The magazine for vehicle enthusiasts Classic - Collectable - Unusual - Interesting www.nncvc.org.

uk
Issue 25 Spring/Summer 2013

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CENTRAL GARAGE
BEHIND THE TOWN CLOCK SHERINGHAM
General service & repair of all makes

A REAL PUB SERVING REAL FOOD TO REAL PEOPLE Pool Room and Darts

M.O.T. Testing

BRAKING-CLUTCHES-EXHAUSTS RADIATORS-TIMING BELTS WINDSCREENS TYRES-FREE FITTING ELECTRONIC WHEEL BALANCING PUNCTURES FOUR WHEEL ALIGNMENT
(large selection of tyres in stock)

M.O.T. Testing Station

Air Conditioning Service and Repairs Retail Motor Industry Auto Electrical Federation Engine Analyser Breakdown Recovery

www.villageinnwestrunton.com

LARGE MODERN WORKSHOP 49 HIGH STREET, SHERINGHAM TEL/FAX: 01263 823168

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hen I first penned this W spring was in the air and most of us will have our motors

or non classic vehicles. With this in mind ALL the summer club nights will be outdoor fettled with all the winter jobs events and ALL vehicles are done and dusted and ready for welcome. the off. We were blessed with a Following the Show N Shine super day weatherwise for the night in July, the August annual St Georges Day Run visit will be to to Happisburgh Since then we have had many Lighthouse. We are also events with more to come so planning a run in October to let us hope we do not have celebrate Trafalgar day, again another summer of wet fields open to all to enjoy. and cancellations. One can see Can I remind all of you, but why events need to be called off particularly newer members in these cases, we cannot risk that we try to attend events our motors being bogged down. where we can park as a group Your wall calendar showed a as much as possible. This good many events but we do gives us all chance to meet add more during the season so and spend an enjoyable day. If please remember to add them to anyone is a little worried about your calendar that way you will joining such an event and will not miss out. Your newsletters they fit in, here is what you do. will keep you up to date on Pack a picnic, bring a couple of events and enable you to make picnic chairs and when lunch the very best of the summer. time arrives mix in with the rest Your committee have acted of the members who usually upon some of the constructive gather in circles to enjoy the comments made in the recent company. questionnaire, we aim to roll Attending events as a group out various plans during the also helps event organisers. club year to hopefully address Generally as a club we will all some of the concerns and know a little about our club suggestions raised. Some sugvehicles, and throughout the gestions events wise will have day there is almost always some to wait till 2014 as the majority club member having a rest of events for this year were in near the cars. These members place before the outcome of the can keep a look out over our questionnaire. cars and also keep the public We have a great variety of entertained by chatting to them vehicles within our club some about our vehicles. It shows the very old some very new. With classic vehicle movement in a some of the shows we attend it good light as well as our is not possible to take the newer club.

Chairmans Report

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Not only that visitors are often amazed that someone even bothers to chat to them!! Last summer at Stonham Barns a lady was looking at my Triumph 2000 and when I introduced myself as the owner, she told me she owned one for 10 years. Not only that but that she regretted parting with it. I suggested she have a sit in the driving seat, which she did after a bit of persuasion, all those joys of ownership came back to her and she had a tear in her eye but left with a photo on her camera and a happy few memories revived. Can I finally remind you to keep an eye on forthcoming events get yourself booked in with Graham who has the red book events list. Some events are restricted numbers wise, it would be a shame to miss out by leaving it too late. Do also remember should you be unable to attend an event you have booked for to let Graham know, he may be able to offer the space to someone else.

Secretarys Report

t is with great sadness that I have I to record the passing of two of our founder members Steve Gooch

and John Bartram and our thoughts are with the families of these popular members of the Club. ****** I must apologise for the latness of this issue but I hope the content will make up for the long wait. The club are trialing an internet based club membership management system called Group Spaces. For members peace of mind I can confirm that this is a very secure site and the information we hold in respect of our members will not be accessible other than by nominated members of the Committee. At present access is restricted to Graham Gibbins and myself. One of our first tasks was to establish a clean list of members e mail addresses as many were being bounced - that is not delivered. Each bounced e mail was individually investigated and errors
Magazine
Editor - roybeckley@aol.com or gwroybeckley@gmail.com Design and layout - Marc Wilford Printed by Cheverton Printers, Cromer

Geoff
Committee Contacts
Chairman Vice Chairman Secretary Treasurer/Membership Events Geoff Jones Christine Sparrow Roy Beckley Rex Chipp Graham Gibbins

01263 860676 01603 781917 01263 837619 01603 788726 01263 826042

Disclaimer:
Please note that although every care is taken, the North Norfolk Classic Vehicle Club (The Club) accepts no responsibility for the return of photographs or other material submitted from contributors. Care is aken to ensure that the contents of all our publications are accurate but the club cannot accept responsibility for any errors that may occur for the statements or views that occur editorially. Whilst care is taken when accepting advertisements, if in doubt readers should make their own enquiries. The Club cannot accept any responsibility for any resulting unsatisfactory transactions. Nor shall the club be liable for loss damage or injury to any person or property acting on information

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contained in the Club Magazine or any other Club Publication or the Club Web site. The Club will however, investigate any written complaints which they receive.

