Innehållsförteckning för February 2023 från Classics World

In his column this issue, Phil White comes to the conclusion that although his fantasy barn will be permanently stuffed full of classics, in real life he only needs three actual cars. You can check out Phil’s reasoning on page 18, but reading it did remind me that I have too many cars for my own good. At the last count there were seven classics spread between my garage, the driveway and Alan’s barn – the TR7, MG Midget, Fiat Panda, Rover P4 and Triumph Acclaim that have all been project cars, the Reliant Regal that is still an ongoing project and a Fiat 500 which has yet to be featured in the magazine. Oddly enough, that does not stop me from being inspired by the cars featured in CM…

Ahead of the 2023 edition of memories and officially open Autosport International, Europe's the display before taking to the largest motorsport exhibition, main stage at the show to talk motorsport fans were asked to about his personal involvement share their greatest motorsport with Race Against Dementia, memories. An expert panel and sharing memories from his including three-time Formula illustrious motorsport career. 1 world champion Sir Jackie The top ten Motorsport Stewart OBE debated a wide Memories were: range of memories and agreed ● 1955 Mille Miglia – Sir Stirling on a shortlist that includes Moss wins the Italian classic with iconic moments from the world an average speed of 99mph. of Formula 1, the World Rally ● 1957 German Grand Prix – Championship, the British Juan Manuel Fangio…

Hagerty International has announced a new partnership with Great Northern Classics, a specialist hub for the classic vehicle industry providing workshops for businesses in the sector as well as presenting an exciting calendar of enthusiastled events, creating a brand-new UK automotive destination. Great Northern Classics is based at the former Victoria Ironworks foundry in Derby, which until recently served as the Rolls Royce Heritage Centre. The scale of the site allows them to operate as an efficient working hub while serving as a destination attraction at the same time. Due to open in summer 2023, the site will bring together an estimated 30 specialist restoration and fabrication companies, with a visitor centre and event space that will cater to the curious as much as customers with attractions including a full-size…

Synthetic fuels are the favoured zero-emission alternative for over three quarters of classic and collector car owners, Footman James has found. Asking its audience: ‘How do you think you would power your classic/ collectable car if petrol or diesel wasn’t available?’, 76% voted for synthetic fuels, and the other 24% thought they would convert their car to run on electric power. While Footman James recognises that the classic car industry makes up a small part of the 34.4 million internal combustion engine (ICE) cars (including hybrids) on the road today, it is specifically looking at how UK drivers may power their ICE cars at a point some decades away when petrol or diesel is no longer available. Discussing the results with the Historic and Classic Vehicles Alliance (HCVA), a not…

BIO: Iain Ayre’s automotive enthusiasms span everything from Minis to Bentleys. He has prototyped several car designs without commercial success, and has written 18 books on random motoring subjects. He continues to avoid getting a proper job. The meek shall inherit the world, I was always told. That sounded unlikely, but it has actually happened – the sciency geek children who were bullied at school are making the rest of us pay. They and their secret-language computers force us to buy and use their products on their terms. I’m not on the side of bullies – they’re not necessarily cowards and they may have been brutalised themselves, but the practical way of dealing with them is full on. I was bullied at both the English schools I went to, but…

It is fair to say that Ford had a few problems in coming up with a new style when they set about designing a replacement for the Mk2 Zephyr and Zodiac. Previous versions had been unashamedly transatlantic in flavour, drawing inspiration as they did from the all-new Ford 1949 in the case of the Mk1, and then later from the Ford Mainline of 1952 onwards for the Mk2. The dilemma for Ford when it came to the Mk3 was that they didn't want it to be quite so transatlantic in styling, but nor were they ready to sever that link entirely. What eventually emerged was something of a compromise, with elements from a styling proposal by Frua in Italy blended into features brought over from the USA by Dagenham's new…

OUR CARS PROJECT LAND ROVER SERIES IIA 109 SAFARI PART 2 WITH THANKS TO... This work on our Land Rover was carried out by Tony at TW Autos in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire Tel: 01733 341188 The brakes on old Land Rovers – Series models especially – have long had a rather unfavourable reputation. Certainly, some of this can be put down to differing expectations across the generations because to those used to the stopping power of any vehicle from the past 40-odd years, the Land Rover’s standard setup can seem – and feel – decidedly rudimentary. But much of it is simply down to neglect, and the notion that piloting a Land Rover should require votive offerings and prayers to various deities before furiously pumping away at the pedal to get…

