Classic and Vintage Motor Club of Eurobodalla Newsletter

Volume 15 No. 6 November/December 2016

CVMCE NEWS

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CHRISTMAS PARTY DECEMBER 2016

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2016 CVMCE TROPHY RECIPIENTS

JUDGED BEST CAR:

1954 Holden FJ Ute

Merv Roberts

JUDGED BEST MOTORCYCLE:

1975 Yamaha XS 650B

Lloyd Driver

(Apology received from Lloyd; trophy collected by Dean Price)

KENDELL TROPHY BEST RESTORED CAR:

1959 Holden FC Sedan

Brian Gillis

BRIAN ROWELL MEMORIAL TROPHY BEST RESTORED MOTORCYCLE:

1917 Harley Davidson F Head

Andrew Butcher

ROGER PEARSON MEMORIAL TROPHY PEOPLE’S CHOICE BEST CAR:

1948 Chrysler New Yorker

Jim Wilson

PEOPLE’S CHOICE BEST MOTORCYCLE:

1966 Bultaco Metralla

David Owen

(Apology received from Dave; trophy collected by Graham Wilkie)

BLOW UP TROPHY:

Marian Pearson.

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THE CLASSIC AND VINTAGE MOTOR CLUB OF EUROBODALLA, Inc

Committee Other Appointments

President: Brett Moore (Glenda) Regalia: Rob and Donna Upton 0417 221 467 brett.moore50@gmail.com 0413 000 643 Vice President: Graham Wilkie (Lorraine) Librarian: 4474 5655 glwilkie1@bigpond.com Treasurer: Dave Gibson (Robyn) Life Member: Stewart Kendell 0468 424 610 – deandar31@gmail.com Vehicle Inspectors: Secretary - Neil McIntosh (Leslie) 0458 250 234 - neilmcintosh2@bigpond,com Andrew Redwin - 4473 8062 Events director: Peter Smith Noel Hand (Older Vehicles) - 44742128 4474 2251 – sharper5@bigpond.com Dean Price – 4474 2962 Membership: Bob Thistleton David Nettle – 4474 4293 4472 9935 – thisso4@bigpond.com Barry Apps – 4471 1294 Editor - Huw Owen-Jones (Barbara) Volker Oldenburg – 4472 9288 4474 3237– huw@acslink.net.au Graham Symons – 4476 4827 Public Officer Rob Upton - 0413 000 643 Webmaster: Dave Gibson (Robyn)– 0468 424 610 deandar31@gmail.com Bush Council Delegate: Mark Beaver – 4474 3461 mcbeav@ozmail,com.au OBJECTS OF THE CLUB: To bring together persons with a common interest in Historic, Veteran, Vintage and Classic motor vehicles and motorcycles. Principal Activities The use, maintenance, restoration and display of historic vehicles and conduct club meetings and Social Events. REGULAR EVENTS General Meetings: First Monday of each month (except January) 7:30 pm at the Moruya Bowling Club 38 Shore Street, Moruya. Saturday Runs for Coffee at: The Waterfront Hotel, Moruya, Dairy Shed or Bakery, Bodalla, Maloney’s Beach Cafe or the Star at Milton. If your car has conditional registration please sign the run sheet at the relevant location or notify the Secretary (neilmcintosh2@bigpond,com) Wednesday Morning Runs: Meet in the car park behind the Adelaide Hotel (opposite Russ Martin Park) – 9:30 am for 10:00 am departure. All motor vehicles welcome. A run sheet will be passed around – all should sign, not just those with conditional registration so that numbers can be relayed to the coffee shop!

PO Box 684 MORUYA NSW 2537 www.cvmce.org.au

10% Off

to Club

Members

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MEMBERSHIP

Since September 1st we have gained 11 new members and we welcome Ken Buckley, Peter Lonergan, Jorge Richardson, Ray Jacka, Tony & Kerry Peereboom, Darren Walshe and Paul Hofmann to the Club

President’s message

The year has raced away and its that time of the year when we eat to much and make promises we wont do it again, that is until next year rolls around and we do exactly what we said we wouldn’t do.

The club has grown this year largely due to the new Scheme and in part to motoring folk moving into the catchment area from other locations. We have an eclectic range of vehicles, which I think adds to our broad membership and to the community who have an interest in seeing our vehicles on runs or just parked in the street.

The Show and Shine prize presentation was conducted at the Christmas function, which I have to say, was, as always an excellent lunch and afternoon. The prize winners feature on other pages of this magazine.

