Monday, August 20, 2012

One more thing to go wrong


We lifted the dingy and readied Magnum for the off. Mark noticed that the engine smelt odd so gave it a quick once over to find that a rubber moulding on the cooling system had split dumping water in the engine bay.
This left us stuck again, Mark stripped down and removed the offending article and made a temporary repair using self amalgamating tape, but there is no way we could trust it to hold for the 400+ miles to Gibraltar. A new part was needed.
It was Saturday afternoon and being Spain everything was shut so we were stuck until Monday.
Alan kindly came and picked Mark up to run around the local marinas in the forlorn hope of discovering somewhere open, but to no avail.

The plan was to stay put and then sail around to Ibiza town and the dingy in to try and get the new part.

However the weather had other ideas ! Cala Longa is sheltered from every direction except east, so obviously the wind blew from the east sending in a large swell. We looked out to sea in the morning and all we could see was breaking waves, so not trusting the temporary repair and feeling safe, but not comfortable we decided to stay put and abuse Alan’s good nature and his hire car again.

Amanda popped ashore and the two of them managed to establish that the part wasn’t available on the island L but that they could order one from Madrid to arrive by 10.30 the following morning and that this could be delivered to the local Volvo dealer in Santa Eulia

So we waited another day, hoping for Spanish efficiency ?!!?? 

Tuesday morning we started the engine and gingerly motored to Santa Eulia, we dingyed ashore and tracked down the required office, the part wasn’t there, but we were assured it would be at some point that day !
So we disappeared off to do some food shopping, and buy Mark a shirt as he had been so keen to get the new part he had left the boat without one and was now feeling like a proper Brit abroad tourist shirtless in the high street !

A couple of hours later we had a phone call, our part had arrived !! Mark rushed to the port to confirm the part was correct and to see what they would charge us.

Two surprises,
1/ it was the correct part
2/ they didn’t charge us any delivery fee, despite 24 hour delivery from the mainland and also they delivered it to the port from their main depot to save us time and a 40 min walk in the 30 deg sun

Excellent service

We fitted the new part and were on our way …………….at last !

No comments:

Post a Comment