if you join the RAC top level of cover and your a member of the camping and caravaning club (cheap and worthwhile anyway if you do a bit of camping) then you get european breakdown on any age of vehicle, for free.
when I asked the AA for cover on my landcruiser, which is 21 years old, they wanted £300 for 2 weeks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
I figured in the unlikely event of a breakdown I would tow it to a garage, pay to leave it there, get home, get a rtrailer and tow it back and I probably still wouldn't be out of pocket!
when the wheel came off in germany it cost 58E to get recovered to a toyota dealer (about 20km). If I add up the amounts AA wanted everytime I have travelled I would probably be able to self recover from mongolia and still be in pocket!

As I am planning a four or five weeks trip around the Baltic in the summer, and often go over the channel for a few days, this morning I have been looking into getting european breakdown insurance. I tried the AA and got quotes of between £306 and £362. I contacted Bennetts who I am already insured with and they upped my RAC UK Recovery up to European Recovery with a total cost of around £90. Chuffed.

I once had a breakdown in France and the RAC insisted on recovering the car back to the UK. all it needed was a £90 wishbone. the local French garage offered to fix it for that price but the rac would have none of it. so it was booked to go back, It took me two hours on the phone two days running to get the hire car. with an agreement they would take me to the ferry port from the drop off point. when i got there I had another two hours on the phone getting them to honour the taxi to the ferry port. when I arrived back in UK it was not until 2.30 am I got my hire car to drive from the ferry port after being on the phone to them since it docked at 9.30 the previous evening. There was then a big argument about me returning it 40 miles from home.

meanwhile they lost my car. Six weeks later it turned up having been dragged around a quarry somewhere sideways, the oily panels from under the engine resting on the back seats. and contents missing. When I complained about the contents I was told it could not possibly been their fault because they were so careful.
The final sweetener was about two months later. They rang me to tell me that another car they had fixed and my breakdown cover and credit card were invalid. It turns out the stuff that was stolen was used to rip them off by someone who had broken down in France.. :) and they got an alternator supplied and fitted by them.
Needless to say I have never had recovery from them since. They were such an obstructive lot I would have paid them the premium to have not gotten involved at all and to have let me deal with it myself. A total shower of Sh$$.
My current bike insurance has recovery to a garage included and greencard for all of EEC and most neighbouring countries. as does our cars, throughout the EU. My bike insurance is about £65.
Put the recovery insurance money in your own account and watch it mount up.

Only exception would be in UK only for recovery by one of the £25-40 a year people.

Food for thought

sent from my quad-core, plasma fuelled thing-a-mygig

ADAC EU Rescue: covers me whatever vehicle I drive and whether or not it belongs to me. It includes loads inc Medical repatriation (not med bills) all for €75. a year . Unbeatable cover IMHO

sent from my quad-core, plasma fuelled thing-a-mygig