Table of contents for June 2023 in Practical Classics

Danny says ‘Every now and again we get sent a truly stunning find and this is one of them. It exemplifies the appeal of a true barn find. The romance and potential of decay.' Daimler – Docker Hooper Style A stash in the Cambridgeshire countryside, spotted by Benjamin Thorndyke. The forward lights recessed into the front wings suggest ‘Docker Daimler’ heritage, specials built as motor show exhibits on Hooper chassis, but we can’t identify this actual model. Jowett Javelin For some reason people never want to throw a used Jowett Javelin away. A handsome car to this day, but this one found in a hedge (location not disclosed) by Robert Broad may never see the road, unless it gets serious attention. Enfield 8000 A lone survivor alongside the Docker Daimler…

James Walshe DEPUTY EDITOR 2001 Smart City-Coupé Engine 599cc/3-cyl/OHC Power 54bhp@5250rpm Torque 70lb ft @3000rpm Gearbox 6-Speed semi-auto 0-60mph 17sec Top speed 84mph Fuel economy 63mpg Work done Sills welded; new alternator; brake light switch; brakes refurbed; new body panels. 1 (month) TIME 731 (£ SPENT 0 MILES Also in James’s garage 1989 SAAB 900 TURBO Better weather ahead should inspire progress. 2001 FORD PUMA 1.7 About to come out of winter hibernation. 2004 SMART ROADSTER Time for the Isle of Man TT course (see next month). 2004 CITROËN BERLINGO HDI Attending a Springtime Berlingo meet! As it turns out, friends don’t appreciate it when you dump cars on their front lawn. I discovered this for myself when my Rotherham mate Lynn got home from work to find a battered…

‘If you’re lucky enough to be able to travel, take every opportunity on offer.’ That is something my dad said to me when I was about to leave home for university, and his words of wisdom have stuck with me throughout my adult life. Even with the challenges presented by several factors in today’s world – Brexit and transport strikes among them – I’ll still make every effort to go somewhere new and experience a different culture. And it’s a passion I fully intend to instil in my own children as they grow up. ‘He’s about the have the experience of a lifetime’ Phil Churchill is doing exactly the same, and while his budget is considerably bigger than mine ever was as a youngster, his son Will is going along…

ACROSS 1 A specialist name in Volkswagen Camper conversions (9) 6 Roof-mounted luggage carrier (4) 8 Coventry _ , possible engine option on the TVR Grantura (6) 9 Hyundai cars introduced in the mid-Nineties (7) 10 Small Corsa-based Vauxhall coupés launched in 1994 (5) 11 Join metal to metal during the course of car restoration or repair (4) 12 M1s, Z1s, etc (4) 13 _ injection, a pioneering feature of the Mercedes-Benz 300SL (4) 14 Giugiaro-designed Fiat hatchbacks that were released in 1983 (4) 16 There was no shame in this Kia model! (5) 17 Vauxhall-badged equivalents of Opel’s Senator and Monza models (7) 18 Ford Capri rivals from Opel (6) 19 A Fifties model from Morris (4) 20 A drophead coupé from Armstrong Siddeley (9) DOWN 1 Jaguar’s founder…

Car manufacturers travel many blind alleys before finding a through-route to sales success. Their failed experiments can make for fascinating discovery years after the event, and give a window into the corporate mind at the time. One such experiment revealed itself at the Practical Classics Classic Car and Restoration Show, our favourite classic car show that took place, as I write this, last weekend. One of the themes of the show is that owners' clubs repair or restore something on their stands while show-goers watch, ask questions and marvel (or commiserate) at the result. As a past owner of multiple Imps, I visited the Imp Club stand to see what was being brought back to life. The answer was the only surviving prototype, of five, of the Ferodo Imp semi-automatic…

‘An Austin Seven tourer for a tenner’ FANCY A PUNT? WITH RUSS SMITH Never mind the market – this month I’ve been much distracted by an obscure book I bought after seeing reference to it in a Facebook post. Fishing With Harry does live up in part to its title, but is much more than that. It is author Tony Baws’ memoirs of an ordinary life growing up in Essex in the Sixties. It drew me in, because I did much the same thing just a decade later. Unlike most nostalgia, there are no rose-tinted specs; it’s a warts-and-all account of going from impoverished youth to still-hardly-rolling-in-it accountant, along with amusing accounts of the cars that marked his journey. That’s where it really clicked, and reminded me that the chief…

‘Pay to drive? No thanks’ You can be forgiven for not knowing, because it wasn’t widely publicised, but early in 2022 the Campaign for Better Transport (CBT) proposed a move to pay-as-you-drive taxation. With the rise in popularity of EVs and the corresponding drop in revenue from fuel duty, there’s growing support for reform. If you own a tax-exempt historic car, you may think this move is little cause for concern, but I’m not sure we should consider anything sacrosanct. Any reform is likely to hit owners of modern classics hardest. Previous tax hikes have been skewed to punish those owning pre- 2001 cars, with rhetoric from government and those running our major cities hardly complimentary of older vehicles. Measures such as London’s expanding ULEZ have already decimated enthusiasts within…

