Innholdsfortegnelse for 2/8/2023 i Classic Car Buyer

Can there be a more famous British engine than the Rover V8? Well, maybe. Jaguar fans will point to the straight-six XK and the subsequent V12 as two units worthy of the title, and it would be churlish of anyone not to include the amazingly long-lived BMC A-Series in the running. Then, of course, there’ll be knowledgeable folk who’ll correctly point out that the Rover V8 was developed in the USA by General Motors – and therefore “isn’t British” at all. What Rover did with that ex-GM unit, however, was remarkable. As you’ll read this week (starting on page 16), the compact V8 was modified for British and European tastes, with the kind of tweaks that made it ideal for fitment in Rover’s P5 and P6 saloons. It would, however,…

A 2001-model Jaguar XKR that was used as an official press car, featuring in Jaguar Monthly and other motoring magazines when new, has come to market with a tempting asking price of £5000. The same car has featured in Jaguar World in more recent times, as well as playing a starring role in a video for Classics World’s YouTube channel. The 4.0-litre supercharged Jaguar, finished in its original Mistral Blue with a Nimbus Grey leather interior, has covered 146,000 miles to date and has been enthusiastically maintained as a daily driver for the last 20 years. It is said to drive superbly but is in need of some bodywork TLC. It’s MoT’d until September and comes with a large history file of paperwork. To find out more, call the Berkshire-based…

Classic enthusiasts are being urged to negate the impact their vehicles have on the environment, with anyone in the UK who’s keen to reduce the carbon footprint of their classics being encouraged to join a new Enthusiast Carbon Offset (ECO) programme running in partnership with Hagerty. Operated by carbon reduction business, Chrome Carbon (chromecarbon. cc), the voluntary initiative is one of several designed to offer peace of mind to environmentally conscious enthusiasts. Part of Hagerty Impact, a strategy aiming to bring positive change within the automotive community, the ECO programme is open to all motorists – including those who are not Hagerty customers. Drivers can learn about their vehicle’s CO2 emissions by entering its type and anticipated annual mileage into a quick and easy to use online emissions calculator. This…

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has announced a return to profit for the final quarter of last year. The company recorded a before-tax profit of £265 million for October-December 2022, compared with a loss of £9 million for the same period in 2021. During what was still a challenging period for car manufacturers thanks to global shortages of semiconductor ‘chips’, JLR focused production on its most expensive – and most profitable – models. Sales of the Evoque and Discovery Sport were down, while Jaguar sales slumped. But demand for the latest Land Rover Defender and Range Rover continued to soar. The company’s order book remains strong, with 215,000 vehicles on order from customers worldwide. Just three models from JLR’s current SUV range – the Defender, Range Rover and Range Rover Sport…

The traditional January blues failed to get a grip of bidders at the latest South Western Vehicle Auctions (SWVA) sale, as its January 27 event achieved an impressive 91 per cent clearance rate. Amongst the 58 lots on offer came several ‘everyman’ classics, with the hammer coming down on some highly affordable lots. A Renault 5 Campus was one of the bargains up for grabs; showing fewer than 80,000 miles, the 1995 supermini achieved just over its top estimate, with bidding ending at £1300 plus fees. With a little more budget to play with, one bidder became the new owner of an excellent Rover 75 Contemporary SE Tourer (a 2004 ‘facelift’ car with 53,000 miles under its wheels), hammered away at £1900. Among seven Mercedes-Benz lots came three extremely tempting…

PEUGEOT 205 GTI (1984-1994) You can’t talk about sporty Peugeots without mentioning the 205 GTI, the hot hatch that singlehandedly (and almost instantaneously) turned Peugeot into a marque with some serious sporting chops. The standard 205 was a very good car indeed and one of the finest ‘second generation’ superminis around, with the perfect blend of utility, style, performance, dependability and sophistication – enough to win a What Car? Car of the Year Award before the GTI was even launched. But the 1.6-litre, 104bhp, 122mph GTI sealed the deal. Lighter, more agile, sharper and just more fun than the faster but more sombre Golf GTI, the 205 set a standard for small car handling, control response and dynamics that is still considered something of a benchmark today. A 1.9-litre version…

