The Automobile Association recently posted this priceless film contrasting the Kenneth Kendall-narrated promotion of 1959 with the M1 of 2024:
“One of the greatest public misconceptions about the Metropolitan is people confusing it with the Amphicar. When someone asks me at a show, ‘Does it float?’ I now have a stock answer - ‘Not for long’”.
The Ford Cortina 1600E (for “Executive”) managed to capture the late 1960s middle class motoring zeitgeist. The Telegraph thought it suited to “‘fashion-conscious’ motorists”, and this 1969 Amber Gold Series 2 example sold by KGF
There is something quite redoubtable about the Volvo 145, and this 1970 example sold by https://www.prestigecarsscarborough.co.uk/ is the sort of car a go-ahead architect might have favoured. Not to mention Margo and Jerry Leadbetter of The Good Life.
When I was (a lot) younger, an Allegro Series 3 such as Michael’s would have greatly intrigued me. It was not only the front air dam – which BL claimed improved fuel economy by 11% – the redesigned instruments or the improved equipment levels.
Almost anyone who owns a classic car knows that it is virtually never just about the engineering and the metalwork. When participating in a show, some members of the public instantly recall their parents’ former transport, their first company car or the now rare saloon once driven by their primary school teacher.
Peter Hind is selling not just one of the rarest station wagons in the UK but one now seldom encountered in its homeland. And in 1961, no other US station wagon had a technical specification on par with the Chevrolet Corvair Lakewood 700 De Luxe.
It is virtually impossible to do justice to the Practical Classics Classic Car & Restoration Show - so here are my top 25 highlights from across the weekend.
Arthur Atkinson has been crowned our bright Young Sparks winner for 2025. The award was handed over in front of a packed audience at the Practical Classics Classic Car and Restoration Show with Arthur clearly very happy to have won.
To see Richard Kemp’s splendid Chevette L is to be reminded of the 50th birthday of this crucial Vauxhall. To celebrate, here are 50 Chevette facts.