Lancaster News

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Welcome to Lancaster Insurance News

Keep up to date with the latest news and events from the world of classic cars.

Rover car

EARL MOUNTBATTEN OF BURMA’S ROVER 3500S

  • 17th June, 2024

Many readers of a certain age will recall the police P6, whether it was chasing miscreants in a 1970s television crime drama or looming ominously in your rear-view mirror. This 3500S offered for sale by Classic Car Auctions not only brought law and order to the roads around Winchester, but also served as the Earl of Mountbatten’s staff car.

Blue car

MEET THE OWNER – RUSSELL MACFARLANE AND HIS MORRIS MARINA SUPER

  • 17th June, 2024

I believe ‘Aqua’ was only available on the Marina for the first year of production. Only six Aqua Marinas are known to exist, split between the 1.3 and the 1.8 and Saloon and Coupe. So, who knows - my 1.8 Super Deluxe Saloon could be the sole survivor in Aqua!

Blue car

MEET THE OWNER – JOHN LANGFORD AND HIS FORD GRANADA 2.8I GHIA MK. 2

  • 17th June, 2024

“It is family-owned from new and has only 26k on the clock. The first owner had it for 27 years, and the second was his godson, who kept it for 15 years”. We have previously featured John’s MG Magnette ‘Farina’ Mk. IV and Austin J40, but he has recently embarked on blue oval ownership with his 1982 Ford Granada Ghia 2.8i Mk.2.

Cars

MEET THE OWNER – GRAHAM BULL AND HIS VAUXHALL VICTOR 2300SL FE ESTATE

  • 17th June, 2024

“You just know that this is the car for the man with fawn flared slacks and Yardley Black Label – ‘for the man who sets the pace’ – aftershave”. I wrote this description of Graham Bull’s 2300SL FE Estate in 2017, a memorable day with Practical Classics celebrating the Victor’s 60th birthday.

Green car

DO YOU REMEMBER – THE MORRIS MARINA ESTATE?

  • 7th June, 2024

Evoke Classics Ltd. recently sold this car guaranteed to turn heads at shows for £6,500 – which was once as familiar as How We Used to Live on Schools ITV.

Blue car

Meet The Owner – Jon Kinahan and his Citroën Dyane 6

  • 6th June, 2024

Scotty Tremayne’s friend, Jon Kinahan, owns one of Citroën’s finest cars. In his words: He is a big lover of the 2CV and has a 2CV Charleston. He was approached roughly eight years ago by a chap who breaks 2CVs about an MOT failure Dyane.

Car

MEET THE OWNER – SIMON BROWSE AND HIS TRIUMPH HERALD 12/50

  • 6th June, 2024

I’ve always sided with the underdog. Ford and Austin got most of the glory and notoriety for their compact Saloons at the time. Triumph, not as much – it is much the same story with the MGB versus the Spitfire.

Cream car

THE RAREST VAUXHALL VIVA HA IN THE WORLD? – THE BRABHAM GT

  • 6th June, 2024

I wrote a blog about a Brabham-converted Vauxhall Viva HA in Australia a few years ago. At that time, there were believed to be only two in the world, with the other residing in the UK.

Black car

The Lancia Thema at 40 by Andrew Roberts

  • 30th May, 2024

“I’ve always liked Lancia because my grandfather drove a Beta that the whole family loved and I’ve long admired the Thema. It was hard to find one in the UK, so I imported mine from a dealer in the Netherlands, which was neither complicated nor expensive. Mine is a V6 with the PRV engine. I’m not sure why Lancia elected to use that, but I love it.

CMS Logo

1984 was a great year…

  • 30th May, 2024

This year, we're celebrating something special. Not only is it Lancaster Insurance’s 40th anniversary, but it’s also the 40th anniversary of the Classic Motor Show. We’re thrilled to join forces, yet again, at the UK’s premier classic automotive event to make this year's show bigger and better than ever!

People and cars

Ben Crosby’s Ford Racing Puma 0376

  • 30th May, 2024

At the young age of 13 years old Ben was gifted some money and asked his parents if he could invest it in a car. The answer was, of course as long as he invested it wisely, so following on in his Dad’s footsteps he went on the hunt for a Ford Racing Puma, however unfortunately his budget didn’t allow for a concours example!

Cars on coast

2024 HERO-ERA London to Lisbon Rally – Platts and Ripley take maiden victory on all-Austin podium!

  • 30th May, 2024

The 2024 HERO-ERA London to Lisbon Rally reached the finish on Saturday 4th May, in the historic city of Lisbon, 2800 km and 10 days after it began at Brookland’s, London. The winners of the event were Graham Platts and Neil Ripley, driving a 1956 Austin Healey 100M, the oldest car on the event.

Blue car

MEET THE OWNER – JON COUPLAND AND HIS TOYOTA MR2 MK.1A

  • 24th May, 2024

“It is exceptionally rare, being one of the earliest in the UK. It is a Mk.1a, which they only produced for a year (the same as the colour). I know of maybe only four in the UK in that shade”.

Cars

MEET THE OWNER – JOHN WALLIS AND HIS BORGWARD P100

  • 24th May, 2024

If the fates had been kinder, the name "Borgward" would have been as familiar to 2024 drivers as Audi or BMW. John Wallis, a long-term devotee of the German marque, has recently become the custodian of the P100 ‘Big Six' - Borgward's last hurrah and a car with the potential to be one of the finest big saloons of its generation.