Classic Cars

The 54th National Austin 7 Rally takes place at Beaulieu on Sunday 3rd July and holds one of the longest unbroken runs for a one-marque club using the same venue for its annual event. For one enthusiast the event will mark a particularly significant milestone. Bertie Fowler, who bought his first Austin 7 in 1966, will be attending his 50th rally. He purchased the 1936 ‘Nippy’ (one of the relatively few production sports models that Austin made) at the age of 19, negotiating the £90 deal in darkness by the Derby Grandstand at Epsom racecourse. It was, he says, ‘the best buy I ever made’. Years of happy motoring followed, even in the face of what Bertie describes as ‘the usual Nippyisms’ of the doors flying open when negotiating fast corners. The car came off the road in 1976 and […]

Welcome to our new post category – “Road Ink“. The first of this new category is a short video on the innards of a Triumph Spitfire door mechanism. These mechanics are notorious for going out of alignment and even breaking. When this happens, you can no long open the car’s door from the outside. Quite frustrating, trust me! What is even more frustrating is that the fairly simple repair parts are not available for purchase. You either get to fork out over $200 for a complete unit, or attempt for use used or alternative parts. This latter choice is what those of us not made of money would prefer to do, but since this unit was always viewed as a single item by Triumph and BL, documentation is scarce. Hence this video. I just want to take a few moments […]

Our “Video of the Week” this time is from Petrolicious and is of a 1957 Aston Martin Mk III that the owner bills as “perfectly awful.”  And no, that is not an insult, it is a term of endearment. This is not one of those over-restored, pampered, show-only cars. This is an honest to god, survivor, original. And it is simply wonderful. “Some day, down in the future, whoever ends up with this car when it leaves my garage—they may choose to restore it,” says Dave Adams. “…but I hope if and when that happens, they do it with the correct lens so it’s not over-restored.” This 1957 Aston Martin Mk III is actually the prototype for the Mk III range, and was not only used for official testing and design duties, but had also been entered into the Monte […]

Over half of the world’s Minis are boys, with the most popular name being Marvin, according to the world’s first ever Mini Census. The survey, carried out by the organisers of Mini World Live, which takes place at Rockingham Motor Speedway, Northants, on July 10, 2016, received responses from Mini owners all over the globe, including places as far afield as Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Malta and the USA. The results show that in total, 51% of the world’s Mini population is male, 35% are female and 14% are neither – although anyone who’s ever owned a Mini knows it’s more than just a car.

Two early Jaguar E-type barn finds, both ideal candidates for restoration projects, will be auctioned by Classic Car Auctions (CCA) at the June Sale on Saturday 18th June at the Warwickshire Exhibition Centre, Leamington Spa. The first of the pair is a 1963 Jaguar E-Type 3.8 Series I Fixedhead Coupe. Clearly a well-loved car, the first owner kept it for 30 years before it was passed on to its second owner in 1993. Driven for only two years, the car was then tucked away in a barn and has recently been discovered an amazing 20 years later. This early E-Type is an original, highly desirable, UK right-hand drive manual now in need of some TLC.  Beneath the dust, this blue E-type presents in partially dismantled condition with the bumpers, headlamp covers, engine air filter and interior carpets removed. The bodywork […]

The Concours of Elegance began in 2012, showcasing sixty of the world’s finest cars at Windsor Castle to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. Since then it has moved to St James’s Palace and Hampton Court Palace, before heading to the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh in 2015. This year’s fifth edition of the Concours returns to Windsor Castle as part of a celebration of Her Majesty The Queen’s 90th birthday. The Main Concours Sixty of the world’s rarest cars will gather in the exclusive Quadrangle at Windsor Castle this September – the full list of which is revealed by the Concours Steering Committee today.  A 1900 Daimler 6hp owned by Her Majesty The Queen represents one of the earliest cars in attendance, first bought by King Edward VII as the first Royal motorcar.

OK, so I am a day or two late, but … let’s get on with it.  This is British Car Week!! Get out there and drive those cars and let the world know we are still on the road. I will just quote from Scott Helms here to tell you about British Car Week. Scott has the “official” British Car Week site, and is the keeper of this flame, so here goes … The idea came about during the early spring of 1997 after reading an article written by Road & Track columnist, Peter Egan (Side Glances), in the March, 1997 issue of Road & Track Magazine, titled “Seldom seen cars.” Peter writes in his article about his trip to the Dentist’s office, which spawned a conversation about cars. While sitting in the Dentist chair with his mouth full of […]

Available again in print after a long absence, Veloce Publishing is re-releasing a number of go-to titles for the classic British car enthusiast. These titles include How to Paint Classic Cars, Classic British Car Electrical Systems, and Triumph TR2, 3, 3A, 4 & 4A – Enthusiast’s Restoration Manual. Veloce specialises in fine automotive books of all types, ranging from practical do-it-yourself guides to leatherbound limited editions. Their philosophy is that “every one of our books will be of the highest quality in terms of content and presentation, as well as being of true value to the purchaser.” How to Paint Classic Cars Available again after a long absence! Taking you step-by-step through each stage of the painting process, from planning, preparation, and safety, to final painting and finishing, this book will give you the skills and the confidence you need for […]

A 1992 Lotus Esprit Turbo SE ‘High Wing’, one of just two original factory press cars, will be auctioned at Classic Car Auctions’ (CCA) June Sale on Saturday 18th June, at the Warwickshire Exhibition Centre, Leamington Spa. In the year that Lotus celebrates the 40th anniversary of the Esprit, this car is the perfect opportunity to acquire an important example of the iconic model. This rare ‘High Wing’ variant, which appeared on the front covers of motoring magazines in the early 1990s and at various motor shows at the time of the model’s launch, will be offered for sale with an estimate of between £22,000 and £26,000.

