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BULLETIN No. 362 MARCH 1988

Founded 1951

Assoc iated with the R.A.C.

Patron: CG H F Dunham EsC].

Past Presidents: A G Coles, R P Birks, A Lees, A James, Lt. Col E B Dewey

Council President & Club Historian: K R Day, Sentos<l, Ronneby Close, Oat lands Ch<lse, Weybridge,

Surrey KTl3 9SB (0932) 246341

Vice President: E Shen ton, Gandria, Caverswa ll Common, Stoke on Trent , Staffs ST11 9EU (0782) 393053

Chainnan: E P Oakm<lll, White Oak Court, 28 Slave Hill, Haddenham, Aylesbury, Btlcks. HP17 8AZ (0844) 290259

Treasurer: N Whitton, 102 Henwood Green Road , Pembury, Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN2 4LN (089282) 2088

GeneralSecretary: M Cummins, The Hill House, Rushock, Dro it wich, Warcs WR9 ONR (056 283) 309

Bulletin Editor: B Lenthall , Wykham Farm, \3anbury, Oxon OX16 9UP (0295) 65800

Competition Secrel'ary: \3 Chant, Milestoncs, Grove Lane, Stalbridge, Sturminster Newton, Do"e! DTlO 2RF (0963) 62894

Pre-War Spares & Technical Adviser: P Woodley, cio Automobile Restorat ions, The Bunga low, South Croxton Road, \3arsby, Leicester LE7 8RA (0664) 840419 9am - Spm only

Registrar: J R Fox, Grabe r Lodge, Craypool L<lne, Scothem, Lincoln LN2 2UU (0673) 62347

Public Relations: M Baker, Abbots Way, Downs Si de, Cheam, Surrey SM2 7EQ. Day (07373) 62575, evening 01 661 9455

Section Secretaries South Eastern: Joan Kay, Delholme, Mill Llne, Littleworth , Horsham, W. Sussex RH13 8JU

(0403) 710991

South Western: Derek Bradbury, Broadlawn, Lower RO\v, I-Iolt , Wimoorne, Dorset \31-121 7DZ (0202) 882838

East Anglian: Jack Claver, The Qld Rectory, Wood ton , Bungay, Suffolk NR35 2LP (Wood Ion 291)

Midland: R G F Hyde, 147 Longdon Road, Knowle, Solihull , West Midlands 893 9HY (05645) m92

Northern: Michael Fletcher, Rockwood Cottage, Shearbank Road , Blackburn , Lanes. B\31 8AP (0254) 60999

Scottish: John Thompson, Peel Lodge, Waterside Road, Busby, Glasgow G76 9HN (041) 644 4115

North American: A J-I Clarkson, Lower Mounlain Road , Furlong, Pa. USA 18925 215-794-8785

Danish: Peter \3ering, Fuglevangsvej 17, 3060 Es pergaerde 02 231785

Swedish: G Henrysson, Skarphagsgatan 68, 5-60364, Norrkôping, Sweden (011 ) - 1888\0

Duteh: W van der Meer, Dr van Noords traat Ic, 2266 Gr Stompwij k, Netherla nd s. (01 03 1) 17 15 10 19

Other Officials Membership Secrclary: E W Wimble, 82 Darling Drive, Ewell, Surrey KT1? 3BH 01 3934680

Car Registrar: 0 J Culsh<1\\', 27 Whiteside Avenue, Hall Lane, Wigan, L..l I1CS . WN2 2SB

Delegates to COMee: Comp.5ec. & L Merriott, Maycroft, 51 Chestnut Avenue, Wokingham, Berks . RGll 2UT

Technicai Editor: Peter Black, Rue de la Mairie, 30131 Pujaut, France

Information & Services Club Insurance Brokers: Footman, James ilnd Co./ Waterfa ll Ume, Crildley Heath, Warley,

West Mid lands (021) 56"1 2847/8

RAC Membership & Club rcga lia : M A Sanders, Bcrcs ford, Llanwrtyd Wells, Powys LOS 4RD (05913) 562 Pr iees inc\uding pos tage (cheques payable 10 Alvis Owner Club): Badges - car .L8.50. cloth .(1 .80, Lapel brooch SO p. Clip fitting brooch BO p, Tax d ise holders SO p, Slîckers 3 .5 ~ x 2.5 " club badge on whil e backg round (ex ternal or internai fi xing, slate which) 35p. Key rings Ll .50, Cuff links ( 4.00, Tic tacks Ll.40, Tics (multi motif. blue o r green) 0.95, Head scan 'cs (blue or ivory) ( 4.25.

Sweatshirts, T-shirts & pullovers from the Chairman (sec o pposi te)

Instruction Manuals can be borrowed by UK members o nl)' aga inst a refundablc dcposit o f CIO by cheque payable to AOC. Please send a separate cheque fo r Ll for post and packing to:

R J McMullen , 56 VVickham Street, Welling, Kent DA16 6BZ

Bulletin back numbcrs from the Ge neral Secretary (sec opposite)

Cordex Binders: Thesc will each accommodatc 12 Bulletins at a cast of ( 2.25 including p.&p. in the UK. Available from Eric Stapleton, Wi llow Co ttage, Little Dunrnow, Essex CM6 3HP.

Changes of address sho uld be notified to the Registrar (sec o ppos ite) Ali enquiries about del ivery of the Bulletin should be addressed 10 the General Secretar)' .

Advertisements & ail matc rial for the Bulletin will he grillefully received by Ihe Bu lletin Editor (sec ilbave). Urgent notices and small ads can be accommodilled up to three weeks before publication (firsl of the Illonth except January and August). Longer notice is re'lui red for reports and ilrlicles. Jllegiblc or lengthy articles are unlikely ta be publ ished quickly.

DISPlAY ADS are availa blc on a per issue or an nu aI (ten issue) basis. Annual raies are [250 per full page; (125 pel" half pnge nnd.t:65 per quarter page. Per issue rates are 00 per page;.fIS per h;,lf page and 0.50 pcr quarter page.

Please f/"ote yOl/r l1Iembers!Jip l1umber il1 al1y correspol1dellce witlt officiais al1d euclose (J stamped self-addressed ellvelope if yOll ref/llire a reply.

Front cover; Rivel s F let.cher ( r ight) ~' ith S ix Pe t er Maset ield , Chai r man of the BrOok lands Tru st in the paddock witl; ,.,is ' ne ~ ' 5peed 20 .

Editorial OWarfing aIl other events this month is the retirement of our Chairman , Eric oakman as announced in his colunn last month . It 1s Eric who , along with ou r President Ken Day 1 has guidee! the Club and its fortunes for a staggering twenty one years - and that's only the Ume he has been Chaiman! OH debt of gratitude te him can never be repaid since ta many people bath inside and outsi de the Club , Eric has been the Alvis a..11e r dub and for longer than anyone cao remember . \ole will of course continue ta see him regularly with his intnaculate blue Te2l / 10a DHe at events and hope that his r etirement \·.'111 give him nor e t i me te pursue his othe r interests .

Haven 't had a grumble for a while 50 here are twc little ones : merrbers who send me material fo r the bulletin wi thout an SAE and then conplain when l don~t return their photos ; and members who write to me as Br ian , often quite affectionatel y . Now there hasn't been a Brian as your edito r fo r ove r a decade , so l can only say as we once we re wont to do , that l beg to remain , ladies and gentlemen, you r respectful servant ..

Ben Lenthall

The Chairman's Column PARTS lOCATION SERVICE

The following are available from Noel E G wild , Pronuse cottage , Lyth Hill Road , Bayston lIill , Sh rewsbury , SY30AU tel : (074372 ) 2862 .

SG Silver Eagle engine silver Eagle/ Firebird f ront axle with brake shoes and dr ums ~1416 Lucas star te r 5. 2 oiff unit Silver Eayle/ Firebird speedo & rev counter Sp 20/25 rear axle casiny with back plates and hubs Off side front wheel hub 9B link timing chain and tensioner Bronze oil fi lters (SE!Sp20/Fbi rd etc) Hoaù spring with half inch lIounting pins 6 gOOd tulip valves Tranco 300/25510 FB or FF SU carb jet washers and SU purrp points starter brushes 255659 believed suitable for l'145G '1"'0 condensers for JD6 mag/ coil distributor SA 25 . 63/ 3. 5 litre spare parts list . Front winy support/ tie bar plates , bronze Sp 20 type Bronze rear mounting bracket for all synchro box Lights , ignition & throttle tubes/ l evers SE FB type . ns halfshaft SE FB. 12 spring clutch mechanism for vintage SE FB or 12/ 50 Rocke r coyer SEE or Sp20 Transmission shafts and spiders . Flexible couplings 12/70: pair front springs recon , flattened - suit special , pair rear springs . new rad core , useo rad core , gearbox (101) crested Eagle 25: pai r rear springs . TAlC 3 litre: two gearboxes . Fi refly: pet roI tank. Silver crest : three camshafts (101) . Write or phone quoting number in brackets .

4

4x half gallon tins ICI Belco 300 Seal Grey code p03Q-2000. last in existence. (84) TC2l/l00 CWP, half shafts and brake backing plates (84) and TC21 etc windscreen washer bOttle with cradle (84)

write or phone quoting number in brackets.

Er ic oakman

Said in Sport

22nd April, 1988. Pre-silverstœe dinner for Alvis conpetition drivers past and present (this will now include 'Jenks' of course). Arrangements have been nade for a dinner as in previous years at The White Hart Hotel, Market Square, Buckingham. This event will include the presentation of the ROTH & JIM BULBERT MEMORIAL ANARD. BOokings for DINNER ONLY must be made to the AOC Camp Sec, Br ian Chant.

Gossip/RumOUr. Mike Ridley tells me that he has now purchased a speed 20/25 Which he intends to prepare for the 1988 season with the intention of competing in sprints and hill climbs. It will be good to see Mike back behind the Wheel of an Alvis. Many of you will renember Mike sharing a Fireflyj25 Special with stephen Denner in the early seventies. This car BAY 330 is now owned by Scott \'.Yeth of Salisbury. W11en David ROscoe loaned his 4.3 to Dennis Jenkinson at the VSCC weston Speed Trials, it is worth recording that this was the first occasion that 'Jenks' had ever driven an Alvis. Of course the event progranme did not include DSJ., therefore there were sorne people present who thought that David had really aged of late!

Nuts and Bolts Technicalities 6

Editorial

Brian Chant

l see that Castrol, a subsidiary of Burmah Oil, would appcar to be mounting an a t tack on members of this club. Wi th the 1 aunch of thei r "new" oil, Syntron (accompanied by the slogan: "Ultimate performance, ultimate protection") their publ ici ty chaps have set out to ca tch (1 quote [rom the Financial Times) that "select but growing group of discerning, sophisticated and technically knowledgeable motorists". How's that for hokum? Of course they may, unknowingly, be on the right track - provided you keep on reading this column .....