It’s good to see big Rovers getting plenty of love in PC. Last month’s Roverfest lead feature was a real treat. Having owned all the cars covered by the article, I couldn’t argue with a word of it. And to see James’ trans-American road trip in the NADA SD1 in this issue (see p24) underlines the fact that when we do it right, we can build a British car to beat the world… Given that all of them – from the P6 to the 75 are already considered classics, it’s a slam dunk that they were all gilt-edged modern classics in their day. Yes? Well, no, not really. I’ve been driving middle-aged Rovers of all shapes and sizes since the Eighties, and I can say hand on heart that they’ve…

Matt Tomkins WORKSHOP ED 1969 Morris Minor Traveller Engine 1098cc/4-cyl/OHV Power 37bhp@4750rpm Torque 50lbft@2500rpm Gearbox 4-speed manual 0-60mph 32.6sec Top speed 76mph Fuel economy 45mpg Work done Welding completed; interior replaced/refitted; windscreen purchased. 3 (days) TIME 205 (£) SPENT 30 MILES Also in Matt’s garage 1937 AUSTIN SEVEN SPECIAL Star of the Restoration Theatre at the PC Resto Show. 1960 MORRIS MINOR CONVERTIBLE Out of hibernation and making me smile. 1968 AUSTIN MINI COUNTRYMAN More hours in the day are very much required. 1970 MORRIS MINOR ‘SUPERCHARGED’ SALOON Fun, but fallible. 1972 MGB GT I keep being tempted to sell… then I drive it. Again?! Eight years hard use since restoration meant a couple of days welding was required. Well worth it, says Matt. There’s little to report on the…

Tim Morgan CONTRIBUTOR 1998 Ford Mondeo 1.8 LX Engine 1796cc/4-cyl/DOHC Power 114bhp@5750rpm Torque 116lb ft@3750rpm Gearbox 5-speed manual 0-60mph 11sec Top speed 121mph Fuel economy 35mpg Work done Bought it, cleaned it, and basked in its glory. 2 (weeks) TIME 45 (£) SPENT 250 MILES Also in Tim’s garage 1964 HILLMAN IMP In hibernation until better weather arrives. 1967 HILLMAN IMP SUPER Becoming a YouTube star. 1976 HILLMAN IMP BASIC I still need to build that 998cc engine... 1971 SUNBEAM STILETTO Becoming holier daily. For most of last year, our ‘modern’ had been a VW Beetle – not one of the classic air-cooled, rear-engined ones but one of the newer ‘Golf-in-a-party-dress’ ones. It was a highly reliable turbo diesel example, but while it was a fun thing to own it…

Matt Tomkins WORKSHOP EDITOR Our workshop puppet master Matt has a penchant for restoring British classics in particular, and will turn his hand to most jobs. This month Completed his Traveller’s refresh ahead of a family holiday to the south of France in it. Theodore J Gillam ENGINEERING EXPERT A former Motor Vehicle lecturer and classic fiddling perfectionist, Theo has a particular love of compression ignition engines. This month Has been collating parts ahead of starting his big Lea-Francis project. Ed Hughes WORKSHOP GENIUS A former teacher, Ed singlehandedly keeps a fleet of obscure classics on the road. He’s never owned a modern car and intends to keep it that way. This month Fixed the Tavria's knocking suspension. Fortunately no parts required. Nigel Clark DIY RESTORER Nigel’s DIY achievements rival…

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…

Jacks of all trades DRAPER TROLLEY JACKS £179.94-£287.94 No home mechanic can do without a decent jack, so this major update to Draper’s range of tools has piqued our interest. There are 11 new trolley jacks in the range, with lift capacities ranging from two to four tonnes. A range of colours is available, but more importantly, each is designed to make the job as convenient and safe as possible. All have a low profile, with the lowest needing just 75mm of clearance. To prevent damaging the vehicle, there’s a firm rubber pad on the lifting saddle, and a protective foam sheath around the handle. The rear of the jack is supported by swivelling castors rather than fixed wheels, making them easier to manoeuvre into position. The standard range includes…

I know what you’re thinking. You’re curious as to how far we got, aren’t you? That's exactly what went through my mind before we set off from the Pacific coast. And the answer? 26 miles. So, there you have it. British Leyland strikes again. We shook our fists in the direction of Solihull and went to the beach. Well, not quite… Having nursed the spluttering SD1 off the LA freeway near John Wayne International Airport and into a business park, a dead fuel pump is diagnosed and after watching my two pals disappear in their Jeep to find a replacement, I slump under a nearby tree with a Haynes manual to study the inner workings of the Rover V8. Despite BL selling only a thousand or so examples of the…

‘It was way too special for banger racing’ 1973 Vauxhall Victor FE 2300 SL Colin ‘Lofty’ Lyford, Cambridgeshire This had been sitting in a yard awaiting a gruesome death on a banger track, but I don’t think the guy really wanted to race it. He knew that it’s an extraordinarily rare model, being an automatic, and it only had one previous owner. It was delivered to me last year and I spent the summer bringing it all up to scratch, so I know for a fact that it’s really solid. I went through all the suspension and the brakes (the original factory brake pipes are still good!) but the engine still needs a bit of fettling. For its first 25 years, all it really did was a trip every summer…

