I got in the Banana this morning to run an errand and meet a friend for lunch. I started it up and immediately pulled out of the garage, as my mother-in-law is staying in the apartment above it and she complains that the engine makes it shake.
I went to drop the top (as it wasn’t raining) and the screen popped up the with the “close the trunk partition” error.
Continue readingJust a quick post that The Banana was delivered on 14 March 2005, making today its 18th birthday.
I was driving home from a business meeting this evening when I nearly collided with a ladder that apparently had fallen off of a truck and on to the road.
I was impressed at how well the car handled and very thankful that I didn’t hit the darn thing.
It’s been awhile since I posted, but I’ve really been enjoying driving the Banana, and it even got featured on Bring A Trailer.
The only maintenance things I’ve done since getting it back at the end of September was to replace the rear accessory battery. Even keeping it on the CTek charger it would complain that convenience features were not available, but since replacing the battery (which had a 2015 date code) the car has been running great.
Continue readingOkay, look, I know that high-end sports cars can require a lot of maintenance, but I can honestly say I was really disappointed when my mechanic sent me a list of things that need to be done to The Banana.
I’m not going to do all of them at once, but here are some things I have to do now.
That last one is a doozy, as it is mainly labor and requires removing the differential from the car. I’ve asked about Limited Slip Differential options as it should be almost no extra label to install it during this process.
Continue readingLast week I received the notarized title back from the seller and today we were able to get The Banana registered in North Carolina.
Whew.
It will be a few weeks before the personalized plate arrives but I was able to really drive it for the first time today. I took it through the country “loop” I like and it handled well. The battery is complaining because it sat so long but all the malfunctions cleared by the time my ride was done. I had the same issue with The Shark when I got it, and I’m hoping it will be the same with this car.
Continue readingI find it amusing that Mercedes never offered yellow exterior paint on any R230 as a standard color option, but that Matchbox made a yellow SL55 AMG.
It was a limited edition of only 15,500 units, so I’m sure this will be worth something someday (grin)