Indholdsfortegnelse for February 2021 i Classic Car Mart

Welcome… “NEXT SLIDE PLEASE” Such are the traditions of the printing industry that the first issue of any regular publication you read in the new year will generally have been put together right at the tail end of the previous one and so it is here. So although I’m writing this at the height of the pre-Christmas rush I’ll spare you yet another column looking back on the year nobody wanted and instead try to look forward to better times in the coming months. At which point I should point out that I am in no way qualified in any useful medical or epidemiological capacity but one thing I do feel qualified to comment on is the spirit of those who enjoy tinkering with old cars. And just as society…

Classic Crossword 181 Clues Across 1 An upgraded 1970s Citroen with a GS engine under the bonnet (3,5) 7 Eclat-based Lotus model (5) 10 Allegros and Maxis, etc (7) 11 _ Runner, classic Plymouth muscle car (4) 12 Which marque gave America the Seville? (8) 13 Coachbuilder that made the Lancia Flaminia Sport (6) 15 Innovative Lancia model made between 1922 and 1931 (6) 18 Ford-badged Grand Cherokee rival (8) 20 Well-known Lada model (4) 22 It’s by no means a soft bit of kit for convertibles! (4-3) 23 Basis for the legendary Cobra (2,3) 24 Mini spin-off (5,3) Clues Down 2 Classic pony car from Ford (7) 3 Limited _ differential, a feature of the Jensen 541S (4) 4 Present-day Volkswagen closely related to the Audi 80, originally (6)…

MORGAN TO OPEN BICESTER HUB The Morgan Motor Company is to become the latest resident at Bicester Heritage with the opening of an experiential hub at the former RAF Bicester site in 2021. The Malvern firm will occupy the restored Power House building situated on the original Bicester Heritage development, where it will offer a range of driving experiences for customers and enthusiasts. Morgan owners and fans will be able to book experience driving courses in a dedicated fleet of ‘Bicester specification’ models. This includes the Plus Four and Plus Six, with a 3 Wheeler also being available in 2021. Morgan Experience Bicester will be the first company-operated premises outside of Malvern in the firm’s 111-year history. The announcement of the new premises coincides with major works to Morgan’s existing…

AUCTION NEWS EAMA, ONLINE, DECEMBER 5 One advantage of moving sales online is that potential buyers aren’t put off by the winter weather and so it proved for EAMA’s latest sale, with brisk bidding for the eclectic catalogue of bikes and cars. A particular highlight for most of us on CCM was a Cadillac rarity – a 2001 Seville with 4.6-litre V8 and right-hand drive which was hammered away for a provisional £1600. Meanwhile, Mini lover Jeff was more interested in the Mini Clubman which sold for £5500 and MGF-owning Aaron was impressed by the £3800 made by an early N-plated example. Everyone was intrigued by the tidy-looking Mercedes 420SL which was more affordable than usual thanks to Cat C status, selling for £11,000. Star performer of the day was…

CLASSIC ROAD TEST: BENTLEY R-TYPE CONTINENTAL CONTINENTAL SHIFT We sample what was once the world’s fastest four-seater production saloon. WORDS: PAUL WAGER Stepping out of a Bentley Flying Spur recently, I was struck by the thought that whatever you might think about the automotive choices of Premier League footballers, the Volkswagen Group has done a pretty effective job of returning Bentley to the spirit of its glory years. The modern-day Spur is simply unique, its W12 engine providing a savage thrust the equal of pretty much no other large saloon, yet all delivered with impossible levels of refinement which makes you wonder why anybody would ever bother with a cramped, impractical supercar. The general complexity of the modern cars may be light years away from Bentley’s 1950s cars but there…

BUYING GUIDE: 1950s FORDS ROCK ’N’ ROLL YEARS The British Fords built in the 1950s mixed American glamour with traditional construction and a drop of mechanical innovation. Here’s how to ensure you get a great one. WORDS: MIKE RENAUT Had you strolled into any large UK Ford dealership in the mid-1950s you’d have been greeted by a varied range of cars. Through the 1940s Ford had largely served up warmed-over prewar designs that were cheap and basic, but as the next decade continued customers were becoming less willing to simply accept any car in whatever colour was available. This was still an era where a heater or radio were expensive optional extras, yet car buyers were getting demanding and Ford was receiving increased competition from a number of rival manufacturers.…