Mark, a farmer friend in Devon, asked me what I was going to do once I had finished my MGA project. I replied that I wanted to restore an Elan +2 and, to my surprise, he told me that he had a spare one if I was interested. Who has a spare +2? Well, obviously he did. A deal was done and the ‘cow shed’ Elan was mine. Cow shed, as that’s where it had lived for 14 years. The car had been partly stripped, the obvious missing parts being the engine and gearbox. Having got the car home, the first thing was to shovel the pigeon poo out of it. A controlled demolition followed, including the cataloguing of all parts. Eventually the body was separated from the chassis using…

Why you want one Yet another oddball from the late Nineties school of design lunacy and yet this one genuinely should have changed the world. Hot on the heels of the Mercedes A Class, this curious looking supermini was even cleverer than its Stuttgart rival. With exceptional packaging and space efficiency that would have coaxed a nod of approval from the likes of Sir Alec Issigonis, the A2 was safe and strong, yet also extremely lightweight, giving it outstanding fuel economy. Low weight also gave the car surprising performance and agility, as well as longer lasting tyres. From a styling point of view, some likened it to a wheeled toaster, while those who bought it enjoyed exceptional build quality coupled with low running costs, practicality, and pleasing road manners… as…

Danny Hopkins EDITOR 1998 Mazda MX-5 Engine 1839cc/4-cyl/DOHC Power 130bhp@7000rpm Torque 114lb ft@5500rpm Gearbox 5 speed man 0-60mph 8.3sec Top speed 123mph Fuel economy 31mpg Work done Hood replaced; detailed. 3 (days) TIME £331 (£) SPENT 2447 MILES Also in Danny’s garage 1971 MORRIS MARINA 1.3 Next in queue. Completion at Josh's place imminent. 1972 TRIUMPH 2000 Oil change due and new ball joint swap, too. 1977 RELIANT SCIMITAR Gearbox is locked. A selector issue… or worse? 1985 MERCEDES 207D 'SIOUX' CAMPER VAN Being readied for holidays, festivals and Beaulieu! 1995 MITSUBISH GTO Deciding whether to unpimp it or keep it lairy. 2004 VAUXHALL FRONTERA 2.2DTI Being useful and reliable. Needs EGR valve though. Kettle on... time for some tall tales from the PC workshnp — My silver MX-5 NB…

Ed Hughes CONTRIBUTOR 2003 Izh Oda 1.7 Engine 1699cc/4-cyl/OHC Power 85bhp@5000rpm Torque 98 lb ft @3000rpm Gearbox 5-speed manual 0-60mph 15sec Top speed 102mph Fuel economy 34mpg Work done Diff removed; shims made; diff replaced and adjusted; propshaft joints replaced. 6 (hrs) TIME 10 (£) SPENT 3000 MILES Also in Ed’s garage 1964 WARTBURG 311 New crankcase oil seal. 1969 WARTBURG TOURIST Rusty sill welded back into existence, again. 1994 LADA RIVA 1.5 Advancing victoriously through the winter. I’ve owned a lathe and a milling machine for more than 10 years. I’ve very seldom used them and often wondered about selling them. But I’ve always concluded that if I did, I’d instantly regret it. In Staff Car Sagas (PC, August 2022), I described how I unbunged the blocked oil pickup…

Andy Ibbotson READER 1969 Morris Minor Traveller Engine 1098cc/4-cyl/OHV Power 48bhp@5100rpm Torque 59lb ft@5100rpm Gearbox 4-speed manual Top speed 77mph 0-62mph 24.8sec Fuel economy 38mpg Work done Paint prep – lots of it. 2 (weeks) TIME 300 (£) SPENT 0 MILES Also in Andy’s garage 1958 AUSTIN A35 Still festering, having been saved from scrap. I might get around to it someday. 1959 MORRIS MINOR FOUR-DOOR SALOON Still on the road, owned since I was 16. Respray and TLC planned. 1959 MORRIS MINOR Future 1300cc, 5-speed Tomkins-esque project. 1967 MORRIS MINOR TWO-DOOR SALOON Now back on the road after a respray. 1971 MINI CLUBMAN 1275 GT Son Sam’s rocket. 1300 race engine, very fast, very noisy. 1972 MGB GT Sam’s daily, rescued from oblivion a few years ago. 1973 AUSTIN…

SAVE £300 NIGEL’S JOB CARD SERVICE A GT6 OR VITESSE Today I’m servicing a GT6 MkIII, and all operations are similar across the range of GT6 and Vitesse 2 Litre models. Most of this guide is also relevant to the earlier 1596cc Vitesse 6, though the first of these cars had different Solex carburettors fitted. A minor service comprising checks on fluid levels and simple adjustments is due every 3000 miles, with an intermediate service at 6000 and full in-depth maintenance at 12,000 miles. ENGINE 1 Change oil Warm the engine and support the car on axle stands. Undo the sump plug and let the old oil drain into a suitable container. Refit the sump plug and fill the engine with fresh 20w50 multigrade oil. 2 Replace the oil filter…