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eradicated . I am pleased to report that none of the latest newsletters sent out to 156 of our members was undelivered and we can be confident that all our members with e mail are getting what we send out. I understand that a few members have had difficulty in opening the Newsletters. If you are one of those please call me so we can try and resolve the problem. In the case of those who do not have e mail we will send out by post a monthly e mail but the clubs policy club is to only send out one postal e mail each month so those withou access to e mail may miss out on urgent updates. If you have a friend or relative with e mail who would pass on information to you please let me know. This will keep you better informed Of course should you begin to use e mail let me know and also if you change your e mail address do not forget to advise me. In the future we may be able to collect subscriptions and provide other services. We are going along step by step. The upcoming Show N Shine Night at Sheringham Golf Club on 22nd July should be a good evening. We have a band called Idunno playing in addition to the BBQ and bar. The plans for our Summer Fair and Classic vehicle Show on 1st September are taking shape with our charity partners this year being About With Friends and
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the West Runton Scout Group. We are holding the event on the other side of the road at Beeston Regis Holiday Park where they have two very large fields and they are not so precious about the grass! The toilets and access to the site should be an improvement on last year. Whilst we have not finalised the ring events as yet we have booked the very popular Jeffersons Mandolins for musical entertainment. We will also look to parade a number of vehicles through the ring with commentary. Regent Garage have again agreed to sponsor the main costs of the event with other firms being lined up to take adverts in the souvenir brochure. In this respect can you let me know if you are going to come along so that I can put in different pictures than last year We will of course need marshals on the day but the event should be easier to manage than last year. As Geoff has mentioned we are planning a run for Club members in October . Our plan is to have run of about 40 miles to a destination where we be able to have an informal lunch and a natter together in the warm rather than be parked up in a field.

Roy

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panels the rest appeared to be

Moking About.
By Brian Thompson.
his is the tale of the rebirth T of a 1967 Austin Mini Moke. Remember them in the swinging sixties? An enduring memory is their use as taxis in the strange TV series The

all there so it was loaded up and whisked back to Norfolk. It turned out that it had been used for a number of years on North Weald Aerodrome as the parascending tow vehicle and, according to the original green log book, I was only the second owner. Once home I took stock of what I had. One body shell, minus the front inner and outer wings and front panel, a new bonnet, fuel tank, four metal seats, five wheels and tyres, a rotten hood and frame, a screen frame with cracked screen, both sub frames and the engine/gearbox assembly, which proved to be rusted solid inside. I needed a donor vehicle to supply another engine and gearbox and other bits and pieces so I bought a C reg Mini Countryman for 35, which was in a right state, but nowadays would be worth restoring. This was to be a restoration on a shoestring as I didnt have much money in those days, so instead of buying new panels for the front end I bought some sheet steel and made them myself, thereby saving nearly 300. The rest of the body needed major surgery and provided ample welding practice. To preserve body stiffness only short 18 sections of rusted seams were replaced at any one time followed by some new floor sections and front sub

Prisoner. I had never given the Moke much thought until one day in 1986 when a neighbour, Wally, asked if I would like an Austin Mini Moke for free. The catch was that it was in pieces, in North London and had to be moved by the end of the following week. Deciding that it would be a good project a trailer was hired for a fiver and Marian, Wally and myself drove to Edmonton to fetch it. There in the corner of the Army Cadets store stood the Moke. There were rust holes here and there and the front bodywork had been cut off for some reason. Apart from the front

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frame lower mounting points. The front mounts for the rear sub frame were repaired using commercial repair sections. Once all the rot was cut out the new repair panels were positioned by fitting the sub frame in position using the rear mounting points, the repair panels were then bolted onto the front of the sub frame and welded to the body.

the grille in the front panel. The over all shape and dimensions of the panel itself were provided by the width of the front wings, the bonnet front and the forward edge of the sub frame. A chance find at a boot sale provided an excellent photograph of the front of a Moke from which to scale the grille dimensions, it was on the front cover of a Blue Peter annual! With all the panels made To assist making the new front they were held in place with grip inner and outer wing panels I pins and diagonal measurements constructed a vice mounted 2ft confirmed everything was folder from angle iron. To ensure square before welding comthe new panels would align menced. correctly the front sub frame was fitted and using this and the The original green paint was new bonnet as a guide the wings sanded off and the body hand and front panel took shape. The painted with Finnigans No.1 nearside wing needed some primer. After flatting several louvres in the narrow vertical coats of grey cellulose primer section next to the bonnet so preceded several more of Ford slots were cut with a jig saw and signal yellow. the louvres were formed using male and female formers fashThe rear sub frame was ioned from wood. In the days replaced as the old one was before the internet it proved to be very rotten and the mechanicals a struggle gathering information reconditioned before fitting. about the Moke. In particular I The Moke now sat on its rear needed some detail regarding wheels for the first time in a long while. The front sub frame was removed and the reconditioned engine and gearbox from the Countryman fitted before the body was lifted and lowered back onto the sub frame. The Moke was now on four wheels. Unfortunately the wiring loom had also been cut along with the front body work so the required portion of donor loom was spliced into the Moke

