After a few minutes of driving behind my now good friend in the yellow ANWB van, we stopped outside a small garage with the alarming name "Firezone" displayed. He went inside and chatted in Dutch with some mechanics, and the Volvo was immediately ordered in for a closer inspection. After a few moments checking the components, the fuel pressure and so on they concluded that the pump was now working and they could not source any replacement part because the car was simply too old. After a final discussion with my ANWB buddy, I settled my bill and we agreed that the car would most likely do it to destination with some luck, however my intention was still to see if the classic Volvo dealer closer to Rotterdam could sell me and replace the no longer trusted Bosch fuel pump. Any attempt to add something on top of the invoiced € 150 as a minor sign of my appreciation for the service was to no avail. He was just Dutch, and it seems not in their culture to take gifts or bonuses. Anyhow, outstanding service from this very clever man - Thanks ANWB!! And the guys at Firezone refused to bill me a single cent because they "had not done anything". The Dutch are amazing but very nice people indeed!
It was now soon late afternoon when we were back on the Highway, and I decided to go as far as possible towards Rotterdam and Moergestel which is the village where Scandcar is located. I had known about them for a while, as they have a good website and -shop with a lot of stuff for good old Volvos. I was of course a little bit nervous all along concerning another breakdown caused by my fuel pump, but the car hummed along as if nothing had ever been wrong at all. A while after dark I decided to leave the highway at the exit for Utrecht where I hoped to find easily a hotel for the night. Thanks again to the Garmin and my phone this went smoothly, but as the Hotel de Admiraal showed to be located in the old part of the town it took me some time to find a parking space for the Volvo. The good thing was that a nice restaurant was only minutes away by foot, and Utrecht showed to be an utterly charming town.
The next morning I called Scandcar and got the confirmation that they had the fuel pump for the 1800ES in stock and minutes after we were on our way with the Garmin leading us safely towards Moergestel. Unfortunately I forgot completely to take any pictures or video from this place, so those who are curious will have to look at their website or go there for a visit. Moergestel in itself is not likely to hold a busy outlet stuffed with goodies for some 40 year old swedish steel on wheels, but there it was. A few kilometers from the village itself on a farmlike site along a small canal by a winding road, very idyllic. Parked outside were an Amazon or 121 and some 240's and other older Volvos. Could not be missed at all. I stopped and went for the office and had my new fuel pump on the desk after a few minutes. I immediately decided to purchase some other parts as well which would be needed for the repaint, such as new side trim. Then I found on a shelf the famous Smiths clock for the dashboard of the 1800 E and ES. Mine had been replaced by a previous owner with another Volvo clock after the Smiths most likely stopped working as most probably did after some years. And this one was even repaired! I bought it on the spot - not cheap but this was a certain Must Have. I came to understand more about Scandcar after meeting the boss himself Sjef Spijkers who is at least 1000% more Volvo nut than I will ever be. A very nice and knowledgeful enthousiast, and I had to promise to stop on my way back when the 1800ES has been through in Manchester. And, with good help of Sjef I finally found the only valid replacement for my failing Auxiliary Air Valve which is the part fitted to later Volvos with K-Jetronic Bosch injection. I will blog on my experiences to fit this much later when the car has returned from Manchester. The only minor disappointment at Scandcar was that their workshop was fully engaged for the day and they could thus not help me to have the pump replaced. I therefore decided that I would try to get to Manchester with the old pump in place which should not be hazardous with the safety of having a brand new one in the trunk as a spare.
The next leg was the rather quick and boring drive to Rotterdam Europoort where the ferry terminal of P&O for Hull is located. Ghastly area with the higways leading to it packed with lorries behaving as swarming ants. After some waiting there as I arrived quite early I could check in at the terminal and then board the huge ferry for Hull where we arrived early next morning.
The remaining and final leg was absolutely hassle free despite having to drive on the left, very much thanks to the Garmin. We arrived finally and absolutely on schedule towards 11AM Wednesday March 3rd at Classicarco in Manchester.
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