Classic car news for August '06

Shows at Nantwich & Tatton Park

With so many classic car events on every weekend, sometimes its difficult to know which ones to attend, and even if we should be going at all, or getting on with stuff in the garage here! in the end we attended a couple of local shows, the first one being a small gathering that takes place at the Barony Fields, in Nantwich. It has only been held for a

Austin Westminster automatic

short time, and could develop into a good show, especially given how successful the nearby Audlem event is. At the moment it is a two day-er but really would work better if just held on the Sunday, ideally on a weekend that didn't clash with the big steam, car and lorry show at Astle Park a few miles away.

We called in on both days, one day taking the Devon and the other just attending as the public.

The venue is a large sprawling field with plenty of room for exhibits, and side shows. Many of the vehicles were familiar from other shows, but there were one or two new 'faces' that I'd not seen before. There was a smart Austin Westminster, running on Rostyle wheels, which looked the part, and a recently painted early 50s Chevrolet, playing rock and roll music from hidden speakers behind the front grille. Makes a change from rap or other dross that emanates from cars driving by!

A new Mini club also turned up, I think it was called Crewe's Missiles, and they had an interesting line-up of Minis to show, mostly of a modified nature. Very eyecatching and on display under their own gazebo, was a tempting collection of three Austin J40 pedal cars, red, white and a blue one. These were built by former mine workers in Bargoed, South Wales. Upto 250 workers were involved in the production of the Pathfinder racing car, which lasted for just one year, and the more common J(unior)40 pedal cars. As well as being sold as pedal cars, the J40 could be supplied with twin steering wheels and no pedals, for permanent fixture on fairground rides. Over 32,000 J40s were produced, the final examples being built as late as 1971, many years later than the A40 Devon on which is was loosely based. An interesting point is that the metal used in the build of the pedal cars, was scrap metal from Austin's production plant at Longbridge.

Tatton Park Vintage & Sportscar show
The following weekend saw the August vintage and sportscar show at Tatton Park. I've been going to both of the Tatton events since the late 80s I think, and it can always be relied upon to have some interesting motors on show. The downside is rather a lot of modern stuff too, with engine revving sessions by the TVR club punctuating an otherwise civilised afternoon. Despite the modern stuff, there is lots of classic and vintage machinery on display. In addition there are always a few classics for sale too - this year's crop positioned near the entrance, included a Mini van (supposedly a '63 van but no vent in roof - perhaps a re-shell job?), some SL Mercedes, a Mk2 Vitesse convertible, and a few MGs.

Dark green Jowett Jupiter sportscar

Perhaps my favourite car in the show was a lovely dark green Jowett Jupiter, a product of the Jowett works, in this case dating to 1953. The Jowett first appeared, in chassis form, at the London Motor Show back in October 1949, with complete cars hitting the road the following March. Production cars came later in the year, and continued to be built at the Bradford works til 1954. Power comes courtesy of a 'boxer' layout 4 cylinder engine of just under 1500cc, accessed via a one-piece front end that hinges up at the rear.

One of the most interesting displays, in my opinion, was that of the Alvis club, their stand packed with all manner of delectable Alvis-built sporting cars. While mooching about I also spotted another J40 pedal car, albeit in fairly distressed condition unlike those spied at Nantwich the week before. This one had a fair bit of surface rust on it, and was for sale. Maybe one day I'll get one to go with my A40 car, we'll have to see!

Eye-catching in a lurid 70s green, and undeniably quite a rare sight, was a very tidy Renault 17 coupe, sharing the stand

Bright green Renault 17 coupe

with another yellow example. Cars like this were a fairly common sight in the 70s and 80s but have all-but disappeared now, and are hardly ever still seen in regular use. Although most 70s cars aren't something I'd collect myself, offbeat cars like this must be preserved and its great that the few survivors are finding their way into appreciative hands. I'm sure the later Renault Fuego is getting rare too (I can't remember the last time I saw one in regular use), and are they being saved before its too late? While on the subject of more recent cars, seen out in the public car park was one of the few remaining un-rusty Fiat Strada 130TC Abarths. Again a bit 'modern' for me, but very rare now thanks to the lousy steel and rustproofing processes used by Fiat (and many other makers) in the gloomy days of the 1970s motor industry. Other 70s cars that I remember seeing at the show included a black Lotus Eclat, a smart red Volvo 144 on later 240 GLT alloys (are 140 series Volvos finally being preserved??), various Fords, a light green metallic Fiat X1/9, Fiat 124 Coupe, an immaculate 02 BMW fitted with Minilites, Lancia Beta (another famously rot-prone Italian), Ferrari 308 GT4, and the aforementioned SL and SLC Mercedes.

One little car that caught my eye at Tatton was AOG 750, a 1934 Austin 10/4 saloon. It was of interest because at the time I was lining up the purchase of a similar Austin, but a cabriolet version, and one that hadn't been on the road for many years ...

Austin 10/4 Cabriolet arrival

1934 Austin Ten/Four

It all came about because I'd been looking around the internet for old car stuff, and stumbled across this little soft-top Austin. Open-top cars from the pre-war years have always appealed to me, but many (usually Austin 7s) simply look a little too cosy for my tallish frame to fit inside. A friend of mine had an unusual A7-based special for sale a while back, but whoever built it must have been of smallish stature, as there was no way I could cram my feet into the tiny cockpit. Ok production saloons, especially the Ruby, would be a little more accomodating for my size 10 boots I'm sure, but when this Ten turned up, it seemed to fit the bill.