Our Video of the Week (VotW) this time go round comes from Steve Wincze of the Connecticut MG Club and the upcoming British by the Sea car show. You may also remember Steve as the winner of last month’s puzzle contest. The video in question is of the Skyline Soiree from 1993. This event was put on by the New England MG T Register. The Skyline Soiree was A scenic road trip through the mountains of the Skyline Drive and the Blue Ridge Parkway in mostly open 2-seater MGs. What we have here is 12 minutes of highlights from a 60 minute DVD. One of four great MG Road Trips sponsored by the New England MG-T Register. On this drive, and in this video, you get to experience the mountain vistas and natural beauty of two national parks and 574 miles […]

Not strictly a British car event, this will still be of interest to those loving classic cars.  The Endurance Rally Association (ERA) has launched an exciting new addition to its 2017 calendar. The Baltic Classic is a two-week rallying adventure which starts in Copenhagen on Sunday 28th May 2017. The route takes in Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland before finishing in Berlin on Saturday 10th June. Open to both Vintage and Classic cars, the event loops around and across the beautiful Baltic Sea and will see plenty of gravel driving and exciting forest sections on roads made famous by events such as the Rally of the Thousand Lakes and Rally Estonia. ERA Rally Director Fred Gallagher explains: “The Baltic Classic is aimed at both newcomers to long distance historic rallying as well as experienced ERA competitors. The route […]

‘Racing improves the breed’ is an overused and often abused saying, but is totally apt when it comes to a number of products offered by British Motor Heritage (BMH). So, in addition the company’s long-established range of original specification replacement bodyshells and panels, a host of specialist items is also now offered by this versatile supplier, including: Competition parts for the MGB BMH’s managing director John Yea has now been successfully campaigning the company’s FIA specification MGB in a variety of high-profile historic race series for some nine years. His first-hand experience of ‘Britain’s favourite sportscar’ on the track has directly resulted in the following being made available from BMH: 4.1:1 crown wheel and pinion Close ratio gear set for ‘4-synchro’ transmissions Alloy door and boot-lid skins FIA specification alloy front valance Seam-welded replacement bodyshells Bespoke bodyshells featuring full-range of […]

Spring has sprung – heck in my area it might as well be summer – and it that time when a car lover’s mind turns to roadtrips! This is especially the case since in about three weeks time the MG 2016 All Register Meet will be kicking off in Louisville, Kentucky. Sadly, I will not be driving an MG to this meetup, but I may very well be taking my 1978 Triumph Spitfire on this roadtrip. Hey, don’t hate, at least it is older British. With the contemplation of such a trip come the thoughts of what I should take with me. What tools, parts, and precautions should I be packing in the trunk for those roadside repairs or hotel parking lot tune-ups?  Now the list will, of course, differ based on the car and its age and obscurity, but […]

Size matters. At least that’s what some people say. I suppose it must be true because I have always had a thing for small cars. For some perverse reason even though I am of a “larger build”,  I have always been attracted to smaller cars – Minis, MGs, Triumphs, Sunbeam Imps and all manner of vehicles that make people puzzle over how I fit into them. I guess that is why our Video of the Week (VotW) caught my eye. The Classic British Microcars is actually a single show split into three parts. I have included all three of those parts here for you. Now, the cars I mentioned above are actually not microcars. In contrast to microcars, the Mini and even the Sunbeam Imp seem huge.  What we are talking about in the realm of microcars are vehicles like […]

Visitors to Concours of Elegance 2016 – held at Windsor Castle from 2-4 September –  will have the unique opportunity to see four of the remaining 1926 British Grand Prix cars in one place. In a celebration of Her Majesty The Queen’s 90th birthday, the historic racing cars will be joined by a revolutionary British car from each decade of Her Majesty’s life. Organised by the Royal Automobile Club, the very first British Grand Prix took place at Brooklands Motor Circuit, Surrey, in the year of Her Majesty The Queen’s birth, 1926. A total of 11 cars took part, with just three finishing the race, and Concours of Elegance 2016 will mark the first time that this many competitors have gathered since the race 90 years ago.

JD Classics’ legendary ex-Fangio C-Type took victory at the Monaco Historique over the weekend, cementing its place as one of the most consistently successful historic racing cars in current competition. This latest win marks its 24th award in 27 races. JD Classics’ in-house racing driver, Chris Ward, took the wheel for qualifying in what was his very first time racing at Monaco. Ward put in an incredible lap that put him in pole position around two seconds ahead of the nearest competitor.

More than 180 cars are due to attend the Fawley Hill Concours d’Elegance for the Total Trophy, presented by international auctioneers COYS at this year’s steam and vintage weekend, which takes place between Friday 20th May and Sunday 22nd May. On all three days over the weekend, COYS alongside their corporate partners leading International oil and gas company Total, will be providing a fabulous hand-picked selection of very high-quality classic cars, which will all be competing for the People’s Choice award, the Total trophy.

Stratstone has been revealed as the owner of one of the famous 2015 Jaguar Lightweight E-types. Chassis number 15 is one of the infamous ‘Missing Six’ and didn’t have to travel far from the iconic Jaguar Browns Lane production facility in Coventry as it made its way to its new base at Stratstone Jaguar London in Mayfair. The fascinating story of the Lightweight E-type dates back to February 1963 and the intended 18-car ‘Special GT E-type’ race car project from that time. Only 12 of the 18 were built and delivered by the Browns Lane competitions department between 1963 and 1964, which gave rise to the infamous ‘Missing Six’. These missing chassis numbers – 13 to 18 – were found in 2014, and so the modern-day production by Jaguar Land Rover’s new Special Vehicle Operations division’s Jaguar Classic, got underway.