The Committee is in the early stages of dealing with the Modified Vehicle Scheme, which we will integrate into our cur-rent Policies. As I write this Scheme is still not announced, however we have some early information, which will help us deal with whatever the RMS decides to do once they make the announcement which we think will happen in Decem-ber.

The Committee is also conducting a lot of work to refine events such as the Show and Shine along with other matters, which need a fresh approach or a complete review. We will also look to the AGM in 2017 to get some additional help with events and what ever else comes down the track.

I have had the pleasure of working with some very fine and talented people in my tenure as President and to that end I thank them on my behalf and that of the members who benefit from a committed and talented group of people who give of their time and expertise to manage the Club.

Special Thanks to Bill and Colleen McCallum for their regalia work as they will be stepping down and handing over to Rob and Donna Upton in the New Year. The McCallums have been volunteering for many years and we thank them for their service. John Nader is also stepping down from his weekly Wednesday run coordination which I have to say has grown in numbers significantly in the past couple of years. On behalf of our members I thank John for his work and preparation getting the Wednesday runs to such an excellent standard.

To all who helped at the show and Shine and the Xmas function I thank you for your efforts in staging these events.

A special thanks to Dave Gibson, Neil Macintosh, Peter Smith, Bob and Anne Thisselton and Huw Owen Jones for the work they do on behalf of the members. It is an absolute pleasure working with such professionals.

Lastly I cannot thank Graham Wilkie enough for his work as Vice President. I was overseas for the Show and Shine and only got back two days before the Xmas function. Graham had everything dialled in ready to go so we had a seamless handover and the whole production went to plan. Graham is the go to man and his detail is without peer. Accordingly I thank him for his work on the team and his role as Vice President.

To all members I hope you have had a safe and happy Xmas and that 2017 will be a very good year for you and your families.

Safe Motoring

Brett Moore

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Club Committee:

President Brett Moore

Secretary Neil McIntosh Membership Bob Thistleton

Treasure Dave Gibson

Newsletter Editor Huw Owen-Jones

Events Coordinator Peter Smith – 4474 2251 Wednesday Run John Nader 4474 4062

Run Captains - Andrew Redwin 4473 8062 Geoff Radcliffe 0427 023585

Nov 23 Mossy Point Muffins 4471 8599-Joanne

Nov 30 Bodalla Bakery 4473 5213-Share

Dec 07 South Durras General Store 4478 6168-Erin

Dec 14 Tilba-Anywhere you like 4473 7534-Judith

Dec 21 Shelly Beach-Moruya ($5 BBQ)

Dec 28 East Lynn Roadhouse 4478 6050-Dean

2017

Jan-04-17 Blue Earth Café 4473 5211-Eric

Jan-11-17 Tomakin IGA Café-JJ’s At the Moorings 4471 55618-Jacob

Jan-18-17 Tuross Country Club

Jan-25-17 Beachside Bakery-Lilly Pilly 4471 1200-Megan

The time has finally come for me to step down and let a few new ideas come into The Wednesday Run. After 70 months - 6 years -I have decided to let someone else have a go at introducing a few new ideas as I’ve drained my mental pot. Getting this programme out early will give the club time to organise someone to take over from me at the monthly meeting in December. The Wednesday Run has developed from Gordon doing a trip to Nelligen on his own, seven years ago, to 55 at Lilly Pilly last week. Our record attendance is 63 at any one day, but over two venues. With a few new ideas I’m sure this will increase.

Thanks for the opportunity the club gave me in running “The Coffee Run” and thanks to all who have enjoyed attending. It has been my pleasure.

J.N.

C.V.M.C.E. Regular Wednesday Run No. 70 Runs are for all members and friends. Departure is from behind the Adelaide Hotel, Moruya, 10am sharp. We assemble 9:30 am for a little FELLOWSHIP, and sign in. Please remember to sign in. You are encouraged to contact anyone of our club committee for any questions. Feel free to invite a friend.

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Council of Heritage Motor Clubs - NSW Inc.

ABN: 49 109 228 949

www.heritagemotoringcouncil.org.au The “HERITAGE MOTORING COUNCIL”

To All Club Secretaries.

Council's Committee is concerned that important information from Council to some affiliated Clubs appears at times to be either incorrectly interpreted or poorly communicat-

ed to club members. This issue has been drawn to the attention of Council through certain material published in some Club newsletters and via comments from delegates at

Council Meetings, reporting on what has, or more seriously, has not been communicated at their own club.

