La cinq-cent dix

[Ratdat]

Thursday evening, and whilst enjoying a lovely cup of tea courtesy of Mrs ratdat, I thought I'd have a quick browse of Leboncoin. As you do. There's was almost a major tea/keyboard interface when the first thing I should see is this...

 

 

Now, I have been fiddling around with Datsuns for a pretty long time and this has to be the first time I have ever seen a European spec 510 SSS for sale. I don't think many were sold in Europe at all. It must have taken me roughly one second to determine whether I fancied buying it. This is a bit of a Holy Grail car for me and one which I had never honestly expected to see.

 

I've been trying to learn a bit of French for the last year but I'm a very long way from being able to communicate. Regardless, this had to be done, so using what little I knew with some Google translate assistance, I fired off an email asking if he had a Carte Gris, if it was more or less complete and whether he could email me some more pictures. I make a point of stating that French wasn't my first language (I'm sure he could have figured that out anyway thinking about it) but avoided trying to communicate in English as feel that's a bit insulting (especially to the French). 

 

No reply by bedtime but by 8am the following morning the vendor had furnished me with some info (en français, naturellement) as well as another five pictures. Happy days! It looked rough but complete. At this stage, there wasn't any easy way to tell if it was a real SSS but I had a gut feeling it was. As M. Martin had told me "elle n'a pas roulé depuis 1980", I'm thinking who on earth would have bothered converting a regular 510 into an SSS back then? Not much cachet in having an SSS in 1980. Or even in having a Datsun at all, especially in France. It did have all the right bits too from what I could see... steering wheel, tacho, emblems, engine etc.

 

 

 

I figured that it was probably worth the money even if it wasn't a genuine SSS so I messaged him back to say I would definately buy it and when could I come and get it? Simple... apart from the writing and speaking French bit. Daunting, as by now I figured I was dealing with a chap who maybe had no English at all, but not to worry... how hard could it be? Also,  I wasn't about to start haggling as I figured the price was perfectly reasonable and by agreeing to that price i might be able to put a stop to anyone else snagging it before I could get there. 

 

Now at this point, it's good Friday, I have no Euros, no trailer and nothing to tow it with if I did have. The M10 Prairie is in bits with no front suspension or steering and I'm chugging around in the MX5. Anticipating good things to come, I figure i best get my arse in gear and get ready. First of all a trailer was sourced from a friend of a friend in my village. A lovely little Brian James, perfect for small motors and for not being hauled in by the cops for looking dodgy.

 

Next, I needed a tow car. I have use of Mrs Ratdat's Alfa 156 Sportwagen but only on a 3rd party entitlement on my policy. Not sure if that's even valid on the continent but regardless, I didn't fancy my chances of an aggravation free trip should I get stopped by the French cops or worse still if I had an accident.

I really needed to get the Prairie sorted, especially as I was going to need sleeping accomodation at some point in France, so it was off out into the workshop to finish installing the power steering I'd got off a scrapper and rebuild the front end with new wheel bearings and brakes. I hate doing major shit like this immediately before hitting the road un-tested for a long trip but this was an emergency so I figured it was worth the risk.  

 

By about 8.30 pm the the Prairie was done and had been taken for a test run round the block a couple of times, the first one without any coolant after I forgot to re-fill it after putting the hoses back on (duh). No harm done thankfully. Then I got the final word from M. Martin, the seller. The deal was on. He'd furnished me with his address and wished me "Bonne Route".

 

Trailer hooked up, sorted out tools, straps, continental driving kit, paperwork, map or France and Sat Nav. After managing to shut my hand in the sliding door or the Prairie, I nursed the pain away while downing a quick cup of strong caffiene , then pointed the Prairie at Dover and hit the road. At midnight.

 

Mrs Ratdat had managed to get down the ATM and source me some Pounds during the day on Friday by calling the bank and them authorising a bigger withdrawal limit (£500 for her and £500 for me). I pulled some more out of a chashpoint on Dover and turned it into Euro as the Bureau de Change at the port at 6am. I just missed one boat so ended up on the 6.40am sailing having paid a bit of a premium for taking a later sailing but it didn't matter... buying a 510 SSS mattered and the clock was ticking....

 

[mrbenn]

On the edge of my seat here!

[beko1987]

Fucking brilliant!

[Ratdat]

As I needed to be chez M. Martin ASAP, I elected to go for travel via péage which adds a bit to the cost but simplifies things a bit. The penalty for travel this way is not much chance of chod spotting but I did take a few snaps...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Prairie was going great and towing well so I was down in the Aube region by 2pm and rolled up at M. Martins place at 2.30pm, exactly 48 hours after he'd placed the advert.

