This is a letter from David's son Simon .
I'll keep this brief, but i just wanted to inform you all that the reason for the sudden end to his blogs is that 8 weeks ago he fell off a ladder at home in Wales and suffered irreversible brain damage and has been in a coma on and off since. After a brief spell when he seemed to be making a miraculous recovery. He spoke a few sentences and even stood with help, he then got an infection, suffered multiple seizures and is now back to where he was 6/7 weeks ago. He is not expected to survive the next infection and we are bracing ourselves for the inevitable. Thank you all for your interest and support for this blog, i know he got a great deal of satisfaction writing it, and the cause was very close to his heart as his Grandson has CF. He will be sorely missed... Simon.

30 April 2016

There is something about an open car, on an open road, with an open throttle, that really appeals. However, I would not go as far as the old song  -  “Never mind the weather, never mind the rain”.

I’m not one of those who get precious about their car being rained upon, but, as they say, any fool can be uncomfortable — and wet.

   Mind you there are times when one is unfortunately caught out.   On a lovely sunny day a rain cloud appears from nowhere and there is a sudden deluge. In such cases one must resort to the stiff upper lip and the bailing can, but don’t ask me what the etiquette is reference which side of the car it should be emptied!

    At the other extreme, the sun can do a great deal of damage. In spite of liberal applications of ‘Factor 15’, my nose suffered greatly the other week on a 150 mile jaunt in bright sunshine. Do not concern yourself dear reader, all is now back to normal (until the next time!). The solution, obvious to some, is probably illegal to others – an umbrella?

Poop. Poop.

23 April 2016

Thought you might like to see my other toy - Bertie (a name chosen by my grandson). Rather a different kettle of fish from the 40-50. For a start the engine is about one tenth of the size. Actually when I got it the engine was in (broken) bits. It had to have new liners, pistons, crankshaft and most other bits. The photo is a fake I’m afraid, but it certainly tootles along these Welsh country lanes.

   I thought about putting davits on the back of the 40-50 and carrying this one as a sort of life-raft when it is finished.   

  But to be serious for a moment, does it really matter what model or marque we choose? The challenges posed by and the satisfaction gained from the restoration (and running!) of old cars helps to keep one active and sane. Never mind the price tag or the cachet of the name, just enjoy.   

“Austin 7s - the best big boys’ Meccano set in the world” (Michael Forrest)

Poop. Poop.

16 April 2016

The Government has abolished the MoT for ‘old cars’. The justification for this seems to be that we owners take much more personal care of our beloved vehicles and use them far less than their modern counterparts. 

My first reaction was that this is another confidence trick, similar to the ones we have seen from all political parties over many years. 

 Brief journalists on a measure that would be popular with a reasonably large section of the public; accept the plaudits and brownie points which accrue (and hopefully linger); forget you ever said it and so avoid the costs and the brickbats from non-beneficiaries. But they did it by George!

   My second reaction was to question the assumption that we all mollycoddle our vehicles and restrict their mileage for whatever reason. My 40-50 does get all the maintenance it needs (well most of the time anyway) and in return I expect it to take me wherever I need to go, be it to a rally in Italy, or to Sainsbury’s.  

    Yes it does drink a lot of petrol, but then I do not pay road tax; my insurance is very reasonable compared to modern cars; and it has actually appreciated in value significantly whilst in my possession/custody (not that this is really relevant as I have absolutely no intention of selling it).  Added to all these, in fact greater than them all, is the pleasure I get behind the wheel.

    So, saving me £50 a year is not a great vote winner in my opinion. An MoT is not a great challenge anyway, as most of us make sure we go to an ‘understanding’ garage. That is not to say they ignore the rules, they just interpret them intelligently. 

   I do however remember one engine restorer who stated “I do not insult my MoT man by presenting a vehicle which would not pass the test and he does not insult me by testing them”.

TTFN

9 April 2016

I have abandoned my plan to raise money for Cystic Fibrosis through this blog. The idea was that, for every viewing of the blog, advertisers would pay the charity a small amount of money - at no cost to the viewer.  Naturally advertisers want to see large numbers and my viewing figures have stalled at about 16 per week. That is not going to attract much revenue!  Ironically the other blog I am writing about my son's restoration of an ex-Irish lightship built in 1878 is attracting over 1,000 views per week.  Ah well, I will continue with this one at least for a while, for the faithful 16.

I sometimes worry about the car. When I had to have a new king-pin (me not the car),  I was physically unable to drive for five weeks, with another four or five before I got the all clear. Wives are not much 

help in such circumstances. Yes I know there are exceptions, but mine is not one of them! Have you ever seen a car looking reproachful?  I certainly had to do lots of miles to make up for this. Now that was nice!

I also worry about the future. Will there still be craftsmen who know how to repair old cars? Will there still be spares available? I am constantly coming across small firms and individuals who have a tremendous reservoir of knowledge, skills and spares. I am also sure that there are huge numbers of so-called rare/unobtainable/hen’s teeth spares mouldering in store rooms/sheds/garages, waiting for that day (which may never come) when they will be needed. 

 Just like the legions of tatty old cars rotting under canvas/plastic covers, condemned by over-optimistic owners who keep promising themselves that they will start the restoration any day now (ready for take-off Mr Pig?). 

    It is sadly true that there are very few ‘apprentices’ coming through these days. So, echoing the call for owners to regard themselves as temporary ‘custodians’ of our wonderful cars, perhaps our craftsmen could look upon their skills as being in trust and needing to be passed on intact?

Poop. Poop.

1 April 2016

Following the principle of ‘Any fool can be uncomfortable’, I try to avoid driving in the rain. I don’t mind the car getting wet, but I prefer to stay dry. However, as I very rarely have the top up, I do get caught out occasionally. One would think that driving fast enough would cause the rain to fly over one’s head, but two factors mitigate against this. One is that there are too many cars on our roads and progress is often stop/start and the other is that the aerodynamics of most 40-50s are akin to those of a brick out-house.

     I would love to see my car in a wind-tunnel. I did once attach bits of knitting wool  to the bonnet just in front of the windscreen and at speed two of these tell-tales were pointing frontwards!  The result is that the raindrops do dive into the cockpit and straight into one’s eyes and/or onto one’s glasses. Mine are not fitted with wipers, so I have to wear some form of headgear with a peak. Perhaps this was why chauffeurs wore those peaked caps. Now I don’t want to be snobbish, but I do not want to look as if I am driving the car for someone else.  So, in spite of my advanced age, I resort to a baseball cap. The brim is long enough to keep the rain out of my eyes, but also long enough to catch the wind - I am now on my third cap!

   Another solution would be the Colin Crabbe method. On the 1993 Alpine he drove around in the rain with a golfing umbrella held aloft by his navigator Ian Fraser. Wonderfully eccentric but surely illegal and even more difficult to control than a baseball cap!

    Yes of course I could put up the top, but for many of us open air motoring is the thing - the sun on our faces and the wind in our hair (those who still have some). Naturally the rules change when Memsahib is travelling. Wind in the hair is not quite so popular and rain is definitely a no-no.

Á bientôt