Table of contents for October 2019 in Practical Classics

Federation news FBHVC APPOINTEMENT The Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs has appointed Wayne Scott, of Classic Heritage PR, as Director of Communications, after Geoff Lancaster stepped down at the beginning of August. Wayne works with PC on Skill Shack video tutorials and has managed the PR for the TR Register car club for six years, edited its award-winning magazine, TR Action , since 2014 and was responsible for founding the TR Register’s ‘Youth Group’ back in 2007. Classic Heritage PR will be carrying out all PR services for the FBHVC on a ‘pro-bono’ basis and has a track record in delivering PR campaigns for brands such as Duckhams, Penrite, Cambridge & Counties Bank and the Jaguar Enthusiasts’ Club. FBHVC Chairman David whale thanked Geoff Lancaster for several years fantastic…

2CV: Different Is Everything £14.99 ISBN 978-1-44568-766-7 Malcom Bobbitt explains the history of the 2CV. He covers the ingenious design, including the corrugated bonnet, push-pull gear lever, hammock seats and air-cooled engine. amberley-books.com Classic Cars Restoration Manual £15.95 ISBN: 978-1-89923-85-14 The re-launched manual covers interiors and trim, bodywork repairs, mechanical components, setting up the workshop and includes a detailed buying guide. amazon.co.uk Mercedes S-class Buyer’s Guide £13.99 ISBN: 978-1-787114-02-9 A step-by-step guide to evaluating a purchase, this book includes photos of what to look for and what to avoid, plus a realistic assessment of running and restoration costs. veloce.co.uk…

Although it’s been going for years, the Sywell Classic still has a relatively low profile. Always held in September (this year over the weekend of 21-22) at Sywell Aerodrome in Northants, Pistons & Props is a mix of club displays, motorsport and live music. Turn up in your classic and you can take a place in the Pole Position car park. Once there you can watch air displays, 75 historic racing cars on the strip, plus there’s a vintage fun fair to amuse the whole family. More at sywellclassic.co.uk.…

Trolley ta-ra At its height, Wolverhampton’s trolleybus network had 14 routes and 173 buses. The vehicles sometimes came off the wires, necessitating passengers to get out and push. Closure of the system started in 1961. Class Prefect Four doors, a vertically-barred grille, more chrome and a better-equipped interior marked the £658 100E Prefect out from its lowlier £511 Anglia sibling. A heater was still an optional extra though. Learn to drive This learner driver is probably in safe hands; as well as the Leeway School of Motoring being RAC-accredited, the V-shaped badge on the grille suggests membership of the Company of Veteran Motorists. Little lugger Despite being dimensionally smaller than a Morris Minor van, an Austin A35 van could handle a similar payload. Note the ‘air-conditioning’ in use here, via…

My Caterham, built with my late dad, owned since new in 1988 and part of the family. Driven by four generations, including grandson (when two – OK we pushed, he steered). Andy Couchman My MGB will be with me for life – so many memories, pain, stress and good times attached to it. John Kelly My 1983 Metro 1.3 HLE is my keeper. My first classic and I could never part with it after having provided the introduction to the joys and tribulations of classic car ownership! Dan Thomas My MGB was bought by my dad in 1985. I had L-plates on it and learnt to drive in it in 1990. My dad passed away four years ago and I will never let it go. Anthony Hull My lovely Maxi,…

When we visited, Richard’s Chitty had only been running and driving for a matter of days, so there was still some fine tuning to do before hitting the road. Sitting aloft in the beautifully-upholstered drivers’ seat, though, I suddenly come over all peculiar. The view ahead, across the polished aluminium bonnet and between the brass lights is truly breath taking. It’s iconic. It is a childhood dream come true. Richard agrees. ‘I’ve had that image in my head for fifty years. It’s just the best view in the world!’ Fantasmagorical indeed.…

A modern hot hatchback would trounce it for outright pace, but the Golf MkI still has lightness and pointability on its side. That deep, smooth, revvy engine note, the businesslike blackness of the cabin apart from that cheerful tartan so loved by the Germans, the feel of taut, solid quality – this Golf is essence of GTI reincarnated. It sits firmly on the road, telegraphing everything that’s happening under now-dainty Pirellis, and even the brakes feel quite reassuring. The five-speed ’box lets the engine give its best, too. And it’s still such a superb-looking motor car with its subtly rounded angles and its crisp black detailing. The Golf MkI is smaller than today’s Polo, yet in 1979, the GTI was a full-size hot hatch. We’ve lost our way a little…