More weights of Speed 20 parts (As determined by yours tru 1 y.) kg lb

Pair cast iron brake shoes with half-worn linings 19" wheel with new 6.00x19 tyre & tube Radiator with cap and hoses Brake drum Brake drum Speed 25 Rear axle with differential, oil halfshafts, hubs and hubnuts, grease caps and driving plates

5

5.5 22.5 21

7 9

90

12 50 46 15.5

200

A small sum will reveal that the axle complete with wheels etc weighs 3 .06 hundredweight , or 155kg or 1.52kN.

Ne ..... 'l'e chnology ( fIll')

Further to my recent extracts from the pape r on NT given by the chief e xecutive, HAC r-totodng Services , the following l et t e r (retort?) appeared in the Oct/Nov issue of the Automobile Engineer :

Sir , In New Zealand the average age of cars on the road is 14 years , though this is fa lling due to the un r epairability of crashed Japanese tinware . There are only four main centres roughly evenly spaced clown a country roughly 1000 miles long in which higher grade technical support may be obtainecl . Again , distances bet .... ·een habitations can be tens of miles so that it is vital that adjustments and makeshift repairs remain within the capabilities either of the driver or of a local village mechanic using hand tools . There are many other countries with similar or even more adverse conditions .

1 sincerely hope that our so-called designers will not be entirely carried away by the exube rance of their own virtuosity and make only the short-lived over-complicated high - technology/ low-utility monstrosities described but will retain in their catalogue a straightfon."ard pushrod OHV j o b with a fix e d j e t carbure ttor , a normal coil ignition , lots of fuses , a gearbox s e parate (rom the e ngine and a r eal boxe d chassis.

If a ny s o-called d es igne rs want an obje ct lesson in how to des i g n a car [or the backblocks o f the e arth (for e xport!) let them conside r the Alvis 12/50 and Silve r Eagl e o[ 1925-32 which could be dismantl ed and r e built with a se t o( open-e ndc d h'hitworth spanne rs , sorne pl iers , an auto wre nch and sorne scrc wdrive rs . Let t he m make the fram e stiff however and the suspension suppl e . Le t the m make sure that the defl e ction from static to hump is greater by about 25 % than that from free to static ... Let the dampers bc large and low-pressured . One could go on and on of course , but the fact remains that cars suited to over-populated Europe / Japan are NOT suited ta most of the world so that only partial regard should be pa id to the pampered population cons idered by the !lAC.

'l'he spokesman"s prc-pcnultimate paraqraph is aIL tao true. 'l'he f1.lorris f1.1ari na is however , si ightly ove r-complicated with bucket tappets instead of adjustabl e fi ng ers and a ge arbox which cannot readily be taken out up ward through the floor . 'l'he British cars whi c h seem to have lasted longest here are t he f1.l or-ris Minor 1000 and 1100 van , man y of which are going we Il after about thirty years o n t he road . There is a l esse r number of Austin and Morris 1600 Oxfords but the se rust more quickly.

Finally : Any car requiring any special tools for repair is design defective a priori. .. A J lVil dy , NHleche , Auckland , New Zealand .

Corrment lt would seem that aIl is not yet Iost . Not that l thought myself to he

th e only on e with r e actionary notions! For e xample that a rear-drive car weighing one ton with il straiohtforward two-and - a - half litre 6-cylinde r-in­line motor (a la Bf1.I\'l) but havi~g a CR of 8 : 1 would be ideal. The motor would nave an iron head titted with lifting eyes , two valves per cylinde r ope rated by short pushrods , coil ignition (NO electronics of any kind) , stainl e ss steel e xhaust and sump containing not l e ss than two gallons . there would be a s e parate 5- spee d ge arbox , a boxe d and galvanised steel chassis of nine feet whee lbase with properly damped , located and sprung 15- inch centrelock wheels - and on it would be mounted an aluminium body incorporating a rigid passe nger cornpartme nt and having a nine -inch ground clearance. For me , lOOmph at 4000rpm and 25mpg (11 . 2 litres / IOOkm) would be enough . Oh yes - and SU carburettors ! The r e would be one grease nipple on the steering rack , dipsticks o n sump , ge arbox a nd differential with easy filling arrangements -

6

Le. from above - and a separate starter button. The car would come with a11 the hand too1s one might need to take it apart plus a proper jack and starting hand1e. The rest could be as modern and as light as possible consistent with a 1ife of twenty years. l would expect leather seats and a proper heater but would be prepared to forego headlamp wipers, rear wheel steering, central door locking, electrically operated windows, rear-view mirror, seat and screenwashers, as weIl as servo steering and ABS. They aIL weigh something and they aIL go wrong eventually.

Members who harbour similar ideas are urged to press their views on the following people: Mr Arthur Large, Chief Executive, RAC Motoring Services. Sir Godfrey Messervy, President SMMT. Mr Jim Randle, Chairman, Automobile Division, Institution of Mechanical Engineers, l Birdcage Walk, London SW.

l am not saying that writing will do any good, but if the point of view is not presented and pressed home it will be assumed that you agree with what is being done. In any case the effort should be made because sorne mud always sticks •••..

Where to get them

Hose Clips: "Jubilee - the first and still the best". L Robinson and Co., London Chambers, Gillingham, Kent. England (0634-51182).

Boxes of 10 available in soft, stainless or galvanised steel. For the uninitiated, maximum diameters in mm with corresponding Jubilee nomenclature are:

12 16 000 MOO

20 00

22 o

25 OX

30 lA

Statistics

35 l

40 IX

50 2A

55 2

According to the 1987 year book of the Automotive Industry Data Information Group (what a title!) the total 1986 production in West Europe was Il,547,081 - the percentage of this total for each make being as shewn: Volkswagen-Audi 16.2; Peugeot-Citroen 13.39; Fiat-Lancia 12.64; Renault 12.37; Ford 12.18; Opel-Vauxhall Il.80; Oaimler.Benz 5.13; BMW 3.74; Volvo 3.58; Austin-Rover 3.50; Seat 1.83; Alfa 1.46.

The most popular models, with quantities sold were: Volkswagen Golf 1,005,892; Fiat Uno 661,635; Opel Kadett (Astra) 655,936; Ford Escort (Orion) 581,437; Peugeot 205 520,663. AlI the other makers together shared the last two per cent.

How to do it; the Rear Hub:Speed 20 or similar. (a)Dismantling Loosen the wheel nut and then jack up rear of car.

Remove wheel nut, wheel driving plate, brake drum, split pins and plate from brake shoe pivots, springs (a) connecting brake shoes (b) connecting shoe assembly to back plate, brake shoes and operating cam. Clean a Il these and put the smaller parts in a plastic bag. (It is nice to have them ready when assembly time cornes.)

Identify the drum (e.g. NSR) and its wheel (for balancing purposes) and put the bag in the drum. The hub is now bare. Clean it and find the grub screw which retains the grease cap (Or should do. In the early sixties l lost the drive - in the country fortunately. When l got out and walked round it l noticed (!) about two feet of halfshaft sticking out of the near side.) Remove grub screw and grease cap. (AlI caps have right hand threads.) Screw a five-sixteenths BSF boIt into the tapped hole in the halfshaft and pull. This shaft cornes out easily - in theory. Undo the five (5) retaining screws (five sixteenths BSF) on the rear (ba 11) bearing cover. Pull off the hub. Wi th i t will come the outer front (roller) race and two (2) distance pieces. Do sorne more cleaning.

7

The rear (baIl) race is now visible on the axle tube. Pull off the rear bearing cover, the ball bearing, the distance piece and the roi 1er bearing inner, in that order. (Puller required). Remove the packing piece (Washer). (This passes through the bearing cover hole.) Clean the back plate and free the shoe adjusting cam and external indicator. While l think of it: Rear roller bearing R 145:45mm Ld., 19mm long. Rear baIl bearing 150 V4 or 6210 SKF. (I appear to have made no note of the dimensions.)

(b) Assembly Assemble back plate (if you have had it off) with inner bearing cowl and brake cable guide - 6 short, 2 longer bolts. Place washer in position; place rear bearing cover ditto. Push on rear bearing. Push on smaller distance piece (other large distance piece in hub.) Push on inner roI 1er bearing - tap i t on using a piece of two-inch dia. exhaust pipe two and half inches long - until the thread shows. Screw on large nut and tighten. Insert grub screw. Replace circlip on nut. The rest is easy ... Don't forget to put new grease in the bearings.

Where to get them Helicoil Thread Kits: Armstrong Fastening Systems, Clough Road, Hull. HU6 7PR. England. (0842-48355).

Choose between a single-size kit, a workshop kit and a spark-plug kit. Threads available: UNF, UNC, BSF, BSW, BSPF, BA plus metric M3 to M22. Send for leaflet and list of approved distributors.

Peter Black.

The serialisation of the Ray Spain Manual will continue next month.

AUlDMOBILE RESlDRATIONS P. D. WOODLEY

Alvis Owner Club pre-war spares and technical adviser offers full restorations, servicing, race preparation, castings and machining for the pre-war Alvis.

Established 25 years

The Bungalow, South Crmdon Road, Barsby, Leicester, LE7 8RA. Tel: (0664) 840419

HIGHTONE restorations Itd. NORTH OXFORDSHIRE SPECIALISTS

Complete restorations. servicing and repair of ail ALVIS cars. including panel-making. painting. trimming. ash framing. re-wiring. mechanical rebuilding and servicing. Ali work carried out to the highest standards.

Unit 5. Enstone Alrfield. Enstone, OX7 4NP. Phone 060 fr12 328 for Personal Attention.

8

Classified Feature

TA 1 4 1948 ALUMINIUM BODIED SALOON BY HARLINGTON COACHBUILDERS,

HEATHROW. MIDDLESEX . BELIEVED ONLY EXAMPLE BUILT FOR JOHNSTONS

GARAGE OF GREAT YARMOUTH, ALTHOUGH SIX WERE ORDERED ONLY THIS

ONE WAS RECEIVED BEFORE THE COMPANY STOPPED PRODUCfION . CAR HAS

BEEN EXTENSIVELY RESTOREO AND HAS BEEN RECHROMEO, BEWIREO (NEW

L0Ci1) ANO PARTIALLY RE- UPHOLSTERED . HOST OF NEW PARTS FITTED;

WINDSCREEN, REAR WINDOW GLASS, TYRES, BRAKES AND CŒ1PENSATERS,

KING PINS AND BUSHES , PETROL TANK AND PUMP , BATTERY ,EXHAUST, ETC.