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loom. The only alteration was to lengthen the wires to the indicators and the brake light switch. All the light units were bought from the Newark autojumble for 4.50 plus a Mini manual that covered the Moke for 50p. An old metal heater that had a wood grain painted finish was cut up to form a new dashboard, a bit agricultural looking but cheap! I had to lower the front sub frame again to fit the steering rack U bolts and left them slack until the rack had been centralised. I made a roll bar frame from hefty tubing from an old coat rack to provide upper seat belt mounting points. This also doubled as support for the new soft top that I made from a few

metres of vinyl hood material. Starting from the front the lift the dot fasteners were fitted and clipped to the top of the windscreen frame. The vinyl was then stretched back on a hot day (remember them) and fastener positions marked across the rear edge and fasteners fitted. The rear window aperture was then marked and the top removed. The window material was glued to the back of the material with contact adhesive and stitched in place with my industrial sewing machine, after which the vinyl covering the window was cut out. Sides were sewn in place and the hood refitted to the car so the lower lift the dot fastener positions could be marked then fitted. The side windows were tackled in a similar manner to the rear window as were the chunky nylon door zips, ie sewn in place on the back of the fabric before the doors were cut. Each door could be rolled up and fastened with Velcro for fresh air motoring or the complete hood folded back behind the rear seats for a blustery ride! After an MOT I filled in a form V55/5 and sent it to Norwich Local Vehicle Licensing Office along with proof of insurance, the MOT, old style log book and a cheque. TWO DAYS later through the post came

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my tax disc along with an age related registration number CVG 98F, the original OYU 525F not being on the new computer system. The whole restoration took about 18 months and cost about 800. After a couple of years it had to have some more weld repairs and I changed the engine for a 1300cc unit from my dads old Allegro, also changing the diff ratio to compensate for the small 10 inch wheels. With new white steel wheels, new seats and new dashboard it looked great and went like stink. In 1992 Marian and I took it to Cornwall for a 2 week holiday, which was fun. I even used it for commuting to work in the winter with a blanket

and used the proceeds to make a sealed bid on the Norwich Union Mirov 2, which is another story.

Brian

across my knees! Nowadays original 1960s Mokes can sell for 10,000. Do I wish I still had it? No. Top up it could be very noisy, the best way to drive it was with the top down and the weather had to be very hot for comfortable motoring, it could be very cold, as you didnt really sit in it, rather on it. I sold it in 1994 for 1800

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Event Reports - Spring 2013 FEBRUARY W ANDER BIRTHDAY BASH

ell would you believe W Wednesday 27th February dawned bright and only slightly chilly just in time for the club walk organised by Colin Baxter. Some forty plus club members gathered in the car park of The Village Inn at West Runton, Colin led us out of the car park and we wound our way via several paths onto open ground and finally up to the top of Beeston Bump where photos were taken for the record by Christine Sparrow.

he sixth club Birthday Bash T took place at the Links Hotel, West Runton on Sunday 24th March and was a great success once again with over seventy members attending. A good choice of dishes on the menu meant that people were generally happy with the food. This year for the first time there was no entertainment or speaker, and judging from comments on the day, this was a popular decision as it allowed more time for socialising.

Winding our way off Beeston Bump we returned to The Village Inn for a very welcome lunch, all taken in congeneal company. These little walks followed by a meal are proving very popular and are always well attended. Many thanks to Colin for arranging this one and we look forward to the next which will be on Wednesday 9th October at Worstead 10.30 for 11am start

These lunches become more popular each year which is another sign that N.N.C.V.C. has a really enthusiastic and friendly membership. Long may it continue.

GS

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DRIVE IT DAY

brilliant sunny morning A greeted us for the start at Sheringham of this much looked forward to our St Georges Day Run which is part of the Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs Drive It Day initiative.

a large field on the estate close to the tearooms and the entrance to the public gardens. Entry to the gardens for the day was reduced by 50% to 3.50 for those wishing to have a wander round (well worth while). Around 30 vehicles from local Clubs joined us at Hoveton Hall Gardens. The picture shows the line up of the Club marshals at Hoveton All proceeds from the run went to East Anglian Air Ambulance and just under 3,000 was raised by them with About With Friends making 200 on their welcome bacon butties on sale at the start Geoff Sparrow had managed to secure the attendance of Dan Powell, the News Editor of Classic Car Weekly, who did the run from Sheringham to Hoveton in a beautiful 1963 Vauxhall Viva HB borrowed from Vauxhall Heritage Centre at Luton. (Shown on the front cover )He was very impressed with the whole setup on the day and we have had two separate reports in Classic Car Weekly since. Excellent publicity for the club. All in all this was a wonderful day with stunning weather and some 250 vehicles attending and all went very smoothly with no hitches or disasters. Comments from drivers were of great organisation, super choice of both start and finishing venues, and many saying they would be back for more of the same next year.

