[KPS]

Day 9/10 - 2nd/3rd March'22 : Karaikudi to Pondicherry - 318 kms

Our next stop was Pondicherry, history of this town was recorded only after the arrival of Dutch, Portuguese, British and French traders and was a Roman trading destination from the third century BCE. In 1674 the French East India Company set up a trading centre at Pondicherry and this outpost eventually became the chief French settlement in India.

The Sri Aurobindo Ashram, located on Rue de la Marine, is one of the most important ashrams in India, founded by the renowned freedom fighter and spiritual philosopher Sri Aurobindo


On the highway we drive in smaller groups. This naturally forms, based on the capacity of the cars and the respective driving styles.

This buddy system complements one another and makes driving easier. Typically the car in the rear, facilitates the car ahead to complete its overtaking maneuvers seamlessly

Overtaking is easy with someone watching your back!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPVhATYQSVM

Was able to comfortably manage 50-55 miles speed



The faster group



Scenes from on the road to Pondicherry





In Tamilnadu, even the State Highways are very good












We reach our Resort and settle into the evening. The East coast beaches are not very safe. Good from far!


As per our script, Karlosdeville and I, had to have pictures in the French Quarter














That B&W look is so much period looking


Behind those shutters is The Mother's Humber Limousine








A relaxed day as our final destination, Chennai was not very far. We were 10 days into the trip and we had had so much fun

Cheers

[KPS]

Day 11 - 4th March'22- Puducherry to Chennai - 149 kms

Our last stop for the Trail De South would be Madras or Chennai as it is now called. 1639 Francis Day of the East India Company obtain a grant for land on the Coromandel coast on which the company could build a factory and warehouse for their trading activities. A year later, the Company built Fort St. George, the first major English settlement in India. In 1746, Fort St. George and Madras were captured by the French. The British regained control in 1749 and strengthened the town's fortress wall to withstand further. By the 18th century, the British had conquered most of the region around Tamil Nadu and established the Madras Presidency with Madras as the capital.

Srinand was driving the W123 300TD for part of the trip. Being a Mercedes enthusiast, he had a blast


On the way to Chennai


It was a relaxed drive


Taj Connemara, our last stop. This iconic place was just fantastic and we were the toast of the hotel.


The usual suspects together for any picture!


I could not be happier. The Trail De South had been completed without even a murmur. It was such a comfortable trip.


Taj Connemara Team's customized welcome!





These personalized hand written notes, different car drawings given to each one of us, made this experience more enriching


Taj Connemara on Insta
https://www.instagram.com/reel/CauDc...dium=copy_link

The car feels at home!


Then & Now with some old pictures of Connemara





After a relaxed afternoon, we were in for a great evening, with one for the biggest Vintage and Classic enthusiast in Chennai, Mr. Ranjit Pratap. This article will give much insight on him.


Mr. Ranjit Pratap and family were amazing hosts. We met the Chennai V&C fraternity that evening


We were privileged to have Mr. Ranjit take us personally and explain about each of his cars. Clearly he loves to drive his cars. He drives one car every weekend


It was a great evening, meeting the Chennai Vintage & Classic car enthusiasts in one place. The ambiance, food and live music was just excellent.


Day 12 - 5th March'22

The last day of the trip. All of us will leave for our respective home tomorrow

The cars to Mumbai are loaded in the trailer trucks. It took us lot of time to reach the trailers in crazy traffic and road conditions, due to the Metro work, on the Bangalore Highway


The big cars are always on the top, as they will not fit in the bottom level, due the wheel wells of the trailer. We have the load them right, otherwise unloading can become stressful.


Trail De South officially ends with a grand dinner at Taj Connemara


Cheers

[KPS]

6th March'22 - Chennai to Bangalore - 363 kms

After witnessing the crazy traffic and road conditions due to Metro work on the Bangalore Highway, we decided to leave early morning. We had our breakfast packed and ready. Secondly, there was a KVCCC event at Bangalore Club and we were hoping to drop in for some time.

We leave Taj Connemara at 6.00 a.m.


Srinand drives the Daimler. He gets to appreciate the car more


I had to gently remind Srinand that the the speedometer was in miles and not kilometers.


The Chennai to Bangalore Highway had relatively less traffic on that Sunday morning





We reach Bangalore Club at 1.00 pm for the KVCCC event. Not bad, that we had done this journey in 7 hours with some small breaks. However we were tired and the families were waiting for us at home. We left after 30 minutes


Back home, after the very successful and enjoyable trip


I am overjoyed the way the car performed. Completely validated that this is a great touring car


This trip was a total of 1307 miles or 2091 kms


I would like to place on record, that without the group of great driving enthusiasts, this trip would have not been possible. Thank Srinand, for being my companion for this trip. Thank all the members of this Classic Drivers Group, who were part of Trail De South, for the great time and camaraderie. Our Captain, for the amazing arrangements and looking after us individually. Good friend Karlosdeville who is great company as always. Pictures courtesy the Trail De South Group

Hope you enjoyed this pictorial travelogue of the Daimler's journey.

