Border crossing for a set of steelies

Funny how a plan comes together and that’s certainly been the case lately with the Viva van’s revival. Our most recent road trip was Viva-related: off to Telford to collect a set of five HB wheels.

It turns out that while in the ‘care’ of a specialist two of the original wheels went astray. And not only them, as someone’s half-inched the handbrake ratchet too, so we’re looking out for a replacement.

Our Sunday trip to Telford (in all, 270 miles) saw the The Special’s Kia Mentor pressed into action. In the 18 months it’s been at Special HQ it’s only been used on short journeys and had spent much of the Autumn languishing in the garage, so a spannerless de-coke was the order of the day.

It’ll come as no surprise to readers that motorways aren’t the chosen way of travelling: We prefer A- and B-roads (and of course white roads) and it was the first two types we used as headed into mid-Wales, going through Llandrindod and onto Knighton, over the border and through the brilliantly-named New Invention.

On the way back we stopped at one of the most isolated railway stations in Britain – Sugar Loaf – before picking up the pace and heading home.

Result, wheel-wise, and we have a matching set of steelies on the van no, properly and affordably refurbished by Wheelworkz. The MoT-test day draws ever nearer….

Meanwhile for those who are interested in the rarer, less exotic modern classic, the Mentor’s one of a believed 30-or-so left on the UK’s roads. And it’s only just crossed the 45,000 miles-mark…