Tag Archives: Cotswold

More Power Bigger Drums – Morris Oxford II

Cotswold Classic Car Club – Frogmill Andoversford

Forgoing a New Years day hangover I a woke yesterday just in time to throw a bucket of water over my Golf and head down to Queen Square in Bristol where I met my friend Ted and his friend Ron with a few other Avenue Drivers Club regulars.

Ford, Queen Square Bristol

The meeting was not a regular Avenue Drivers Club event, they only happen on the second Sunday of every month the next one is scheduled for Sunday 13th. We were meeting with the intention of heading 40 miles north to the Frogmill Inn, Andoversford where the Cotswold Classic Car Club was having it’s annual New Years Day Meeting.

Scimitar GTE, Queen Square, Bristol

Ron led the way in his recently acquired 1972 Reliant Scimitar GTE Automatic.

Cotswold Classic Car Club, Frogmill, Andoversford

After a pleasant drive under unusual blue skies we arrived at Frogmill an hour ahead of the advertised time to find the car parks filled with a variety of veteran, vintage and classic vehicles.

Bristol 411, Frogmill, Andoversford

Some of them will be familiar to regular GALPOT readers like this Bristol 411 which I featured a couple of years ago.

Amphicar, Frogmill, Andoversford

This time last year the United Kingdom was preparing for a drought but the weather has since conspired to make 2012 the wettest since records began which should be good news for owners of amphibious vehicles like this Triumph powered 1967 Amphicar.

Invicta, Frogmill Inn, Andoversford

Amongst the vintage vehicles present was this Meadows powered 4.5 litre 1931 Invicta which would have been capable of 100mph when new.

Vauxhall Victor, Frogmill Inn, Andoversford

The 1961 Vauxhall Victor F type above was originally sold by Haines & Strange in Cheltenham, it spent 10 years in Switzerland before being found in a barn in the UK by it’s present owner in 1999. It has been undergoing restoration ever since.

Morris Marina 1.3 Coupé, Frogmill Inn, Andoversford

One of the stranger classics was at the meeting was this 1972 Morris Marina 1.3 Coupé, once a familiar sight on British roads and the subject of a fair amount of derision for rust among other issues. The Maurice Morihno Racing Team logo appears to be pointing further fun at the model examples of which were used in competition rally events back in the day.

Jaguar XK 140 FHC, Frogmill Inn, Andoversford

Signs are that this 1956 Jaguar XK140 FHC may have spent some time in the USA, the UCLA sticker on the back window being an obvious example.

Studebaker Commander, Frogmill Inn, Andoversford

This 1950 Studebaker Commander was only imported into the UK a couple of months ago it would appear to be powered by a 5.7 litre / 347 cui V8.

Wolseley 1500, Frogmill, Andoversford

This 1959 Wolseley 1500 is built on a Morris Minor floorplan and fitted with a larger motor and gearbox from the MG ZB.

Pontiac Firehawk, Frogmill Inn, Andoversford

According to it’s ‘Birth Certificate’ this manual Pontiac Firehawk Mapleleaf Transam was built on February 28th 1999 at LaSalle in Quebec with speedo reading in kilometers for the Canadian market, it’s capable of covering a quarter mile in 13.4 secs and has a restricted top speed of 160 mph.

Triumph Mayflower, Frogmill Inn, Andoversford

Conceived as a small car, same size as a Morris Minor, but following the styling queues of contemporary large Rolls Royce and Bentley models the Triumph Mayflower was aimed squarely at the US market, only 35,000 were built between 1949 and 1953 well below the targeted numbers.

Gilbern Genie, Frogmill Inn, Andoversford

Finally in the overflow car park I found this 1968 Gilbern Genie, built in Wales and powered by a 3 litre 183 cui Ford (Essex) V6 beneath the fibre glass bodywork the suspension is largely inherited from the MG B.

My thanks to Ted Walker for alerting me to the Cotswold Classic Car Club New Years Day meeting.

Thanks for joining me on this “Cotswold Classic Car Club” edition of “Gettin a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

PS Details of some of the vehicles seen at Frogmill can be seen on this link.

2011 GALPOT Review #1 – Motor Museums

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In the week leading up to the season of Goodwill I thought it might be interesting to review some of the places and events I have been privileged to visit in 2011.

