23e Heure
Enthusiast
- Messages
- 11
- Location
- London
Salut tout le monde
I've visited his great forum a few times over the years as an unregistered guest, and finally today registered properly.
By way of introduction: I'm a classic car and historic motorsport fan, and a lifelong francophile.
I lived and studied in Avignon for a year from 1994-95, and spent most of my time exploring Provence, at the wheel of a 4L GTL.
That 4L was gifted to me by neighbours of my folks in Brittany...
Gifted because it had failed its CT, and the neighbours had decided that to spend 1000 Francs to fix the brakes and get it thru the CT was not worth it, and so were going to scrap it.
Such were the values in 1994!!
Other than the iffy brakes, it needed nothing doing. It had zero rust, ran just fine and - apart from a rattle can spray job - looked good to me!
I needed a car, loved the 4L's character, saw my chance, took the car from the neighbours, fixed the brakes, and cleaned it up.
And so it was that in the winter of 94, together with a university pal as map reader, I drove the car cross country from Brittany to Provence.
Established road trip fans, wanting to soak up the rural scenery, and to stop often to look at pretty girls while smoking gauloises, looking cool, we insisted on sticking to the back roads, and taking our time.
It took us 3 days to snake our way from 'home', north of Vannes, all the way to Avignon using only D roads.
And of course the car ran just fine all the way.
The only time it struggled was when we were at high altitude, in the thin air as we made the climb out Of Clermont Ferrand, where we got so high that there was snow on the ground!
A huge regret is that we both forgot our cameras, and now I have just my middle aged memory to draw on so and picture the places we passed through, or where stopped, drank too much wine and slept.
The 4L served me well that year in Provence. It faithfully ferried me and my various(!) girlfriends around the lavender fields and the cold water gorges of the region. Le bon vieux temps!
And when it was time for me to return to London and complete my studies... I drove it all the way back to Brittany, where it lived for a year before I too gifted it to another young chap who needed une bagnole.
I still keep a photo of the car, pictured soon after its return trip to Brittany, in September 1995.
Anyway, after many years toying with the idea of buying a 4L, I've finally decided to do it.
I am now scouring leboncoin and other french sites, and look forward to getting your advice and help on the way to getting one...
I've visited his great forum a few times over the years as an unregistered guest, and finally today registered properly.
By way of introduction: I'm a classic car and historic motorsport fan, and a lifelong francophile.
I lived and studied in Avignon for a year from 1994-95, and spent most of my time exploring Provence, at the wheel of a 4L GTL.
That 4L was gifted to me by neighbours of my folks in Brittany...
Gifted because it had failed its CT, and the neighbours had decided that to spend 1000 Francs to fix the brakes and get it thru the CT was not worth it, and so were going to scrap it.
Such were the values in 1994!!
Other than the iffy brakes, it needed nothing doing. It had zero rust, ran just fine and - apart from a rattle can spray job - looked good to me!
I needed a car, loved the 4L's character, saw my chance, took the car from the neighbours, fixed the brakes, and cleaned it up.
And so it was that in the winter of 94, together with a university pal as map reader, I drove the car cross country from Brittany to Provence.
Established road trip fans, wanting to soak up the rural scenery, and to stop often to look at pretty girls while smoking gauloises, looking cool, we insisted on sticking to the back roads, and taking our time.
It took us 3 days to snake our way from 'home', north of Vannes, all the way to Avignon using only D roads.
And of course the car ran just fine all the way.
The only time it struggled was when we were at high altitude, in the thin air as we made the climb out Of Clermont Ferrand, where we got so high that there was snow on the ground!
A huge regret is that we both forgot our cameras, and now I have just my middle aged memory to draw on so and picture the places we passed through, or where stopped, drank too much wine and slept.
The 4L served me well that year in Provence. It faithfully ferried me and my various(!) girlfriends around the lavender fields and the cold water gorges of the region. Le bon vieux temps!
And when it was time for me to return to London and complete my studies... I drove it all the way back to Brittany, where it lived for a year before I too gifted it to another young chap who needed une bagnole.
I still keep a photo of the car, pictured soon after its return trip to Brittany, in September 1995.
Anyway, after many years toying with the idea of buying a 4L, I've finally decided to do it.
I am now scouring leboncoin and other french sites, and look forward to getting your advice and help on the way to getting one...