This problem involves only a very few clubs but such incorrect information imparted to their club members often quickly spreads through the movement, causing confusion and

issues for other clubs.

Council's Committee asks all affiliated clubs to be on the alert for the spread of misinformation, especially with regards to vehicle registration, if in doubt a call or email to a

Committee member will quickly be responded to with bona fide information.

Of concern too is inaccurate information from sources outside CHMC that has been given prominence over the consistently accurate information provided by Council. It ap-

pears that certain organisations and individuals have sought to communicate to affiliated clubs material which discredits CHMC apparently in an endeavour to encourage those

clubs to transfer their allegiance. For example, a contribution to a recent club newsletter stated that CHMC did not advise of the Log Book System, and that it was necessary to

gain opinion from an organisation other than CHMC on the Log Book initiative. In fact CHMC advised all its affiliated Clubs on 8th September 2015 of the Log Book introduction -

4 days after the Minister's announcement of the Log Book Trial. Then CHMC arranged for the relevant senior RMS officer, Peter Wells, to address club delegates at the first

opportunity - the 2015 General Meeting at Orange on 24th October 2015. CHMC quickly published a record of that discussion and the relevant Q&A on the CHMC website, and

provided the most up-to-date information, confirmed with the RMS, through mail-outs to Clubs and on the CHMC website.

Club delegates attending that 2015 Orange General Meeting had the opportunity to take back to their clubs the most reliable information at that time on the Log Book option.

Similarly at the recent 2016 General Meeting at Parkes delegates were appraised, within the bounds of our confidentiality agreement with RMS, of various matters of im-

portance to clubs.

Committee is aware that attendance at the two CHMC meetings per year may involve lengthy travel for some club delegates, no matter which Club elects to host a meeting or

Rally. It is not reasonable to expect all Clubs to expend significant time and resources to attend all CHMC meetings, however as these meetings are correctly reported in the

Minutes distributed to all clubs it is reasonable to expect that individual club members are accurately advised of Council's actions and transactions, especially those with the

RMS.

Address all correspondence to: The Secretary, CHMC PO Box 641 QUEANBEYAN NSW 2620 Email: secretarychmc@gmail.com

To facilitate more direct contact with Clubs and their members Council's Committee is exploring the concept of conducting forums in some centres in NSW where members of

the Committee will address matters relating to Heritage Motoring such as vehicle registration, and respond to questions from attendees. Whilst the forums would be directed at

groups of CHMC affiliated Clubs, attendance by non-affiliates need not be discouraged. Forums could be conducted in areas such as the Far North Coast; Mid North Coast;

Hunter & Central Coast; Far West; Central West; Northern Tablelands; South Eastern; Riverina; etc.

Such a concept would involve a cost to Council, although Committee members are willing to commit to the time involved there are insufficient funds in the budget to cover

their out of pocket expenses. Options include: a small charge to participate in the forum, assistance with accommodation, or increasing the travel budget and possibly therefore

Club affiliation fees.

Please consider this forum concept and provide any input your club may have towards it. Would your Club be willing to host such a forum, and assist in encouraging other herit-

age vehicle clubs to attend? Is any particular time or day more suitable than any other?

Many clubs are anticipating the announcement of the Classic Vehicle Scheme for modified vehicles. As Council has indicated to RMS its intention to apply to be one of the peak

bodies for this Scheme would regional forums shortly after the Scheme's announcement be appreciated by Clubs?

Council looks forward to your considered response to this concept.

Yours Faithfully

Ray Ives President

12th December 2016

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The CVMCE Hunter Valley & Other Places of Interest Tour. (by Jim Wilson)

The CVMCE annual trip away was run from 5th to 10th November. On the Saturday morning ten CVMCE couples threw their luggage into cars

and headed off full of anticipation for Peter Smith’s 2016 Hunter Valley Tour.

Starting from several places we planned to meet at the Classic Yass festival. A group of five cars met at Nelligen for a convoy up the mountain.

We had a coffee stop at Braidwood (at least one fellow also had a naughty pie treat) and then went on to Yass where we stepped out into a

very cold and windy day. Going our separate ways we inspected the cars, listened to music, looked at the stalls and found places for lunch out

of the cold. As usual there was a great range of interesting vehicles on display as well as the famous Billy Cart races

Rare unrestored Lagonda at Classic Yass display.

Several other CVMCE cars were already on display with some in pride-of-

place right at the entry point.