One way in which a classic car can present credentials of true Britishness is to have its fuel administered by an SU carburettor (or two, or three). Only some Volvos break this rule; no other foreign carmaker used SUs, as far as I can discover, unless you count the British Motor Corporation’s continental collaborations such as Innocenti in Italy and Authi in Spain. And then there were the licence-made Hitachi carburettors in Japan, originally SU designs. Only the Rootes Group among UK manufacturers without US connections eschewed SUs, favouring instead Zeniths and Solexes, and then Rootes was taken over by Chrysler anyway. So, the SU carburettor, with its smooth and shiny aluminium dashpot and – at first glance – almost sculptural visual simplicity, was the great sign of Britain’s way…

S AT SEP 7 Bonhams Auctions, National Motor Museum, Beaulieu, Hampshire. (020 7468 5801, bonhams.com/cars). WED SEP 11 Charterhouse, Royal Bath & West, Shepton Mallet, Somerset. (01935 812277, charterhouse-auction. com). S AT SEP 14 Bonhams, Goodwood Revival sale, nr Chichester, West Sussex. (020 7468 5801, bonhams.com/cars). FRI SEP 20 Barons Auctions’ Jaguar Heritage sale, Sandown Park, Esher, Surrey. (023 8066 8413, barons-auctions.com). S AT SEP 21 Historics at Brooklands, Brooklands Museum, Weybridge, Surrey. (01753 639170, historics. co.uk). SUN SEP 22 Silverstone Auctions’, Dallas Burston Polo Club, Southam, Warwickshire. (01926 691141, silverstoneauctions.com ). THURS SEP 26 Bonhams MPH, Bicester Heritage, Bicester, Oxfordshire. (01869 229477, mph.bonhams.com). S AT OCT 5 Classic Car Auctions, Warwickshire Exhibition Centre, Leamington Spa, Warks. (01926 640888, classiccarauctions).…

I was actually looking for an older classic, perhaps a Rover P6. Then this early (1997) Jaguar XK8 convertible came up and it had such good provenance – 72,000 miles, a couple of owners, good MOT history. It’s a lovely colour, too. At £7000 it just seemed too good a car to say no to. My wife and I plan to do some touring in it. I’m used to older classics so expect to work on this myself too. I’ve had all the wheels off already and it all looks good and sound underneath. Later I will drop the rear axle and sort all that out. It also needs a bit of work on the interior, but you expect that from any 20-year-old car with leather seats. People worry about…

Theo likes... THE SPEEDY ONE ‘I’ve long wondered what it’d be like to be clingfilmed to a skateboard and have rockets strapped to my back. And now I know. The Smart’s pretty much all that excitement, but without the niggling fear of an impending grisly death. Until you attempt egress, that is. Nurse, bring the hoist and the liniment…’ Matt G likes... THE WHIZZY ONE ‘Dep ed James Walshe once gave me a lift to a mag shoot in his Smart – and what an eye-opening trip it was for me. Granted, it was quite a task folding my 6’6” frame into the tiny cockpit, but what a machine! The turbo motor out back wailed and shrieked, taking us to speeds I couldn’t have imagined. Bravo!’ Matt T likes... THE…

1980 Citroën Dyane 6 Engine 602cc/2-cyl/OHV Power 32bhp@5750rpm Torque 30lb ft@4000rpm Gearbox 4-speed manual 0-60mph 34sec Top speed 75mph Weight 600kg Work done Paint and reassembly. Also in James’s garage 1985 CITROËN CX GTI TURBO Searched for a door, wing and a bootlid! Not at all easy! 1988 CITROËN CX 22TRS Favourite car of all – faultless. 1997 VOLVO 850 ESTATE Woofling happily everywhere. 2003 VOLVO S80 D5 Another trouble-free trip to France in the bag. Job done! The Dyane’s first ever restoration is complete and my parents are happily motoring around in it again. Dad bought the car many years ago and it has racked up the miles ever since, from daily duties up and down the hills of my Cotswold homeland to weekend jaunts to Wales and Cornwall…

