THE UK CELEBRATES COVENTRY’S FINEST AT THE CLASSIC MOTOR SHOW

Filed under: Classic News |
Beautiful, powerful, desirable and world-beating – this year’s Classic Motor Show will be a proud reminder of the UK’s motor-city’s immense automotive heritage. As ever it’s the work of local enthusiasts who are responsible for keeping these classics on the road and fresh in people’s memories and this year’s show – held from the 14th to 16th November at the NEC – will have a huge club contingent representing great old Coventry car companies. The Alvis Owners’ Club will be showing a beautiful 1928 Alvis FE – a car which was at the forefront of front-wheel-drive design and was typical of the Coventry company’s embrace of advanced design and technology. The Club will also be displaying models from the company’s heyday of style and prestige, with models such as the pre-War 1934 Silver Eagle, a the 1935 Speed 20 and a 1938 Special Racer. More poignantly, the Club will have a very special car on its stand – a 1968 TF21 Mulliner Park Ward DHC – a 120mph 3-litre which was the last ever Alvis car built before the company decided to concentrate on producing armoured vehicles. “What is really different about Alvis is that the company didn’t stop in 1967 and washed its hands of its responsibilities towards their loyal customers or their employees,” says David Dobson from the Alvis Owners’ Club. “Later that year the directors of Alvis together with their former employees set up a company dedicated to maintaining the cars at their premises in Kenilworth. This company, Red Triangle, exists today and not only manufactures spares for the whole range of Alvis cars (1920 –1968) but also services and restores them. “Therefore, what is special about Alvis is that unlike many other British manufacturers, part of the original Alvis company still exists to help and maintain 4,397 cars (out of the 21,250 that were built). Red Triangle is still employing skilled loyal craftsmen and engineers in the Midlands ensuring that this iconic car still remains on our roads – as a testimony to Great British engineering and design.” The Association of Rootes Car Clubs will be representing many of the UK’s and Coventry’s forgotten marques – for example Singer, Hillman, Sunbeam-Talbot and Humber – on one big stand because it is celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Rootes Competition Department. Expect to see a couple of Sunbeam-Talbots which were campaigned by Stirling Moss and the late Peter Collins, Le Mans racers and the 1968 London-Sydney Marathon-winning Hillman Hunter. Indeed if that weren’t enough, Lord Rootes, Sir Stirling Moss, Rosemary Smith and many more drivers, mechanics and team managers have been invited along too. “The Classic Motor Show is the single most important event of the year,” says Andrew McAdam from the ARCC. “It’s the best show of the season, it’s our showcase – we get more interest per person – and there hasn’t been a year we’ve regretted going. The Classic Motor Show is an opportunity at the end of the show season to meet people and it’s particularly important this year because 2009 is the 50th anniversary of the Sunbeam Alpine.” Of course no tribute to Coventry’s industrial past would be the same without mentioning Jaguar and Triumph, and these two great companies are celebrated by the Jaguar Drivers’ Club, the Jaguar Enthusiasts’s Club, the Jaguar XJS Club, the Triumph Owners’ Club, the Triumph Dolomite Club, the Triumph Sports Six Club, the Triumph 2000/2500 Register, the TR Driver’s Club and the TR Register. So expect to see lots of fantastic local craftsmanship and technology on display. But that’s not all! In addition to the clubs, there will also be a flood of other great activities to experience as well as the vast array of fantastic classic cars, services, parts and products. The Restoration Theatre is a live seminar held by a team of restoration experts from the Leeds College of Technology. The team isn’t just there to demonstrate a wide range of techniques – but they can actually physically show you what’s involved and how best to tackle a project. Dream Rides will be an opportunity for visitors to go for a ten-mile ride in a classic exotic – so if you’re really lucky perhaps your dream car might be on hand to give you a rare taste of the real thing. All you have to do is make a donation to charity. Meanwhile TV motoring presenter Mike Brewer, along with his trusty mechanic Edd China, will be hosting Wheeler Dealer Live on the Live Stage, providing visitors with professional hands-on demonstrations, advice, famous faces and plenty of entertainment. Still want more? Well, this year’s show also has an exciting first, Classic Bikes at the Classic Motor Show, an area solely dedicated to classic machinery of the two-wheeled variety. Adjoining the main display halls, the Pavilion is a 5,000 square metre shrine to motorcycles and scooters which will be predominantly occupied by club displays. You name it and you’ll probably see it – from the humble Vespa to the mighty Vincent HRD.Tags:,