LAID UP FOR14 YEARS AND NOW TAXED AND TESTED TILL AUGUST 1988 .

ORIGINAL LOG BOOKS , SOME HISTORY AND SPARES. OPEN TO OFFERS .

PHONE, (0206) 223996 - COLCHESTER, ESSEX .

9

Nostalgia

As d t ribute t a our Chaicman ' s long and energetic se rvice ta the Club here 1s a report t com July 1963, cecocding amongst othee things . his services at what l s cla i med to have been t he Club ' s {lest speed event. It vs cepcoduced hece unalteced .

THE SPRI NT 1'!!'.E1JJIG .ATSJ!)DlCll. ~~~IX.qRD.

llJù!LJ. Gilbe.!'.h

As this w~s the Club ts fir st s peed event, this mee ting had ta be a success and it certain l y deserved ta be after aIl t he work put ioto it over !Tlo ny Heeks by Eric Oakman and his assist an t s . One of the ingredien ts of a successful s print mee ting 15 that good weather sh~uld be l ai d on and, i n this, we ,ver e l ucky althoug h a Force 8 gLl l e livened thin gs up a bit .

By 9 . 30 a . m. eve rything vl<lS set up, guided by tHQ helpful OfficiaIs from the Rugby H. C. ~ Hho control this s!=,rin t course and its exc e l lent t imekeeping and communication system . The t riangu l ar course is on a dis - used air field and consists of a slight bend Df t er the start, 200 yards s tr aight fol lO\'!ed by a s \'1eeping left - hand turn through 90° . A short s tr aight ends i n 2nother sHeeping l ef t - hand turn, leading into a straight of 400 ya r ds Hhich inc lu':es a c hic ane .

I1C l i nk l1 ar r lved in a Speed 25 tm-!ing his fea r some loolüng blmm 4 .3 specia l on 0 tr aile r a nd l1ess r s . Eenne tt and Brysdon (the latter r epr esenting the Alvi:;; Reg ister) in 12/60 <lnd 12/ 50 r espec tively . Edàie Chilcott bro ught his handsome oilver Bagle tourer and 3 litre s0100n, \.,rhi l e the r e wer e no less than three li'i r ebirds, also 3 li'irefly sa l oon .

Class C comp r ised t-iinnis in the open Speed 20, POHell and Munroe (12/70 sal oons ) ('lnd lC . r.; ur l~e ('i' .A . ll~ dl'ophead) . CI<1sS D contained five 3 l i tr es including those of ~ric Oakma n and t he Pr esiden t, J ohn bro\-m bridge _, as Hell as Nr .Dunn (TD. 21). I on Ke r r ' s ex-·PoHys - Lybbe specio l ~ one of the f<lst est Brookla nd s 12/50 1 s, aiso appea r e d in t his Clessj togethe r with the r a r e 3t litre s., 100 11 of Hùcle l e y a nd tlle 1~ . 3 s <l loon of Gilbe rt . Glass E (S pecia l s ) i nc luded l'ooy Ch-arnocle ' s ,-rel l -kno\-IO ex-Chev ell ca r , benm axIs Speed 20 '-lith 4 .3 d r y sump e ngine ; Ron Buckls ex Ledb rook car nml rebui l t and Hi 1:h a Ll;l.il cun nlngly cont r lved from a HorrisNinor 1000 bonnet end beauti -fu ll y turned ou t . rrClinks rr car is \-lell knoHn but the r e is ,·/as as l arge as l ire and twic e <.1S loud . Al so the re \!D S J oclt Stephen ' s ca r, bodily t he le~st specia l 3nd Batchelor ' s Speed 25 special on i ts fil'st ou ting , nnd d r iven by D. li'. Ogden. l ' t i s \'las n fine ef f or t a nd the car & c r edit to its owne r. Finally) Br icn Ledwith competed with the Silve r E2.g:1e based ';Rumbold rr \.,rhicr, is still being r es t or ed.

Mr . Natriss. the R. A.C. Scr utineer~ passed aI l the ent r Dn ts, although one or two had t o malœ li tt le !!!cds. t finding that ga rt e rs malte very good auxilinry throttle r e tur n sp r ings ! At 11 <l . m. Be rnard ::l t okes adopted 0 bully - off st a nce v/ith the hoclcey- s tick star t ing de vice and t he practice l'uns begD n . l·'irst of f \o' as 5ennett (12/ 60 ) but af t e r he had t r av e lled 100 yards ~ violent explosions indica t cd slipped magne t o timing é'nd t he cnd of his l'un . Br yd son ' s (12/ 50 ) r e t urned a time of 67 . 7 s ec a nd t hiS c a r waS the q uic lŒst in the first thre e classes .

10

In Class D, Chilcott turned in ~n excell e nt 64 .1 secs and the Powys-Lybbe car was almost as quick . J lm Oakman showed his Dad just how it should be done and Eric Hockley's 3t litre suffered ... ith a non-flJp.ctioning ta ppet~ cured later by adjustment . 'i'he TD . 21 ' ... aS quiclcest of aIl and amazed e ve rybody ,·}it h its acceleration and small turoing circle. Of t he specials, Buck did bes t in the fi r st pr actice run Hith a time of 56 sec i Charnock motor ed compara­t:iv e ly seda tely (6(, . 1 s ec) and IIClink il found the course un s uite d ta his special, ' ... h1ch prefers a straight li ne and a bi l liard table surface . As it ,·ras, the bumps on the course ncarly je r kcd him out of the car a nd we never r ea lly Sa'" it at its best or e ven in top gear.

The second prac t ice runs , in gene r a l , provcd quicke r than the fi r s t but the first afte r noon runs over a wet course slm:ed ncarly

eve!'yone. Stevens in the Silv,u E a~ le beetleback managed 69 . 8 sec. and this run gained hirr. first prize in Classes A anj B, "'hich were c,jmbined . Minois (Speed 20) 2150 did ,.,rell \\"i t h a r un of 73.0 SElC . which 'vlan him fir s t prize in Class C. In Class D Chilcott got down t o 63 .4- sec . , on ly to be beaten by Kerr ;,.,ti t h 63 . 3.S 8C. The 'l'D. 21 r ecorded 58 .3 s ec. In Class E.., Charncck g~ ined the lead './i t h 53 . 2 sec . , a c l ea r 2 sec. ahead of Bucl\:.

By this time the competitor s Here r eally ge tting to k nO'-I t he course and \·,ith the la r ger mode l s it ...,as gene rally f ound that top gear wa s not necessary excep t on the finishing gtrai ght . Sorne found the first left - hand corner, wit h i t s bad su rfaco , '-Iorse t han the second a nd the approach did not seem to easy. Bath corner~ claimed thair victims among those \'Tho " ove rlook ed it ll •

Times for the second official runs .. ,ere better and in soree cases spectacula rly so. Brysdon (12/50) waS amazin gly quick at 66 . 3 sec. , anà J.S . tla rshall 1s l" irebi rd saloon r ecord ed 72.8 sec. to gain him second prize in his Class . In Class DI Chilcott r e t ur ned 61 . 8 sec . Paster a l so we re Brownbridge., Jim Oakman and, of course, the TD . 21, ~lhich managed 57 . 5 sec.

Charnock, of the specials, r ecord e d P . T . D. \ol ith 52 . 6 sec . , a rousing eff ort . Stephen nea rly boat B l~ck'S time of 55 .3 sec . put up in the pr e vio us run~ a1thoug h Buck unfortunate l y s pun his car at the first corner on his l ast rune Batche lor ' s speGd 25 special did we ll t a b~ at the minute but e ngine si ze told aS against the 4- . 3 ' 5.

The dicing waS over at 4- p . rn . and ev ùryone agreed t ha t the mee tin g had been a great success, fully j ustifying the hard work put in by Eric Oal{man and his team . Althoug h this Ha s a one - make meeting, the diversit y of models competing e nsur ed continuaus intere st for the Many s pccta tor s . It a1s o demanstrat ed c onvincingly tha t all Al vises ar e true spo rt s cars , \-I ha teve r the model and that hand1ing one of these Car s at speed is an exp~ ri ~nce t a be e n joyed. Nothing could be more certain t han t hat this \-1111 not be the las t specd event run by the Cl ub a nd \'.'0 hope for oven r10rc cornpe t i t or s n.:xt time .

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Remember Ihat day in May of 1987

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HOW THE OTHER HALF $EE US by John wheeley with acknowledgements to Red Daniel

George Pinder's article in the December Bulletin concerning the organisation of the first East Anglian Alvis Day at Stowlangtoft in 1980 mentions that he was co- opted onto the Church Fete commi ttee . Being a one­time secretary of the Section myself , l wondered if any records or minutes had been kept of such a n historie occasion. After sorne furtive delving into the archives , the following illuminating transcript has come to light.

Special meeting of the Stowlangtoft Church Restoration Appeal Fund Committee . The meeting came to order at 7.30 , Her Ladyship presiding.

Her Ladyship said she was glad to see such a good turn out of the corn mi ttee George said it was the sort of committee that would get turned out of virtually anywhere and he personally was surprised by the attendance of 50

many familiar faces considering the pubs were open. Admiral said that while he enjoyed a joke with the best of them the business of the committee was to arrange the raising of funds for the repair of the church roof be the er hoisting of er flags and the playing of stirring marches, didn't they know? And that wasn't a laughing matte r. Rer Ladyship said that his face tiousness notwithstanding, she was sure that George's heart was in the right place and that it was precise ly the matter of raising funds that was to occupy the meeting . George sa id he thought they'd Mad aU this out before and that the uninhibited saturnalia was due for the off on June the wotsit as planned.