Later we headed off to Goulburn where we met up with some more of our

party and had a terrific meal and night at the Paragon Café. Those wanting to

be safe took the footpath route to and from the Motel – a decent but warm-

ing walk of several blocks.

.

Sunday we gathered together for our drive to Mudgee along the back road to

Bathurst via the Abercrombie Gorge, stopping at Taralga for coffee. Terry & Enid

tried to leave Taralga without paying but guilt weighed heavily on them (and be-

cause they really liked the café owners) so they returned to settle their account.

Coffee at Taralga – the Terry & Enid getaway “Taralga Crime Scene”

One by one we reached Oberon for a nice lunch at the Long Farm Café.

Art Deco Hall in Oberon

Merc-Fest in Oberon

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Pushing on we made good time to the rendezvous at Logan Vineyard located just a few kms before Mudgee. This Vineyard is owned by Leslie

and Neil’s daughter and son in law. We were treated to fabulous cheese platters and the Logan wines in a generous tasting while overlooking

the winery in lovely sunshine. Several of us purchased some wines for the trip or home.

Logan Vineyard Cheese & The Gang The Hand of David & Cheese Plater

John and Annette were having some issues with fuel in their Mercedes and had that seen to at a local Mudgee shop that replaced the fuel

filter.

After booking into our pretty flash Mudgee motel – the Horatio, we had a little time to get ready to go to the terrific Mudgee Brewery for our

first all-participants combined dinner (except Lance and Adele who were planning to catch us the next day). Live music (by Allan Caswell ) got

us into the mood as did the in-house brewed beers and Mudgee wines. All agreed the food was excellent and servings were generous too. The

walk back to the Motel was again cold but had us ready for good sleeps.

On Monday it was largely self-guided with a starting point a run to Gulgong suggested. Most of us met there for coffees (at least one fellow

also had a naughty pie treat - again) and some went to the very extensive pioneer’s museum while others looked around the town. Back in

Mudgee we went shopping, took photographs of this pretty town, found lunch at one of the many eating places, walked along the Cudgegong

River Park where sculptures were scattered through the gardens and generally we relaxed. Lance and Adele now joined us.

Lunch in Mudgee – Petts & McIntoshs Garden Sculpture on Cudgegong River

Back at the Horatio it was Happy Hour and the tall tales started to be told as the drinks slowly disappeared. Off to the Oriental Hotel we went

– some driving some walking. The outside of the oriental looks smallish but inside it is a big hotel with a number of dining areas; we had an

upstairs dining room that worked out great for our party.

Some souls were slightly slow on Tuesday morning as we headed off for the run to Pokolbin via Merriwa. The temperatures started to climb as

we moved into the Valley. The morning stop at Merriwa had us in two groups each with a café selected as we entered town. The Golden High-

way route via Sandy Hollow to Pokolbin had been chosen to avoid the heavy traffic of the New England Highway through Singleton. It got

hotter and hotter but most found relief at Denman where we ate lunch on the shady veranda of the Royal Hotel.

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Denman Lunch at the Royal Hotel

Pushing on we pulled up behind

Ward and Lin who seemed to be

having car issues. Their BMW was

now clutchless due to a failed clutch

slave cylinder. After Ward rang

around we were to learn that no

tow trucks operated out this far.

Lance gave Ward a rapid learner’s

course in Clutchless Car Driving and

with a big push from some of the

men away he went – hoping to get it

a bit closer to the mechanic in Sin-

gleton.

Of course the local roadworks had

obviously been pre-planned to stop

Ward and Lin whenever they could. I

also suggested rather than waiting

for a push he start up in first gear

using the starter and he was able to

get all the way to the Singleton me-

chanic – well done Ward.

Waiting for a gap in the traffic….. Now PUSH that BMW

No fuel means No Go at Sandy Hollow

I have to say, and I think Lance would agree that unleaded petrol tastes

worse than leaded petrol used to in the old days. Next morning some specks

of dirt in the fuel pump were removed to solve our problem. We learnt that

night that John’s Mercedes was still giving problems so he was leaving it to

be sorted at a local workshop.

That night under thundery skies we went on a short walk a few hundred

meters up the road for an excellent choice of Thai or Japanese. We slept

well that night tired out by the day’s drive, the heat and the breakdowns.

On Tuesday we discovered that the managers of the Pokolbin Village were

friends of ours from Moruya and also that the maintenance man was a great

friend of Lenore’s son. This proved helpful in getting discounts from the

bottle shop and in help in setting up the BBQ on the veranda later.

