lesapandre

Well it's the fuel pump. The Benz stood for a decade and I only use it a few times a year - so the poor old fuel pump has had enough. Expensive but better it packs up in a nice French village than out on the Autoroute or a Spanish mountain or on the Baltic coast somewhere. Probably a week or 2 to get it fixed by the time the parts have come. Nice plaque at the garage - they are Citroen dealership.

It's now at the garage awaiting it's turn.

I am driving one of these temporarily. Just had the brakes seen to - these are discs on the front. Sticking calipers. 2.0 petrol engine and 50€ fill-up. 😊 Bit different...very slow and rattly.

Good lunch - but these ditches are lethal. Epic car wrecks at the garage - lethal country lanes here...

Au garage...they are going to look at it...nice man. This is nothing I can tackle at the roadside - the undertray needs detaching etc. No offence taken - I sometimes mangle my French... In the meantime I put the car in a ditch - they have deep 'fosses' each side of the lanes and getting by passing cars can be dicey. Still some good ol boys pulled me out with a tractor.

I have French 0-Level Grade C - could do better... I realised France was a cool place when our French teacher (who was French) used to smoke whilst teaching us...zut alors. But no smoking aux bomb surprise ce matin...

I'll look and see what Montaigne says about buying 2nd hand cars - some wise words probably🤺

Ce matin je va a la garage dans le bomb surprise... Gotta get something that works or get it fixed. Anyway I'll have a nice lunch...

My attempt to buy a 2nd hand car at the local garage came to nothing - all the cheap cars had gone - was a nice AX I fancied. Something will turn up - or I will have to get the train home - if there are any. Better the 124 breaks down here than in Lithuania or in Spain - both of which were (are) on the agenda. It's pretty minor but fiddley - struck me it might be rodent damage. The philosopher Montaigne says we have a better time when things go wrong not right - at least some of the time... 🐁🐀🐁🐀🐁🐀🐁🐀🐁🐀🐁🐀🐁🐀🐁🐀🐁🐈‍⬛

It's squirting out when the fuel pump fires. As usual lots of advice on the web. I'll need to get it on ramps and have a good look. So that's it for this car for a bit. My hunch is a union has failed - but who knows. https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Mercedes+W123+Fuel+Lines+(Rear)+Replacement/33386 I could have it recovered and looked at by a local garage (it's too dangerous to drive though it runs fine) but it will be €€€'s. So no I will come back for it with some kit after doing more research. New one on me - never had a fuel line leak on anything - but the car is 32. I thought I could smell ⛽️ over a few days. Should have bought the XM 😄

Quel désastre! W124 has sprung a comically bad fuel leak! It's got an undertray so I don't think this is damage - corrosion or a dried out union - or maybe the pump.

Still-life with Peugeots

Taxi!

Americana - I would not fancy the fuel bill. SP98 now about 2.20€pl here - fuel cost has made the roads much quieter than I remember from previous trips. Life out here in the countryside is all car-based - no public transport to speak of - so costs must be really impacting locals. Very few UK number plates about as well.

At a car show today.

Railway strike? - there has not been a train along here in a long while too. Disused station on former line from Alençon to Condé sur Huisne via Mortagne au Perche. The line is now a 64km 'voie verte' walking, cycle and horseriding path.

Now cooling by the lake...