 

 

By this time, I was getting a bit tired which made the thought of trying to communicate in another language more than a little daunting. I figured that maybe, if there were any English speakers, they would make themselves known. There weren't.

 

The location was home to Michel Martin (M. Martin Snr) who has run a business on the site since the war or possibly before. This, from what I can tell consisted of transport, car trading and a breakers yard of epic proportions, which I didn't see a lot of (I'll come back to this later). Martial, who is the son, explained that everything was being cleared thanks to environmental rules. Thanks for that, Brussels.

 

With the assistance of the Martins, we got the 510 loaded and Euros were handed over in exchange for a very old Carte Gris and a receipt. Unbelievably, I had a 510 SSS. And I bought a car from Leboncoin for the first time.

 

 

It was looking pretty ugly but closer inspection seemed to confirm that is was the real deal. For a car that's been sat in a scrapyard for over 30 years, it's fared pretty well. The sill were shot and the back end is a bit crusty but the floors and inner wings seemed decent and the engine still tuned. Even the tyres held air! 

 

Anyone want to take a guess at what that bumper of off? I think I have figured it out and if it's what I think it is, they used some logic in choosing it....

 

[messerschmitt owner]

proper car collection threads have ferries in them. Extra bonus points for aircraft. We want more!!

[Pillock]

Holy moly!

[Ratdat]

Obviously the language was a hurdle but I frankly amazed myself by being able to utter more than a few whole sentences, albeit in a slightly faltering manner. To his credit Martial actually did pretty well understanding me and we even managed to have a bit of a chat about motors for three quarters of an hour. I could understand more of what he said than I expected which has really given me some encouragement to carry on learning the language.

 

He showed me his garage which housed this pretty cool Venturi and an utterly lovely Fiat X1-9...

 

 

 

Round the back of his house was this surprisingly solid Datsun 100A which used to belong to his sister...

 

 

I did spie numerous other piles of rotting chod but by now I had been awake for over 31 hours and was fading fast so I elected to hit the road and find somewhere to sleep. I have since found out a bit more about this place which made me wish I had heard of it earlier. By now, most of the place has been cleared but but not long ago it was astonishing. I suspect there's still some stuff out in the woods behind the house but i was utterly unaware of it when i was there. If you want to get a taster, click the pic below and check it out.....

 

 

I didn't neglect my lawful duty and stopped at the first petrol station for a picture...

 

 

Now it was time to make for the Autoroute an Aire de Services for some well earned kip. So far, so good. The Prairie was towing lovely at a steady 110kmh so I figured that I'd make use of being South of La Manche and go to visit my mate James who lives down in the Vendée. 

 

 

So, headed eastward, I drove until about 6pm and stopped a bit east of Sens at Villeneuve l´Archevêque. Here the Prairie does it party trick by becoming L'hôtel Prairie. Infinitely bettwer than sleeping in the back of the Alfa would have been.  Alarm set for 3am, I bedded down for a remarkably comfortable sleep.

 

[Ratdat]

I'll post some more in a bit but I need a cuppa first. 

[mouseflakes]

at 2.30pm, exactly 48 hours after he'd placed the advert.

 

At 4:13 PM, exactly 57 minutes after it was started, I read the most Autoshite thread on Autoshite ever.

[dollywobbler]

This is a winning thread.

[spike60]

You're a bold man, well done! As an aside, Admiral told me last year the 3rd party cover does not extend to abroad. Even if it did, I imagine explaining it to Les Flicks wouldn't be easy.

[Ratdat]

You're a bold man, well done! As an aside, Admiral told me last year the 3rd party does not extend to abroad. Even if it did, I imagine explaining it to Les Flicks wouldn't be easy.

 

I figured that might be the case. I also thought it best the use the Prairie as if it did break down it'd be easier to fix. It's a pretty simple old thing.

[trigger]

It's threads like this which made me join Autoshite in the first place. Fantastic read!

[Mr Lobster]

Brilliant thread!  I'll buy you a virtual pint for the best thread of EVAR.

[Danblez]

Fantastic, look forward to seeing more of it!

[Mr_Bo11ox]

SPLENDID work, what a find!!! I didn’t even know these things existed until I saw a RHD one in Reallyloud’s photos of ‘classics on the common’ once. Excellent rapid response skills!

 

On the French front, I find a great thing for learning the lingo is watching subtitled French films and trying to look for connections between what I’m hearing and what I’m reading, plus it helps you to get an ear for it. If you like, PM me your address and I’ll send you a few DVD’s, I’ve got a few plus a couple of DVD box sets of the slightly grim but absolutely gripping ‘Spiral’ crime drama.

