Innehållsförteckning för February 2024 från Custom Car

There are currently a couple of development plans in the pipeline which, should they come to fruition, will have a major impact on two of the best known European dragstrips. Santa Pod While the Santa Pod development plan isn’t fresh off the drawing board, having been unveiled in March 2021, it was mentioned once again at the recent BDRHoF Gala. Specialist design agency Driven International has formulated this ambitious plan in conjunction with Santa Pod’s management. The project’s key element is a new, themed Santa Pod café which will offer quality menus and the best seats in the house, giving a unique viewing experience both indoors and on the second-floor balcony. The building will also be home to the Santa Pod Museum Collection, celebrating the histories of both the wartime…

The hot rod and custom car world relies on a range of dos and don’ts when it comes to styling. In particular, for example, mixing specific details from two different eras can be a perilous exercise. We’ve all seen examples. A 1950s-styled ’32 Ford roadster motivated by a new fuel-injected V8 with all the modern gizmos, for example, is sure to start a debate. In no way are we implying this is a wrong approach, but it should be said that the traditionalists within our hobby will have a thing or two to say about what’s in the engine compartment. Yet this should never prevent hot rodders and customisers from experimenting with a mixtiure of elements cherry-picked from different eras. Using a ’51 Mercury coupe, and a great understanding…

The FIA European Finals is the undisputed heavyweight champion of race meets at Santa Pod Raceway. Held over five dramatic days in early September, more than 250 race teams from all over Europe descended on the Pod in a fury of noise, smells, and pure adrenalin. Qualifying for the Sportsman classes began on the Thursday under a clear sky. Things hotted up on Friday, in more ways than one. The racing ranks were swelled by the Pro classes – and the temperature was predicted to rise to 28 degrees. Several Jet Car exhibition passes were made throughout the day, the quickest being a 4.7772/225.52 from Martin Hill in Fireforce 5. Later in the day, Graham Sykes ran 6.3938/161.33 to set a new world record on his steam-powered rocket bike. The…

Over the years, Hot Rodders striving for something different to the norm have often built cars known as ‘Phantoms’. That is, a model or car that at first glance seems familiar but in fact was never a production model from the factory. The ’34 Ford Sport Sedan bodies produced in fibreglass by Chris Boyle some years ago are a good example. The radical little Minor van on these pages is another – though this is probably the only example in existence. Nick McGuigan owns the van, which left the factory as a 1969 Austin 6 cwt (a simple badge engineering exercise by BLMC). This is its second incarnation, as it was originally on the road as a chopped mild custom with four cylinder power. More on that later. So what…

Event: Ultimate Stance Date: 5 November Venue: Telford International Centre Ultimate Stance might not sound like the sort of show we’d be talking about in Custom Car. But the Telford Event was open to all – and there was a tasty smattering of our kind of cars representing the custom fraternity among the modern stuff. The show has become a firm favourite among all sorts of enthusiasts as a season-ender in the calendar, and it brought together cars and vans of all makes and varieties to fill four halls plus lobby areas in the Telford International Centre. And that was just under cover; outside was set aside for clubs, as well as vehicles picked to be on display – which ranged from Beemers and VW Transporters to American muscle, customs…

Swap race suits for dinner jackets and crash helmets for evening dresses, and the stage is set for the annual British Drag Racing Hall of Fame Gala. As usual, the setting was the Oatlands Park Hotel in Weybridge, Surrey, and the focus of the evening was on the presentation of awards – as well as the official welcoming of the latest Hall of Fame inductees. More than 200 people representing all facets of drag racing were in attendance and the evening commenced with a drinks reception presented by Santa Pod Raceway. It was there that the Junior Drag Racing champions of 2023 received their Lucas Oil awards. Junior Dragster winner Liam MacDonald was unable to attend due to a prior engagement. Keith Bartlett, Santa Pod CEO, then took to the…

The 70’s was a great period in British hot rodding. The likes of Nick Butler and Ray Christopher were letting their imaginations run wild and creating some of the most iconic cars of all time, setting the blueprint for future rodders. Likewise guys who were good with their hands could go rummaging through scrapyards till their hearts content, come away with the bits they needed to put together a homebuilt car and go cruising. A golden era for sure. A few of these cars have managed to survive in various states, or have been rebuilt. Some didn’t make the cut, or nobody ever thought about saving them, but people such as Treve Flamank have recreated replicas of them as best possible. One such car which has survived from that time…

Event: Little Harbour Hospice Run Date: 3 December Venue: St Austell, Cornwall The annual Little Harbour Children’s Hospice run, organised by Sue Watts, took place on the first Sunday of December. The plan was kept to the usual tried and trusted format, with a short cruise to the hospice to let the children check out a car park full of cool rides. Participants met at a retail park in St Austell, close to the hospice, and headed off at 10.45am to cruise the short distance up to their destination. After that, their job was to hand over presents and vouchers for the children and staff and allow some of the children to come out and have a look around the vehicles. Afterwards, a few people headed to local hot rodder…