French trip

Left for overnight stop near caen but was out voted family decided to catch a night ferry instead so left carantec about 10ish had a couple of stops for lunch and two hour tea break, now on ferry did 438 miles suspension tripped twice travelling with my icar software connected been ok for last 200miles arriving in England about 1.30am with a 3 hour drive home wine all cleared customs

tyregeezer said:

Left for overnight stop near caen but was out voted family decided to catch a night ferry instead so left carantec about 10ish had a couple of stops for lunch and two hour tea break, now on ferry did 438 miles suspension tripped twice travelling with my icar software connected been ok for last 200miles arriving in England about 1.30am with a 3 hour drive home wine all cleared customs

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Nice to hear you got home safe.

tyregeezer said:

wine all cleared customs

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Now does this mean they didn't stop you, or they didn't find it? Or they saw it, counted it and didn't charge you?

Very interested in this, as you can imagine. Your allowance would have been 48 bots I assume if you were with one other adult.
When we come over we divide it into two lots, the wife's i.e.e her 24 bots and the rest being prepared to pay duty on all of it as it is always over the allowance. So far we have been lucky in Portsmouth as the customs shed wasn't even manned/womanned.

Let's hope the customs lads/lassies don't read LZ otherwise they'll be keeping an eye out for you all the best.

No one looked we had 4 over 18 60ish bottles wine, 6 liters vodka blue label only 10 quid per liter same with rum and Malibu 20 tobacco all the customs was french side just drove off at dover phew, have been checked with 60+ wines but never said much thick fog on way home arrived rural Norfolk 6 am total of 1200 miles over a week or so very pleased with D3 planning med sete area next year

tyregeezer said:

No one looked we had 4 over 18 60ish bottles wine, 6 liters vodka blue label only 10 quid per liter same with rum and Malibu 20 tobacco all the customs was french side just drove off at dover phew, have been checked with 60+ wines but never said much thick fog on way home arrived rural Norfolk 6 am total of 1200 miles over a week or so very pleased with D3 planning med sete area next year

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You did OK then. Tis confusing when you mix wine with spirits etc. which beggars up allowances.

Sete is lovely although very crowded in the tourist season especially when they do the mad, boat-jousting thing. Great seafood in the restaurants.

And just down the road as it were is Marseillan with the place where Noilly Prat is made, by allowing the barrels to age outside in the big yard open to the sea air, if you are interested in Vermouths , like what we are!! Might be worth a visit. They do stuff that you can't buy in the UK.

Yes did ok makes me sound greedy maybe a little, we buy quite a few xmas gifts on way back, yes one of the many things Noilly pratt have seen it on Rick Stein french odyssey was one of the first things I see on that area we have stayed at valdras plage visiting sete, agde, bouzigues being my favorite, wine was inspired and the view of sete across the bassin de thau from the restaurants are spectacular sea food great too but much more to see, used to spend a month in the area from milau and the gorge du tarn to the coast, bought a lot of wine,fruit, vegetables and wine from farm shops usually painted yellow love the area would highly reccomend. Landrover did good too has developed a minor leak off drip, will persevere with the air suspension think it has a calibration issue there is a inch or so difference side to side going to assess the suspension, and rust may make this my next project, getting suspension set up at overland hopefully when have finished fiddling have lots of little jobs to do assessing rust as I go, would reccomend icar soft as an entry level diagnostic as it reset suspension various issues on the move and definitely got us home but doesn't calibrate, or flash ecu overall, did good for being dragged out of a farm yard 6 weeks ago

tyregeezer said:

Left for overnight stop near caen but was out voted family decided to catch a night ferry instead so left carantec about 10ish had a couple of stops for lunch and two hour tea break, now on ferry did 438 miles suspension tripped twice travelling with my icar software connected been ok for last 200miles arriving in England about 1.30am with a 3 hour drive home wine all cleared customs yarovoe.org

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It sounds like you've had a long day of driving! I remember my last trip for 3 days (sleep in the open air, watch the sunset. Summer, where are you going?(

Yes 638 miles including the uk bit just back from carantec yes spectacular sunsets and views love traveling in D3 would highly reccomend. France first time I went we underestimated the size of the county and arrived at our first stop late and slept under the stars camping is cheap and easy to find best to take your time and meander normally do 200miles a day but end up late and racing back

tyregeezer said:

Yes 638 miles including the uk bit just back from carantec yes spectacular sunsets and views love traveling in D3 would highly reccomend. France first time I went we underestimated the size of the county and arrived at our first stop late and slept under the stars camping is cheap and easy to find best to take your time and meander normally do 200miles a day but end up late and racing back

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Last two times I drove from the channel port to our place in the Tarn with the other car on a trailer, I did it in one fell swoop. First time through the night the second during the day. 588 miles, first time,Ouistreham. 644 second time, (Friends near Cherbourg). No long stops, just breaks to let the dogs out and grab coffees and things to eat. Tis a bit of a haul and normally we wouldn't do it, just circumstances both times. The overnight one was best. Driving in France, even if you have to use main roads, always seems easier to me than in the UK.

Yes I agree we always meander down but usually travel back quicker once did marvejols to Calais 700km overnight in my old D3 with the caravan on tow we love the rouen, evreaux, chartres, on the n154 then pick up the old route national through Orleans and Borges down to south of st Amanda montrond where we pick up the a71 which Is free after clermont this is our favorite route we normally stop 3 or 4 nights and have a look around local somtimes longer in the gorge du tarn
going to book somewhere soon couple of weeks on the coast and spend a week travelling down with a couple of days back