1972 Triumph TR6 Engine 2498cc/6-cyl/OHV Power Untested Torque Sufficient Gearbox 4-spd man + o/d 0-60mph Unknown Top speed Undiscovered Fuel economy 25mpg Work done Front springs replaced; new brake drums and chin spoiler fitted; oil and filter changed. Also in Matt’s garage 1968 MORRIS 1100 Has been out and about to evening meets throughout the summer months. 1972 TRIUMPH 2000 A winter of bodywork repairs is in the pipeline. More soon. Fittingly, this issue of Practical Classics went on sale in the shops on the same day that the 2019 Club Triumph Ten Countries Run kicked off – September 4. Before that, I had to complete my final pre-event preparations, however. This year will be the fourth time that I’ve taken part in the ever-popular 10CR, but the first time…

1959 Peerless GT Engine 1991cc/4-cyl/OHV Power 110bhp@4800rpm Torque 117lb ft@3000rpm Gearbox 4-spd manual + o/d 0-60mph 10.8sec Top speed 120mph Fuel economy 28mpg Work done Method of successfully raising the car discovered; nasty vibrations and rattles eliminated; seat restorer found locally. Regular readers will know that I have driven my Peerless, but nobody other than myself knows just how noisy the experience is. Raw, and noisy. It’s early days, so refining the ride will come in due course. One thing I wanted to address sooner though is the amount of vibration felt when the engine is revved. It’s an exhaust touching the chassis kind of vibration. To date, I have never been able to raise the car high enough to have a proper ‘stood up’ look around underneath. The large…

The MGB GT interloped at the Morris Minor Owners Club’s Northern Regional Rally in Cheshire. Giddy off the back of our club tour, Matt George and I headed to our local classic evening meet in Barholm. Both the Traveller and Convertible Minors made an appearance at my local village classic car show. The Convertible went to MyBeautifulCar detailing to have the neighbour’s fence paint overspray removed. Which meant it was soon back to its shiny self, ready to take us on holiday to the Isle of Wight.…

Marina for BMM A Morris Marina has been donated to the British Motor Museum by a couple who’ve owned it for over 40 years. The 130,000-mile 1973 1.3 Deluxe has been lovingly looked after by the Goodings of Essex, but with Mr Gooding now in his Eighties, he wanted it to go somewhere it could be cared for. The BL saloon is now on display in the Collections Centre at the Gaydon venue. Jensens in the sky(scraper) Two Jensen Interceptors recently showcased the newly restored Centre Point skyscraper in central London. Architects MICA approached marque specialist Cropredy Bridge Cars to supply a 1967 FF and 1974 MkIII to publicise the freshly renovated Brutalist structure, which was built in 1966 and has since become a well-known capital landmark. TRs in charge…

Boston booming The Boston Car Club’s 27th annual rally brought the total funds raised for charity by the club this year to £2000. Almost 400 classics attended the event, where cars from the Thirties mixed with modern classics, to help raise money for Lincolnshire Emergency Blood Bikes, which provides an essential courier service transporting essential medical items. Mini pilgrimage Six Mini enthusiasts from South America have shipped their cars to the UK for the model’s 60th birthday celebrations. The cars made their first appearance at the National Metro and Mini Show at Gaydon last month, after 29 days at sea from Chile – via the Panama Canal. Owner of a black Mini Cooper, Roberto Parraquez, won the Spirit of the Show award. Model A loaned to Charlie The 1929 Ford…

A common trend among single-marque car clubs is to embrace all classics at their biggest events, as the Rover P5 Club has done this year. Ken Pick says: ‘Our 2019 National Rally will be held at Newby Hall in North Yorkshire and we’re inviting all classic car owners to join us. The rally will be held on Sunday, September 8 and discounted entry to the house and its grounds are available for a family-friendly day out. PC readers can find out more at roverp5club.org.uk – click on the yellow box.’…

