During the four-month lockdown in Auckland I caught up on a lot of outstanding jobs around the farm and the workshop - including finally fixing the oil leak in the Series 1 that has plagued me since the engine was rebuilt just prior to our Carterton trip way back in 2019.
Turned out not to be the crank seal, but a poorly installed copper seal on an oil gallery. It took four engine removals and four new crank seals to finally stumble on the root cause.
For last year's Land Rover Series 1 enthusiasts' trip to the 'Oxford' Whanganui meet, I had replaced the flogged-out distributor with a flash new electronic unit which burned out on day two. I bought another modern equivalent (Lucas 25D) - which materialised the day before I was due to drive from Auckland to Gisborne. I ended up cleaning up the original distributor, pinched another old one off a donor vehicle and hoped for the best.
Auckland to Gisborne.
The bulk of the crew attending the meet in Gisborne had already left Wellington on the Saturday and stayed at Jess Kyle's place just north of Napier. Because I travel a lot with work, driving non-stop Auckland to Gisborne was not that daunting - but no matter which way you slice it, there are no shortcuts to Gisborne.
I deliberately chose to ignore Google and travel via the Waihi Gorge to Tauranga due to the new 80
