On tour in a Daimier

Sir,

You published letters from Mr. Dexter (November 1977) and Mr. Rolfe (January 1978) about long-distance endurance and reliability in their 1954 and 1956 Bentleys. May a Daimler owner put in a word for Daimlers? We can’t let Bentleys steal all the limelight!

I have a 1950 Daimler 4-litre DC 27 (ambulance now converted to motor-caravan), which cost me only £225 in March 1977, when it had 102,745 miles on the clock (the engine is still original). Over the summer I took it on a long journey to the continent, visiting France, Italy, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium and Holland, going as far south as Assisi and covering 3,401 miles from Boulogne to the Hook of Holland (in 8-1/2 weeks); the total mileage, including driving across England, was over 4,000. Continental repairs were minimal and involved a small repair to the silencer, replacement of two plugs, and cleaning of the petrol pump and carburetter in Italy because of dirty petrol (cost in all, about £20).

The Daimler ambulance, of which 500 were made between about 1948 and 1956, is not fast (it weighs nearly 3 tons) but as a motor-caravan gives real luxury of accommodation and transport. It is a pity that so few of the original 500 now survive.

(Dr.) MARTIN PULBROOK. Port Erin, Isle of Man