THU-SUN, SEP 5-8 SOMERSET National Microcar Rally at Steps Farm, TA7 0BL (nationalmicrocar-rally.co.uk). THU, SEP 5 WARKS Kineton Classic Gathering, CV35 0DF (classicgathering@ hotmail.co.uk). S AT, SEP 7 YORKS Rufforth Auto-jumble, Rufforth Park, YO23 3QH (rufforthautojumble.com). SAT-SUN SEP 7-8 HANTS Beaulieu Autojumble, SO42 7ZN (beaulieu.co.uk). DORSET Classic & Steam Vehicle Show, Swanage Railway, BH19 3EB (bppcltd.com). SUN, SEP 8 SUFFOLK Low Collective German Car Meet at Stonham Barns, IP14 6AT (stonhambarns.co.uk). GLOS Classic Car Day on the Gloucestershire & Warwickshire Railway, Toddington station, GL54 5DT (gwsr.com). WORCS Shelsley Walsh Breakfast Club, WR6 6RP (shelsleywalsh.com). SUSSEX Southern Classics Breakfast Meet at Carats Café BN41 1WD (southernclassics. org.uk). LANCS Blackpool Vehicle Preservation Group show, Lytham St Annes, FY8 1NP (bvpg. co.uk). KENT Kent’s Classic Car Show at Aylesford Priory, ME20 7BX (kentsclassiccarshow.…

Crazy price differentials I’ve been away from classic cars since about 1995, when I had a Triumph Stag. I now find that what were my daily drivers – Cortina 1600E, Granada/Consul V4, MG Maestro 1600/Efi, MG Metro Turbo, Rover P6, Triumph Dolomite, Herald, Triumph TR4 and many more – are now classics that command crazy prices. They’re just a small number of the many cars that I never thought would be worth what they are now. Today, I drive a Jaguar XK8 coupé, one of the first from 1996, and a sublime X358 2008 Jaguar XJ Sovereign TDV. I consider these to be the best cars I have ever owned; they are beautiful to look at, with all the grace and pace you could want, but what I cannot fathom…

The Nissan Cedric was particurly daft. Spencer Thomas Give me an Isuzu Bighorn any day! Cameron Williams In China, you can have a Dongfeng Crazy Soldier. Simon Bryan The Toyota Estima Lucida Charme Pleasure Wagon with Joyful Canopy. What a name! Alex Kruszynski Who named the Dacia Duster? Mark Bishop The Renault Wind! Jason Willetts How about the Lancia Superjolly? Ed Prothero The Kia Soul is just cringe! Robert Edwards Subaru Brat always made me chuckle. Simon Mason Mitsubishi Carisma – the most ironically-named car ever made! Barry Park…

September 1979 Golf GTI 1.6, silver Also a five-speed, this untidy GTI is actually slightly older than the restored ex-press car and has sat in a rat-infested barn for years. March 1983 Golf GTI 1.8, black Graham bought it in 2008. ‘It was tatty but original, with 42,000 miles. I used it for a bit, then painted it in 2012. It’s my daily driver.’ September 1983 Golf GTI Campaign 1.8, red This run-out edition, with Pirelli P-slot wheels and extra headlights, has done just 31,000 miles and is completely original.…

As an inveterate car hoarder, I need strict control mechanisms to prevent the automotive equivalent of a bathroom filled with empty cereal boxes. One of these is to periodically review each member of my fleet as if it were a prospective purchase and question whether it deserves the precious barn-space it occupies. Rigorous restraint of car-buying urges and several brutal purges in recent years mean that the answer is almost always ‘hell yes’. Very occasionally, though, I find it possible to talk myself into selling something. Removing duplication is a strong argument. Do I really need a rusty Tatra 613-4 when I have an excellent 613-2 and 613-5? Does anyone really need five Volgas? In both cases, I convinced myself that the answer was ‘no’. Ease of replacement is another…

Getting buttonholed at social gatherings is something that I’ve had to get used to over the years. It quickly gets round that I know a bit about classic cars and, to be honest, I usually welcome a bit of car chat. Most people have interesting stories to tell, while I’ve picked up the odd feature before, and I still fantasise that one day I’ll meet someone who says, ‘I’ve just inherited this barn full of Alfas/Minors/Ferrari 250s and just want them out of the way…’ No, this isn’t that story. At friend’s party recently, on the other side of the country, a neighbour of his sparked off a conversation about my friend’s car collection. Having ruminated on those, and listing all the classic events he attends each year, matey followed…

