Innholdsfortegnelse for 1/29/2025 i Classic Car Buyer

We often talk about how classics have character, personalities lacking from newer cars. Some, however, go one further and even have a sense of humour; the day after I collected my Mercedes W123 and had a 350-mile drive home ahead of me, its (admittedly small) battery refused to start the car, turning on the lights but nothing more. I called for a mate to come and give me a jump, then tried the key once more to confirm I was stranded – it promptly fired up, ran perfectly and continued to start whenever I turned it off all day. More recently, I was replacing the aged and cracked drip seals on the windows, braving barely positive temperatures to smarten up and better waterproof my Merc. It thanked me for my…

Our sister title, Motorsport News will celebrate its 70th anniversary in style at Race Retro on February 21-23, with a world-famous Jaguar D-Type set to take centre stage on the long-running weekly’s display stand at the Stoneleigh venue. The car in question is a short-nose Jaguar D-Type prototype, pictured here at the MIRA test track in 1955 with Jaguar engineer Malcolm Sayer and test driver, Norman Dewis. It’s at the show to represent Jaguar’s Le Mans win in 1955, the same year that Motorsport News was launched, originally called Motoring News. When the title first published in July 1955, Winston Churchill was Prime Minister, ITV had just flickered onto our screens and James Dean was making the girls swoon in Rebel Without A Cause. In the motorsport world, besides Jaguar…

Despite it being one of the most iconic British cars ever made, I’ve never had the chance to drive a pre-Defender Land Rover. Naturally then, I jumped at the chance to try DM Historics’ fantastically unrestored 1960 Series 2A 88-inch to see what the fuss was about. While many classics would be heavily criticised for wearing this level of patination, on a Land Rover it’s all part of the charm, and many owners deliberately don’t restore their cars for this very reason. Wearing its original Mid-Grey, this Landy shows its 64 years well, with faded paintwork throughout, several small dings, evidence of brush-painted repairs on the front wings, surface corrosion on the front grille panel and bumper and several areas of bodywork where there’s almost no paint whatsoever. That said,…

The British-built Hillman Avenger carries the dubious honour of having had three different identities during its long career, starting off life as a Hillman in 1970 before being rebadged as a Chrysler in 1976, only to become a Talbot for its final couple of years in production. By the time the last example rolled off the line in 1981, almost 790,000 Avengers had found buyers. Even by the standards of 1970, the rear-wheel drive Avenger was conventional in its layout, featuring MacPherson struts up front, coil springs and a live axle at the rear, overhead-valve engines and a four-speed transmission. Rootes wasn’t alone in playing it safe, but the Avenger’s long run meant that by the time it went out of production, it was seen as distinctly old-fashioned against a…

The phrase ‘money no object rebuild’ is often thrown around in the classic car world, but this 1969 Lotus Elan S4 offered by Kim Cairns leaves no doubt as to the approach taken during its restoration. A Black Badge Edition (built as a homage to Jim Clark, who sadly died at Hockenheim in April 1968), it looks stunning in French Blue following a bare-shell respray. This is a rare hue on an Elan and pairs nicely with gloss black bumpers and refurbished knock-off steel wheels for a classy, motorsport-esque look. Unsurprisingly, the bodywork is flawless and sports excellent panel gaps. Indeed, this car was the star of Kim’s stand at the Classic Motor Show, where the harsh lighting couldn’t embarrass what is a very high-quality finish. It looks every inch…

Being amongst the most modified and personalised classics out there, we’ve seen Minis in all sorts of colour combinations and sometimes, you find one that just looks right. Stone Cold Classics’ 1969 Morris Mk2 is one such car, finished in red with a black roof and sitting pretty on Dunlop D1 wheels. It’s worth pointing out the colour scheme isn’t original, this Mini getting a colour-change in 2018. The dealer advises of some light bubbling on the passenger’s door bottom, driver’s front wing and rear quarter, but none is particularly noticeable, nor unfixable. The door gaps are, like many Minis, not perfect and both stick out slightly at the bottom, but this is the case with many external-hinged Mini, and could be likely adjusted with patience. The Webasto sunroof is…

HATCH A PLAN We celebrate the models that popularised use of a hatchback on mid-size family cars, including the Renault 16 that got the ball rolling 60 years ago, and the Austin Maxi. CLASSIC CHOICE A trio of small and simple sports cars compete, but does the MG Midget, Triumph Spitfire or Caterham come out ahead? GREAT EIGHT A modern classic with retro styling and a glorious V8 engine, the Jaguar XJ hit a high point in its X308 guise. We show you how to buy a good one. DOWNLOAD THE DIGITAL ISSUE OF CLASSIC CAR BUYER FROM AS LITTLE AS £1.37! Visit shop.kelsey.co.uk/classic-car-buyer-magazine The printed version of Classic Car Buyer is available in ASDA, Tesco, Morrisons and WH Smiths, plus all good newsagents…