RETRO RIVALS: BMW M3 v PORSCHE 996 THE FIVE-SECOND RULE The third-generation M3 matched the flagship Porsche to 60mph and had the space for four adults. Is that enough to lift it above the 996 generation today? Words: Paul Wager BMW E46 M3 BMW’s M3 has suffered something of an identity crisis over the years, kicking off as a rough-and-ready road racer in its initial homologation-special appearance as the E30 and then morphing into more of a subtly muscled executive car when it acquired six-pot power in E36 guise. With the launch of the third generation based on the E46 3-Series in 2001, the M3 reverted to type and although it retained a six-cylinder engine it regained something of the frantic nature of the original. With the subtle executive express…

CHECK OUT LOADS MORE NEWS AT WWW.CLASSICSWORLD.CO.UK PLUGS&LEADS CLASSICS WORTH £18.3bn TO THE UK The value of the historic and classic motoring industry to the UK has been reiterated by new research commissioned by HERO-ERA, organiser of the epic Peking to Paris classic rally, which found the sector turns over £18.3bn a year and employs 113,000 people. The 60-page report, entitled ‘The Economic and Environmental Impact of the Historic and Classic Motor Industry in the UK’, covers the impact of the industry on the economy, jobs, skills, heritage and the environment. It was conducted on behalf of HERO-ERA by Cebr (Centre for Economics and Business Research Ltd) and the findings are separate to those released by the Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs in November. The new report acknowledges and…

TWIN TEST: Volvo 140 v Rover P6 WHEELS IN MOTION As new beginnings for each marque, which one of these 1971 saloon cars has the most original appeal today? WORDS: AARON MCKAY PHOTOGRAPHY: GREGORY EVANS It begins to feel unfair as the day goes on. Both our cars are 1971 models of the 2-litre, four-door, rear-drive saloon car class. Both even display black grilles as a symbol of the updates required of them for the 1970s. But they’re both so clearly different, despite being fundamentally similar. For a while I wonder if it’s because the Volvo is slushing the produce of its single SU carburettor away through an auto box while the Rover is putting that of its twin carbs to good use through four manual speeds. But I soon…

THE MARKETPLACE THE CARS THE BEGINNING DATABASE: ROVER 75 (1998-2005) DATABASE ROVER 75 1998-2005 From BMW to Phoenix, the final Rover-developed car suffered from management decisions but has emerged a card-carrying classic. Words: Sam Skelton The Rover 75 is a car which divides opinion. Was it the ultimate expression of the Cool Britannia theme which dominated 1990s fashion by harking back to the 1960s? Was it an overhyped Mondeo alternative with a bit of fake grandeur? But whether you love or hate it, there’s no escaping the fact that it was Britain’s final mass-production saloon engineered by a British manufacturer. It also represented a move away from the Honda tie-up which had come to define Rover in the 1990s. Furthermore, it was a model which proved the mainstay of its maker…

ENDANGERED SPECIES: ALFA ROMEO 156 HIGH MAINTENANCE The Alfa 156 wowed with its good looks, but a poor reputation for reliability and longevity has severely hampered survival rates. Words: Andrew Everett By the mid-1990s, Alfa Romeo’s roulette wheel between the jaws of defeat and victory had been spinning almost since the end of the Alfetta era. That car was replaced by the Alfa 90 imported in its most expensive 2.5 Cloverleaf form for about the same money as a BMW 528i – and it didn’t end well. By contrast, the 75 was a return to form once the Twin Spark and 3.0 versions arrived in ’87, and the following year we had the glorious 164 – probably the best saloon Alfa made until the current-day Giulia. The wheel spun again…

LIVING WITH THE VW T5 TRANSPORTER OF DELIGHT Is it a van? Is it a car? The popularity of VW’s T5 suggests it’s a winning combination of both. Words: Paul Wager No coastal scene is complete these days without a line-up of VW-badged camper vans, day vans and even plain old panel vans, all sitting on fancy rims and lowering springs. And the majority of them will be not the air-cooled rear-engined classics but the more modern fifth-generation ‘T5’. The second incarnation of VW’s long-lived load lugger to employ a front-engined layout, the T5 was launched in 2003 and its combination of solid VW build, car-like handling and sheer versatility saw it convert many owners from premium saloons. Rather than an evolution of the preceding T4 model, the T5 was…