It might have ceased production in 2002, but every so often you still see a K11 Micra delivering fast food. There is one not far from my home which careers around on a daily basis, enriching peoples’ lives with doses of curry. A few years ago, the second-generation Nissan Micra – K11 in Nissanspeak – was an everyday sight amid the urban landscape, flying at high velocity off traffic-calming humps, doing sterling work keeping the nation’s population fed. It was also the transport of choice for young and old alike, and it enjoyed enormous sales success in the UK. The Micra name had been around since 1982, when Nissan put into production a car originally intended for Fiat. It was a no-frills machine that – rather unlike the Uno that…

In mid-1984, the Britishowned motor industry was a shadow of its former self. Following over 15 years of the calamities of British Leyland, Austin-Rover as it was now called was regrouping, casting off much of the legacy of its BMC and Standard-Triumph origins and looking forward to a smaller, brighter future. Jaguar was divested and soon to be privatised, the MG and Triumph factories had been closed and the Morris brand killed off early in the New Year. Of the BMC heritage, the Mini remained and the Metro was a clever repackaging of what had gone before and was very much a BMC car in its essentials. The A+ power unit descended from the 1952 Austin A30 engine continued in these cars, and also in the Maestro and Montego 1.3…

When it comes to car design, if something looks right, then it generally is right. The MG Midget Coupés (or Jacobs Midgets as they are almost universally known) are living proof of that maxim. The story is that when MG launched the new MG Midget in 1961, Dick Jacobs drew the outline of the Aston Martin DB4 Coupé over the top of a picture in the new brochure, then persuaded MG to build two of the resulting MG Midget Coupés for him. With lightweight, handbeaten aluminium panels that transformed the Midget from Roadster to Coupé, wind tunnel testing proved just how slippery the new profile was, meaning that the new Midget Coupés performed as well as they looked. Campaigned by Jacobs and driven by Alan Foster, Andrew Hedges, Keith Greene…

Suzuki GB has bought back the LJ80 supplied to motorcycle legend and double 500cc Champion Barry Sheene in 1979. Owned by Barry and his race team in recognition of his time as a Works rider, the LJ was used as a circuit pit vehicle and for promotional work during this period before being privately owned by the family and used at their farm in Surrey until 1987. The pastel blue and red striped car with its famous number 7 decals (which was Sheene’s race number) was in a state of disrepair after being found stored in a barn covered in hay bales, but was extensively and well restored by the next owner, an ex-Suzuki Marketing Director who returned the LJ to its original specification. It was later sold privately, and…

The London Classic Car Show is making a welcome return to prestigious Olympia in Kensington, West London in 2023. Staged between 24th-26th February and entering its ninth year, tickets are on sale now. Olympia is steeped in motoring history, having hosted blueriband automotive shows for more than a century. The spectacular Grand Hall was home to the International Motor Exhibition from 1905 to 1936 and has accommodated an array of similarly distinguished car-themed events ever since, most recently The London Classic Car Show in 2020. Owing to restrictions on indoor venues, the show was forced to innovate with an inspired move to a temporary new outdoor venue in Syon Park in June 2021, but now returns to its traditional February fixture under Olympia’s magnificent Victorian barrel-vaulted roof. As ever, The…

DO YOU HAVE A PRODUCT OR SERVICE YOU’D LIKE FELLOW CLASSIC CAR ENTHUSIASTS TO KNOW ABOUT?GET IN TOUCH BY EMAILING: CLASSICS.ED@KELSEY.CO.UK TWIN WEBER IDF MANIFOLD FOR FORD PINTO ENGINES Price: £389 Webcon has announced that its own production manifolds for twin Weber IDFs on the Ford Pinto engine are now available. 100% cast and machined in the UK and with the product number MM2351, the manifold can be fitted with twin 40, 44 or 48IDF carburettors and is essential for anyone wishing to recreate a Group 1 Escort, or for general Pinto tuning where space is too restricted to allow fitment of twin Weber DCOEs. Available directly from the company and from appointed dealers around the world, for further details contact Webcon UK on 01932 787100 or visit www.webcon.co.uk MINI…