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Uer Ladyship said that that was for the original one but the vica.r had suggested an additional joint affair to be held concurrently with the f~arvest Festival and did anyone have any thoughts on the matter? George said a Joint Affair sounded splendid just the way it 'Nas with suggestions of pot smoking and ill ici t sex and how much more fecund than that cou Id you get for a Harvest Festival? AdmiraI said for God's sake , man, that was the sort of degenerate rubbish that'd lost us the Empire and got the Country into the state it was in today with petrol damn near the price of gin. George sa id he wouldn't know as he'd never been in the position to buy gin by the gallon . Marjorie said that as the o wner of a very smaU Japanese motor cyc l e s he bought her petrol by the pint and sometimes kept sorne in an old gin bottle. George s aid Good Evening Marjorie - glad you could come. Ber Ladyship said that the usual events were pencilled in. A fair o n the field with traditional attractions , a home produce exhibition, jumble , various interesting performances by the Scouts and Guides and St. John's Ambulance and she was r e ally unable ta see what George found sa amusing aoout that. Marjorie said that it aIL sounded very nice and had always been considered suitable in the pasto Ber Ladyship said that was exactly the point. There had been suggestions that the programme lacked inventiveness. AdmiraI said there was nothing wrong with tradition, damn it , national heritage , standing orders that sort of thing . her Ladyship said yes, qui t e , but she was asking for new idea s within the traditional framework . George sa id how about a young wives topless egg and spoon race? Ber Ladyship said that , if he was serious, George was approaching things entirely from the wrong standpoint. George said a "bottomless" egg and spoon race? AdmiraI said good God , man , pull yourself together. Cedric said how about vintage motor cars? A concours and parade . Cheap and cheerfu l . The owners of most of those mobile museum pieces were usually only too glad of a legitimate e xcuse ta go thundering about the roads terrifying the livestock and turning the milk . They might even paya small fee. Marjorie said that sounded very nice . AdmiraI said that, 50 far as he could see , there was nothing wrong with a few RaIls and Bentleys, possibly even a Daimler or Alvis, but one had to be on one's guard against opening the doors to a lot of rubbish. George sa id they probably said that down at Beaulieu and look at the m now. Ber Ladyship said she was in favour of the idea in principle but had reservations . She considered a display of the more suitable motor cars could be a definite attraction but was less sure of the effect made on village lite by their owners. In her younger days (and this was before she was married, of course) she had found that men who frequented the world of performance motor cars tended towards the immoderate and coarse. George asked wh y everybody was l(X)king at him? He'd never been associated with anything more vintage than his wife 's mother and as for her performance , that was surely more a matter for his father- in- la ..... than the assembled company. AdmiraI sai d that , in his experience , you could size a chap up by the car he drave . Thoroughbred machine , thoroughbred sort of chap like as not, know what he meant? Ber Ladyship said that this prejudication could be applied at the other end of the Scale and that large , vulgar motor cars were frequently accompanied by large~ VUlgar people and that they had to bear in mind the younger people of the v~lla~e, in particu lar the young and impressionable girls . Geor~e sa~d.that he could honestly say , with his hand on his heart that young and ~mpress~onable girls were sel dom from his thoughts.

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Rer Ladyship said that from observation, the owners of what she believed were called Veteran cars were eccentric of dress and, for aIl she knew, of behaviour also and she was unsure of the size of the gap between eccentricity and perversion ••• Vintage car owners, on the other hand, appeared to be physically dirty with a penchant for disgusting old clothes, fouI language and beer. The owners of the more enclosed and luxurious PVT's were, in the main, gauche arrivistes who wore pearls and and tweeds and dispensed brown ale from the boot. AdmiraI said he'd met a Jaguar driver who confessed to having had four fittings for his blazer. Absolutely impossible chap. Totally beyond the pale. Perfect example of money getting into the wrong hands. Marjorie said that she'd read somewhere that the older vintage car drivers were incontinent due to the ha rd springing and also suffered from prolapsed rectums. George said that it was probably recta as he imagined the y only had one each no matter how hard the suspension, but it was a long time since the Brooklands days and they probably had other little difficulties under control by now. In any case, he thought they were unlikley to exhibit such frailties at a village fete but he was grateful to Marjorie for such an illuminating nugget of information which would certainly bear thinking about were one to meet a vintage car owner socially. Cedric said that, even so, he hoped that there would be the usual extra toilet facilities. Rer Ladyship said that went without saying and that the straw baIes around the Gents would be even higher this year to prevent the Pakenham Bikers from trying to urinate over the top and startling the donkey riders on the woodland nature trail. AdmiraI asked how one could go about getting hold of these people. George said that, in the light of what they had just learnt, with considerable circumspection. Marjorie said they had cl ubs. George said the more knowledgable used copper hammers. Marjorie said she meant clubs they were members of, silly, and could be circularised through. Rer Ladyship said that as everyone seemed to have accepted this idea was there not some way in which one could assure oneself that only the right kind of people were invited. George said that that ruled out circularisation then as MOSt of the very rightest kind of people had been so carefully reared they could barely read or write - or drive very weIl either. AdmiraI said it was the damned bolshies who were ruining the country, Marjorie said why not confine invitations to the specifie one marque clubs that encouraged the better class or person? George said that might be difficult as, for example, almost the only people able to afford Roiis Royces nowadays were the more violent varieties of pop stars and he didn't know whether the aforementioned impressionable young girls of Stowlangtoft were ready for an afternoon of home made cakes, donkey rides and drug-crazed millionaires. Farmer Eckersley had complained that his hay stack had been compressed down to half of its original height after the Maypole Revels and that was a purely parochial affaire Ber Ladyship said that she had seen no evidence of er sexual licence on previous occasions. ~ge said never mind, the great thing about luck is that it can change especially if she were to invite a bunch of horny vintage motorists and the weather stayed warm. They never seemed to fancy their own women folk which was hardly surprising as few women are at their provocative best after sitting for hours in a 70 mph wind tunnel disguised as an Eskimo's bed roll. (At this point the typist told the writer where to go which cannot be repeated in this publication.)

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Ber Ladys hip sa i d tha t f o rtuna t e ly not e veryone was a s obsess ed with sex as George appeare d to be. George said g ive us a kiss. " ' AdmiraI said that if the rudd y cammittee mee tl.ng was gOl.ng ta ,degene ra te l.~ta this sort of b l asted shill y s hallying he fo r one had be t te r thl.ngs to do wl.th his time. George sa id tha t he was gett i ng a bi t thi~sty t ,o o a~d moved f?r an a djournment t o the bar t o discus s alte rnatl.ve dl.vertl.sements l. n a less for maI atmosphere .

Movement carrie d, He r Ladys hip disse nting but changing he r mind a fte r a n inaudible sugges tio n addressed to her by George .

Features USE OF 'l'liE ClJ\SSIC CJ\.R 'l'ODI\Y by Ri vers Fl e tche l'

A very good art i cle by 'l' im Hills in the December issue of the Bulletin raises a knotty problem . One that 1 do not really like , 1 wi sh it .... ·ould go away , but it won ·t . 1 am afraid that we must just face the fact that most classic cars . and that i ncludes the post-war Alvis . are not I:'eally suitable for aIL modern motocing . [.i(e today in the 1980 's poses problems [or those of us who not only c he rish the o lder moclels , but also 1 ike to u se t hemall the time. l'Iodern motorways , the sheer volume of motorised traffic . and the l'",te at which we live . ",Il demand instant motoring , That is , winter and summet' . clay and night , sno w and ice or heatwave ..... ·e need to just turn the key and speed off to a destination two , three or four hundred miles away .

Now aIl this can he done in most classic cars such as an I\lvis . but is it right? 1 fear that sorne enthusiast s , o wne rs of fine "fourtecns " or "threc litres" will be indignant . but in my opinion 1980's moto ring is not the sort of travel foc which the cars we r e built , Salt on the roads in wintc r , outdool' parking in crowded areas , no se to tai 1, bumper to bumpet' and continuous high speed without let-up on modern road s , were not envisaged when those I\lvis we r e originally designed .

Although 1 hate to admit it , for those of us who need to use a car [or any amount o[ travel, a modern machine is almost a mUSt . so o ne's clilssic Alvis is for special occasions and certainly not for wintec motoring .

/l-1 y o wn I\lvis cars a r e pre- war . Speed 20 and Speed 25. 50 many yeat's ago 1 had to acce pt that these 1930 Alvis cars were outdated [or eve ryday motoring . In (act my last e veryday Alvis was a 1931 'l'KI2/GO which l relucta ntl y sold in 1945 . l rep1aced it with a the n mode rn . and dead 1 y du Il . Sta ndacd 10 saloon . But at the same time 1 bought fo r competing and real motori ng , a succession of pre- war cars starting with an HHG and la ter more Al vis c ar s .

Today a lot of my eve ryday motoring is i n modern Jaguars , sp l c ndid vehic l es - cat:'s for the 80'5 . jus t like my wi fe's automatic Bf'.I \>J . ideill [or he r everyday shopping and quite long distances as we Il. Even if [ use a i!oJini today , 1 can out-drive nea rly eve ry vintage car , and most of t he post-wal' classics as ...,eI l. But - does it matter? toJe are not comparing 1 ike with 1 ike. Just as a vintage Alvis is a different ballgame from the post-war classics . now today modern technology has made the 1980 car a different bal1game f)"om those post - war classics , The tcick is never to compare cars of a dif[et:'ent period . They are not comparable - sorne years ago l was askecl in a TV interview to compare an Abingdon f'.!G of the 1960'5 ...,ith a new l'I.G , l'Ietro . l said " It is asking which do you prefer . swimming or marmalade?"

Vintage cars do not like modern motorways , so in my I\lvis ca l' s 1 nearly al ways manage to use the old roads , despite the e xtra time taken . One just

15

• Above: Rivees Fletchec ' s ' new' Speed 20 outside The Stratford on Avon Motor Museum, which he founded with the late Bill Meredi th-Owen in 1978 .

nas ta adJust one s attltude and tlme tabl e . Le t "s look on the bright sicle . Our classic and vintage Alvis cars are used less , 50 we take more care of the m and they escalate in value instead of depreciating . Every driv e is a special pleasure , an occasion . Though my " new " 1934 Speed 20 happens te be taxed this winter for a special reasan , l do nct usually tax my pre-war cars until spring , 50 they are cosseted during the bad we athe r .

The occasional private race on the rcads in the 1930 '5 . and even in the 1940's , and pe rhaps in the 1950 '5 was gre at fun , however Ille gal! But now in the 1980's with ever-increasing fl o w of traffic , in my opinion it is just not on . It is fi ne on the racing track , and other priva te roads without public traffic , but not on public roads. Hodern technology has mad e mode rn cars , even the most modes t ones , with excellent road-holding and brakes 50 that even the least e xpe rie nced drive rs can (and do ! ) drive at v e ry high speed . Sadly , modern t e chnology does v e ry little to speed up the r e actions of inexperienced drivers so incidences become accidents at a mu ch higher speed than of yore . Hence the multiple collisions and terrible accid e nts that so often occur on modern motorways. No , the often enjoyable relatively harmless eut-and thrust of sporting driving on the public r oads is a t h ing of the pasto

Back to Tim !-lill's article - which he ended with a question : "Shall l go on using her (a 1962 'rD Series Il) like this? Or has the time come to give her a r est ? " In reply , 1 say - Give her a rest , but please don't sell he r ; keep her fOr the right occasions , cosset her , and enjoy your classic motoring (like other things in old age ! ) - not quite 50 oEten but surely just as we Il.