1964 Mini MkI Price: £11,250 Super Deluxe model that has recently been completely restored to original colour but with upgraded seat coverings and an alternator. 1974 Citroën Ami Price: £5160 Super-desirable Ami Super with 1015cc OHC engine. Body-off resto recently completed. Car on road and ready for paint. 1990 Merc 190E Price: £3850 2.0 manual car with genuine 38,275 miles that has sat unused in a garage for 24 years. Comes with original steel wheels and trims.…

John Simister My daughter Alona learned to drive in this 1999 Peugeot 106 1.1 Zest. I bought it for her, unseen, on eBay in 2004 for £2000. Alona calls it – him – François, and has never wanted another car during her 15-year ownership. It has seen her through university, flat moves, work, play. I have fixed things sometimes, worn brakes mainly, and it has been serviced properly. Then, last October, Alona and boyfriend Rob set off for a year in Canada. What would happen to the Peugeot? Alona announced that they were going to drive it to Bandon, in Ireland’s south-west, where Rob comes from and leave the 106 with his parents, under cover, and fly to Nova Scotia from nearby Cork airport. Trouble is, I didn’t much like…

1955 Morris Minor Engine 803cc/4-cyl/OHV Power 30bhp@4800rpm Torque 40lb ft@2400rpm Gearbox 4-speed manual 0-60mph Theoretically possible… Top speed 62mph Fuel economy 36mpg Work done Purchased and admired. Also in Ben’s garage 1962 MORRIS MINOR 1000 My first automotive love. 2004 ROVER 75 TOURER A glorious daily driver. I’ve been on quite a journey with my 1962 Morris Minor. To recap, I first discovered it in a family friend’s barn as a child, lusted after it for years, then was given it as a teenager. Although it had been off the road for decades, finally owning the dust-encrusted saloon really was a dream come true for me. Sadly, the dream became a nightmare. Despite providing plenty of formative spannering experience, my Minor was seriously compromised with a badlybodged underside. I tried…

1972 Triumph GT6 MkIII ‘2500S’ Engine 2498cc/6-cyl/OHV Power 130bhp@5500rpm (estimate) Torque 140lb ft@3000rpm (estimate) Gearbox 4-speed man + o/d 0-60mph 8sec (estimate) Top speed 120mph (estimate) Fuel economy Unknown Work done The 2500 engine built for the GT6 has been completed, installed and fired up. Also in Nigel’s garage 1977 RELIANT SCIMITAR GTE Just MOT-tested and ready for another year’s service. 1998 BMW 328I COUPÉ A couple of brake pipes need replacing ahead of its forthcoming MOT. Work on the Triumph 2500S engine destined for the GT6 has continued. Having got the bottom end bolted together a few weeks ago, the next job was to install the camshaft. However, the rather tame 2500S saloon cam just wasn’t going to be enough. For the GT6, I want an engine that retains…

Sam Glover TECHNICAL EDITOR Sam has broken down in a gigantic variety of classics over the years, then worked out how to fix them. John Simpson MASTER MECHANIC Big John has worked at the greasy end of the motor industry since leaving school. Theodore J Gillam TECHNICAL EXPERT Theo taught automotive engineering and makes amazing things in his shed. Ed Hughes WORKSHOP GENIUS Ed singlehandedly keeps a fleet of obscure classics on the road. He’s never owned a modern car. Kim Henson CLASSIC CAR GURU Kim’s been restoring classics for over four decades. BMC vehicles are his speciality. Nigel Clark DIY RESTORER Nigel’s driveway achievements rival those of professional mechanics. He’s our resident Triumph expert. AUSTIN TEN Modern coachpainting tips Q I’d like to coachpaint my Austin Ten. I vaguely…

Tatty upholstery lets down otherwise decent cars, as we’ve observed many times before in Practical Classics technical features. We’ve shown how to deal with shredded, split and sagging seats and how to make a new carpet. Many cars, however, would benefit immensely simply from a good clean-up. You wouldn’t sit in a filthy living room, so why put up with a revolting car interior? It looks horrible and it isn’t a healthy environment, either. Seats fall prey to spillages and carpets accumulate dirt in industrial quantities. The driver’s footwell gets particularly bad, especially in rural areas where mud and dust is ever-present. It’s best to do your cleaning on a warm and bright day. That way the water evaporates easily when you’re done and there’s no danger of the smell…