Arrangements were made, and we set off to collect this little gem from sunny Somerset, enjoying a leisurely run down the back roads of Wales, across the Severn Bridge, and down into Somerset. The car had been with its owners since the early 60s, and I think they were sorry to see it go. It hadn't been in regular use since the mid 60s, and had just one more run, when it was driven from London to Somerset in 1971, when it went back onto blocks under several tarpaulins. Amazingly the car hadn't suffered too much despite not being stored in a garage, and I had no hesitation in buying it there and then. More about this particular car, officially known as a 10/4 Cabriolet, can be found here. My hope is to recommission the car and get it back on the road, without erasing much of its originality and (to me) charm in the process.

More old-car discoveries and 'finds'

Austin Sheerline

Sorry looking Austin Sheerline A125

There's a little old-car garage not far from here, and from time to time I get to see some of the cars and other vehicles the owners go to look at, or tag along when making a delivery. One such lead they decided to follow up was an old 50s Austin A125 Sheerline, so I went along for a nosey too. It soon became obvious that this particular A125 hadn't seen the road in many a long while, with some very dodgy looking bodywork around the back end especially.

Access to view the condition properly was somewhat hampered because the car was wedged inside an old van body, which had at least kept it dry. The interior would need a heap of work, the wooden dash and leather trim not looking too brilliant. Bodily the worst areas were around the back end, with at least one rear wing needing replacement so poor was its condition. The large P100 Lucas headlamps were not in place, but the owner assured us that they were still around somewhere. Whether the garage owners will make an offer on this car I don't know, but its always fun to look at these discoveries!!

ERF recovery lorry

Original ERF recovery lorry

Another lucky find came about as we were leaving the location of this Sheerline, when the owner mentioned that there was a farm auction being held the next day just up the road. Several rare tractors were lined up apparently, so we decided to go and have a look, see what was going under the hammer. We found the farm quite easily, and indeed there were some lovingly restored tractors, mostly Minneapolis Moline from what I remember, with a few other makes here and there (Porsche, Fordson etc).

However what really caught our eye was a cracking ERF breakdown wagon, with coachbuilt bodywork. On the back was a significant portion of Ferguson (grey 'fergie') tractor, that was used in powering the winch. Story goes that this lorry was built for, and used by, the ERF factory at nearby Sandbach for recovery work. Overall the condition of the lorry was very good, with much of its signwriting from a subsequent garage owner, still in place. I didn't get chance to attend the auction, but I'm told bidding petered out somewhere over £11k, but with the reserve not yet met ...

1930s/40s Wolseley 12hp saloon

Old Wolseley 12 needing TLC

The friends of mine with the garage had also been tipped off about a pre-war Wolseley 12 that might be for sale, one of several old cars that were apparently in good condition and up for grabs 10-15 miles away.

Always keen to find something interesting lurking unloved, we went over to have a look. After a few fruitless drives down various winding lanes we found the right cottage. The owner pointed down the garden, then proceeded to show us the remains of this once-proud 1930s or 1940s motorcar.

Sadly the years hadn't been kind to the Wolseley's bodywork, and it was probably beyond redemption and best suited to a spare donor for a running car. The long grass sprouting up around the car had done for the metalwork, although there were plenty of spares that could be removed. Again, I don't know if they'll be making an offer on it.

Morris Minor MM lowlight 1949

MM Series Minor, 1949

One car they did buy, and one I went along to help collect, was a 1949 Series MM Morris Minor, or 'lowlight' as it is usually referred to now. The car had undergone a restoration some years before, then spent some time out of use, and now needing some fettling to get back on to the road. These early Minors, still powered by the sidevalve engine once found in the Series E Morris 8, are not often found nowadays outside of owners' club circles, so was worth rescuing and preparing for the road once more. Last I heard it was ready for its MOT.

My cars update

A40 Devon

As for my own cars, the vehicles I'm purchasing overseas are coming along and getting nearer to the shipping port. I hope that they'll be going into the container sometime in September, more info on these vehicles will be put on the site when they are safely back here!

The Austin Ten is at my friend's garage while I check it over and see whats needed, and the E83W ready for the MOT once I find some time to book it and take it along. The black Devon saloon is running ok, although I did have a couple of gremlins in the works for some reason. One day I went to start it and there was no response when pulling on the starter button. For some reason the battery seemed to be a little low in charge, despite the charging system seeming to be ok in the car. I'll have to keep an eye on this, the starter handle soon saw the engine running however - who says modern cars are better in every respect?? the other minor gremlin showed up after a drive around some bouncy country lanes. We parked outside the house and I proceeded to give it a wash.

When I got back in, the engine wouldn't fire despite the starter spinning the motor over quickly. Not even a sign of ignition. Very curious. Initially I thought that perhaps the electrics had got damp following my bucket & sponge session, but this wasn't the case. A quick check showed a spark at the points, but nothing at the plugs. A similar problem used to crop up occasionally on my first Volvo 120, and revolves around the tiny brush that sits in the middle of the distributor cap. It is fitted to a spring, and it had worked its way up into the cap a little, breaking its contact with the rotor arm beneath, hence no spark to the HT leads. A gentle pull on the carbon brush, and with the cap re-fitted the engine sprang into life as normal.

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