Vitaralino should have been ready to go long ago. Everyday life had other plans. Now it is – and so are we: stage down, heading southwest.

Before that, however, there was an unplanned season of “Screws & Amazement”. It started back in February/March: gearbox out and bearings replaced, new clutch – a big show under the car. While we were at it, we put in fresh oil and a new battery on top. The plan was clear: tick off, drive, smile. But liking plans has never made a car suitable for a road trip.

Then, in May, reality set in with a small puddle. The Vitara was leaking fluid somewhere – not a lot, but enough to make us frown. At the end of May, Adrian (our main mechanic and calming influence with a torque wrench) took a closer look: a bit of valve cover, a hint of EGR – nothing serious. Everything cleaned, everything tight. In the process, a silent saboteur fell into his trap: the clutch slave cylinder. It was no longer holding pressure. So new, bled, pedal again with a clear pressure point – clean.

Then, in mid-June, the result with the cliffhanger: suddenly a lot of coolant gone. Diagnosis after a quick search: thermostat housing. And because every workshop story needs its “This can’t be true” moment, we found it too – in the form of a piece of tin from a Coke can that someone had misused as a seal at some point. Yes, really. We won’t ask any more questions at this point.

The hunt for spare parts was… let’s call it “sporty”. After a long rummage on the net, we found what we were looking for, and Adrian saved the day: he pulled seals out of his magic drawer (part number unknown, convincing effect) and closed up the site properly. Incidentally, he also discovered that the wrong antifreeze had been filled in beforehand – fortunately he noticed this early enough before anything could clog up. System flushed, filled correctly, test drive: dry.

We would have left it at that – if it hadn’t been for the week before departure. New tires fitted (the bank statement mumbles something about €460), a quick check in the yard – and there’s a grinding noise in the front left wheel arch, but only at full lock. Just the moment when you can feel the vacation beckoning and then disappearing behind the next cloud. The suspicion was obvious: when the steering gear was replaced in 2023, someone had probably not hit the center position properly. Result: more steering angle on the left than on the right – and therefore contact with the rear wheel arch fold.

Here comes the lifeline: the rental workshop in Hille. Between “actually full” and “come over quickly”, the steering universal joint was loosened, the steering column was set exactly to the mechanical center position again and the track was adjusted symmetrically on both sides. This was followed by a wheel alignment with report, the values are now where they should be. The old grinding point in the wheel arch was given stone chip protection – flat, smooth, no edge that could be dangerous for a tire sidewall. Test at ride height, full left turn: no contact. That’s exactly how we wanted it.

All in all, this was less a series of breakdowns than an honest spring clean with a reality check. A straight steering wheel is not automatically a centered steering gear. “Tight is tight” only applies if someone has not previously sealed it with tin cans. And it takes a bit of luck to find a garage that not only “looks at it” at the last minute, but also solves it.

So: Thank you, Adrian – without you, “vacation” would very quickly have become “permanent parking space”. And thanks to Frederic from the Minden rental garage – last-minute joker pulled, problem solved, vacation saved.

Now Vitaralino can get back to doing what we love him for: Collecting kilometers, looking at mountains and carrying us safely from hairpin bend to hairpin bend. We take a watchful eye with us (check the coolant level when cold, keep an eye on the clutch feel, take a look at the inner left tire sidewall after the first hundred kilometers) – but above all we take one thing with us: Anticipation.

Everyday life had other plans. We have better ones. 🚙⛰️☕️