LAND ROVER SERIES 3 The Series Land Rover was also drawing towards its end in this time, but unlike the Mini pick-up it was to spawn a direct successor. It’s much sturdier and more powerful, but if you want similarly compact dimensions you’ll actually find less practical load space in a short-wheelbase Truck Cab. Prices for immaculate ones are in a similar vein. BEDFORD RASCAL Many of the small-scale traders who loved the Mini commercials turned here when they couldn’t buy them anymore. A British-built and -badged version of the Suzuki Super Carry kei truck, it was available in drop-side truck, van and extremely mini minibus forms. The cab-over-engine forward-control layout can take some getting used to. CITROËN C15 Based on the Visa supermini (at the front) with the rear…

The latest gathering of The New Unnamed Classic Car Group took place at its usual Midlands venue on Sunday, January 29, with over 120 vehicles attending – including this now-rare Honda Concerto, sister car to the R8-generation Rover 200. These Kidderminster-based meets always attract a great selection of classics of all ages. To see more photos or to find out the dates of the next get-together, check out the group’s Facebook page. KEEP IN TOUCH Have CCB delivered or read our digital edition! Call 01959 541444 or visit shop.kelsey.co.uk for a postal or digital subscription Read the latest issue online at shop.kelsey.co.uk. Sign up for our newsletter at www.classicsworld.co.uk…

Mazda’s CEO in Europe, Martijn ten Brink, has confirmed that the MX-5 sports car “will never die”. But in an interview at the recent Brussels Motor Show, he said that the technical specifications of the next generation have yet to be decided. The current MX-5, which made its debut in 2015, will continue to be updated and is said to be under no threat of being taken off sale from emissions regulations. On the longer-term future of the MX-5, Martijn ten Brink stated: “How do you stay true to the concept of what the car stands for taking it into the next generation of technologies? That’s not been decided. But I think for Mazda, it would be fair to say that the MX-5 will never die.” Commenting on the next…

The first of eight WB & Sons classic auctions of 2023 got under way at the firm’s Newcastle upon Tyne base on January 28, with over 100 entries going under the hammer. As usual there was plenty of variety among them, with everything from an Austin FX3 taxi to a Ferrari with celebrity provenance. That Ferrari was a 1983 400i bought new by former Rolling Stones bassist, Bill Wyman, which managed to beat its £18,000-£22,000 guide to sell for £28,600. It wasn’t the only Prancing Horse in the sale though, as its sale figure was comprehensively beaten by that of a very clean 1995 355 GTS, with an impressive £78,000 changing hands for the 40,000-mile example. Meanwhile, it was a good sale for British classics. A couple of late classic…

TECH SPEC Austin A30/A35 Saloon PRODUCED: 1951-1959 ENGINE: 803cc/948cc, 4-cyl POWER: 28bhp/34bhp TOP SPEED: 63mph/72mph 0-60mph: 39.0 secs/30.0 secs ECONOMY: 40-45mpg TRANSMISSION: 4-spd, man BUY ONE FOR: £3000-£10,000 If you’re in the market for a compact classic and you’ve a penchant for British metal of the 1950s, it’s almost inevitable that the Austin A30 and its larger-engined successor, the A35, will be on your motoring radar. But what is this diminutive duo like to live with, more than 70 years after the original’s launch? Time to find out… but first, a little history. Following the Second World War, Austin was still trading off the historical success of its iconic Seven, while at the time producing much larger saloons. A failed attempt to merge Austin with Morris in 1949 led to…