CHECK OUT LOADS MORE NEWS AT WWW.CLASSICSWORLD.CO.UK NEW HERITAGE SKILLS INITIATIVE LAUNCHED The Association of Heritage Engineers has launched a new project called the Sustainable Skills Initiative, designed to amplify the importance of the amazing hand skills possessed by UK’s heritage businesses and artisans and demonstrate their value to the next generation. To this end the AoHE is putting together a broad spectrum of ‘ambassadors’ from a diverse range of backgrounds willing to spread the word. While the project is officially launched at the AoHE’s ‘Festival of British Engineering’ as a part of Coventry MotoFest and Coventry City of Culture 2021 in June, work is already underway. The ambassadors include Salvage Hunters: Classic Cars TV star and long-time AoHE supporter Drew Pritchard, who started his career as an apprentice has…

HAYNES DITCHES PRINT FOR NEW MANUALS The ubiquitous Haynes Workshop Manual has reached the end of an era, with the publisher confirming it will no longer physically print manuals for new cars in favour of digital content. However, you’ll still be able to buy existing manuals from its extensive back catalogue. Long a staple for the DIY mechanic, the first Haynes Workshop Manual was produced in 1966 and in all around 200 million manuals have been published. Established by John Haynes more than 50 years ago, Haynes Publishing was sold to French firm Infopro Digital earlier this year after its founder’s death in 2019. In a statement, the brand said it was currently in the process of creating an new automotive maintenance and repair product that “will cover around 95…

ROUND UP: CELEBRITY CARS MAKING A SPLASH The lifestyles of the rich and famous have long included the right wheels. We’ve chosen some of our favourite classic examples. WORDS: SAM SKELTON Celebrity excess is nothing new, and time has documented the trend well. From trashed hotel rooms to somewhat baser vices, the glitterati has an eye for a perceived good time and one which has often attracted the eyes of the paparazzi. Their cars are no different – it was rare to see a Hillman Minx disgorging a lead actor at Pinewood, or a low-spec Dodge in Hollywood – and Motown never went crazy for the delights of a Nash Metropolitan. But it’s not all Rolls-Royces in swimming pools, however tempting that idea might be – and however true or…

DATABASE: ROVER 75 (1998-2005)THE CARS THE 75 AFTER BMW THE PHOENIX FOUR Much has been said in the past of the Phoenix Four at the top of MG Rover. But who were they and what was the deal which led to the transfer of MG Rover? The Phoenix Consortium was led by four men: John Towers, Peter Beale, Nick Stephenson and John Edwards. Nominally they paid £10 for Rover, but in truth the company came with a £500m dowry from BMW. This came in the form of a £427m interest free loan and a stock of cars. The reason behind this was simple; BMW was liable for redundancy payments if Rover Group went bankrupt within the first three years of the Phoenix Consortium under UK law. The dowry was intended…

BUYING GUIDE: MITSUBISHI EVO EVOLUTIONARY APPROACH It excelled in rallying, but the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution makes for a revered road car too. Here’s what to look for. Words: Jeff Ruggles Mitsubishi’s Lancer Evolution or Evo, as it colloquially became known, first appeared in 1992, with Mitsubishi having to produce significant numbers of road-going versions for World Rally Championship homologation purposes. It sold the entire first batch of 2500 within three days of its launch and, fittingly, kept on evolving the formula: in all, the Evo appeared in ten main guises over a 23-year run until 2015. As a road car, the early Evolutions were relatively unknown outside Japan and until the Evo VI became available through Mitsubishi’s Ralliart dealers in 2000, all Evos were private or grey imports. Soon after…

TAILGATE OUT OF TIME Sam Skelton take a moment to pay his respects to a departed Audi. Of all the cars I’ve ever parted with (27 at present), there’s only one I really miss to the point where I’d rather like to buy it back. It’s not a car to which I have a great sentimental pull – I miss my Montego, because of what it meant to me, but I don’t find myself idly mulling over how nice it would be to see it back, nor do I find myself browsing the classifieds for similar examples. And the car that inspires such feelings hardly sits well with the car history I have – people are surprised to learn I owned one, let alone that I miss something with a…