The machine was not in the best state of condition to endure such a long driving journey, which made me wonder as to whether we would be able to complete it without much unwanted incidence. The rattling sound of the door and from other corners of the cars, due to the hardening rubber seal having gone through rain and shine over the years was enough to make me uneasy, hoping it wont crumble down in pieces. 

Azhar, the foreman was a far different man that night and was in his full confidence. He had reassured me that the engine should run well as he was the one who was had taken care (overhauled) of it. The only concern to him was the tyre, which I agreed because they are not the right one for the car & have not been driven on the road over the last 1 year. In my mind, the only contingency plan that I could think of is to pull the car with my Citroen, in case of major breakdown.

Isa and Co was tailing us in my Citroen all the way from Rawang as we were speeding to the maximum that the machine could take us. Since the meter was no longer functioning, I had estimated that we were speeding at 70-80 km an hour, which was later confirmed by Isa and Co. I guess Isa and Co, must have been trying hard to stay awake at such a speed!

To drive such a machine would be a challenge to anyone as I began realizing that the braking system is not working and would anytime fail to halt the car, if need to.  The clutch system was already at the end its wear and tear period, which gave us a jerking experience whenever low gears were used. Azhar showed little concerns over the problems, as he knew that the situations were under control, relying a lot on his skills in making through the journey. 

The first pit stop was at Tapah R&R. The time on my watch indicated that we had clocked in 2 hours of driving since the flagging off in Rawang. Reaching Tapah R&R brought great relief in me and amazingly, a 150km journey has been clocked in by the Morris without much problem. To refresh ourselves, a good hot Milo was what we needed and Azhar himself had a hot bowl of noodle and iced Milo. Our break lasted 1 hour before continuing at 4.00 am. There were some admirers who had come to view the machine with their dazzling expressions. I guess they must have been wondering how could an old junk survive such a long journey in a middle dark cold night.

The machine could not be started off due to its weak battery. Azhar had anticipated this problem and he had earlier parked the machine on a slope, which was not too steep to make the pushing part less unbearable and much easier. A couple of curious onlookers were also there to help us as they were pretty much excited to see as to how the machine would roll on the road.

It didnt take long after depart when I suddenly realize a strong stench of petrol coming from the front bonnet. (Tu lah, tak boleh puji sangat) We pulled over in the middle of god knows where and it was pitched dark. Azhar, the man in action is always equipped with his tool box and had spotted the problem to be due to clogged petrol filter. Checking underneath the car, I saw some dropping of petrol on the tyre. My buddy, Isa was helping us to warn the oncoming traffic and at the same time, I was praying hard hoping that no drivers would be crazy enough to drive on the emergency lane, which we had seen earlier. Whilst Azhar was looking into the problem, I had to be at the accelerator, making sure the engine continue to run, otherwise it would be a bigger problem for all of us. 

We reached Ipoh at about 5.15 am, delayed by another breakdown due to the same cause, causing the car to jerk mercilessly.  The problem with the filter had some deteriorating effect on the carburetor, which was not helping the machine to run smoothly. As usual, Azhar with his magical touches had to do some cleaning to the affected parts.  I had always admired the British cars for their durability and mechanical mechanism, which is repairable in any situation and not the pakai-buang type, that is very common with the new generation machines.

The driving experience that we had after the toll was a major challenge, in fact to any drivers as the road was leading uphill and winding, with many sharp corners. Since the braking system was not working, the skills of my foreman was put to full use, using the clutch as the only mean of slowing down the car whenever we went downhill. Alhamdullillah, we passed the test and all the praise to Allah.

The brightly lit tunnel of Sg. Perak was there awaiting us when we drove through at 5.40am. Azhar, was both busy at the wheel and his camera phone, which I have to thank him for capturing the moment as a living proof to this journey. Mind you, the car was born before the tunnel was constructed!

Our second pit stop was at Sg. Perak R&R. Azhar had waited for this moment as his stomach had given him much pain since the first breakdown after Tapah. He had wanted to release himself earlier when we stopped for repair but was dissuaded by me, fearing by my negative thoughts as something may suddenly came out from the jungle next to us. We had our Subuh prayer there, feeling afresh again to continue with the journey. Isa & Co, decided to have a short nap in the Citroen, whilst we continued, leaving Sg. Perak R&R at 6.30am.

I replaced Azhar as by then he was already too tired after almost 6 hours of driving. It was the first time experience for me to drive the machine, though it had been bought long time ago in 2001. The only person that has been handling the car was Azhar. The heat that came out from the engine compartment was unbearable. Luckily, we made a wise decision to travel at night as the cold morning breeze was helpful enough to cushion off the heat. By now, Azhar had already doze-off and was enjoying a good rest. The bright early morning started to welcome us as we were approaching Bandar Bahru. Slowly and consistently, the traffic started to get busier when we got through Juru. 

Shortly, after passing Juru, we had another mechanical problem where the engine suddenly stalled. I guess, by then it was already too much for the carburetor to handle for such a massive dust in the gas tank, after all the years of not being driven around.

It was at around 8.10 am when we reached the toll of BKE highway. We decided to pull over for some photography sessions and at the same time, taking a short rest that we all deserve. Several passers by were giving us some curious look, I guess not believing what they saw. Perhaps, they have never seen a Morris Van before, and would have been wondering whether a van does really exist in Morris Minor family tree.

After another breakdown just after the 2^nd toll of BKE highway, we finally reached home at Kulim Hi-Tech Park at 9.15am. Thank God, we finally made it!