By 1988, Honda had already delivered the first three generations of their Civic model, each of which had sold well in all the world’s main markets, so well that they claimed over 4 million examples had already been delivered. This, the fourth generation, followed the company’s ethos for continuous improvement and enhancement, so would be their most ambitious yet. (To bring the Civic story right up to date, Honda is currently producing the 11th successful generation of it.) Of course, whilst describing the 4th generation Civic, we must take into consideration the company’s achievements in Formula 1 at that time, where it was enjoying quite unprecedented success. A succession of brilliant engine designs enabled Honda to win six consecutive constructors' championships as an engine manufacturer (two with Williams in 1986…

At the end of the 1940s, there was a strong possibility of the Austin and Morris groups joining forces, which would have brought the Morris Minor into the family fold to slot in below the Austin Devon. But personalities and circumstances got in the way of any such marriage and so thoughts at Longbridge turned to creating a rival of their own. In 1949, the green light was given to the development of a new baby Austin to compete head-on with the Minor. It was launched in 1951, but the longawaited Austin-Morris merger finally came to fruition in 1952 to create BMC, just as A30 production was getting into full swing. The Austin’s OHV A-series engine was then transplanted into the Minor, but the two cars continued their intense rivalry.…

Door skins invariably rot along the bottom edges, because any moisture that gets in past the window rubbers tends to collect there and promote corrosion. Many models will also have another place where they are prone to rot, usually because a bracket or some other structure on the inside creates a moisture trap of its own. It is always a good idea to nip any emerging rust in the bud, before it has a chance to spread into the door shell or frame. Often this rectification will involve welding in a repair section along the bottom part of the skin, and this is a task we have shown before, most recently on our Morris Minor project. For some classics such as the Midget though, complete skins are readily available…

Rover 16 The Rover 16 was built from 1936-1940 and then again from 1945-1948, part of a P2 range that also included Rovers 10, 12, 14 and 20. This is the six-light four-door saloon, though there was also a four-light sports saloon and a two-door drophead coupé. Under the bonnet would have been a 2147cc OHV six-cylinder engine, capable of pushing the old girl to heights of 75mph. To our eyes, the lines of the 16 saloon are beautifully executed and perfectly balanced. The P3 that followed in 1948 looked remarkably similar at first glance, but would have had independent front suspension on an all-new chassis in place of the 16's leaf springs all round. As for the choice of location, those timber-framed buildings are perfect for what was often…

If someone had told Frank Sinatra back in 1969 that his most famous performance would be considered a fitting end to many once great manufacturers, Ol’ blue eyes might have given you a funny look. And rightly so. In 1969, many now moribund car companies were riding high. Riley had just ceased to exist, but Alfa Romeo had yet to be embroiled in the Alfasud disaster and Jaguar had just launched their Magnum Opus, the remarkable XJ6. And yet now in 2023, both of those storied marques are arguably on the verge of extinction. You read my diatribe against that gawky, narrow bodied 4x4 hybrid heap – the Alfa Romeo Tonale – last year and the fact that Alfa (the company doesn’t really exist now) see fit to launch such…

Hyundai have announced that they will work with Italian design firm GFG Style, notably its father and son founders Giorgetto and Fabrizio Giugiaro, to rebuild the influential 1974 Pony Coupé Concept that a young Giorgetto created for Hyundai’s debut at the 1974 Turin Motor Show. The rebuilt concept will be shown in the spring time. Hyundai Motor announced the plan during a Design Talk in Seoul, featuring Giorgetto and Fabrizio Giugiaro along with Luc Donckerwolke, Chief Creative Officer of Hyundai Motor Group, and SangYup Lee, Executive Vice President and Head of Hyundai Motor’s Global Design Center. In 1974, when Hyundai Motor was still in its early days of vehicle production, the company’s executives contacted Giorgetto Giugiaro to propose work on designing Hyundai’s first independent model and Korea’s first mass-produced car.…