SIGN UP TO OUR NEWSLETTER AT WWW.CLASSICSWORLD.CO.UK Anticipated changes to DVLA policies should simplify the registration process for classic vehicles and mean they are less likely to end up with Q-plates. That’s according to the Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs (FBHVC), which revealed the outcome of an “extremely positive” meeting with the agency’s representative in Swansea at last week’s ClubExpo event. The Federation was quick to stress that any proposed rule changes are still a work in progress, following up on the Call for Evidence that was launched last May to give organisations and enthusiasts their say on matters affecting historic vehicles. Nevertheless, they look set to make life simpler when it comes to registering classic vehicles – a wild contrast to the scaremongering that had taken place on…

MERCEDES W123 (1975-1986) Mercedes-Benz already had a reputation for building world-class luxury cars, with its W116 S-Class of 1972 often given the ‘best car in the world’ title. So, when the Stuttgart giant set about replacing the popular but dated ‘Stroke 8’ W114/115 saloons, it came up with a slightly more compact version of its flagship – the now legendary W123. It took its styling cues from the W116, sporting ribbed lights that deflected dirt, wraparound indicators visible from the front and side and the staple large grille with three-pointed star mascot, but was more attainable and more versatile than the S-Class. Unlike the S-Class, the W123 could also be had as a glamorous two-door coupé, known as the C123, or versatile and vast S123 estate car, complete with the…

Quotation supplied by Lancaster Insurance Web: lancasterinsurance.co.uk | Tel: 01480 400761 Example quote: £94 or £112 with Agreed Value. Quote based on a 45-year-old marketing manager, access to another car, no claims or convictions, club member, 3000 miles per year, no modifications, living in SP2 0HL. Disclaimer: Subject to underwriting criteria. An additional charge may be payable. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.…

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Over the past century, the MG badge has graced all manner of vehicles, from rebadged saloons and hatches to the SUVs that make up so many of its sales today. And yet, the famous Octagon remains synonymous with sports cars in the traditional sense – open-topped roadsters and stylish coupes that offered driver entertainment within a real-world budget. In 2025, the brand hits several milestones – the anniversary of three of its significant sporting models, plus the end of its last hurrah under British ownership 20 years ago. Naturally, we couldn’t pass up the chance to pay homage these moments, spanning 40 years of MG’s history. MGA (1955-1962) It’s sensible to lead this feature with what is arguably the Octagon’s most beautiful car – the MGA. Marking a significant new…

1970 - Avenger four-door saloon launches, with two engine options; twin-carb GT arrives before year end. 1972 - Five-door estate version of the Avenger debuts; rally-influenced Tiger is previewed.  1973 - Two-door saloons go on sale; 1250 and 1500 engines replaced by 1.3- and 1.6-litres.  1976 - Chrysler branding replaces Hillman; Avenger facelift brings Alpine-like headlamps, restyled rear (losing the 'hockey stick' rear lights) and redesigned dashboard.  1979 - Chrysler Europe buy-out by PSA sees Avenger rebadged as a Talbot.  1981 - The closure of the Linwood plant in Renfrewshire, Scotland means the end of Hillman Avenger production.…

The E36 3 Series proved a great success for BMW, with the lower-rung four-pot cars breaking into the fleet market previously dominated by blue-collar brands like Ford. Sadly, most were used and abused, before the drifting crowd killed many more off in recent years. The 1998 318i Auto offered by Stone Cold Classics has escaped either fate, however, and is surely one of the nicest unmodified E36 saloons remaining. Owned by a husband and wife since new, this Arctic Silver BMW has covered just 45,000 miles and includes an extensively stamped service book and a history file containing numerous invoices. Its advisory-free MoT until September is another good indicator of this 27-year-old car’s health, having recently benefitted from four new tyres, front discs and pads, a new battery and wiper…

TESTING TIMES Following the news story on the future of MoT tests for classics in our January 15 issue, reader Bob Livermore got in touch with insight into Spain’s superbly logical approach; “There is a sliding scale for tests based on the age of the car. After 25 years, cars are only tested every two years. After 30, they are tested every three years, after 35 every four years and after 40, every five years. Given the low annual mileage of most classics, this seems an idea worth copying.”  Not a bad idea, Bob. What do other readers think? MEMORY LANE Ford acquiring Ghia in 1970 saw it use the badge to denote luxurious trim levels on its models – this 1975 brochure proudly promoted the Granada Ghia Coupé: “The…