I'm surprised you didn't hear the noise at your place. On Thursday came the announcement that set the whole of South Australia off. The crescendo of approval and relief from every man, woman, child and other crow eater dwarfed the bang from the first atom bomb to go off at Emu Field in 1953.
Yes, despite the borders being patrolled night and day against any possible incursions by persons from the east, Premier Steve Marshall has announced he will throw open the borders for four days in November for the running of the Classic Adelaide Rally. In what is billed as Australasia's largest tarmac rally event, the 325 entrants will gently destroy the peace and quiet of local villages across the City of Churches and environs.
And there's a real treat in store for those who, two to a car, engines wound up like a Chinese watch, sprint across places whose names and landmarks sends shivers through what passes for the brains of navigators. Kingston, the home of "Larry" the Big Lobster; Gumeracha, where the Big Rocking Horse stands guard.
Given the sort of welcome foreigners like yours truly will get in November, the old bloke and I are looking at Aston Martin's new but old DB5 Goldfinger Continuation car. A special run of 25 Silver Birch painted Goldfinger DB5s are being hand-built at the same facility in Newport Pagnell that produced all 898 originals between 1963 and 1965.
Best of all for a tour in the wilds of South Australia, standard kit includes rear smoke screen and oil slick delivery systems, twin front machine guns, battering rams and front and rear and tyre slasher. A snip at $5m.
Aston Martin, like many independent luxury carmakers, is in dire straits. CEO Andy Palmer has just got the flick after a 98 per cent collapse in the luxury car company's share price since its IPO less than two years ago. Jaguar Land Rover is looking for close to $2bn from the government and another bill in tax breaks, research grants and other subsidies.
British car production is down 99.7 per cent, the lowest output since WWII.