Maestro appreciation Keith Barker wrote in after reading our ‘Class of 1983’ feature (CCB, January 25), in which we paid tribute to eight of the biggest launches of that year: “I’d forgotten just how many great cars were launched in ’83,” says Keith, “as well as just how many we’ve had in the family over the years. As second cars, we’ve owned an Uno, a couple of Novas and a 205, all three of them impressive in their own way.” Keith’s favourite launch of 1983, however, comes in the unlikely shape of the Austin Maestro: “I always thought the Maestro was a very underrated car. It might not have been exciting looking, but I thought its styling was pleasant – and with all that glass, it had the best visibility…

Rolls-Royce is celebrating the 20th anniversary of its rebirth under BMW control, with the all-new 2003 Phantom – the seventh-generation model to wear that historic name – being the first car launched from the marque’s brand new Goodwood-based facility. The 1998 sale of Rolls-Royce and Bentley saw Volkswagen becoming temporary custodian of the former through to the end of 2002, giving BMW enough time to develop an all-new model worthy of carrying the Spirit of Ecstasy. The highly acclaimed Phantom limousine was joined by the Phantom Coupe and Drophead Coupe, followed by the smaller Ghost – the luxury saloon that went on to become the bestselling Rolls-Royce since the company’s creation in 1904. The range grew further in 2013 with the Wraith, followed by the Dawn three years later. They…

CORVETTE ‘C2’ (1963-1967) This was the car that introduced the pointy-nosed looks that have come to define the Corvette, as well as the first to feature pop-up headlamps and the first to use the distinctive transverse leaf spring independent rear suspension. It also introduced the ‘Sting Ray’ name to the Corvette, which was applied to the entire ‘C2’ series in a nod to its aquatic looks. More power, a shorter wheelbase, quicker steering and new suspension meant that despite being heavier than the original, the C2 had better performance and was much more sporty to drive. Available with fastback coupe or convertible bodies, the C2 was available with Chevrolet’s small-block (5.4-litre) and big-block (7.0-litre) V8 engines in various states of tune. Options packs covering the engine, drivetrain, wheels, brakes, suspension,…

The Continental GT marked a major departure from those Crewe cars that had gone before, and with good reason. Far from being a hand-crafted British tourer, the new GT espoused platform sharing, shared drivetrains and even elements of production line assembly when it was launched in 2003. Indeed, it shared many of its underpinnings with VW’s doomed flagship, the Phaeton, including its ‘chassis’ and 6.0-litre W12 engine. The newcomer opened fresh markets for Bentley, allowing a downward expansion that drove volume for the company and led to rapid increases in profit. It begat the GTC convertible and the Flying Spur saloon – although for this buying guide, we’re sticking with the coupe. Mildly updated in 2007, which also brought the new 600bhp Speed variant, Bentley would replace the car with…

Taken in 1969 is this fantastic image of London’s Piccadilly Circus, showing some of the famous advertising billboards that made this such an iconic view. Famous names like Gordons, Cinzano, Skol, Max Factor, Lloyds Bank and Gold Leaf can be clearly seen. But for CCB readers, it’s the traffic beneath the ads that provides the most interest now. We’re not surprised to see a Routemaster bus and a couple of examples of its predecessor, the AEC Regent III RT, as well as several examples of the long-running FX4 taxi. We also have a great view of a Citroën DS, while in the distance there’s the ubiquitous Morris Minor. Dominating the street scene, however, are commercial vehicles, including a couple of Mk1 Transits, an Anglia van and its new successor, the…

A lot of the appeal of the ‘R107’ SL as a classic is that it combines the comfort, engineering integrity and solidity of a Mercedes saloon (of an era when that really counted for something) with ground-hugging styling and a folding roof. But the experience can be dulled by the inherent refinement, the 1.6-tonne kerb weight, the power-assisted steering box and the automatic transmission almost invariably found on these cars. That especially goes for the six-cylinder models; so to give the SL some of the character and performance that its looks (and badge) deserve, you really need a V8. By the late 1980s, when this striking Signal Red car was made, the 4.2-litre was the smaller of the two eight-cylinder engines on offer, with the magnificent 500SL being the range-topper.…