I am already looking forward for the next trip in 2023, what about you...........?

Cheers

KPS

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by KPS

6th March'22 - Chennai to Bangalore - 363 kms

I am overjoyed the way the car performed. Completely validated that this is a great touring car

This trip was a total of 1307 miles or 2091 kms
I am already looking forward for the next trip in 2023, what about you...........?

What a drive to make in such an old car. Hats off to you and the restoration team. I'm deeply impressed. Looking forward to your next photo post. One of your photos taken from the rear seat looking through the front screen reminded me of my grandfather's Opel 6 cylinder with that huge conical bonnet that took forever to turn. Thank you for the effort you've made to share these photos.

[dileepcm]

Owning classics is one thing, doing road trips in those is a whole new level achievement and dream! Very well written, great photos, nice story telling and above all, glad seeing cars being driven than being kept in glass boxes! Kudos!

[Freespirit27]

Originally Posted by KPS

6th March'22 - Chennai to Bangalore - 363 kms

KPS

A most amazing travelogue and pictures. I have picked up a few places and route I want to do on a road trip. Especially some of the car and toy museums coupled with Madurai and Rameswaram I think.
Frankly I'm at a loss for words here, both to appreciate the wonderful machine and it's capabilities and to thank you for taking the effort to log the entire journey so beautifully many more miles to you sir!

[manmeetd]

Could anyone share the name of the silver/ black car behind the Daimler in the tea plantation hills please?

Sorry, I had trouble quoting the exact photo with this UI.

[QuietTuner]

Dear KPS, It was an incredible experience reading your travelogue. The pictures and the views of the long hood and sweeping wheel arches of the Daimler made my day! I am thankful to you for keeping the spirit of motoring alive in your classic car drives.
I look forward to reading about your experience next year too!

[KPS]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

What a drive to make in such an old car. Hats off to you and the restoration team. I'm deeply impressed .......

Long distant driving is a commitment to the car and to your fellow group members. The restoration team has to be in sync, as short cuts will unravel rather quickly. I am extremely fortunate to have Chris in our back yard. Chris is also appreciates my commitment to the car. Hence we both benefit. For Chris, this is one of few cars which actually validates his work, through these long drives.

Originally Posted by dileepcm

Owning classics is one thing, doing road trips in those is a whole new level achievement a..........

Thank you for your comments. Glad you like the travelogue. Very fortunate to be be part a fully committed driving group, hence things just fall into place

Originally Posted by Freespirit27

...... I have picked up a few places and route I want to do on a road trip. Especially some of the car and toy museums coupled with Madurai and Rameswaram I think......

Actually three cars, 1968 VW1300 Beetle, 1966 Morris Oxford and a MM Thar, which had done the Himalayan Rally in Nov'21, decided to complete their K2K (Kashmir to Kanyakumari) dream. So from Karaikudi, they took a detour, went to Kanyakumari

On the way


K2K Dream achieved


This picture concludes their K2K Journey


This team joined us back in Chennai, as they had to skip the Pondy part. As much as I was tempted, K2K was not part of my story.

Originally Posted by manmeetd

Could anyone share the name of the silver/ black car behind the Daimler in the tea plantation hills please?

1947 Packard Clipper. It has a sedanette body style, a two-door sedan having a slanted back with the rear window and trunk along one unbroken curve. One of the two Packard sedanette's in country.

Originally Posted by QuietTuner

... I am thankful to you for keeping the spirit of motoring alive in your classic car drives.....

As the saying goes, "the journey is more important than the destination", this keeps us motivated.

Cheers

KPS

[srinand]

An offer I would never refuse

When KPS sir asked if i would drive his Beetle alongside, with him driving the Daimler sometime last year, I could barely contain my excitement! It would be a wonderful opportunity to be part of the drive with the much famed and the trendsetting CDG group from Bombay who had done amazing drives all around the country over the last few years, the way these guys drive their cars regularly and cross country has been a major source of inspiration for me to follow in similar steps as and when possible. The thought of meeting them all and spending time with them talking cars was also very exciting.

I prepared mentally over a few months wondering and imagining how lovely this drive was going to be. However, with the Beetle going through a very detailed and a meticulous grounds up restoration, by Pankaj exactly like the Daimler had been through, by Chris. The Beetle would have to wait its turn.

The news that would thrill me more was that I would be joining in the Daimler as a co-driver/navigator. Well, being a passenger in a royal car is any day better than being a driver in another! Not to forget that KPS sir is a wonderful companion to travel with, a treasure trove of information and the conversations are extremely enlightening, to say the least.

