The cold. The road conditions. The railways in chaos, although the idea of frozen water falling from the skies should be fairly well established by now. The power cuts and the daytime television that makes you wish that the power was off again.
The gulf between a 1992 Impreza and their original Subaru of 1958 would initially appear to be wider than the Grand Canyon, yet despite the former being an acclaimed sports saloon and the latter being barely able to achieve 50 mph in 37 seconds; both were the ideal cars for their respective eras.
A major pleasure of the classic world is encountering a car that you a) had only ever read about and b) were convinced had completely vanished off the face of the planet. A vehicle that fulfils both of these criteria – the Austin Metro Cooper was shown at the NEC show last month.
Our 2018 Hyundai Coupe Cup kicked off at Silverstone on 24th-25th March 2018, with the first two rounds held on a very wet national circuit. After hustling for pole position in qualifying and ultimately getting 2nd for race one, I was confident I had the pace to defend my 2017 Coupe Cup crown.
You could not miss an Austin Allegro Equipe, even at midnight, in the middle of the fog during a power cut. It was not just the way in which the orange and red stripes complemented the metallic silver coachwork; it was the black spoiler, the GKN alloy wheels and the front fog lamps. Inside there was an alloy-spoked steering wheel, all-black headling and the orange & black houndstooth check upholstery. This was not merely a two-door 1750 HL with ideas above its station – this was executive living, late 1970s style.
One of the side effects of the passage of time, apart from noticing how young police officers look, is that how certain once respected cars slowly vanish from our roads. In the very late 1970s and early 1980s, the Vauxhall Carlton was the vehicle of choice for sober-minded accountants and bank managers but now they look as fascinatedly dated as an episode of The Young Ones.
Many of you will have already heard the news that Mazda plans a return to rotary power next year. According to an interview with AutoRai.NL, Martijn ten Brink, the Vice President of Sales and Customer Service for the company's European division, the idea is to offer the company’s forthcoming electric car with a ‘range extender in the form of a Wankel engine’. And such an announcement is especially timely as 1978 marks the 40th birthday of the RX-7.
The passing of Bill Maynard on the 30th March has made me think of both a certain Rover P6B that was in some need of restoration – and of the many and various cars that made in an impact of so many viewers. Sometimes they were associated with the run of the series, sometimes they make, but one appearance but the memories abide after many decades…
Keen to change the colour of my race car, I asked for the loudest, most obnoxious pink paint on the planet.
One burning question of the Practical Classics Classic Car & Restoration Show 2018 – asides from plotting how many of the wondrous vehicles could I plausibly smuggle home – is that should a car be automatically given a name?
This year’s Practical Classics Classic Car and Restoration Show, with Discovery, broke all records – record crowds, record number of cars and clubs, record fundraising and more restoration and rust than ever before!
When admiring Lancaster’s Golf, it is difficult to remember that only a decade before the first RHD GTis hit the British market, the idea of a front wheel drive VW was unknown.
This month’s club of the month goes to the Mk1 Golf Owners Club, who were also the recipient of last year’s ‘Outstanding Use of Social Media’ at the 2017 National Car Club Awards!
Lancaster Insurance is thrilled to announce that it is supporting Land Rover Monthly (LRM) and the Billing Off-Road Show 2018 in its bid to set a new GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title for the ‘Largest parade of Land Rover/Range Rovers’.
Lancaster Insurance is thrilled to have launched its most exciting competition ever, giving the classic car community the chance to win a fabulous Mk1 Golf GTi!
The final line-up of the spring final of the Lancaster Insurance Pride of Ownership has been revealed ahead of the Practical Classics Classic Car & Restoration Show, with Discovery, held at Birmingham’s NEC from 23-25 March – and it’s a fantastic mix of marvellous marques!
One of the pleasures of visiting the Lancaster Insurance Spring Pride at Practical Classics Classic Car & Restoration Show is the opportunity to appreciate the sheer dedication that so many enthusiasts put into their car.
Michael Carpenter is a young man with a mission and his most recent challenge was the restoration of a vehicle now so rare as to make the Jaguar XK120 appear positively common and one that is sure to draws crowds wherever it goes.
If you take a look at almost any brochure for a British light commercial vehicle of the 1960s, it will contain page after page of drawings featuring smiling and Brylcreemed tradesmen delivering bread or milk with a smile.
Classic car insurance specialist, Lancaster Insurance, has once again shown its commitment to the car club community, by supporting the National Car Club awards; and will be sponsoring four categories at the prestigious awards ceremony, ‘National Car Club of the Year’, Outstanding Online Presence by a Car Club (including social media, website and other online presence), National Car Club Judges Special Recognition Award and a new award for this year ‘National Car Club ‘Young Member’ of the Year’’.