Rivers eelebr ates his Diamond Jubilee o f Motor Raeing on 28th April s inee it ' s exaetly 60 years sinee he 'won ' the JCC Junior Grand Prix at Brooklands as riding meehanie to the great Malcolm Campbell . His life is doeumented in a series o f film shows at ; Plymouth Theatre Royal on the 27t h and 28th March. Faicfield Halls, Croydon on 2S th April and St Da vid ' s /fall, Ca rdiff on 26th April .

16

fll vis Rains .... hi Le fllvis Ile igns It is absolutcly pouring with rain as 1 s i t here in the car . h'e came

prepared ; two e xtra jerseys , waterproofs , well ies , hats , umbrellas . We've been to an Alvis Rally before. t"e kno w what to expect!

In spite of the tippling rain , however , 1 am surrounded by e nthus iastic peop l e busily exchanging greetings , discussing problems . Admiring g lances are being cast in aIl directions , mostly at cars 1 might add . Gir l s don 't get a look in he r e and the menEolk don't appear to notice the we ather either !

1'he people gathcred here are from aIl parts of the count ry and a i l walks of l iEe . They ai l have the Triangular Logo of I\lvis in common a nd aIl have a consumi ng interest in what might seem to the rest o f us to be q u i te ordinary mundane things , su ch as headlamps, running boards . copper hammers . valves , mudguard s etc . 1'here they are , milling around in the mud e xamini ng each other's exhibits mi nute l y , as kee n to t alk about their own as they are anxious to hear about other s .

Over there an old wreck (ta aIl inte nt s and purposesJ is presenting a great attraction . It wa s found in a field T u ndetstand , and what a fi nd ! Hands in pockets , heads under the bonnet , t he enthusiastic little group eager l y discuss what is need e d , wh e r e it might be found . It will kee p sorne man busy and happy fo r year5 ta come no doubt . 'l'he r e will be head lamps on top of the wardrobe and whee l hubs under the bed , 'l'he country will be scoured for the correct brake drums ; driving rcds will be tenderly fitted .

It is imposs i ble not to be infected by such fe rvour and e ve ntua l ly as a 51 ight lull in the storm looms a nd there is a te mpo r ary brightening o f the leaden skies , l climb out of our limousine , bei ng su r e not to step o n the running board or 1 eave a ny f ingerprints on the pol ished surfaces. These men are as car proud as any housewife. Fancy driving 200 miles through pouring rain having minutely poiished eve r y availabl e surface , under the bonnet as weIL as over and , on arrivai cadging a bucket of water to wash off the travel stains !

1 might say 1 opted out of this madness many years ago. having bravely risen one morning at 5. 30 to help in last minute prepara tions. On bei ng shouted at by an over-anxious husband for putting on too much polish or sorne sueh ridiculous nonsense , 1 firmly declined to beeome involved in such eraziness and eoneentrated on the picnie preparations - mueh more in my l i ne .

As l paddled in my wellies on the wet grass . 1 met a frie nd whose husband was obviously quite delighted wit h what he ca ll ed a change-ove r s wit ch . lt r esembled a very Lus ty filthy o l d can with wires hanging off in :Ill directions , for aIl the world like a very dirty old octopus . ri e clutche d it to hi m 1 ike a prize !

The Spares Section had ta be seen to be believed . It wa s just like a jumble of filthy t:"usty oid Iron with great holes gaping in all directions . Speed 25 this end and 'rD2 1 that , 1 was told. Unbelievably there .... as order to it !

The one contraption t hat offered any kind of coyer was an orange t e nt with a woode n ben ch inside adorned with a selection of Alvis t i es , t i e -pins , tee-shirts and a notice sayi ng "Sorry - sold out of Umbre ll as ."! Indeed the many splashes of colour aIl over the field were the huge red and whi te umbre llas with t he Alvis Logo boldly printed in t:"ed on e ach white s ect ion . One daring fellow canied an umbrella with "tG. in bLOwn on beige - traitor in t he camp l thought , but no one seemed ta mi nd .

There was a real l y splendi d selection o f marve l lous cars i n the Concours . One cou 1 dn't den y that. The judges must have had a very di f fie u 1 t task chOosing the winners . A prize is alwa ys awarded to the best car in the (Alvisl car park - a nice touch that , 1 think , and there were many fine specimens there toc.

No doubt it would have been an even better day if the sun ha d shone . But the one thing that shone out from this determined group of men ..... as t hei L dedication and all-absorbing inteLest in their hobby. lt was goad to see. 'rhe

17

gre,,'It interchange of ideas and knowl edge that took place , as weil as the mutual respect and admiration for each other 's efforts would keep them going un il ne xt year .... ,hen , pray God , itll be a sunny day ,

Pam Betterton .

I3IUGH'I'QN NA'I'IONl\I., S P I:;I::O TIH ALS - 12th September 1987

On a rrivaI at this historie spccd event conditions we r e very eold but dry . There is ah'ays a fantastic selection of machinery at this venue and a superb atmosphere . Seing the only Alvis competing on this occasio n it was 900d ta share t.he clay with other enthusiasts with the same interest in the spart . The first persan that l met was none other than Paul IIoldsworth taking a dily o ff from driving the Giron and compcting with his immaculate Cooper 500 Ï'lk 6 . Paul had brought along with him Hakc n Sandberg , a Swcclish Alvis o .... 'ner who hacl come along ta sample an English spced event for the Cirst time . Hake n told me that he thoroughly en joyed his day and will in fact come again . If he does , r hope he will bring another bottle of his local brew , nc xt time l wil l put sorne in the fuel tank of I3I:utuS , becaus e l certainly went we i l on it ! Paul took second place in his class with a time of 27. 24 secs.

'l'he Vintage and Historie Racing and Sports Car s Class is a1 ways a mi xed bag e ntry , and this year was no exception . The class consisted of t wenty­thrce cars including an Austin 7 , 1\1 lard J2X , several Bentleys including the Bent1 e y Royee of Bob Burre1l and the Avon-Bentley of Barry Summerfield , a t-lasc ,'ati 250F with a smatte ring of Rilcys etc.

Practice was completed in the dry , but as last year the he avens opened in time for the competition proper . l managed a time of 27 . 74 secs in the appal! ing condit ions with a terminal speed of 92 mph . The class was won at l cast by an Alvis driver - Tony Bianchi driving a modern "cose-jointed" 1960 '5 Anco-formula junioc , with a time a 21.56 secs . 1'he best time by a "proper" car was an incredible 21 .92 secs by Barry Summerfie ld , in the Avon­l3en tl ey .

Brian Chant

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Regional Roundup Regional Roundup EAST ANGLIAN SECTION Chairmans Chat

Your commi ttee has entered the New Year wi th a spirit of adventure! Plans are already weIl in hand to relocate our section Al vis day ta Framlingham Castle in Suffolk and to incorporate it into an East Anglian Weekend. The dates to put in your diary are 16th and 17th July.

After eight successful years at Stowlangtoft we felt our future was a little uncertain and that people wanted a change. Framlingham has a beautiful country setting by a 12th century castle and adjacent to a delightful small market town with plentiful accommodation and refreshments. We believe the new site will still exude the peaceful, friendly and informaI atmosphere that so attracted us to Stowlangtoft.

l wrote to Mrs Catchpole, organiser and landowner of Stowlangtoft village fete in November to tell her of our decision. Extracts from her reply are worthy of publication.

"We have enjoyed the association with the Alvis Club and were very grateful to you for getting us started in this fund raising event which we have depended upon to keep the church going. Thank you for everything especially your friendship and cooperation. l shall always look back on the Alvis Day with happy memories. l do hope it aIl works out weIl for you in the years ahead. Incidentally the park was pretty weIl deva5tated in the hurricane and the tree known as the Al vis Tree tha t was 50 usefu l for shade is now a wreck. We lost over 1,000 trees that night".

An accolade of which the Alvis Club can justly be proud and is a credit ta aIl those who have been associated with Stowlangtoft in whatever capacity.

l look forward to your support for our new venture; please watch for more details in the following months.

New Social Meeting

Good news for members in the west of the section around the Peterborough/Stamford area. Dr Andrew Storrar, a long tirne Alvis owner and enthusiast, is reviving a noggin and natter at the Golden Pheasant at EttOll, which is some seven miles north of Peterborough on the first Thursday of every month. The landlord is a motor sport enthusiast and one of the first items on the agenda, after sampling the ale, is to compile a list of recommended traders competent in restoration work (at least you have 'WOolies' on your doorstepI). For any further information, please ring Dr Storrar - Market oeeping 347407.

E.A. section Logo

It has been suggested that the Section has its own logo for a car badge, sweater badge, notepaper, pyjamas etc etc. ruring the winter evenings why not have a go at sketching a design - it must be better than watching Eastenders or the weather forecast! Please keep it sinple as blocks and castings will have to be taken, and send the design to me at rubeck, Thurne, Gt yarlOOuth by lst April. Judging will take place at the section AGM on l7th April.

E.A. Section Crossways Inn - Scole, Norfolk. 2nd Weds. Nine members braved fouI New Years day weather to join about 40 VSCC

members at the historie Scole Inn but only Tony Needham came in an Al vis. Alan Cowham was seeking ideas on how to dispose of surplus meeting fu'nds: needless to say he didn 't wait long for an answer! - come to Scole to hear more.

19

l'l e welcome Raymond Cannings ta the Club . He has run a TAI4 for many years as his only transport but has only just come round ta joining the AOC. 1 hope he finds it worth waiting for !

A 1'C21 has been r escued from a Norwich garage afte r its owner emigrated ta Spain without paying the bill. Despite mu ch publicity nobody followed it up and the garage '..;as about ta th r ow it out ! A r e freshing tale for the Ne w Year .

John l'lhee J ey

EAST ANGL.IAN SECT ION - Christmas Dinner at the " Prince of l'laI e s ", Bt·oxt e d . As usual , Olive ira lef t it far tao late ta organise this function , and

had to bc prodded into it by hi s e nthusiastic co-Swanne rs at the Novembe r meeti ng . l3y which time it was far tao lat e ta ge t it into "C l ub Calendar ", e v e n i f it was the post-Christmas eve nt traditional to the section . Sa apologies ta ai l thos e wh o ne vel:" h e ard about it because l also didn't think ta ring them up anel t e Il the m.

On th e day , Gallahet-s , Stapletons , Hichal'dsons and th e l'lheeley/Hitchcock duo gath e t-ed for pre liminary drinks in the "Prince " bar amid cracks about the distance travelled by the home t eam (50 yards max door to door) . A weIL cooked and satisfying l'cast Sunday lunch followecl , serve d by a friendly and efficient staff. ln the afternoon the company retire d ta Oliveira Towers ta chat and watch two videos kindly provided by Naurice Gallaher , of the East Anglian 'l'our and pre-war motor racing (in fairness to l'I aurice , the latte r was a prof e ssional production , not his youthful memories) . Tea and cakes rounde d the event off , for which we were also joined by Stewa rt and Avri l Hobinson .