Lisa Bagshaw told us: ‘This year is our 60th anniversary and to give our monthly meets a boost we’re opening them up to any classic car enthusiast. We meet at the Duke of Wellington in Hatfield Peverel, Essex (CM3 2EA). There’s great food on offer and we’re a friendly bunch, plus we take part in lots of events throughout the season, so it would be great to get more PC readers involved.’ There’s more at clubtriumph…

We went to the first Chateau Impney Hillclimb revival in 2014 and loved it; since then this Worcs-based weekend has got better and better. The focus of the day is the track action, but there’s much more to it than that, with a huge classic car park, unfettered paddock access and some great club displays. A raft of over-engined specials including Babs and Chris Williams’ bonkers 24-litre Napier-Bentley were hard to beat, while rare Minis celebrated the marque’s 60th anniversary. See chateauimpneyhill climb.com to ensure you don’t miss out on the fun next year.…

The water pump on my 1984 Polo was original until very recently and came out very easily. Richard Kane This wiring loom in my Morris Eight Series E project had lasted 71 years, but I don’t think the car would have lasted two minutes if I’d connected the battery! Andrew Axnix Not so much a car part, but in 1976 I was 16 and bought a secondhand Yamaha SS. I went to Halfords and bought a set of five metric ring spanners and, some 43 years later, they’re still in regular use! Nick Graham My Ford Anglia stainless exhaust from the owners’ club. Been on there since 1992 and still perfect! I used to get through mild steel ones in eighteen months. Andrew Lines I’d say I’d had my money’s…

1 MAY 2016 Wheely exciting Chitty’s wheels had to be right. Richard sourced and restored the original casting buck for the rears and borrowed a front wheel from an original film car from which to cast the front. 2 FEBRUARY 2018 Spare ribs Pine ribs were used to form the shape and structure of the body. Richard added extra bracing to avoid cracking suffered by the film cars. 3 MARCH 2018 Plenty of ply Before cutting the afrormosia, patterns for each piece needed to be made from ply. Although it was a time consuming process, it was essential to avoid wastage. 4 AUGUST 2018 Coming together Chitty finally starts to take shape, with the rear framework built and dash in place. Note aircraft-style Cleco clamps used in the aluminium bonnet’s…

We believe our work can and does save lives, and classic cars do play a big part,’ says Nick McKenzie, coordinator of the superb educational facility that is the Macbeth Centre’s Motor Vehicle Department in London. Heavens. Nick is not talking about fixing brakes so that people don’t crash into things or reminding students not to prop up their classics on a pile of bricks. ‘I mean everyone from young people likely to be involved with knife crime, which will get worse before it gets better, to those needing an outlet from the extreme stresses of modern life,’ I first met Nick and lecturer Rob Stanger at a Brooklands Museum event when they were promoting the excellent work of the council-run centre, displaying a Mini used for demonstration to students…

1982 Vauxhall Chevette Plenty of driveway finds in the set, including this ultra-rare Chevette Estate in Crewe, shown as being on SORN with the DVLA and ripe for restoration… hopefully soon. Austin J2 In an eerie Scottish forest, Oliver came across an Austin J2 commercial van (1956-67) sunken into the ground and with illegible calligraphy still adorning its sides. Morris Ten Series M This 1948 Morris Ten Series M was found on a driveway in Coventry. It is on SORN, so may well live again. Ligier & Peugeot Parked in the overflow of the same yard are a Ligier Optima and a rusty Peugeot 204 cabriolet VW 412 LE Variant Another super-rare and formerly common classic, it’s a Volkswagen 412 LE Variant from 1973 on an abandoned farm near Alnwick,…

Ford Capri (Four-cylinder) Yes, it’s not just the V6 Fords that folk are getting all nostalgic over – in fact at the moment it’s the four-cylinder models that are seeing the bigger rises. Then again, they still remain half the price of a six-pot. Triumph TR6 ‘CR’ It’s only a small drop, but it underlines that the boom in values of later and slightly lower-powered TR6s is over for now. But it is a good time to buy as there are plenty on the market, which has helped fuel this dip.…

