It was inevitable really that with a grandad and dad working on classic cars day in and day out that oldest grandson would develop an interest. Ever since he was a baby he loved cars and with a car business this has just grown. Matthew is 14 years old and keen to be a mechanic when he gets older (no surprise there then). For the last six months he has been nagging about getting a classic mini. We have one in the workshop which we bought to renovate, Sandy (the mini clubman estate) is lovely but automatic and also nearly finished. With three years before Matthew will be able to drive we needed a slightly bigger project, although that is not what we got. Matthew spotted a mini for sale in mini magazine and after a few phone calls and a visit it was agreed to buy it. Matthew is thrilled and is all ready to get started on his renovation.Hopefully he will get to learn how all the bits work and fit together so that he can take responsibility for his car. His favourite bits about Winston (yes it does have a name) are the Union Jack dash and roof.
Thursday, 27 January 2011
It was inevitable really..............
It was inevitable really that with a grandad and dad working on classic cars day in and day out that oldest grandson would develop an interest. Ever since he was a baby he loved cars and with a car business this has just grown. Matthew is 14 years old and keen to be a mechanic when he gets older (no surprise there then). For the last six months he has been nagging about getting a classic mini. We have one in the workshop which we bought to renovate, Sandy (the mini clubman estate) is lovely but automatic and also nearly finished. With three years before Matthew will be able to drive we needed a slightly bigger project, although that is not what we got. Matthew spotted a mini for sale in mini magazine and after a few phone calls and a visit it was agreed to buy it. Matthew is thrilled and is all ready to get started on his renovation.Hopefully he will get to learn how all the bits work and fit together so that he can take responsibility for his car. His favourite bits about Winston (yes it does have a name) are the Union Jack dash and roof.
Saturday, 1 January 2011
Happy New Year
Well here we are in 2011 and it has been some time since we blogged. We have been very busy.
The weather at the end of last year (doesn't that sound strange) was terrible and not conducive to classic motoring. We have in the workshop a Ford Cortina which was due to go for it's MOT before Christmas but with the weather being poor and the roads treacherous, it was agreed with the owner to wait.
In addition, we have had a couple of calls from owners whose cars have been garaged and they have gone out to turn the engine over, only to find the battery is flat. A problem at this time of year unfortunately and easily resolved.
We hope everyone has a good New Year and many happy motoring miles.
The weather at the end of last year (doesn't that sound strange) was terrible and not conducive to classic motoring. We have in the workshop a Ford Cortina which was due to go for it's MOT before Christmas but with the weather being poor and the roads treacherous, it was agreed with the owner to wait.
In addition, we have had a couple of calls from owners whose cars have been garaged and they have gone out to turn the engine over, only to find the battery is flat. A problem at this time of year unfortunately and easily resolved.
We hope everyone has a good New Year and many happy motoring miles.
Monday, 13 September 2010
Unusual jobs.
Our work this week has been very varied, amongst our other work we have had two very different cars in this week, an Alvis TD with no oil pressure showing on the oil gauge which meant making sure that there was oil pressure from the main gallery then checking out the oil feed to the gauge. The outcome of this was that it appears that the flexible hose is closing up at certain times. We are awaiting a new hose and hopefully that will solve the problem so watch this space.
The other car was a TVR Griffith 500 that was difficult to start when it was hot. We carried out the usual checks and nothing obvious showed up. So we made several enquiries about the best way to resolve this problem, and it transpires that a company makes an update called "Hot Start" which has been designed for this particular car it is now on order so again watch this space.
It looks as if next week will not be quite so diverse on the work side.
We will be back to the servicing and M.O.Ts.
The other car was a TVR Griffith 500 that was difficult to start when it was hot. We carried out the usual checks and nothing obvious showed up. So we made several enquiries about the best way to resolve this problem, and it transpires that a company makes an update called "Hot Start" which has been designed for this particular car it is now on order so again watch this space.
It looks as if next week will not be quite so diverse on the work side.
We will be back to the servicing and M.O.Ts.
Friday, 30 July 2010
Silverstone Classic Weekend
Wow, hasn't Silverstone changed !
We went to the Silverstone Classic last Saturday in two of our frogeyes and had a cracking time.
The circuit has improved on so many levels since last year: Better entry arrangements, new pit facilities taking shape, more grandstands, the Wellington Straight back as part of the new Grand Prix cicuit, to name just a few.