Over 200 vehicles turned up and as in previous years they were waved off by Sheringhams Mayor Doug Smith and Town Cryer Tony Nelson having been photographed by Christine Sparrow. Bacon rolls, tea and coffee were supplied by About with Friends a local registered charity supporting young people with learning difficulties . Two tulip type routes were available to drivers, both of around 45 miles, one heading South via Roughton, Paston, Walcott, Sea Palling, Horsey, Potter Heigham and finishing at Hoveton Hall Gardens. The second route was heading North to start via Holt, Guist then looping back to Buxton, Coltishall and finally Hoveton Hall Gardens. The finish at the Gardens was in

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Comments like this make it all the more rewarding for the organizing committee and the many club members who volunteered and were involved with marshaling, booking in etc, for which the Club are very grateful, and for the club as a whole for we still needed members to drive their cars on Drive it Day. Thanks are also due to the North Norfolk District Council for allowing the Club to use the Station Road car park, and to Regent Garage, The Lobster and Boyers Body Centre for sponsoring the cost of printing the route books and for Boyers covering both routes with free breakdown facilities. Now for 2014!! Which due to a late Easter will be on Sunday 27th April 2014

This event is really worth attending as our cars are parked immediately adjacent to the main

car park, and on a good Sunday Wroxham Barns attracts an awful lot of people, meaning that the classics attract a great deal of attention. We parked our recently acquired 65 Hillman Super Minx saloon at around 10.30, and it was approximately two hours later that we were able to go and grab a cup of tea such was the level of public interest. This was really great and was largely due to the fact that a large amount of people were walking straight out of the main car park and into the show area. The vehicle of the show went to a lovely Bedford CA Dormobile camper van and deservedly so. Definitely worth attending, so keep a look in the Club Events Book for next year

Chris & Geoff

WYMONHAM OLD TIMERS

at Wroxham Barns on another beautiful sunny day.

n Sunday5th May several O club members attended the Wymondham Old Timers rally Some 80 plus cars were on show, with a good variation , including some American 1ton pickup trucks and a stunning Packhard Convertible from just pre-war.

GS

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Advertising British Cars

the Club magazine.

was interested in Andrew I and Anns remarks on car advertising in the last issue of In my collection of motoring books there is one entitled Advertising British Cars of the 1950s published by Haynes in 1991. I wrote to Haynes in 1994 to say that that an even more interesting period would be the years from 1945 - 1950 when the motor industry started up again following WWII. In August 1994 Haynes replied saying they had no plans to publish such a book, so I decided to produce my own book. At the time I had acquired a large pile of early post war motor magazines. I found them to be quite scruffy and not worth keeping. I went through them and extracted all the advertisements for cars being produced at that time.When I had finished I found that I had enough advertisements to fill 7 books including 20 pages on the Jowett Javelin!!! I was surprised just how quickly the motor industry sprung into action and started producing cars again following the end of WWII. whch in Europe ended on May 8th 1945. In the issue of The Autocar of 15th June 1945 there are two

photographs of Morris 10s and Standard 12s coming off the production lines and an advertisement proudly proclaiming Austins are making cars again Another photograph on 15th July shows Austin 10s on the production line. Many of these cars were basically only the same as those produced in 1939 with a few modifications. Whilst other companies had brand new motors waiting to be shown to a public clamouring for new cars e.g AC2 litre, Armstrong Siddeley, Lancaster and Hurricane, Jensen 4 litre Saloon, Jowett Javelin, Riley 1.5 litre, and Triumph 1800 saloon & roadster. Throughout 1946 & 1947 new models were announced at regular intervals. Then came 1948 which proved to be a vintage year for the introduction of entirely new cars like the Jaguar XK 120 and the Morris Minor culminating in Britains first post war Motor Show in October 1948 at Earls Court. What a year!!!

Eric North

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Books in My Collection by Eric

he first book I would like to T mention is unique.I met Dr John Knowles some 45 years

ago. He had a large building in the garden of his home in Gt Ellingham and after retiringfrom medical practice he filled it with Eric North motoring books and magazine sand became a dealer. I remember the year he took his Rolls Royce 20/40 to the Norfolk Jaguar Owners Club meeting at Felthorpe and won the cup for the best pre-war car. He later changed the Rolls for a Prince Henry Vauxhall and it was this car that was driven into the churchyard for his funeral in January 2011. In one of our early meetings John showed me a book he had made himself.In the early post war years it was the practice for the prestigious magazine Country Life to include a full page road test written by John Easton Gibson. John had collected forty three of these pages and bound them into a book - on the spine it reads Country Life Motoring Notes 1947- 1953. I was quite surprised when John offered to sell the book for 30. It contains road tests from the Aston Martin D B 2 (4th August 1950 ) to the Wolseley 6/50 (14th July 1956)

In the years that I attended the Beaulieu Auto Jumble Weekends I found a dealer who had a large stock of these road tests and purchased a number from him to include in my own books. Sadly these road tests no longer appear in Country Life

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ET6 V8 engine tipper owned by a company called Thomas York Demolition. The driver told us the steering was defective so we . checked it and could find nothing n 1957 when I was an apprenwrong. Jack, my mechanic, said tice with main Ford dealers, this is worrying. Aldgate and City Motors, (the He decided to put the tipper on a managers name was Speed rigid tow back to the workshop. Andrews) we took our turn of We had just turned left at some callout for breakdown recovery. Our breakdown vehicle was a pre traffic lights when Jack shouted war Fordson7V 1938 which had a Whats he trying to do overtake us We stopped a little way side valve V8 engine which had down the road to see what was been used as an Auxiliary Fire Service vehicle in London during wrong. The driver of the tipper the Blitz. I liked this lorry; it had said it did not want to turn and tried to go straight on. Jack said great character, the instruments I should have checked the rear were Cooper Stewart. My job axle differential so he told me to was to check petrol, oil and jack up the rear wheels and we water levels and we never relied found the differential was locked on the fuel gauge but used a solid . That was the cause of the dipstick in the tank . The brakes steering trouble as the diff wasnt were Bendix Cowdrey cable doing its job. I removed both half operated which were not very good when towing a loaded lorry. shafts and we went on our way. I really enjoyed going out to The mechanic, to whom I was apprentice tosaid you had to drive breakdowns and I was lucky to have a job I really enjoyed which accordingly; but I was glad we never had to make an emergency made up for the low wages I was stop. One day we were called to a getting as an apprentice demolition site to a Ford Thames Albert Winslade.

