Meet the Club Chair - Eddie Foster of the Cambridge-Oxford Owners’ Club

Eddie Foster is the Chair of the Cambridge-Oxford Owners’ Club, of which I have the pleasure of being a member. Its scope is wide; the 1 ½ Litre and 3 Litre BMC ‘Farinas’, the Vanden Plas Princess 4-Litre R, and the Austin A40/A50/A55 Mk. I Cambridge and A90/A95/A105 Westminster families. The Club Forum is always ready with helpful advice for owners seeking spare parts or encouragement, and the Club’s displays are always eye-catching. Eddie’s own involvement with Farinas commenced 21 years ago, and he explains:

It started in 2005, following two landmark events in the same year: turning 40, and being made redundant from a job I'd loved for thirteen years. A generous redundancy payment gave me the chance to treat myself to something special, and I chose a classic car. A lifetime in IT meant I'd never really got my hands dirty, but I had fond memories of helping my late father keep his various BMC cars on the road when I was younger.

He was firmly of the ‘fix it, don't replace it’ school, and that philosophy has stayed with me ever since. The first car I remember him owning was a Morris Oxford Series V. I still have a photo of me sitting on the bonnet, aged five, with my baby sister, on Ainsdale beach. Getting an Oxford of my own was my tribute to him.

An so Eddie joined the Cambridge-Oxford Owners’ Club:

Back then, all the information I needed came from books and magazines. Social media was just taking off, and my IT background led me to set up a basic website about my car. By 2008, that website had grown into the Farina Forum, where members shared pictures and swapped advice. It grew so quickly that it was in danger of eclipsing the Owners’ Club itself, which was the last thing I wanted; I understood too well the importance of a strong, stable club behind it. In 2010, we found the perfect solution: the club bought the intellectual rights to the Farina Forum from me, and I stayed on to develop and maintain it. That led to a seat on the Club Committee, and in 2019 I was appointed Chairman.

Of course, the world of social media has its virtues and vices, and Eddie's IT background proved invaluable:

Being early adopters of social media undoubtedly saved the club — but only because we applied a few careful caveats along the way. The Farina Forum runs on a private, members-only platform. We do have a Facebook page, but it's purely a shop window for what the club does — no technical advice, no for-sale or wanted adverts. Non-members are welcome to ask questions through the Contact Us page on our website, but we deliberately steer clear of the toxicity that Facebook groups can descend into.

Our website also carries a Buyer's Guide and an Ownership Guide for club cars. The result has been a remarkably steady membership for the last decade. We hover around 700 members, including a few dozen from overseas, and typically lose around 100 while gaining around 100 each year — mostly as cars change hands. We've also been fortunate to have a contented membership: no breakaway factions, no splits.

As for the future, Eddie observes that “Staying innovative matters to us”. The Cambridge-Oxford Club was one of the first to have a website, and one of the first to embrace social media. In addition:

 We were the first club in the world to hold a virtual rally, bringing members together across continents. We hold weekly video meetings that often span several time zones, and our members have formed local area sections — even local WhatsApp groups — to stay in touch between meetings.

One question facing all BMC Farina owners, myself included, is attracting the next generation of owners. Sales of the last 3-Litre Farinas ene in 1968, the Morris Oxford Series VI and the Wolseley 16/60 in 1971 and the Austin/Morris A60 light commercials in 1972. You would also have to be aged approximately at least 62 to recall police Wolseley 6/110s on patrol in London and my age (born the year of the Austin Maxi) to remember Oxford taxis in Southampton's Above Bar street.

To put a BMC Farina into a historical context, the farthing coin was still in circulation and there was the last National Serivce call-up when my Wolseley 6/99 left the Cowley factory in 1960. It is also older than the two main veteran cars in Genevieve; when filming began in 1952, they were only- 47/48. Yet, Club stands to attract a wide variety of ages., as the Farinas are eminently usable vehicles, rather than museum pieces from an impossibly remote era of black & white newsreels. Eddie is well aware of these challenges:

Attracting younger members is a hot topic right now. Our average member is a 60-year-old man — myself included — but don't write us off just yet; we're good for at least another 20 years! We have, happily, managed to attract a number of younger members in their twenties and thirties.

What they tend to have in common is a genuine interest in the practical, mechanical side of these cars — perhaps an analogue counterbalance to otherwise digital lives. The Farina range suits the younger enthusiast rather well, for a couple of reasons: they're cheap to buy and run, and they're strikingly stylish, real head-turners. The smiles-per-mile ratio in a Farina is off the chart, and they remain one of the best-kept secrets in the classic car world.

As Eddie says: “Let's keep it that way, shall we?”.

With thanks to Eddie Foster for his time.

With thanks to Eddie Foster for the permission to use the images in this blog.