It was great to catch up with some fellow Midget & Sprite Club members, including Gary Lazarus the editor of the club magazine 'Mascot'.
A real shame there were no 1958 frogeyes there (based on windscreen type) - we'll have to do something about that in a year or two!
Lots of classic racers giving their all on the track, what more could you want ??????
We went to the Silverstone Classic last Saturday in two of our frogeyes and had a cracking time.
The circuit has improved on so many levels since last year: Better entry arrangements, new pit facilities taking shape, more grandstands, the Wellington Straight back as part of the new Grand Prix cicuit, to name just a few.
It was great to catch up with some fellow Midget & Sprite Club members, including Gary Lazarus the editor of the club magazine 'Mascot'.
A real shame there were no 1958 frogeyes there (based on windscreen type) - we'll have to do something about that in a year or two!
Lots of classic racers giving their all on the track, what more could you want ??????
Tuesday, 27 July 2010
Morris Minor 42 years on
I have just read an article about a Morris Minor originally purchased in July 1968 that was taken back to the same garage to be sold. The minor named "Morris" had been in the same family and passed from father to son. The car originally cost £681, 17 shillings and 3 pence and there was a reduction of £50 for a part-exchange for an Austin A35. They paid an extra £8 to have seatbelts fitted as they were optional at the time and the car came with a fuel ration book.
We have a Morris Minor for sale at the moment which has had some substantial mnechanical work undertaken which includes:
- Complete rebuilding of the braking system
- New fuel pump
- new n/s rear spring
- welding to the sills,floor pan and n/s rear spring mounting
- refurbishment of his wheels as part of fitting 3 brand new tyres
- replacement secondhand front seats (the back seat was good anyway)
- replacement battery.
If you are interested give us a call or drop us an email. Visit our website at www.radlettclassiccars.co.uk
We have a Morris Minor for sale at the moment which has had some substantial mnechanical work undertaken which includes:
- Complete rebuilding of the braking system
- New fuel pump
- new n/s rear spring
- welding to the sills,floor pan and n/s rear spring mounting
- refurbishment of his wheels as part of fitting 3 brand new tyres
- replacement secondhand front seats (the back seat was good anyway)
- replacement battery.
If you are interested give us a call or drop us an email. Visit our website at www.radlettclassiccars.co.uk
Friday, 9 July 2010
Will today’s cars still be around in 40 years time?
Whilst talking to one of our customers yesterday, we came round to the topic of whether today’s cars will still be on the road in 40 years time.
We didn’t reach any conclusions, but it does seem to be less likely than it’s ever been. Cars 40 years old now are relatively straight forward mechanically and electrically – we can certainly fix them! The biggest challenge is corrosion – they generally weren’t undersealed from new and rust prevention didn’t go much further than checking they’d been painted. All but the very worst are usually repairable, albeit after some time consuming welding.
Today’s cars are very different, effective anti-rust coatings and more durable paint means lots will survive without structural problems. Mechanically they’re more complex eg abs brakes, but can be repaired. It’s the electrical and electronic side of things which I think could be a nightmare. When electronic control units fail, will anyone be able to repair them???? And there’s usually more than one………..
All in all I think that by 2050 we could find ourselves with just some non-running museum pieces from 2010. I very much hope I’m proved wrong.
On the plus side, I think cars from the 50s and 60s will be in greater demand (as well as having increased in value).
What do you think?
We didn’t reach any conclusions, but it does seem to be less likely than it’s ever been. Cars 40 years old now are relatively straight forward mechanically and electrically – we can certainly fix them! The biggest challenge is corrosion – they generally weren’t undersealed from new and rust prevention didn’t go much further than checking they’d been painted. All but the very worst are usually repairable, albeit after some time consuming welding.
Today’s cars are very different, effective anti-rust coatings and more durable paint means lots will survive without structural problems. Mechanically they’re more complex eg abs brakes, but can be repaired. It’s the electrical and electronic side of things which I think could be a nightmare. When electronic control units fail, will anyone be able to repair them???? And there’s usually more than one………..
All in all I think that by 2050 we could find ourselves with just some non-running museum pieces from 2010. I very much hope I’m proved wrong.
On the plus side, I think cars from the 50s and 60s will be in greater demand (as well as having increased in value).
What do you think?
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