What a difference a diff makes

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How much for a new car!!!! Or, a Victor Meldrew moment.

ooking through the pages of L the EDP motoring section I am amazed at some of the prices quoted for new cars, so much so I cant believe it.

Four years ago he purchased a 5 year old Subaru Legacy estate all singing and all dancing for 4000 with 70000 miles on the clock. He ran that till late last year and reached 130000 when it dropped a big end. Repair price 1800.00, cars value then about 4p. He has brought another for 3700 with 75000 on the clock and sold the old one for 1200.00 for breaking. This means he has had 4 years of comfy motoring for just 2800.00, that is an awful lot less than the amount lost on a new car before it leaves the forecourt. Plenty of 12 month old models of popular makes sell at much reduced prices with low mileage and balance of warranty so make fair deals. However quite a number of dealers have lease deals over a three year period which limit the mileage a car is allowed to cover. When these motors come on the market they generally will have less than 30000 on the clock and full dealer service history and appear to cost from experience about one third of the then new cost. Our lad is even too tight to spend that much. Over the 60000 miles he covered before the engine failing all he spent was his regular service, tyres and a set of front brake pads. When you consider many of us drive round for years with our old motors which keep running without any great issues you can see why older vehicles with

Take almost any new car featured in their columns and just see how much they cost, not only that, how much they depreciate over the next three years!! It is eye watering. Even some of the smaller motors have reached and well surpassed the 10.000 bracket and many of the super mini versions are in the 20.000 range. As for the larger motors they are similarly priced. You can even pay 100,000 for a Range Rover. The cheap loss leader, which often is out of stock when you need a motor look cheap, but the ones that seem to be promoted are the more up market models of a range. Apparently last year in the so called recession over 2 million new cars were sold in the UK, the mind boggles as to how many would have been sold if there was not a recession!! Our son Chris probably has the right idea.

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service history are snapped by the bargain hunters. When my Saab collapses I will get my son to find me a motor. Chris has recently purchased a Knaus motor caravan super quality cost him quite a bit yet happy to spend on it as he knows from experience he can use it for a couple years and still get most if not all of his money back, his motto is buy in the winter and sell in the spring!!!

Geoff

Talk Torque 7

t is very pleasant when two I interests combine to form a sort of compound hobby. Ann and I

have chased steam locomotives before we knew each other. on one of our earliest trips up to Norfolk I arranged for her to travel on the footplate of a Great Western tank engine on the North Norfolk Railway. She became absolutely covered in coal dust etc, but seemed more intent on enjoying a beer afterwards than becoming clean again! Sensible lady.

two of the USAs operated on the system in the 1950s. The article also made reference to an earlier issue of the magazine that detailed the Austin layout.I had to have a copy and after a number of phone calls managed to track down the issue. Wonderful reading for an Austinand railway enthusiast. The photograph is of a sister USA whose last real work before preservationon the Kent and East Sussex Railway ( Tenterden area of Kent) was shunting duties at Ashford Wagon Works. I visited the works in1966 and had a footplate ride on this engine Wainwright and his brother Maunsell - both named after prominent railway engineers. Wainwright was built in 1943 at the vulcan Works USA and carried the number 30070(DS238) whilst working on the Southern Region of what was then British Railways Told you we liked railways ! Hillman Imps arent too thick on the ground these days. During my time with Kent County Council in the 1960s they changed the work vehicles for the surveyors from Ford 100Es to Hillman Imps. For those who have not driven these cars I can only say that you have missed something, shall we say, different. From its launch in 1963 some 4 years behind its arch rival the Mini, it became an alternative to the BMC product. There were a number of variants of course. The Singer Chamois, Sunbeam Stiletto and Husky estatewere three that were produced by the Rootes Group The engine

I was reading an old copy of my favourite railway magazines recently and came across a long article concerning USA tank engines that were imported into this country during WWII. In the text mention is made of the Austin Works and the extensive network of running linesand sidings operated by the company. Apparently

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was located at the rear and the gear change mechanism sometimes proved difficult probably due to the long linkage ( Having said that I have owned two VW Beetles in the past and their gear change was excellent). If you are interested in the Imp and its development, manufacturing problems etc I can recommend Imp The Complete Story by George Mowat-Brown published by Crowood Books. The ISBN number is 1 86126 619 7 A very well researched book that is easy to read detailing the rise and demise of this unique vehicle. As a footnote we saw an Imp about 3 years ago at a North Walsham classic car event.