John Olive it-a .

CHRIS'I'MfIS A'I' THE YEW 'l'HE.:E rour Alvis cars ail arriving wi th hoo(l5 down graced the car park , (one

even s[X> rting Christma s decoratiens) whilst nearl y fort y members sat dm·JO ta a splendid Christmas lunch.

Before lunch the bar was packed ta capacity with Christmas r evellers , which made it difficult to kee p track of club mem bers . One of the first arrivaIs on their first visit ta Pt-ieth was Colin and Anne Hall with Kathryn and Andre "" , iV e were r e ally pl e ase d to see yeu ha v ing take n the troubl e t o trave l from Eastbourne .

Other long distance travellers we r e Chris and Liz We bb with their son . \'le hape yOu didn't break the speed limits on the way home . The ir speedo cable broke o n their TA21 on the way up.

Jo hn and Linda Chamberlain came from Kent with storie~ of woe about their "'AI4 e ngine , but pl eased with themselves for successfu ll y compl e ting their ne w double garage .

Nike and Jan Bake r and Betty and Albert Sparrowhawk wi th Annie arrived and departed in convoy with their immaculate tourers .

Charles and Heather Peers promised ta arrange another barbecue on their farm . Lets hope for better weathe r this summe r. Ne s hall aiso e ndeavour ta combine a run through the Chiltern Hil1s with this event. l'le will probably be joined again by the TR Reg ister.

Jim and Sybil Strugne ll (who put us und e r threat if we didn't mention that they travelled ta and from the lunch in their 12/50 with hood clown) have asked us ta organise a Club stand for their show at Bracknell on July 3rd . Ive have decided ta attend this mee ting rather than ta compete at Uxbridge again .

Other revellers we r e Bill and Pat Wri ght , John a nd Pat Holder with Jane , Lauri e and Pam Merriott with Simon , Eric a nd Brenda Oakman a nd our fami ly mernbers Angus, Maureen , Piana and Dave . Thanks must go ta Dave for organisi ng t he menu which we hope you will aIL keep as a mome nto of a superb Christmas lunch. The first of many we hope.

Lastly we must have sympathy for Jim and Sue l'Iilliams and their boys who told us of their plight over the purchase and r es toration of their TD21.

20

It shou1d have been comp1eted in time Eor Uxbridg e 1987 and as yet ha s not even been started . Jim tells U3 that the r esto ration has bee n paid Eor in advance , and it transpires that h e may lose the car and his money . Jim's advice is be very careEul who you do business with and be reluctant to part with money until you can see work being done.

A sad tale with which to complete OUt- Christmas report but a lesson to be learnt Eo r aIL Alvis members _

l'le look Eorwat-ds to an eventEul 1988 and another Christmas at the Yew Tree .

Malcolm and Jennie Kindell

l'-leeting at OI\KWOQD HILL, 'ruesday 12th January 1988 r-Iay l take this opportun i ty to wish aIL our readers a Happy New Yea r

and many trouble Eree Alvis mi les. Consideri ng the weathe r at this time oE the year , not a bad turnout.

Those on parade and the only member who turned up in a cor r ect motor car wa s young Lesl ey l'lhitehead . John Forrestor who has recently rearrang ed the nearside oE his l'-lerc SLC (silly boy) . Clive Taylor who advised us that his 12/70 restoration is now sufEering from terminal rigor mortis . Al bert who has yet another project "up his sleeve" but we ~ave aIL been s worn to secrecy (Brian Chant , Rod Jolly and aIl , watch out). Hal and Fizz Garner , Frank and Joan - seems t hat Frank is now the proud o wner of a Leonidis major aero engine. Quest ion cornes as to what he intends ta do with this . As Frank is keen on boating 1 put forward the fo11o\</ing suggestion , for those oE you who have travelled within the Golden Triangle , a regu] at:" form oE transport arc the dugout canoes powered by massive oid American car e ngines with the propeller on a long arm which is l ifted in and out of the wate r for propulsion , the refore , can we expect to see a 4 or 5 be r th cruiser powe red by an Alvis e ngine plying forth i n the SoIent this year? It could be that Albert will have to come to the rescue with his propeller. Bringing up the rear we r e r-Iessrs . Appleton and Baker in the latte rs newly acquired Audi but it does sport an Alvis registration number .

For those regular participants in ou r monthly "Noggin and Natter " we shall continu e with the meeting at Oak wood Hill but this may chang e to an alternative venue in the Spring .

Mike Bake r

CII RIS'J'MAS DINNE R at the 'l'HREE IIORSE S IIOES, Nr Sherburn , C. Durham .

24th November . Since e ve n the largest room at the "Shoes " left us with ve ry Little elbow room last year , we t ried to keep bookings down ta the first two do zen ta apply but still somehow we managed to e nd up with as many dine rs as we had before.

The e arliest arrivaIs are usually those who have travelled furthest , and tonight it was Mike and Pat Fletcher who , with Jim and Elaine l'li sdom , have , for the last three years done a 240 mile round trip ta sample the joys of Derek's Christmas pudding not to mention the delights oE his sea-food crepes .

Back with us after missing the last few meetings were Raymond and I-Iaureen Hun t hav ing dec lared an end to the sa i 1 ing season by hav ing their boat take n out oE the water . Plans are being made ta incorpora t e this nobl e craft as well as his Alvis inta next years Lakeland l'leeke nd . Raymond met Les Siddel for the E irst time and Eound that they might we IL have been adversarys during the early days of car rallying in this area .

In the ea rly years of our Christmas Dinners , the meal wou ld consist of only two pri ncipal courses which would leave us time to set up a film projector and show one or two motoring films oE historical or hyster ical interest depending on whether Terry had got the machine sorted out. Now with

21

five.' COUl"SeS to enjoy, it was nearly closing timc before brandies and cigars, 01", sincc wc are a responsible motoring organisation, coffee and mince pies m<lde the ir a p[X?a rance.

Finally, before the company dispersed, we took up a collection for Oerek 's h.:u-d working staf f (he claims that since he has married them a Il he doesn't h<lve to pay them). Then we grouped together to have a photograph taken for our newly established scrap-book.

Doug Richardson

NORTH BY NOR-WEST Gez's bonfire party at Big End brought out 20 or so intrepid stalwarts,

to test the new improved hot pot. (SAE 140). Unfortunately it all vanished 50

Gez wi Il have to make another batch for the diff. The Northern Section AGM was weIl supported by aprox. 40 members, from

aIl corners of the section. A grand reunion which started at Il.00am and finished 6.00pm. The normal business was completed relatively quickly, but the discussion and proposaIs for the amendments to Club rules took 3 hours. For the finale, the firework display commenced at 6.30 with a bang.

'fhe Christmas dinner was held at Hoghton Towers this year, Pat managed a mere 80 wives and husbands, a welcoming glass of mulled wine, a cold trip round the house and then a super roast turkey dinner in the banqueting room, obviously the scene of sorne thousands of swash buckling dinners in the pasto The biggest indoor Christmas tree, but unfortunately an empty minstrals gallery. (weïl have to sort that next year eh Kath!) The Duke of Edinburgh left apologies for being a week early. Shame!

Pat Fletcher is in a selling mood with the TD gone, and the Duncan gone, 1S this to make more room for the cat to swing in? Louise Fletcher is recovering from an illness over Xmas, and cannot wait to get stuck in to her top secret special; or perhaps she will write the book first ... to fund it!

Eadie Buxton"s TA21 should be out and finished this year, she took early retirement to do it, but the chaffeur/gardener is causing problems. Ilene Wisdom has married two of her flock last year, both with the fourteen of course. She is now working on her latest project, a TA21 which should be ready for El i zabeth"s wedding ... in the far future. Mrs J Foster has had a few Fircfly mascots cast in gunmetal, sorne aluminium brake backplates cast and hardened, and a collection of various carly distributors for sale, this is a side effect of rebuilding her Firefly.

Glen Clay tons Firebird is running so weIl, she has found time to fit a heatcr, to make it more at home; for the guests. She has painted aIl the priority bits bright red, 50 the MOT lady will know were to start. Stephanie Wa lmersley is re-rigging her front suspenders on her TD, (again!) she tells me handling is much improved, with the play she had in her trunnions now bushed out. Mrs V Channing reports delays in the return of her 4.3 body, so has started an Austin 10 rebuild to pass the time. Janet Monk is getting into the intricacies of TD inner sills, the tin-worm is alive and kicking it seems (weIl if you feed it on salt and water for 25 years, what do you expect my dear girl!).

Pat and Gez took a winter trip up to the Lakes in December, to plan the pubs, routes, pubs weekend itinerary and pubs we will take in, during the Tarn Hows Spring Weekend in May. "Silly hat night" on the Saturday for the party, Doreen Hunt is organising for Saturday afternoon "Freefall Sai 1 ing". As the hotel is half booked already please get onto Pat immediately to avoid get ting "the skylight room". Hopefu Il y on Sunday morning we wi 11 be privileged to see how one gets the lead in cnes pencil. Plenty of superb driving (about 200 miles) in Englands prettiest, and as yet, uncommercialised countryside.

Daisey Lakin is in training for the fastest Firefly engine strip/rebuild contest (date to be announced) she says she's got i t down to 3hrs for a rebore, 5hrs for a crankgrind or 7hrs if fitted with a bullhorn.

22

By the way Dai sey dc>es excel l e n.t cespr~ys cheap , ... whe~ she can get ta borrow Pe te "s muck-spreader; and lt doesn t come of( , does lt Hazel !

.. .. ta think they say it's a man"s wocLd ! ~IDb Cap .

NOR'I'HERN SEX:'l'ION: Meeting at the White Swa n, Bly t h It seems like a long time since 1 last sat down ta type one of these ,

but that i s probably because 1 was too idle to type a report on our Decembe r 87 meet , when the re were only five present. Happily , we have started the ne w year on a healthier footing . ... Tuesday 19th January 1988 - Not a very niee night , but we still had a good crowd swamping the public bar by 8.30 , having arrived ta find Keith Taylor in pole position , beari ng gifts that made him more we lcome than any Greek . Keith and son Julian are pressing on with the resto ration of their SA 20 drophead which will be a very thorough job , and are currently r e building the body , between other commitments .