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We all went off to do our own thing for the day. We went to Cessnock and out to Broke but generally just relaxed and did some shopping

before catching up with local friends. That night Peter, Lance and others bought food and set up the BBQ so while it rained, we had a

wine tasting (no spitting out the tasting sample allowed). We had fun under cover enjoying each other’s company and great food.

On Wednesday it was time to head for the Gosford Motor Museum. This was a short run of an hour and a half but it was still quite hot so

those without air-conditioning were pleased to park and get into the museum. The collection is quite amazing and well set out. It is obvi-

ously set up and operated as a serious commercial operation rather than as an enthusiast’s collection but having said that the number

and quality of the vehicles is staggering. We felt that there was something there to satisfy nearly everyone’s interest. Lenore and I could

certainly have picked out a few to take and give a home. Many of the cars were for sale but none was in our price range!

A Familiar Face at Gosford Museum America-

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Rare 1950 Alvis Roadster Super cars by the dozen

Following the museum we left the tour and headed a few minutes away to stay with family for the night. We hear that the others made it

to Windsor for their last night and all got home safely.

We got away from Gosford mid-morning Friday and had a trouble free run back through Goulburn to home. All up we had driven

1048miles (1686km) and achieved 14.5litres/100km (19.5mpg). We really enjoyed the run, the company and despite a fuel problem our

car went very well and was comfortable and we felt relaxed in all parts of the trip except on the day from Mudgee to Pokolbin when it

was stinking hot.

We enjoyed the two night stays on this tour that gave us time to relax and explore. The self-guided aspect of the tour worked well with

lots of free time that made for a relaxing pace.

Tour Participants were:

Lance & Adele Brazier 1968 Aston Martin

Terry & Enid Fuller Mercedes

Ward & Lin Hack BMW convertible

Neil & Leslie McIntosh Mercedes 280E

John & Annette Nader 1985 Mercedes 380 SE

Huw & Barbara Owen-Jones Modern

David & Ingrid Petts Modern

Garry Smith & Jillian Peck Modern

Peter & Sharon Smith Mercedes 300D modern

Jim & Lenore Wilson 1959 Plymouth

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At the 2016 Goodwood Revival (By Eric Wiseman)

Sir Stirling Moss at the Credit Suisse drivers’ forum with his very caring wife.

No secret in winning says Sir Stirling

WINNING races is simple, according to Sir Stirling Moss. “The secret is putting your foot down and going fast.”

A small gathering of motor-racing illuminati has become a tradition at the Goodwood Revival each September. This year in the cosiness of the Credit Suisse building Sir Stirling was joined by Derek Bell, Dario Franchitti, Jochen Mass, Alain de Cadenet and Da-vid Brabham. They spoke, largely, about the comparisons of racing closed cars and single-seaters.

As in previous years, there seemed to be a general disquiet about the way motor-racing was going.

Bell said, among other things, it seemed difficult for young people to work their way up these days. “The problem is that these days there’s no room at the top.” He added: “There are twenty times more young people trying to get into racing than in our days.” As well: “We’re in the entertainment business. Back in my day people were entertained. But nowadays people aren’t.” An exception, apparently, was the Revival. “It drags people in because it is the way it used to be.”

It was generally agreed, it seemed, that one problem with motor-racing now was a diminishing fear factor. David Brabham said there had always been a fear factor at Goodwood, “and that was good for race spectators. With the current racing tracks there’s no dear factor. ”Going sideways is not as common now as it used to be,” he added.

Franchitti said his dream as a boy had been to drive in Formula One. “But the further up the ladder I climbed the less I really want-ed it.”

De Cadenet said safety concerns had taken over. He said he didn’t like roll bars being installed on cars that didn’t originally have them.

It seemed that the drivers were unanimous in the opinion that the good old days really were!

Incidentally, at the 2016 Revival, as in all the previous ones, there was no lack of cars going sideways, and backwards.

There were those who said they couldn’t understand why time and track should be wasted on vehicles like Austin A30s and A35s, but the sight of more than thirty of them surging around the Goodwood Revival chicane, lights on and wipers working hard made it well worth while to most.

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OUR TRIP TO CUBA – Class Cars, Cigars, Cocktails & Casas

By Joanne McRae

Our recent travel adventure in November 2015 took Dean and I to Cuba. We spent our time in the west of the country visiting Ha-vana, Vinales, Trinidad and Cienfuegos. Why Cuba you might ask? Because we could and charismatic Cuba has so much to offer.