brings forth peels of laughter from both of us. It is by Michael Bentine and is called The Original Goon Its an after dinner speech that touches on numerous mattersincluding a brief reference to, would you believe, British Seagull. Now theres a subject close to our hearts. However the piece we would like to bore you with concrerns a British Bobby in the 1950s. Bentine was travelling down Horseguards Parade, London in a very ancient Wolseley 14. Coming towards him was a troop of Horseguards. The exhaust manifold and red hot assembly fell off the vehicle, hit the rear tyre and flew into the air. It struck the leading horse which reared up, throwing the rider, In the last Torque Talk we two other horses bolted, the car looked at Jowett cars. As a post- hit a tree, a motorcyclist hit the script it is interesting to report car and an old lady fainted. A that Anns grandfather on her policeman slowly walked over fathers side of the family was a to the car and said were not friend of the Jowett brothers. It being very clever this morning is amazing what comes to light - are we ? Bentine contrasts this quite by the chance mention of to the American police and the a topic. result is British humour at its best In Torque Talk 4 we mentioned Wonderful. Try and obtain a village policeman and my a copy of the tape ( maybe fathers missing front number its also available on a CD) plate. We have a recording that You wont regret it. (You can we play in our modern car that download the track from ITunes never ceases to amuse us. Ann for 79p. Ed) often says that it borders on the Thats enough from the A30 dangerous to play in the car as garage this issue. in spite of the number of times Andrew and Ann ( of the we have heard it the narrative blueA30)

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Here is a photo of Wain04/07/2013 20:35

wright below which is a Hillman Imp spotted last year at Holt Transport Day

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New Tyre Ratings

he very interesting article T in the last issue of the club magazine has prompted me to tell you my findings on the subject. Having had some problems over the last three years with an increased sensitivity to noise I have found road noise from modern cars to be quite horrific particularly on long runs, well over 20 miles! Trips to the West Country to see our offspring have frankly been horrid. It was like having air pumped into my ears and pressure within my head raising the tinnitus I also happen to have. It is plain that with low profile tyres actually allow more noise to transmit as they are more rigid and many with large blocky tread patterns make things worse. Additionally it is said that as these blocky tyres wear they do so unevenly which makes them even noisier. Modern car design with no underseal to deaden sound are not helpful. The other interesting thing is low profile tyres seem to cost more and yet seem to last less, as if they are scrubbing on the road with their excessive width. The main issue is with our modern motor a jolly nice Saab Sportwagon of 2007 vintage. It had 235/45/17 tyres when purchased in 2010, what a noise they made on the motorway.

About 2 weeks after we bought the car the dealer phoned to see if we were happy. Explaining the noise issue he said bring it back and we will swop the wheels!!! This they did to 215/55/16, the difference was remarkable without any noticeable change in handling. Since then the tyres gradually started to wear and it very much seemed the car was getting noisier, or my hearing getting worse. Monitoring the wear I could see I was due for a set of tyres perhaps November time 2012. Great news for me as I could then use the latest tyre labelling system to get a set of quiet tyres. Just before we went off to Cornwall for a spot of birdwatching I noticed a deep cut between the blocks of a front tyre which had severed about 6 cords in the tyre, necessitating quick action before our hols. Now in September all the tyre manufacturers wanted to clear the decks of tyres produced before July 2012. I am led to believe only tyres with the new labels could be sold after Nov 1st and they were only produced since July 1st. The web and all local suppliers were not able to provide me with the figures at that time to make an informed decision. One local tyre dealer said yes the labels would be on my tyres he suggested yet when they arrived there were no labels and the tyres were

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already a year old!!! After a deal of research I bought a set of Firestone tyres from Parkside Garage at Thursford, (according to the web the tyres with smaller blocks and sipes within the blocks are quieter) These were about 45% cheaper than a recognised quiet tyre. So what are they like, fantastic, the handling is fine the car is so quiet and after 7000 miles there is no sign of the irregular wear of the previous tyres which would have cost me much more to replace. The question that does need

answering is this. The tyre date relates only to a new tyre and one used under specific laboratory conditions. It takes no consideration to what characteristics the tyres will take on as they wear. No matter how good they are when new how good will they be as they wear out? With my new tyres being reasonable priced if they get noisy I will replace them. Anybody want to be on the waiting list for a part used set of Firestone 215/55/16 tyres?

Geoff Jones

SS Bloodhound outside no. 10 Panhard et Levasser at Gressinghall

Peter Harrison a STEM Ambassador will be coming to talk to us about the supersonic Bloodhound Project at our meeting on 21st October at Sheringham Golf Club. Peter and his wife were spotted at our meeting at Gressenhall on a much more sedentary vehicle Shows how we have progressed in the last 114 years!!!!! The Bloodhound supersonic car will have roughly the same power as 180 F1 cars reaching speeds of approx 1000 mph