[Ratdat]

SPLENDID work, what a find!!! I didn’t even know these things existed until I saw a RHD one in Reallyloud’s photos of ‘classics on the common’ once. Excellent rapid response skills!

 

On the French front, I find a great thing for learning the lingo is watching subtitled French films and trying to look for connections between what I’m hearing and what I’m reading, plus it helps you to get an ear for it. If you like, PM me your address and I’ll send you a few DVD’s, I’ve got a few plus a couple of DVD box sets of the slightly grim but absolutely gripping ‘Spiral’ crime drama.

 

My mate James has sent me over a few French films and they are definitely a help. Getting an ear for it is the hardest thing for me. I can understand a bit of most written stuff (he sends me Gazoline mag too which is useful) but understanding spoken French is challenging to say the least. More practice needed! I'll pm you in a bit. That 'Spiral' drama looked brilliant but I only saw one episode. I can send you some Gazoline mags in exchange if you want!

[lovejoy]

most enjoyable reading, par excellence.  merci ! 

[Ratdat]

Just waiting for some video to upload to youtube then I'll get on with it.

 

In the meantime, here's some more pics I found on Facebook taken at Monsieur Martin's place. A tragedy that all this has gone.

[dollywobbler]

Alternatively, watch Allo Allo. More seriously, I really try and focus on the pronounciations and don't forget that the French tend to drop in a lot of eeeuuuurghs, which gives a bit of thinking space! Now I'm trying to get my head around Welsh, which is entirely different apart from the word Pont, which still means bridge.

[mouseflakes]

Cue half of the Autoshite massive searching ebay for 'Nissan Prairie'.

 

What a fantastic all-rounder that looks.

[Largactil]

Wowzers - Top work!

 

Been eyeing up some J tin via the search facility of this site: http://www.j-spec.com.au/dealer/1970-Nissan-Bluebird-7075202.html

 

Old cars in Japan certainly aren't cheap!

 

What are the plans for your one?

[brickwall]

Epic!

 

I commend your bravery and a bonus point for the wee Prairie.

[lisbon_road]

Fantastic thread.  The pictures of the site are amazing too.  Perhaps some of the oldest cars are 1920s?

[Ratdat]

Right. Onwards.

 

3am and it's time to hit the Autoroute again.

 

 

This time I'm going west towards the Vendée, more specifically and area right on the edge of the Vendée and Deux-Sèvres a bit south or Pouzauges. About 440km.

 

 

I arrive at about 9.30am just in time for a reviving breakfast of boiled eggs, toast and coffee. James lives in a fairly decrepit old farmhouse he rents for about tuppence a month. He's been away from the UK for the last 4 years after ditching everything and buggering off on a pushbike down to the south of Spain. He returned to this area as he liked it and decided to never return to the UK. Can't blame him really. It's a lovely place. He even managed to get a full time job until recently when the company went under. No biggy as the cost of living here is pitifully small.

 

 

He's even got a picturesque French ruin in his garden..

 

 

Chilling out time. This consists of eating, admiring rusty tat and later talking shit whilst consuming copious amounts of bière and vin rouge until falling over (and some minor first aid). 

 

 

Morning requires a hearty breakfast and a good long walk in the countryside to clear out heads. It's unbelievably quiet in these parts. We only saw a couple of cars pass in several miles. Lovely. The days was getting prett warm so we headed back for some lunch and it was them time for some tinkering. I'd already established that the 510's engine wasn't seized.... time to see if it'll run.

 

 

It looked complete enough, so we plugged the coil lead back in and chucked a battery on it. There was no point in try fuel from the tank as it's certainly be full of shite if not blocked completely so we just fed the engine direct. The pistons in the carbs were not stuck but the fuel pump wouldn't play. After pulling the top off and cleaning the crud out, along with a bit of emery to the points there were signs of life. 

 

[HMC]

Simply fantastic! loving the spirit of the thread and savouring what was some epic road trip. And its still not over!!!

[hairnet]

you sir are insane

 

is it as edward thing - that rafter is a bottle short of a crate too

 

excellent

 

when it booked in for mot

[scruff]

Can only echo everyone else; superb stuff and as Trig says one of the reasons I joined up was for shit like this.

Impressed with your passion for the car and your stamina!! 

[cort16]

fantastic story, awesome car, superb collection wight up. AAA+ does not need to try harder.

[Lord Sterling]

Brilliant story lad. Seems buying cars in France is the new game play here. I've yet to bother buying one myself despite actually, physically being here. Here in the South of France 2nd hand cars are quite expensive here, that said there is a rattly Blue Citroen AX for sale a street away from me for 400€