Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

On the subject of old Mercs, saw this lovely condition old battle tank today, a 1979 450SEL with the whopping 6.9 litre engine. First production car with ABS, and hard to believe looking at the barge-ness of it, that it was the fastest accelerating and fastest saloon car in the world for a few years.

First production car with ABS

Does the Jensen FF not count as a production car? That had Dunlop Maxaret antilock braking derived from aircraft technology.

Yes but if you read a bit more Wikipedia it states it was unreliable and expensive. MB W116 in 1978 was the first production car using electronic ABS of the type used today.

Yes but if you read a bit more Wikipedia it states it was unreliable and expensive.

Well, yes, it was a Jensen. Unreliable and expensive was what Jensen did best!

Apparently you need to be a registered business before you can buy a van here. Handy.

So! A Vellfire or similar that’s had the seats taken out maybe.

Which here is this? If it's this 'here' and you would like to buy a van through my company, let me know.

That’s very kind- sadly “here” is Singapore though.

Ah, thought it couldn't be this 'here', unfortunately my Singaporean subsidiary closed yesterday.

How long are you there? Find a crispy bottomed hot pot... (Dunno the official name)

Well, pending the visa being granted, five years.

EDIT to add: which can be renewed.

is it worth paying to protect NCB? Costs ~10% of my policy (£35) and I have 5yr NCB...

is it just a bit of a con? you have to declare claims anyway

Love the slightly cheeky smerk this has

Bit further away than Scotland!

Better food and warmer too.

is it worth paying to protect NCB? Costs ~10% of my policy (£35) and I have 5yr NCB...
is it just a bit of a con? you have to declare claims anyway

Is it a con? I dunno, probably....I don't protect mainly out of spite to protect some arbitrary number. I'm sure this will bite me in the ass one day.

Same with excess - mine is currently £0 as it made no difference to the annual premium and I drive an old cheap car so don't fancy paying a large % the value of the car in excess if I have to claim.

Have you played around with what quotes you get if you put in zero years NCD to weigh up if it's 'worth' it?

Saw a classified that said this;

Rolls Royce Silver Shadow would set you back £19, 622. the Mercedes came in at a Princely £22, 000 as standard

Which is impressive.

Swings and roundabouts- rent is ~£5,000/month for a 2 bed flat

Ouch. Do you get a subsidy?

Hopefully the flat rate of tax covers makes it all worth it.

It's not quite flat, but it's ~30% less than the UK which does make a difference.

Blimey - thought you were just there on hols/work trip. That's a big move.

Wow.

So are you selling the 996? Van?

Worth it for the pineapple tarts.

Keeping the 996, selling the van.

If I sell the 996 I have to recognise the loss - which I don’t want to do. I am also determined to finish the engine project.

The van should have a decent amount of value remaining, I’ve over-serviced it and looked after it in general.

I’m on a work trip at the moment to assess whether I wanted to move here- and it’s fun, and challenging, and career wise would be very beneficial. They also offered me a lot more money than I expected, which helped the decision making process.

where would you drive? having been to Singapore for work it struck me as a place i would get bored very quickly, especially having to cycle at 5am as it’s just too dam hot/sweaty and no hills or quiet roads either.

@Dammit
My brother has lived in Sg for the last 5 years and he often uses a hire car scheme to play golf with his mates. Not sure if you need a van for cycling things, but it works for him.