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Ludham Open Gardens and Classic Car show 23rd June 2013

the Friends of St Catherines Church to raise 9600 a really magnificent result. The Club Raffle raised a further 115 for East ost of the club will have Anglian Air Ambulance which listened to me, or read my included a donation extracted begging missives for members of from the vendors by Vernon. the club to run events which we I hope that Vernon will repeat the can involve the club yet giving exercise in two years time at the the hard working members of the next Ludham Open Garden Day, committee a break. Well the time it is a date that should be in your has come to hear some thanks for diary for 2015. a change. We do have a couple more events Vernon Enever toiled on his own coming up this year which memto line things up for a splendid bers are organising so more for day at Ludham. Around 100 cars me to report on in due course. turned up, the great majority of It would be wonderful to have members and wives enjoyed a some events run by members in good few hours around the super 2014. If that fills you with fear gardens on a really lovely day. why not act as a gopher on behalf Some just enjoyed the wonderful of the club and liaise with an selection of cars and spent the day event. near you that might benefit chatting with their owners. by having a Classic Vehicle Show What was also pleasing was to as part of the occasion By acting arrive and see a good number of in such a way you could be take our club members marshaling bookings and in that way help the cars into position. Rightly we your committee. But should you should not expect one member to consider setting up some event do do everything and it was a very not think you will be on your own. pleasant surprise to see just how The committee can and will offer many members did their bit to any help as required, You only help Vernon. have to ask. Several trophies were handed out If you have any suggestions of on the day one of which went to events worth a visit in 2014 why Ralph Thompson for his lovely pre not get in touch. war 1939 Austin 8. It certainly is a smashing motor and worthy of the result on the day, well done Ralph. Geoff Vernon has advised that the whole event enabled

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Model T Facts

The Model T was introduced on Oct. 1, 1908. It had a 20-horsepower, four-cylinder engine, reached a top speed of about 45 miles per hour, got about 13 to 21 miles per gallon of gasoline and weighed 1,200 pounds. It was the ninth of Henry Fords production cars. More than 15,000,000 Model Ts were built and sold. A modest ceremony on May 26, 1927, marked the formal end of Model T production. The first models were produced at a factory on Piquette Avenue in Detroit. Beginning in 1910, Model Ts were built at a new Highland Park (Michigan) plant. Henry Fords initiation of mass production of vehicles on the moving assembly line led to lower car prices and the $5 workday. The car was introduced with a price tag of $850. The Model T later sold for as little as $260, without extras, because of production savings Henry Ford passed on to customers. Henry Ford called the Model T the universal car, a low-cost, reliable vehicle that could be maintained easily and could successfully travel the poor roads of the era. The Model T came in nine body styles, all on the same chassis. Lizzie was one of the most popular of the dozens of nicknames for the Model T. In 1914, Ford, with 13,000 employees, produced about 300,000 cars while 299 other companies with 66,350 employees produced about 280,000 vehicles. Shown below are the Model Ts of New Generation Members Sam & Joe Meakin and mum Adele at the Sheringham Car & Bike Festival

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Seen by Ray Bennett

ay sent me a picture of a R vehicle he spotted at a vehicle show he attended at Bexhill and wondered what it was. With the help of Mr Google I found out the Daley

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One M H Daley of Charles City, Iowa was the man responsible for this obscure and short-lived make, which has one of the shortest entries in The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile. According to the latter, Daley was a maker of disc and lever harrows for agricultural use, who also harboured ambitions to become a motor manufacturer. In 1895 he built a very light 2-seater weighing only 195 pounds (88kg) and powered first by a rotary engine and then a more conventional 2-cylinder unit. The front wheels were held in bicycle-type forks, and could rise up to 12in (305mm) on uneven ground. He announced production in December 1895, the cars to sell at $500 each, but he built no more than six. In 1898 he informed The Horseless Age that he was still at it and may have made one or two more cars, but his main business was farm equipment.Both the rotary engine and the conventional 700cc twin-cylinder unit that superseded it were designed by Daley, who is quoted in the Stand-

ard Catalog of American Cars as stating that the latters advantage over a single was that one explodes while the other is compressing, giving an explosion every revolution, whether little or much power is used. Fuel consumption of 100 miles per gallon was claimed. The twin-cylinder Daley quadricycle seen at the show is in fact the sole survivor of the marque. Previously owned by John Barker, for whom Bill Ellam carried out work on the engine, it has participated in several London-Brighton Runs, the last occasion being some 20 years ago, and is an early starter. After spending some time in a museum collection it was acquired circa 15 years ago and since acquisition has been carefully stored but not used. Believed never to have been restored Sold at auction in 2011 for 44,00 this unique vehicle was offered with VCC Dating Certificate and various videos recording its participation in the London-Brighton Run.. Amazing what you can find out from a registation number.

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Roy

Letter to the Editor Hi Roy,

It was good to meet you and have a brief chat at the reunion ( a recent gathering of impoverished Lloyds Brokers - Ed)- also something of a coincidence that we are both now involved in the Classic Car movement.

In the past, Gay and I have visited Norfolk and thought it might make an ideal place for TVG to visit for a long weekend - perhaps in 2014?! If we do pursue the idea Ill have to have a word with you as your local knowledge would be invaluable and we might be able to get together with NNCVC one day. In the meantime, if we visit Norfolk on our own Ill certainly be in touch. Finally, you might find the attached photo to be of interest, it was one of a professional shoot taken by Classics Monthly a couple of years ago when the TR featured in a How to Buy a TR4/4A article.

I bought a TR4 a shade under 10 years ago and although it was perfectly usable and fairly presentable, I suppose Ive done (and had done!) a form of rolling restoration All the best on it. Its had quite a hard life, having done over 300K miles in all and currently we do something like 7-8K miles a year, depending where we take it touring, last year we went (with our local TR Register Group -Thames Valley) to Northern Spain and this year we are off to the Black Forest. Previously weve taken it to France a few times and Norway, together with most parts of GB. I was Chairman of the Thames Valley Group (TVG) for five years up to three years ago and then gave it up as Id had enough. As it happens it was quite a good decision as I had a by-pass op two years ago! While I was Chairman, Gay (my wife) and I organised a few trips and tours which were very successful and we have threatened to organise another in the future.