You can buy an average Mini 850 or Mini 1000 for £2000, but expect to pay at least £3000-£4000 for something nice. Estates command a small premium over saloons, although Clubman estates aren’t very popular; values are similar to those of Eighties saloons. Round-front Minis are the most popular, Clubmans less so, although 1275GTs are now very popular. Special editions aren’t generally worth more, while much-modified cars have a limited following so values can be very low – as can the quality of the work. If the modifications are sympathetic the values can be boosted slightly. A really nice MkIII Cooper S will set you back as much as £15,000, but exceptional cars can command double this. Injected cars start at £5000 for something worth owning, but a really late…

Nick Bailey I bought this excellent example of a Renault 4L from the South of France after failing to find one here in the UK that hadn’t suffered from the ravages of rust! Unusually for these workhorses, this one had been garaged from new by its two former French owners. The last owner used to use it for collecting mushrooms in the mountains. That’s why he bolted on a pair of winter tyres on the front – Traction Avant! I remember going on holiday to a gîte in France as a child and there being a 4 in the garage. It intrigued me – it was so different to the cars that my parents had. Finding the car wasn’t too tricky, as leboncoin.fr is a French website that is bit…

1969 Morris Minor Traveller Engine 1098cc/4cyl/OHV Power 48bhp@5100rpm Torque 60lbft@2500rpm Gearbox 4-speed manual 0-60mph 24.8sec Top speed 77mph Economy (towing) 31mpg Work done Oil and filter changed, then car simply driven and enjoyed. Also in Matt’s garage 1960 MINOR CONVERTIBLE Fun in the sun and always brings a smile. 1970 MINOR SALOON Still at CBR – I’ve been striving for bodywork perfection. In the September issue of Practical Classics we proudly celebrated the utter brilliance of local classic car clubs. The camaraderie, companionship and general enthusiasm for a vast array of cars. Let’s not forget, though, the many exceptional national clubs serving single marques. My recent trip to the Ardennes region of Belgium with the Morris Minor Owners Club on its annual Minors on Tour trip rejuvenated my love for…

A diesel works by compression-ignition. Air is compressed by the rising piston in a ratio of typically 16:1 to 23:1, which raises its temperature above that of the auto-ignition point of diesel. The fuel injector finely atomises the diesel and sprays it directly into the compressed air, which calls for injection pressures that can exceed 2000psi. The heart of a diesel engine is its injection pump. It accurately meters small quantities of fuel and delivers it to each cylinder at exactly the right time. It usually features a low-speed governor to control tickover and a high-speed governor to stop over-revving. This pump is an in-line design. Rotary pumps are also common. [A] DELIVERY VALVES These are one-way valves mounted on top of the pumping elements, screwed into the top of…

You will need Angle-grinder with cutting, linishing and poly-discs, marking and measuring tools, cardboard and scissors, drill, old wood chisel, welding set and PPE. Past bodges? If you find your car has multiple outer sills, you really need to escalate the job. Removing the sills and starting again is the only sensible solution. Find an illustration Try to find an illustration of your car’s sill assembly, so you know where you should and shouldn’t cut with an angle-grinder. MIG supplies The metal thickness will probably be about 1.0mm – so 0.6mm wire, contact tip and guide rollers are ideal. Cardboard, glassfibre, expanding foam, oil containers, chicken wire, newspaper, papier-maché and wood. All of these materials have historically been regarded as fair game in the quest to avoid replacing rusty sills.…

Prices are researched from several sources, including clubs, auctions, the trade and advertisements online and in print. Prices are reviewed and updated every issue. Our C/D rating is a basic guide to what you can expect to pay (£) for the best examples of a model, a concours car or something from a dealer. CONDITION 1 means well-presented cars that have no obvious faults. CONDITION 2 cars are capable of regular use. They have a current MoT certificate but will need work and/or original parts. CONDITION 3 cars usually need a full rebuild, but may be driveable and MoT’d. PLEASE NOTE You can’t value any car without seeing it – don’t buy blind. Russ says ‘Buying and selling should be fun, but sometimes, it’s a nightmare. Follow these three rules…