The Friths a nd Richard Harrison , like Keith , are new ta Sp 20's , and are bath in a state of excitemen t about using the irs for the first time. Richard will be out on the r oad this year , un l ike the Friths , who are currentl y engine assembling . ~vhen Vou barely understand simple things like 12/50'5 , a nd run on more luck than judgement , the '20 seems an awful comp1e x lump - there"s chains and pumps and three carburettors , not to mention a flywheel with the 1'DC mark in the wrong place , and confusing sets of timing marks .. . \ve think we'r e over the worst now , thanks ta aIl the help and advice received , Thanks a Iso from Richard to the chap who came forth with most of the post-war history of his car - so Vou do read aIl this guEE !

Steve Downsborough , Bob Vard ey , John IVilli ams and Ian Ivhite sat in a corner puzzling over the construction of Johns 12/50 steering whee 1, and more particularl y , how it cou1d be restored , as it is rotted through at the l'im. A r e placement would be we lcome of course. Bob was interested ta see t he Auction r e port in which a Duncan TA14 had been sold , the first to change hands publicl y for quite a while.

John Grimes , John Kennewe1 and Nike App1ey comp1eted the "e l even" which passed around old motoring literature , discussed the Tec ~dS theori es on modern cars dest ined for obso lesce nce (and conc 1 uded tha t we shou Id a Il be (ill ing barns wi th !'-log l'-lar inas , !'-IK 1 Escorts and the 1 ike) and genera 11 y woffled on things Alvis until after closing time. Next meetings 15th !'-larch and 19th April - new faces always wei come.

Adam Fd th .

NOl'ICE - CHI\NGE OF MEE:I'ING Comm e ncing Sunday March 27th , the meeting that gathered at the Bull ,

Ha le , wil l be transfered to the DANDY COCK , DISLE'i. Ol der members (who can remember winklepicker shoes and/or Gracie Fields) will realise the fui 1 circ1e no .... ' turned , in the search for a congenia1 land lord.

Our own carpark , our own room and ou r own Robinsons , are the prime highlights of this comfortable country sty le Inn . A mere 6 miles south o C Stockport on the A6 . Once the home of many Alvises and of course the late Ken Frith. \ve hope to see you falli ng off your stools last Sundays of the month , Alvi s borne or not . Also for the r ea lly kee n , there is a week ly meet every Thursday a't t he Da ndy Cock.

Chris Holt - 061 432 5501

:----E:XCLUSIVELY ALVIS _ c.lrs, militury vchicles & aircraft. Specia lising in limiled production, ha ndbuilt collectors' models,

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SEt\'{J !jol E FOR CL"RRfSl/IST .... ________ ROU "H'in CIIEST\ITIiOl W \eTO\ Tl"R\IU,r R\IJ\II\TO\ .\\0\ ____ ,

Readers Write From : John Essex

Church Farm Hause , Chapel End Lane . \-1i lstone, Herts.

Dear Editar , Imagine my surprise . whil e looki ng throug h sorne back numbers , ta (ind

on page 5 6 of the July 1981 Bulletin a photograph of my wife , aged 4! Thet-e 1S no r eference ta the picture which appears in an article on J J Parkes , but it wa s take n in 19 53 at Locke rs Park Prepa ra t o r y SchooL Heme l Hempstead , and shows John Parkes with his wi fe and tWQ children picnicking with my wi fe"s family , the de Havillands . John Parkes , ha ving bee n J o int Ge nera l f.1anage r of d e Havi lland"s , was aIso a pe rsonal fri e nd of the family .

The photograph 1 enclose is o( Anne and 1 on our we dding d ay , 8th Nove mber 1986 , l e aving the church , most fittingly , in my r e c e ntly restored TF2l .

YOUl·S tru 1 y

24

Left : A sho t fr om 1953 o f John Essex ' s futur e wife aged 4 in the company of John Packes and below: dciving tc om theic wedding in the TF.

From : R Buckle , 16 Garden City , Thame , Oxon. ox9 3NT

Dear Ben, Saturday 23rd Jan, the snow has thawe d in Thame , it is no w raining , 1

go outside - eve rything under my carport is soaking wet - the moisture conde nsing on t he cold stee l and concrete . 1 go in my garag e , my Alvis 25 , lathe , vice and too l s are aI l d r y and t h is in an ordinary pr e -cast concrete garage with no hea ting . 1 a l so have a TE21 drophead outside under a plastic sheet , it is eve n dri er unde r the sheet than in the garage , 60 % re l ative humidi ty .

How is this possible you may ask? Nel l , 1 have a de hum idifie r in the 1'E and another in the garage . The y really do work and in a s e al e d environment they don 't cost a lo t to run .

The condensa te being pure wate r can be us ed for radia tors , window washers . batteri es . steam irons etc. The cost - E2 39 , may at first seem a lot but when one conside rs the va l ue of a r easonabl e Alvis these days it i s very litt l e and very r eassuring to know tha t when t he car i s laid up fo r the winter or even between weekends in the summe r, e xcess moisture will be drawn out of the fabric of t he veh icl e , a r ea l benefit i f one ha s bee n caug ht in a typica l Bri t i s h su mme r c l o udburst . If you require more information p l ease write , e nc losing a SAE a nd 1 will e ndeavou r to answe r your quest i ons .

Regards ,

Hemhecs may cemembec my advocacy of dehumidifiers in an ea r l iec issue of Dicect Tcan smission. As Rogec suggests, compared with the annoyance in the Spcing o f finding cust on all those little places whece d

spanner has been on a chcomium nut oc across the alli of the rocker box, the i nvestment in one o f these machines is not great, I wouldn' t be without mine and it's a lot cheaper to run than an Alvi s ! - Ed

From : Bert Adams oakhurst , Cocknage Raad . Rough Close , Stoke on Trent , Staffs . ST3 7NN

Dear Ben , It i s always gratifying when one's experi e nce in one fi e ld can be

applied to another , \'iorking on the cieve lopment of ceramic fibre systems with Combustion Linings of Burslem, Stoke on Trent , 1 devi sed a technique call ed a ngl e -eu t fibre which the company app li ed to the kiln building and bai 1er industries. Ce ramic fibre , 1 should exp lain, is a high t e mperature equivale nt ta glass fibre which man y people are familiar with when insulating their lofts , It i s a chemically inert material with e xcel le nt insulation properties under hot conditions and it is generally replacing a s bestos products because it is e ntire ly safe ta handl e .

It was a suggestion by our vice - president Ernest Shenton which l ed to a se ries of tri a l s on the us e of ceramic fibr e in a numbe r of Alvis cars as a hea t shie ld be tween the Alvis manifold and carburettors . The problem was to Eix th e fibr e ta the e xisting heat sh i e ld in a satisfactory manner . A wire cage method wa s tried and this was so successful that a 1'A2 1 and a 'rE21 wer e bath fitted with a fibre layer on the unde r side of the s hie ld . A search for an easie r method of fixing the fibre to the metal e nded with the discovery of an adhesive which stuck fibre directly to metal up to tempe ra tures of 350 d e grees C without d egrading . This system had a l ready been used in furnace

25

applications and a Speed 20 SC e ngine shield wa s prepa re d and fitted . (see photos). The results from this trial proved exce ll ent . The modest t emperature drop achieved e liminated problems of hot sta rting in high temperature summer conditions .

Be cause angle-eut fibre is presented in an end-on configurat i on there is no loss of fibre from high air velocities . The adhesive is impervious to oil and '-" ater damage as is the fibre . Both t he TA and TE fibre units have heen in operation over 2 years and neither show any signs of deterioration . The performance of the technique used o n the Speed 20 should be marginally better because the f it is s nug .

The application of fibre does nothing to detract from the appcarance of the e ngin e as it is almost e ntirely out of sight . The cost of the adhesive and fibre 1s not high and adds much to the pleasure of Alvis motoring.

ALI e nquiries for fibred heat shields should he made to Rowl and Simmons at Red Triangle who has agreed to distribute and fit . Any t~,~hnical questions can be answered by myself at 0782 - 8827 5 fdaytimeJ 0782-39ï9'16(evenings ).

Yours sincerely

Left top : Speed 20 SC engine with heat shield fjtted - fibre on the reverse side and below : wi th a [ uriher shield showing attachment hale points and sIot for linkage seen [lom underside ,-,ith ce l amic fihre cleacly visible .

From John Wheeley, Thurne, Norfolk.

Dear Ben, 1 was in complete agreement with Peter Black's article in the December

Bulletin concerning new technology motor cars (perhaps, because it is the first tech. art. 1 could understand!). A copy should be given to every prospective buyer of a new car as a kind of government health warning. New technology is only for those on yuppie salaries, throw away company cars, poofs who like heated seats, and those who would rather fumble for a tit to open a window than turn a handle.

It is either by coincidence or good editorship that Peter's article is followed by Tim Hill's ponderings on the merits of running a TD21 as everyday transport. Surely the former answers the latter. Tim should not try to compare modern machinery with the TD nor should he be concerned about high speed Ford "Siestas", T.oyota "Tartlets", Nissan "Huts" or bui lders trucks -anyone can tear about for a while, especially if it is not their vehicle but will it still be running in ten years time?

May 1 put it another way? Instead of blowing tlS-18 grand on the disposable SAAB/Volvo/BMW which is worth nothing in seven years and will cost thousands to maintain, put it in the building society and lavish the interest on your TD. In seven years you still have the (more valuable) TD and still have tlS-18 grand. You might even have sorne change to run a TAl4 as weIl!

Finally it is probably another coincidence that the editor uses a picture of Colin Moore's TD21 to illustrate Tim Hills' article. Colin's truly immaculate car is his every day transport and only modesty prevents him from claiming an annua l mi leage of probabl y in excess of 10,000 miles. Al though his car has been extensively rebuilt it has not been near the highly priced restorers and is a prime example of running such a car on a modest income.

