure / proposition!! Enjoy the rest of your trip, and I look forward to reading more about it!!

[valencia]

Still on the road in France/Italy, yesterday's weather was very heavy rain all day so not wanting to waste a day I thought a museum visit would be great, google maps puts Turin at 3hrs away so off I went , mid morning (a bit late) but I travelled over the Col de Aravis, to Albertville to pick up the A32 to Turin, after shocking weather, poor visibility and diversions I reached the outskirts of Turin where it was gridlocked. I eventually made my way to the city proper and it was more like 6hrs travelling. But no matter, I can find a hotel, and see the museum the next day. Finding a hotel was surprisingly difficult and when I did there were no parking facillities, the staff were unable to help with there explainations of don't park on the yellow or the blue and yellow, just the blue. But Turin is packed with parked cars just left anywhere!
It was about 7.00pm and I had to admit defeat and decided reluctantly to make my way back to France.
Quicker on the way back, about 4.15 it took, plenty of tunnels including Mont Blanc (8 miles and 51euro toll), Although a wasted trip in some ways it was an interesting drive but I need to avoid the cities, keep it more local for the rest of the hol.

parking in Turin, as good as it gets

[valencia]

We spent today walking in the Vallee de Confins which is local to where we are staying in the alpes, about 1600m we walked up to but fortunately there is a car park half way up, more low gear climbing for the car but worth the views

[valencia]

it is possible to get a car up there so long as it's the right type, Land Rovers still seem faily popular round here wether it's tourists or locals, this one was a farmer's

[johnnydog]

Fantastic scenery Michael! Glad to hear the Triumph is coping well with your fantastic journey!

[valencia]

Thanks John,
the Triumph is doing exceptionally well. Getting it ready now for tomorrow's 500+ miles to Bruay-la-Buissière, which is about an hour south of Calais.

This was to me a traditional filling station in La Clusaz with repairs and servicing on offer too, they were also kind enough to get in stock for me a litre of ATF for the power steering, I have lots at home but I always forget something.

[valencia]

Well, that's the little French adventure over, the car has performed magnificiently, it held 110km,ph on the return journey back up to Bruay-la-Buissière about 45 mins from Calais where we had an overnight stop, a little quicker on the way back, I think we shaved about half an hour off the travelling time.
Whilst waiting for the ferry I was surprised that the car attracted some nice comments and other travellers were genuinely interested, even though I was waiting next to a modern Aston Martin, people on the whole have been complimentary and like to tell their own story too. I met an english couple at the services near Dijon who fondly remembered their fwd 1500 when they lived in New Zeeland, and french people want to know is it comfortable or how fast. I think brexit has not had any negative impact to the english traveller, we always had a warm welcome in shops and the french were keen to help us.

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Once back on British soil it was back to normal, standing traffic on the M25, so next day back at home I gave the car a check over. I replaced the rocker cover gasket which allowed the seepage early on and checked the valve clearances. about half were ok but the rest were a mixture of a bit loose or slightly tight so all reset to 10 thou, and the plugs were all correct colour, and we have covered 2420 miles in all.
I can recommend a trip like this to stretch the car's legs, the old Triumphs are definitely up to it.

[valencia]

[johnnydog]

Very interesting topic Michael! The car certainly did well. Not many would consider a European trip in their Triumph. Thanks for sharing your adventure!