We spent time amongst the stunning landscapes and tobacco fields of Vinales where the world’s best cigars are produced. Our famer host shared his family secret to producing a good cigar – honey. Although both having been non-smokers for a good 30 years we just couldn’t resist the temptation to puff on a cigar. Not something we would care to take up again on a permanent ba-sis but it was fun to do and you could certainly taste the honey flavour.

I must confess to having indulged in the odd cocktail or two, or three, which in Cuba is always laced with luscious serves of Havana Club rum. There was the classic Cuban liber which is basically a mix of coke & run with a touch of lime. My favourite by far was the pina colada. Quite often not only did my pina colada come with the obligatory cocktail umbrella when ordered, it would also arrive with a 750ml bottle of rum to top up my drink as I made my way through it. If like Dean you are not so much of a cocktail person, there was always an ice cold cerveza (beer) readily available.

We roamed the streets admiring the early colonial architecture with a mix of Spanish baroque, French classicism and a touch of American art deco. Aside from the two nights we spent in the beautiful Hotel Nacional in Havana which was built in the 1930s we were accommodated in casa particulares. Casas are private homestays similar to B&Bs where the locals open their homes and rooms to visitors. The casas provide a much needed income to families and provide visitors with an insight into daily Cuban life. We spent our casa time eating home cooked meals, amongst art deco furnishings and mahogany furniture, and sitting back in rock-ing chairs watching daily life pass by.

But our main reason for travel to Cuba was all about the classic cars. If you love old cars you simply have to go to Cuba. We were astounded by the thousands of American cars from the 1940s & 1950s that cruised the streets throughout the country. Every-where we looked there were classic makes of Oldsmobile, Buick, Chev, Ford, Chrysler & Plymouth. These cars were brought into Cuba from America up until 1960 when the US Government declared a trade embargo and stopped their import into Cuba. But you don’t see any wrecking yards around or car bodies dumped in the back of somebody’s paddock. No longer able to source parts for their cars Cubans have been forced to stitch their cars together with body filler and non-original parts in order to keep their cars running and on the road. Many of these vehicles now provide a source of income for the locals who operate them as taxis. Despite the cars not being original they looked good, were still operating, and added to the fabulous nostalgia of Cuba that we experi-enced.

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MY DAD’S MG TA by Jake Harris

A few of the readers may have noticed my Dad’s MG TA at the Moruya show and shine and some of you may have asked dad about the car the usual question is did you restore it or did you buy it like that? Dad’s answer is always that he bought it like that. And he is quite proud to tell anyone body that will listen that he bought it in 1948 (someone born in 1948 is now in their late 60’s!). He actually won a bottle of port at the biennial pre-war MG rally for having owned a pre-war MG longer than any-one else!

To be truthful I don’t think dad has been quite honest in telling people how easy it is to win an award, which is why I have written the story that goes behind the car. First off you have to go back a lot further than 1948

Image for a moment, 2 boys playing in the dirt behind the blacksmiths shop in a small town in rural NSW in the late 1930’s.

The back of Wilsons blacksmith shop is the best place for young boys to dig in the dirt, as it’s full of broken pieces of metal, old horseshoes as well as discarded mechanical bits and bobs. The younger of the two boys hears a strange noise and asks his old-er brother “what’s that?” the 11 year old jumps up, squints, and looks out across the swamp. He then turns and runs flat out into the motor repair shop next door, where his father and the mechanic are once again making repairs to the 7 seater Hud-son. The boys mum has just pulled up in the T Model Ford with her youngest, a 1 year old, crawling about on the front seat. The mum wonders what all the fuss is about as the 11 year old yells “come and have a look at this come and have a look at this”, the 11 year is Claude (my dad) and this is where you have to start if you want to win a bottle of port in 80 years’ time, at the boy’s instance, the whole family including the mechanic and everyone from the blacksmith shop run out on to the street. The one year old is left to fend for himself on the front seat of the T Model.

You must understand that, this is country Australia before World War II. Cars are rare; women drivers, like the boys mum virtu-ally non-existent and most people have never seen a bright red British sports car.

