2cvTravel


Raid Afrique of 1973

Raid Afrique of 1973

Raid Afrique of 1973

2CV - DYANE 6 - ACADIANE - MÉHARI

II. THE TEAM

C - D - DRIVING
Motoring conditions in the different countries of these regions require that you adapt your driving to new circumstances.
For example: instead of the premium 98-100 octane petrol you normally use in your car, you may find yourself travelling in a country where you will find only 85-octane petrol. You will consequently have to modify your way of driving: refrain from using high speeds, and accelerate gradually.

TRAFFIC
On the trails, as a general rule, be careful when meeting trucks. They drive at supersonic speeds in the middle of the road to avoid the washboard effect. It’s up to you to get out of the way; weight rules. In any case, they are too heavily loaded most of the time to stop. When they have passed you, the danger is just as great, because the cloud of dust they
leave eliminates visibility for some time. Be careful as well, especially in Africa, of deep railway crossings, which are unattended and often unmarked. The exposed rails are fond of tyres and rims. Many herds of all kinds spend their time on trails. While guinea fowl won’t do much damage to a car body, the same cannot be said of sheep, cows, or zebras.
Donkeys are another danger. Sounding the horn will not drive them off the road, as their front feet are often hobbled.
Another extremely important point: when passing through small villages in the bush, remember that children, old people, and even adults are not used to cars and don’t realise how fast they are moving and how dangerous they can be. Whether people are walking or on a bicycle, they may suddenly decide to cross the track only a few yards ahead of you.

TRAILS
Driving on dirt, sand, or stony trails requires sustained attention over a field of vision covering the distance required to bring the vehicle to a complete halt without sudden deceleration. Although obstacles which stand out are generally relatively easy to avoid, sudden drops or holes aren’t. One strict rule is never to arrive at the obstacle with the wheels locked up: slow down anticipating as much as possible by braking in relation to the nature of the road surface, and release the pedal completely to take on the obstacle with all the suspension elements free and without flattening the car to the ground. But the best solution is to have sufficient speed and reflexes to avoid the hole or the big rock on the track. Bumps and ruts should also be approached without sudden braking; on the contrary, it is well to raise the front end of the car with a short burst of acceleration at the moment of arrival at the obstacle, crossing it diagonally with a quick turn of the wheel when precisely atop it, neither too early nor too late. The aim is to pass over the obstacle one wheel at a time, by a“zig-zag” motion and thus avoid excessive jolting of the car. Of course, the car must be straightened out immediately; if you swerve too widly, especially on unstable ground, you may lose control. The imperative of “visual” driving must be maintained under all circumstances. Be suspicious of a ford that may conceal a large hole in the middle, which you will have a hard time pulling the car out of . In savanna, be suspicious of high grass as it may hide a stump or a large rock. Based on the same principle of: “the unseen danger is the greatest one”, you should never drive at night or in a sandstorm.

WASHBOARD
Washboard is a more or less pronounced rippling of the surface of the ground perpendicular to the direction of travel. It is caused by vehicle traffic after the rainy season combined with the shrinkage of the dried surface layer. Driving on washboard puts a car to a test that one cannot imagine. Nothing withstands it, everything comes unscrewed, and
falls out or off. The car appears to be disintegrating. In order for passengers and vehicle to better sustain its effects, it should be “taken” at a least 60 km/h, a speed which may vary according to the type of vehicle. The aim is to have sufficient speed to allow the tyres to rest only on the crest of the ripples. In this case, the jolts are less severe but the car handles as if on ice.

Warning: you must realise that in these conditions, when emergency stops are called for, the grip on the road is reduced by half and that the vehicle may become unstable at the end of deceleration. Be careful too in these conditions when negotiating corners as skidding due to the loss of grip is more probable.
If you are absolutely forced to slow or stop; in order to start again and regain a speed higher than 60 km/h, you must drive in series of big “S’s” until you regain speed.