Geoff Keeble

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News from the Federation

Changes to MoT tests, from 20 March 2013 An abridged article from FBHVC News

Vehicle Approval. For preserved buses, you have the choice of the 2013 Consolidated PSV Inspection Manual for class 6 vehicles, or the manual for class 5, which is contained within the same document as for cars. As an aside, these documents download (and open) fine on a smartphone or a tablet, and some people may find it useful to keep a copy saved on their mobile device, for easy reference at the roadside or in the workshop. Anyone without internet access is advised to visit either a friend or relative, or their local library. In each of these documents, there are a number of reasons for failure that were listed in blue type. These items were advisory points (until 19 March 2013) but by the time you receive this magazine they will be fail items. Note that files with March update in their title have gone live (as this article was being written) these however did not have the blue type, and hence did not easily show the changes. The list of items that follow is in the (approximate) order of the manuals. Registration plates front and rear are now a requirement (hitherto, it was possible to test a vehicle just on its chassis number) and must conform to the regulations in force when the vehicle was new.

here are some changes due to take effect to the MoT test for all classes of vehicles from 20 March 2013. References to items that obviously dont relate to vehicles constructed in the mid-1980s or earlier, like electronic stability control, supplementary restraint systems and it is suggested that those wanting to see how the changes might affect current vehicle may wish to search online for 2010/48/EU (the directive number) and view detailed information themselves.

Itis recommended that all vehicle owners with reasonable technical knowledge download a copy of the current MOT manual for their type of vehicle. To do this, navigate to http://www.dft.gov.uk/vosa/ publications/manualsandguides/ vehicletestingmanualsandguides.htm and a variety of options will be listed here. For older cars and motorbikes, click Mot Inspection Manuals and Guides about halfway down. For newer vehicles there are manuals for Individual/ Single

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Lamps: we have a new reason for failure being the front and rear position lamps do not illuminate with a single operation of the switch (side lights and tail lights) which for commercial vehicles fitted with them, also needs to switch on the position lights (which are the front and rear upper marker lights of the 1980s onwards). On a vehicle manufactured after April 1986, the main beam telltale is required to work, that is to say the blue indication on the dashboard must work. There is a new section entitled Electrical Wiring and Battery. The reasons for failure here seem common-sense. Included here is battery security and whether the battery is leaking. There is a check on the steering lock (on vehicles where this was fitted as original equipment), both that it doesnt deploy with the engine running and that it does deploy with the key out (the manual states that where it isnt clear whether one was fitted as OE, the benefit of the doubt should be given. The presence of steering lock stops (where originally fitted as standard) is verified (previously it was just the security and correct adjustment of those fitted), as is power steering fluid level. The brake fluid warning lamp becomes a testable item where

fitted. This may be combined with other things such as worn pads or parking brake applied. Exhaust brakes (HGV/PSV) inoperative or removed are reasons for failure if fitted as a mandatory fitment (if not, removal may be acceptable if the notifiable alteration procedure is followed). The speedometer section now applies to all vehicles and not just class 5 (in the detail, we are reminded that this is all vehicles first used on or after 01 October 1937). Engine mountings (including gearbox mounts where they provide essential support for the engine) are a reason for failure. Steps and stairs (on class 5 vehicles) require more thorough checking. The adjustment of the drivers seat is also checked (specifically, that it can adjust, where adjustments are so provided). A reason for failure (class 5) is any occasional or crew seat that doesnt flip up automatically A catalytic converter missing where one was fitted as standard (this wasnt going to be included this item, until the writer saw on Wikipedia that the automobile cat was actually invented in 1973, and initially fitted to American cars of the mid 1970s)

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In July 2013, some brake requirements will change (a higher efficiency requirement for cars July 2010 onwards, as well as an amended imbalance standard for cars of all ages). By the end of 2013, a further small change is that the mileage (currently not included on HGV/ PSV certificates) will be included along with the country of vehicle registration. In summary, a vehicle doesnt need to be fitted with anything that wasnt OE when it was new, however more components that were originally fitted to a car will be checked. In reality this shouldnt cause any burden to the owner of a well-maintained vehicle. There is a large section (which I have omitted from the above) about ABS, EBS etc and one would expect that the owners of classic vehicles fitted with it (which in Europe, started with the Mark III Granada of 1985, badged Scorpio on the continent) ensure this system is in full working order. We ask all member clubs to reinforce that vehicles must be kept in a good standard of repair whenever they venture out onto the road. Vehicles that benefit from the pre-1960 MoT exemption still need to comply with all parts of the MoT manual

(subject to date exemptions etc.) and if deficiencies are identified at the road side (whether in a car or a HGV) the vehicle driver and owner could be subject to VOSA or police sanction.

James Fairfield E U Legislation Committee Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs

Visit

www.nncvc.org.uk
for up to date information on events

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Some Club Cars at the Sheringham Car & Bike Show

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Ludham Open Gardens 23 June 2013 Ralph gets his prize from Geoff

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