In March I joined fellow members of the Bristol Pegasus Motor Club for a visit to the Prodrive factory & Museum, the Museum is packed with a fabulous selection of vehicles from Prodrives successful history including Rally Cars, Racing Cars and this one off Prodrive P2.

Next I made the first of several visits to the Haynes International Motor Museum which probably houses one of the worlds largest collection of red cars, of many makes including the obvious ALFA Romeo, Ferrari, and Lambourghini, outside of Italy. The car that really struck a chord for me however was this GAZ M13 Chaika from the Soviet Union.

On my way back from London in June I found time to visit the wonderful Atwell Wilson Motor Museum which houses some real gems including a prototype CVT Mini, and many cars which can be hired for weddings including this Plymouth Fury. I particularly like the collection of every day cars from my youth including the much maligned Austin Maxi, Twin Cam Morris Marina and Opel Manta. The Atwell Wilson is running a raffle for a Triumph Dolomite in 2012 a ticket for which including entrance fee and a cup of excellent tea will probably leave you change from a tenner !

If Grand Prix Cars and open wheelers are your thing then you’ll feel like a kid in a toy shop when you visit Donington Park Museum which has an amazing collection of Grand Prix cars from 1950 to the present day, and a few more besides. One car I was particularly thrilled to see was the Hill GH2 built for 1976 which only completed a single test session before Team Founder Graham Hill, driver Tony Brise, designer Andy Smallman, team manager Ray Brimble along with mechanics Tony Alcock and Terry Richards perished in Graham’s aeroplane when it came down in heavy fog on the 29th November 1975.

One of the surprises of the year was finding a Formula One car at the Cotswold Motor Museum, which has a fine selection of vehicles including Veteran, Vintage and Classic. The exact identity of the Wolf / Fittipaldi, which could do with a bit of TLC, has yet to be positively established, but none the less a wonderful find amongst a quirky selection of vehicles.

Finally the smallest museum I visited this year was the Bugatti Trust situated right next to the Prescott Hillclimb course. Housing just three full size vehicles, they were of the highest quality and well worth the price of admission alone, what really struck me and my companion on the day Tim was how unbelievably knowledgeable and friendly the trusts Chairman Hugh Conway and his staff were about the cars and the many other exhibits of Bugattibilia including a cutaway vertical 16 aero engine, drawings of the Bugatti train, model LSR car and a giraffe by Rembrandt Bugatti. Be warned the enthusiasm at the Bugatti trust is infectious.

Thanks for joining me on this Museum edition of ‘Gettin’ a lil psycho on tyres’ if you have a favorite Motor Museum you’d like to see a blog about in the new year why not drop me a line info(at)psychoontyres.co.uk. ?

I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I will be reviewing some of the Concours d’Elegance events covered on GALPOT during 2011. Don’t forget to come back now !

PS Don’t forget …

Automobiliart GALPOT Seasonal Quiz

December 26th – January 2nd

Win a set of Paul Chenard Greetings Cards

Set 1 Sports & GT Cars

Set 2 Phil Hill World Drivers Championship 50th Anniversary Edition

Set 3 1934 Season

Set 4 Grand Prix Engines of the 1950’s

Set 5 Mike Hawthorn’s Race Cars

The Automobiliart GALPOT Seasonal Quiz will comprise 8 categories.

Overall winner chooses one set of Paul Chenard Greetings Cards from the five sets shown above.

The cards measure 15.24cm x 11.43cm, come in packs of 12 with 3 copies of 4 designs in each set, plus A6 envelopes.

Which set will you choose ?

The free to enter Automobiliart GALPOT Seasonal Quiz will run from December 26th – January 2nd Entries close January 8th 2012, Winner announced January 16th 2012.

Full details on December 26th at GALPOT.

Looking for Automotive Seasonal Gift Idea’s? Visit Automobiliart Now !

Bespoke Luxury Shopping Trolley – Aston Martin Cygnet

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A couple of weeks ago, returning from a trip to the Cotswold Motoring Museum, I was playing I spy with an auto knowledgeable Italian 13 year old as we drove through Cheltenham looking at the back of this car it was my turn to say I spy something beginning with C, we dispensed with the manufacturers initials after only a coupe of rounds.

C-Max he said pointing to the Ford in front of us, no I replied, he gave up quickly and I pointed to the back of this Aston Martin and said ‘Cygnet’.

No no he appealed Toyota iQ just like my Auntie in Milan. I pulled over at the next junction parked the car and we went to have a look.