The 11 year old shouts excitedly to the gathering of people, that “It’s one of those new over head valve MG’s, just like the cream crackers we read about in the magazines and the same as won the Australian Grand Prix in South Australia!”. The boy watches, with the throng of people in the middle of the road, as the Red MG TA wheels around the corner at the cross roads, as the driver expertly blips the throttle and faultlessly double shuffles into second. The car sits beautifully on the road and ac-celerates up the street at a speed incomprehensible to the mum used to driving the 2 speed epi-centrical T Ford gearbox. The 11 year old announces with a puff of his chest to the gathering, “That is what I will drive when I get my licence.” The boy’s dad, the mechanic and the smithy all laugh and the mum says” that’s what you think buster.”

The only person to believe the boy is his 9 year old brother Jack. Little did the mum know that this encounter was to change the course of her family history for generations to come. That car and MG’s in general were to become the centre of family

15

disputes, the passion of her children grandchildren and great- grandchildren, and the one year old left on the front seat of the T Model Ford was to die at the wheel of a brand spanking new TF 1500 (but that’s another story). The two boys go back to digging in the dirt behind the blacksmiths shop, and everyone else goes back to work excitement over. The oldest boy Claude, starts to work on his little brother “we have to save all our penny’s if we are to have a car like that when we get our licence”. The little brother takes no convincing and Claude has the story of all stories to trump Ted, his best and school blow hard when they go back to school tomorrow. While Claude is recounting his story about the sports car to the kids in the school yard, Ted

tries to centre the attention on himself by telling everyone he has seen the car up close and personal, down by the river when its owner was fishing for mullet.

What Ted can’t know and describe is the way the car handles and the sound it makes as the driver double de-clutches into second and rounds a corner. Ted was later to purchase and repurchase a new TC (and currently has a collection of MG’s in-cluding a Q type that would make your eyes water) but as everybody knows there was never a TC built that could out handle a TA at the hands of a skilled driver unless it was a TB (If Cecil Kimber didn’t make it it’s not really a MG is it! )

Herr Hitler and World War II now intervenes in this story (and for a few years winning the port looks doubtful) a dark cloud descends across the world. The two boys still save their pennies with one eye on the sports car, The TA comes up for sale but the boys are too young and can’t afford it, due to the extreme shortages of everything during the war. The car is sold to friends of the family and the number plate is changed to WR005 to reflect the new ownership.

Then finally the car comes up for sale again but this time the Claude is 21, and has enough money to buy the dream that started 10 years before. Over the next 12 years the car is used but not abused as a primary means of transport.

From 1960 when marriage and a family come along the car is not sold as it would tend to be in most situations but garaged and treated better than any family pet, almost like a sibling to your children. I can actually remember it being more important to keep a watchful eye on the car at club events than it was to keep an eye on my little sister!

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In the 70’s the car now gets used for family outings with the local and MG car clubs mostly around Wollongong but every now and again for a trip to Sydney

During the 80’s and 90’s the car gets used less and less until by 2011 it maybe gets only one outing a year to parade the showgirls at the Albion Park Show but only if it’s a nice day, never if it looks like rain.

When the Pre-war Rally moved from Beechworth to Bathurst and my sister and I think it would be a good idea to take dad and the rest of the family to Bathurst Trouble is that the car has been no further than Sydney in the last fifty years and hasn’t been out of Wollongong in the last 20.

When asked, Claude readily agrees to take the car to Bathurst, confident that that it will not happen because we have no way of getting the car there. But he has no choice when we purchase a closed in race car trailer (funny that the trailer can cost 10 times what the car in it cost after a few years)

So you see it takes a lot more than buying a second hand car and keeping it for a few years to win a bottle of port at the Bathurst Rally. But here’s the clincher how can a boy from Rural NSW in the depression of the 1930’s afford a British sports car well the trick you see is to be a non-drinker when faced with the decision to save your penny’s to buy a car or go out on the town the decision has to come down in favour of the car! Than if you are to keep the car you have to stick with that philos-ophy your whole life.

That’s good news for my sister and I, because dad is a non-drinker, we got to share the Port (all in one session too! something you could only understand if there was a car in the family that was treated better than a family pet) and we could only taste the hint of burning rubber in the very last glass!!

With a bit of luck I might be able to get dad to bring his ES2 Norton to next year’s show and shine he has only had the bike since 1950 and he has fully restored it, so it’s in heaps better nick than the MG.

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Details of the Conditional Registration Scheme and 60-day permit trial

can be found at

http://www.rms.nsw.gov.au/roads/registration/get-nsw-registration/

historic-vehicles/index.html

Club Inspectors are listed on Page 4. All are volunteers and they do not

charge for inspecting your vehicle.