The Daimler is a remarkable car! Having driven and restored a few common man British cars, one tends to get a generic feeling of how they are. So, the Daimler behaves like none of them! It has a quiet, torquey engine with long legs and capable of grand touring. The Wilson Pre selector gearbox is a wonderful gearbox which is like no other and has to be driven like no other conventional car, takes some getting used to, but a breeze to drive once one gets a hang of it. The brakes being mechanical are direct and dependable. The suspension is supremely comfortable and is deserving of royal patrons, which this car had! The car being the smallest on offer by the Daimler brand in its time is perfectly sized to drive today through all conditions prevalent today, be it in city traffic, ghat sections or highways.

Having been restored to immensely high standards that Chris is used to, the car was absolutely superb in its performance through the entire journey. It was also appreciated immensely by the local press through the various stops of our journey because of its stately and wonderful looks, and not to mention its pleasing colour combination (chosen by Dr.Smitha, KPS's wife) that was executed superbly by Pankaj.

I must admit, I am a nervous passenger. To ease my mind, I tend to think that is the case of all drivers, who dont have pedals at their disposal! But, the reason for my nervousness was the ease with which KPS was maneuvering the car through ghats and braking late and sometimes not braking where I most certainly would have. His familiarity and the ease with which he now drives this car is testament to the fact that old cars can be driven, far and well, with practice.

This dedication to driving and grand touring is my single greatest takeaway from this trip. Shown by each and every one of the participants that prepared their cars, prepared themselves and exemplary planning and attention to detail, that was the essence of these drives. I would easily term this drive and the experiences associated with it as some of the most memorable moments provided by this hobby, in my life!

[Peter G]

Dear KPS,
Your wonderful account of travels in the Daimler has reached Australia through the forum and the editor of the Western Australian Daimler Club has magazine has asked for your permission to extract some of the photgraphs and text and publish it in that Club's magazine for the enjoyment of the members.
Would that be okay?
It would be a splendid article for them to have in their magazine.
Best wishes from Sydney Australia
Peter Grant
DB18 Special Sports, DE 36 Allweather tourer

[KPS]

Originally Posted by Peter G

Dear KPS,
Your wonderful account of travels in the Daimler has reached Australia through the forum and the editor of the Western Australian Daimler Club has magazine has asked for your permission to extract some of the photgraphs and text and publish it in that Club's magazine for the enjoyment of the members.
Would that be okay?
It would be a splendid article for them to have in their magazine.
Best wishes from Sydney Australia
Peter Grant
DB18 Special Sports, DE 36 Allweather tourer

Dear Peter,

I am always happy to share. Please feel do feel free, to use any material of this trip for the Club Magazine. If you need any additional information, the editor is free to connect with me.

I have shared my article with DLOC too

Cheers

KPS

[KPS]

The June'2022 issue of the Daimler and Lanchester Owner Club (DLOC) of Western Australia, carried out an article taken from TBHP, with my permission.

Cover Page


Note from Editor


The article















Cheers

KPS

[KPS]

Bangalore Club in association with KVCCC had a superb event at the Club Premises. More than 60 Cars and 20+ two wheelers participated

Since the current Mysore Maharaja was the chief guest, the Mysore Cars would be highlighted. Secondly the Maharaja will go for a small drive in the two Daimlers


The current Titular Maharaja of Mysore, HRH Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar at the Mysore Room of Bangalore Club


The DB18 was sporting a new Mysore Plate!


Special parking for Mysore Daimlers (Other DE27 parked is seen)


The car was a major attraction


I wore the Kodava Dress just to spice up the occasion.



I offer HRH a seat in my car!


It was a privilege to have a Mysore Royal sitting in this car since 1957, the year the then Maharaja had sold the car!


A small drive within the Club premises








In an interview to the Kannada Channel.


The Maharaja said that he was very happy to see the Mysore cars in person. Secondly he likes the Daimlers, including the one in Dharmasthala. He also mentioned the Bentley Drop Head at Pune

It was indeed a privilege to have HRH Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar sit with me in my car.

Cheers

KPS

[arun1100]

Thank you, KPS Sir for sharing the wonderful pictures of the Daimler with the Mysore Maharaja. Should have been a emotional feeling for the Maharaja too while he drove along with you!

Your Dad and you inspire me a lot in maintaining and caring for the Heritage cars. Each time I meet you at your home, you have never missed showing the clean gleaming engine bay of your cars and the technical information you share is so invaluable!

Your Dad at 87 is still so passionate about the Vintage cars, his attention to detail is so appreciable! I couldn't resist clicking this pic while your Dad was checking the 'Mysore 89' plate and the bumper of the Daimler.