The Acquisition

We were only passively looking; keeping our eye on the market. Then, out of nowhere, there he was: an eBay ad and a BuyItNow option for a ridiculously low $5000 AUD. Until then, the price range of similar vans we'd seen was $8000 to $12000. The ad wasn't all that detailed. It simply stated they were moving and needed to sell it fast. It indicated a few problems: faded rooftop paint, non-functioning rear door gas struts, and a filthy interior. I called and spoke briefly to the seller. Five minutes later we made the purchase.

Was it risky? Yes and no. We had no idea what shape it was really in. But for this price, we felt we couldn't lose. It was a spur of the moment, spontaneous act, and there just aren't enough of those in our lives. To make a short story even shorter, we hopped a plane to Sydney to fetch him, then drove back to Melbourne. All in two days.

Whats with the name?

We have a tradition of naming our vans. There was Rusty for Eurotrip I and Freda for Eurotrip II. Since the Delica is a bit "spacelike" and is actually called Spacegear, we thought it fitting to give him a space-y name. And if Michael Knight can have KITT (Knight Industry Two Thousand), then we can have SAM.

Some SAM Stats

Year: 1994
Odometer: 125,000 kms
Fuel type: Diesel
Transmission: Automatic
Engine size: 2.8L, 4-cylinder
Drive type: Rear wheel drive with on-the-fly 4x4 shifting (4H, 4L with center differential lock) *we have yet to learn what all this exactly means
Options: Front and rear sunroof, power everything, A/C (which doesn't work…yet), AM/FM cassette deck (with a useless Japanese FM range of 70-90 MHz)

Technicalities

As you may have guessed, there were a few in getting this out of New South Wales (NSW) and into Victoria. Each state in Oz requires the vehicle be declared road worthy by a certified mechanic and to be registered on a yearly basis. As the owners were selling it, they didn't bother to renew their registration (lovingly referred to as "rego" - pronounced rehj-o - by locals); however, they did provide a "pink slip" - a NSW road worthy certificate - before selling the van to us. We took this as a form of guarantee that the Deli was in good condition.

We didn't have much time. We arrived in Sydney at 7:45 AM on the Saturday. The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) office was only open until noon. A 1.5 hour public transport trip to Menai got us to the seller's address by 10:00. We gave it a quick once over, exchanged the cash for the keys and away we went. Arriving at the RTA at 11:00, we were faced with a massive queue.

What we needed was an unregistered vehicle permit (UVP) to drive it back to Melbourne. It's only $25, but you do need to have your paperwork in order to get it. First we had to give the number plates back. Luckily, he had a screwdriver. Unluckily, the front one was held on by hex screws. After confirming that he didn't care what state they were in, I ran back out and bent and twisted the metal until it gave way. I returned it to him in three pieces.

Just as he was ready to give me the UVP, he saw on the pink-slip that the mechanic did not write the vehicle identification number (VIN) and the engine number. This was a problem. He iterated that he could not give me the UVP without this information being on the slip. I buried my head in my hands. The RTA was closing in fifteen minutes and there was no way I was going to be able to get that from the mechanic. We HAD to drive back the next day. We NEEDED that UVP. Pushing the slip a bit my way, he said, "all I need to see is that VIN and engine number right here". Again, I racked my brain thinking how the hell am I going to get this for him in time? Then, more assertively, he again said " I just need to see that VIN and engine number here" as he tapped the empty space on the slip.

Click. "Oh, ok. I'll go get that for you", I said. He passed me a pen. I returned the pink-slip to him two minutes later. Five minutes later we were off.