All vehicles on historic registration must be inspected by a Club Inspector

even if they have a “Pink Slip” for certification that they meet the Historic

Vehicle criteria: i.e. that they are 30+ years old and are not modified

other than for safety.

The Inspectors have Club Stamps and will certify vehicle suitability and

financial club membership. The Member must prove financial

membership by showing the Inspector a current membership card or

receipt for membership renewal.

CHRISTMAS PARTY 2016

Santa joined the Car Club,

To brighten up his day,

Then he went a speeding,

Along the Milky Way.

The Christmas Party seemed like fun,

He would go in disguise,

So no-one would recognise him,

Or show their great surprise.

He came down to Earth,

Hid his lovely sleigh

With members of the Car Club,

He joined the party of Christmas Day,

Prizes were awarded.

Who won at Show and Shine.

Christmas tucker was early.

Washed down with plenty of wine.

Santa had a lovely time,

The best he’d had for years.

For no-one knew the new chap,

Who shed some joyous tears.

So Santa climbed upon his sleigh,

Gave Vixen a cuddle and Rudolph some Hay.

Rising slowly in the air,

Gave a wave, then wasn’t there.

So Members when you go to sleep.

Santa left good cheer, for you to keep.

For Christmas is a special time of year,

When loved ones are so very dear.

Though they might be far away.

They’re close to you on this special day.

Smile at memories that run deep,

And hear their laughter when you sleep.

Tony Maynard

December 2016

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More on Citroen 2CVs (By Eric Wiseman)

REGARDING the picture of the Citroën 2cv*, It seems likely some members will

have seen the James Bond masterpiece For Your Eyes Only in which Bond, as

represented by Roger Moore accompanied by Carol Bouquet drives a yellow

2cv, being pursued by villains in Peugeots. The deuche has to be righted after

overturning in a village and goes on to cut across country and fly over olive

trees, becoming battered but unbowed in the process.

Actually, three or four 2cvs were used in the scene, all powered by four-

cylinder engines from another Citroën model. It is a not uncommon modifica-

tion in the UK but most likely wouldn’t be allowed here, the RMS probably

seeing it as highly irresponsible. One of the aims of the modification seems to

be giving the 2cv the ability to baffle Volvos going up hills. It seems that Volvos

have a habit of overtaking 2cvs going up hills and slowing them down on the

other side.

Reaction to the episode…really the best thing in the film…resulted in Citroën producing a limited edition 007, yellow, with pistol-gripped 007

decals on the sides and imitation bullet holes here and there. They are quite rare.

Another rarity was the 2cv utility largely produced for the Royal Marines who when

they were done with them hurtled them into the sea from aircraft carrier launching

pads. The utility shown visited me from Mogo a few years ago, a home-made effort

based on a Charleston.

When it was introduced at the Parish Motor Show in 1948 the individuality of the Cit-

roen 2cv was just too much for some…and continued to be for many all its life. One

Motor Show-goer was heard to ask if it came with a tin opener, such as came with

sardine tins?

Compliments were few, with one UK motor magazine commenting in the mid-1950s

that the deuche had “almost every virtue except speed, silence and good looks”. Earli-

er a

British motoring journalist had expressed the opinion that the designer of the car had

“kissed the lash of austerity with almost masochistic fervour”.

Fortunately the manufacturer rode with the punch of austerity. It was seen as a virtue; as it was. Advertising in mid-flow of the model’s 42-

year life trumpeted that the 2cv had no wind-up windows, no rev counter, no cigar-lighter, no on-board computer, no female voice readout,

no fan belt, no turbocharger, no remote control door mirrors, no cruise control and no radiator. The list of items the 2cv did without could

also have included water hoses, water-pump, distributor and central locking. In other advertisements the company thought it necessary to

remind owners of the location of the fuel-filler…as it was so rarely used drivers might forget!

Other writers came to regard the 2cv as a triumph of minimalistic motoring.

Recognition of the car’s virtues…largely including its simplicity…has been increasing since it went out of production in 1990 after more than

five-million, in its various forms, were made. So recently prices for good ones have been increasing. A few years ago bidding went up to

$45,000 for one at a Sydney auction, and early in 2015 one sold in the UK, a white and green Dolly, for £15,000, and that is about $A30,000.

If you want to know more, just ask.

*There is occasional debate as to whether the title should be 2CV or 2cv.

I have come down on the side of the latter.

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