On New Year’s Day, the town of Stony Stratford just a few miles north of Milton Keynes in Buckinghamshire will once again be invaded by over 400 pre- and post-war cars and motorcycles in celebration of motoring history at the annual Vintage Stony Festival. This free annual event is now a regular part of the vintage and classic events festival calendar, and attracts well in excess of 1000 visitors and vehicle exhibitors to the town making one it of the largest free vintage motoring street festivals in the UK. The New Year’s Day Festival starts at 9:30am and runs until 2pm, just stopping at 12 o'clock to hold a minute's noise in honour of the late Simon Diffey, a much-loved figure in the historic car racing community (and former Stony…

Making a stop for food and refreshment on a British road trip doesn’t have to mean fast food chains and high prices. Detour, the road trip guide site (detourroadtrips.com), has scoured the country to seek out the very best small, independent roadside cafés and diners and short listed ten excellent eateries that would make a perfect pit stop. Each defiantly different to the chains that dominate Britain’s roads, these venues won't necessarily receive famous guidebook recommendations or become social media sensations. Instead, they're all independently owned and aimed at everyday people, with warm service and food that's subsistent, freshly made, tasty and high in quality – perfect for filling up before continuing your journey. 'Detour exists to celebrate the romance of the road trip, to take the longer way,' said founder…

The TR2's origins date back to the 20TS prototype, which debuted at the 1952 London Motor Show. The Standard Motor Company had acquired Triumph in 1945, and this two-seater sports car was their latest attempt at a US export winner. The formula was the 2-litre Vanguard engine in twin carburettor form, a chassis from the pre-war Standard Flying Nine and the Triumph Mayflower's front suspension and rear axle. Standard-Triumph hoped the 20TS would appeal to well-heeled young American motorists, and to that end they printed a brochure for US customers. An equally important role was to divert attention from the Healey Hundred that also starred at Earls Court in 1952, but the new Triumph was not devoid of problems. So, the company's chairman Sir John Black asked the former BRM…

If you’ve got this magazine in your hands and you’re perusing this feature, then it’s fairly reasonable to assume that you like cars. Well, you are in good company because I like them too. In fact, I’ve made a career out of liking them. I even enjoy them in my spare time as I have a Type R Civic in which I hoon around a track whenever time allows. I am after all a selfconfessed petrolhead, but cars have not yet reached the point of taking over my life. Of course I keep bits for the Civic I think I might need and I have run out of storage room for spare wheels and tyres, but there’s a distinct separation between the space for the car and the home. For…

After the last-minute calamities in the January issue of Classics Monthly when our MGB GT was coaxed back to Rob’s home with a sticking throttle cable, he had ticked off a major oil leak problem, but the engine was far from running sweetly. As you’ll see throughout the 17 investigative steps we’ve outlined on fixing the sticking throttle cable, it was caused by the outer sleeving being incorrectly located at the engine bulkhead, but it took an hour of working through several checks to finally get to this point. On the plus side, at least Rob now knows a little more about fixing sticking throttle cables. In fact, the last time he had to deal with such a problem was on the M25 in another MGB, so maybe he’s jinxed.…

When it was first displayed at the Earls Court Motor Show in 1952, the Healey 100 bridged the gap between the cheaper MG sports cars and the more expensive Jaguar XK120. Donald Healey and BMC boss Leonard Lord struck a deal and production began the following year under the Austin-Healey banner. Production officially lasted until 1967, although Steve at the UK Healey Centre says three cars were built in 1968. The first models were known as the Austin-Healey 100 from the start (also known as BN1) because the number 100 represented the power output from the car’s 2660cc fourcylinder BMC engine (as fitted to the Austin A90) and also the car’s top speed. They were equipped with a three-speed manual gearbox, which had overdrive on second and third – the…

February 1972 was to be an unusual month. Iran suffered a seven-day snow blizzard, the sort of thing that would drive today’s eco warriors into a righteous frenzy with over 25 feet of drifted snow burying villages. In the UK while the Strawbs sang Part of the Union, Prime Minister Ted Heath declared a state of emergency as coal supplies dwindled and miners continued striking. David Bowie became Ziggy Stardust and the Volkswagen Beetle became the best-selling car of all time no matter what Toyota say, beating the Model T Ford’s record with 15,007,034 cars sold. US President Richard Nixon visited China, and the first ever pilot build BMW 5 Series – afour-cylinder E12 model 520 – left the Munich plant. Joined by the fuel injected 520i, full production would…