To stay ahead in the automotive industry just like in motor sport one has to think laterally, so when the European Union announced regulations that car manufacturers had to reduce the average fuel consumption across their fleet average Aston Martin wasted little time in finding a partner making low emissions vehicles.

Settling on a partnership with Toyota to make a high end, at £30,000 that is the extremely exclusive high end, version of the Toyota iQ a vehicle that will cost as little as £10,000.

From the rear the two cars, apart from the badging and diffuser are identical, while the front gets the Aston Martin look with grills and trim that is without doubt not from the Toyota parts bin.

The interior is also bespoke Aston Martin customers choosing abundant stitched leather in a variety of two tone colour combinations.

Performance is quoted as 107 mph with the CVT (constant velocity transmission) automatic being 0.2 secs faster than the 6 speed manual in the 60 mph dash that takes 11.6 seconds.

Aston Martin hope to sell 4000 Cygnets, which went on sale in the UK earlier this year, annually.

Thanks for joining me on this I Spy edition of Gettin’ a lil’ psycho on tyres’, I hope you’ll join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

Swedish Tease – Volvo 1800 ES

Long Lost – Wolf 1979 Series

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Wolf Racing was founded by Canadian Oil Magnet Walter Wolf in 1977 after an ill feted start made in partnership with Frank Williams in 1976.

The Wolf team with Dr Harvey Postlethwaite designing the cars came flying right out of the box in Argentina 1977 scoring a debut win with Jody Scheckter at the wheel of the Wolf WR1. Scheckter impressed further by driving to two more wins in 1977. The 1977 series Wolf design ran WR1 – WR3 same as the chassis numbers.

During the following season the second series Wolf WR4 – WR6, with ground effects side pods that were all the rage in 1978, was less impressive and Jody, who had been courted by Ferrari well before his Wolf contract was up, left to join the red team from Maranello.

The third series Wolf, which ran WR7 to WR9, apparently seen here at The Cotswold Motoring Museum, was designed by Dr Harvey Postlethwaite who had been reunited with former Hesketh driver James Hunt for the 1979 season.

As ironic luck would have it former Wolf driver Jody Scheckter would go on to win the 1979 World Drivers Championship in his first season with Ferrari while ex World Champion James Hunt quit the Wolf Team after the Monaco Grand Prix having struggled to qualify better than 10th in seven races and scored one 8th place finish and six retirements.

Keke Rosberg took over the driving duties for the rest of the year but with no improvement in the teams performance Walter Wolf sold his team onto the equally struggling Fittipaldi brothers at the end of 1979.

Walter Wolf kept one of the third series cars while Fittipaldi upgraded the remaining two cars into Fittipaldi F7 spec with a centre post rear wing and heavily revised side pods with out the rear flick ups and built a third F7 from scratch.

The Fittipaldi F7 cars all but disappeared from public view in the early 80’s. According to the museum description provided by the cars owner Andrew Smith by 1982 the Fittipaldi Team was in administration and all of the teams assets were acquired by ADA Engineering.

Andrew a James Hunt fan, and former Mini racer, saw WR7 race, with Keke Rosberg driving, at Silverstone in 1979 and bought the car from ADA Engineering with a Cosworth DFV engine. Some of the third series Wolf style body work, and unique ’79 Monaco spec twin element front wings have been refitted to this chassis which still has F7 running gear, a Fittipaldi in Wolf clothing.

At this moment there are inconsistencies in the accounts as to which third series Wolf chassis became which Fittipaldi F7 chassis. Not having seen which, if any, chassis plate this particular vehicle, seen at the Cotswold Motoring Museum, is carrying I cannot be sure exactly which, of the two Wolf chassis or three Fittipaldi chassis this is.

If you have evidence as to which of the Wolf third series chassis were transformed into the Fittipaldi F7 series chassis please chime in below or send me an e-mail to the address which appears at the very bottom of the blog page.

My thanks to Steve Holter, and Norman Jones from The Nostalgia Forum for their contributions to today’s blog.

Hope you have enjoyed todays Wolf edition of ‘Gettin’ a lil’ psycho on tyres’ and that you will join me again tomorrow for a look at a world champions daily driver that is coming up for auction on Saturday. Don’t forget to come back now !

Gettin' A Li'l Psycho On Tyres

Art Tidesco blogs on all things motoring