Yours sincerely

~~~ From: Charles van Ingen, wirral

3rd February

Dear au tor , 1 would be interested to know if anyone has succeeded in fitting an

alternator to a 3 litre with power steering. 'llle corrbination of halogen headlamps, heated rear window, kenlowe fan and short journeys doesn't give the battery a chance.

Yours sincerely,

From: Ron Spinks, Leeds Jan 2lst

Dear BenA chance discussion regarding a car heater fitted to the ~ickford T~4 lead to the enclosed publiçity in the house magazine of Bray TeChnologles PLC whlCh has international coverage. Thought readers might be~interested but no Coop stamps or postal orders for 12/6 to me please! S. ''''1-.r ~

ln ç J (

,-/' ~,

27 1. ~

/

Right : The acticle tcom the Bcay

Tec hnologies house magazine to whic h Ron Sp i nks cetec s

on t he pcev ious page .

Car heater made to fast

years on-stl MANY years ago Bray Chrom"lox. now Bray Lcclfoheal. manulaclulOO a 2<10 volt Cilr englnC hcater. whlch was PloducOO spcclh c illy 101 use ln cold chmates such as the Canadmn Winler The heatcl was pluggOO UlIO the domestlc elccl llc supply ovellllHht 10 onSUIe th'lI Ihe ollglfle woukl st.ll t 111 the 1Il01ilings

SI>cclahst cal manufacturers hke Alvls imd Aston Marlln. 10 naille a Icw. InstallOO the hO.1 tOI ln Iholl moucls lor caslol st;lIIlng altol PiC heallng 1,,1 30 minutes on vCly colt! d.lys

Olten Blay tclcphonlsts Icce.ve calls hom ownors 01 these special cars 10 obtllln d replacement One such own('r. Mr ROll Splnl.s. 01 Templenewsam Vlew. Leeds. has klndly senl the ilbove photograph 0 1 hls T,cklord Alvls TAI4 OHC. bUIII ln 1947. along wllh a hlstollcal prollle

Mr Sp'nks WlltcS "lhe Coven1ly b.lsed Alvls Car Co started produCllon ln tho c:llly TWCllIles. but. on be.ng ta).:en over bV Rover !then BU ln 1967. they droppOO the Cilr side tO conCen1lale on mllllary vchlcles The TA 14 model was a pre·war desl9n. bul onlv carne on the markelln 1947. OWlng to shoflages 01 steel Ihe chassis manulacIUle was ' Iarmed out' 10 vallous body bUlldels. Includlny Tlcklold. lamQUS now lor Lagondil and ASlon Marlln

HAND-BUILT "ThiS car was hand-bull t fOI a Oewsbury

mlll·owner. wllh de-luxe Iltllnys.· Conncllv Icathcr seallng and alloy body. Includqd ln the ophonai exlras was a Bray Heater IIHéd III Ihe mUlatol and Wlled to the dashboiJrd lor sliJn· dard 240 volt charge. SWllchlng " on 101 30 minutes IS sulf,clent lor easy sl a!1lng withoul chole

"The IlIsl owner. on the death 01 hls wlle. s torcd the car ln a shed ln Boeston. Leeds. fOI 20 Vears unlll It was acqulled bV me The car has only recelved a /C-spray and a new hood, olheIWlse Il IS compleloly orrglna1. slili free of rUSI. and has SO.OCMl r1"1lles 'on Iho clock' H

Wlnnel 01 many Concouls pilles. Ihe cal has shown Ihe lIag ln Swoden. SWllzerland and Germany. MI Sprnks IS confident Ihat hls

28

going strong! YOU NEED NOT LIFT THE BONNET on tho,c nU l y WH MU DDY NIGHTS \0 ~ ,,~«r "" ri", ~,.u, " ~o" ~o . c on C 'I ~n .. oft "Iot" ro "

A. .or:~Ct Un

b.- f •• <""<1 '0 Ih~

IItU'"' (",I~"," or 10 ,çmt

'O".~nl~nl

po'''''''' ntU ,hr .h,hbcu,d

l h .. lo,hl. compt~tt w tlh 6 f~t "f.,,,,ou.· N At",btt. Ind • cord ,.tp co_cr 10 . cpLoct rhe O,p CO •• r.

un bt lupp"td hom u\. or from '"Y ,.n,t for 1116 1>011 f.ct

W~tn r,'ed •• L1 ,,, .. Il ntctu.'7 Il 10 Io ... tr' .. indow • IIlIlt. 1'-''' ,he <O MC<;<OI th.outh ln" pLu,

'" O NLY 1 2 /6 EXlltA

GEO BRAY .t CO L TD.· LEEDS 2.

AI ... ,s TA 14 Will be lunnlng. wlth the Brav Hea· 1er. InlO the neXI cenlury

From ; Car Restaurations , Helmut S~chting , Steller Str. 319 , 4300 Essen 1 , \-.'est Germany.

Dear />Ir Lenthall , \</e hCJpe Vou sti l l remember our telefon calI of Fdday , 22nd January. Now we sond Vou the promised pictures of the Alvis SB 31 . 48 , we are

still working to complete the original condition . Oh , 1 hope that Vou are ab l e to understand my most complicated English ,

but l ' fi not in exercises everytime. I~ e hope that Vou can te l l us a nything about th e h i story of our car ,

becaus c we've got no documen ts when we bought the car . Pirst of a i l sorne t ec hnica l d eta i l s : Car No 2005 4 , 1'1otor No . 1532 4 , Type No . 58 3 1. 48 , Alvis Speed Twenty- Pive ?

This car is equ iped Wlth hydraulic supports at e ach wheel . l t was in a very bad condition whe n we begun to r es taurate thi s marvellous thing . You'll see at the pictures our status quo of r epairing . The whole car was take d apart into the Jas t screw , when we begun ta comp le t e the r e newing .

I</ e always tried to Eall back in original parts . Sorne stuEE \oJ e've got from Red 'rriangle , Ke nilworth , but we are missing in following parts : petrol gauge , s l eeves for supports (permanent jacks), 2 wirc whee ls in top condition (bad on es we have ourself) , e xhaus t system with silencers , double­in-one wi t h t wo silence rs in the r ea r whe n possib l e or please show us a better way , and a il adapte rs (Lucas 51-.'3 12V 549 733622 motor we have ), front­brake cables , lamp units in taiI , clips fo r bail joints oE lighting switch , thruttle , carburettor drives .

Pl e a se be 50 kind and tell us an ide a ta g et this parts Erom . The pictures you can kcep Eor bul l etin or private use .

r'lany thanks ta you for your kindly endeavou r. Yours sincerel y ,

p. s . The o wner 'Ne bought from is , Clarendon Carriage Ltd . • 24 Queensgate News , London SIV7 5Q3

Can an yone help lIec r 5t:Jchti ng with h i s c ebuild which , t o j udge f c om t he phot os , i s a distinguished job on a n i mport an t car - not of cour se a Speed 25 , but a v er y pleasa nt Offord ( ? ) - bod ied 4 . 3 DHC .

29

Dear Alvis friend, You will have learned from the publications in the Bulletins that we

are organizing the 1988 International Alvis Tour: from Friday 9th to Sunday 18th September 1988

leading you from Belgium and Holland into Germany and ending at the traditional "Tobacco Festival" at Harthausen, which 1S combined with the German Alvis Club meeting. Following is the route:

Friday 9th September ArrivaI/meeting of ail participants at/near Brugge, Belgium with informaI dinner.

Saturday IOth September We are staying the whole day in Brugge - the most famous ancient city in Belgium and make sightseeing tours in the morning. Afternoon free at your disposai and in the evening a "get-together party" and the day will end with a boat-trip through the illuminated channels of Brugge.

Sunday llth September We start our tour from Brugge through Belgium, entering Holland and ferry to the island of "Walcheren" visiting Vlissingen and continue to the "Oosterscheldedam" - the biggest open dam/Del ta works. Thereafter we wi Il visit the old fisherman town of Zierikzee and end our trip at Gilze-Rijen near Breda, where we will have dinner. (approx. 235km/147miles)

Monday 12th September The morning will be spent to visit the auto-museum at Raamsdonkveer and continue to the nearby "Biesbos" - the river delta of the Rhine/Waal - where we will make a boat-trip incl. buffet lunch on board. We return to Gilze-Rijen. (approx. 50km/3Im)

Tuesday 13th September We continue our tour through the Dutch provinces of Brabant and Limburg with a lunch stop at the castle of HATTEM near Roermond. Thereafter we head to our overnight stay at Heerlen. (approx. 160km/IOOm)

Wednesday 14th September We visit Maastricht - the oldest Dutch town with international flair - and you will have a free day for sightseeing and shopping. In the late afternoon we will visit a local brewery and will taste the famous Limburg beer. We return to Heerlen. (approx. 60km/38m)

Thursday 15th September We are touring through the Ardennes into Germany and continue through the hilly Eifel to the NUrnburgring. Stay overnight near Daun (202km/126m)

Friday 16th September After having toured the beer-areas we now head to the famous wine areas of the Mosel and will visit various towns along the river. We stay overnight at Idar Oberstein, the world known jewelery-cutting town and will have our farewell dinner, flavoured with local drinks and wines. (approx. 168km/I05m)

Saturday 17th September Our final tour leads us through the hilly Hunsruck into the Pfalz - a romantic German province - and we will end our tour at Harthausen, which is near Speyer, to join the festivities of the Tobacco Festival. (approx. 159km/IOOm)

Sunday 18th September We attend the German Alvis day and the Tobacco Festival at Harthausen.

Distances: Based on your arrivaI by ferry at Oostende/Belgium you will have to calculate following distances: Oostende to Brugge. Harthausen - home. Costs involved: Holland/Belgium and Germany are generally cheaper than U.K. and we have calculated that you should reckon with approx. HFLIOO - (about f33) per person for hotel/breakfast and normal dinner. Extra money has to be calculated for lunches/free evenings and also for sightseeing tours and naturally also for final "Dinner and Dance".

30

Entry-fees What paymen t s will be donc in adva ncc? The organizers require f r om you an entry-fee of E25 - resp . HFL 82 - this money wil l be used Eor aIl running costs organizing the tour and troph i es etc . Since aIL oE us work on a non­profit basis , aIl eventual leEt-overs Er om your e ncry-Eee will be used either to pay Eor tickets/sightseei ng tours or will be used Eor the final Dinner Dance . loJhen a IL hotel arrangements will be made public to you , an advance payment for your hotel r e s ervations will have to be paid and we estima t e this amount ta be around €lOO - HFL 330. Otherwise we think , that our tour will ofEer for each individual pocket a wide range of arrangements - from e xpensive ta mode rate.

Time l imit 1\ 5 we tlave th i s year a lot of inquiries and bookings alrea dy , we do r eq uire to get your booki ngs Eor the 1988 Inte rnational Alvis Tour lastest hy the 15th April 1988. To get an entry form please write to : Secreta r y Alvis 'l'our 1 988 , LE 1-1 Burchard , Herte l aan 10 , 2243 EK \\Iasse naar , The Nethe r lands . 'l'elephone (0) 1751 -777151

WANTED BY MEMBER, COllECTOR WHO lOVES AlVIS CARS, AND Will PURCHASEANY

MODE l , ANYWHERE.

EDDIE QUELCH

20 Ringwood Raad, Luton, Beds. Tel. Luton 576036

Specialist in the Sale and Pure hase of Alvis Cars

WANTED by Dutch member ANY Alvis in running arder. Distance no abject. Pay cash. Any beast or monster considered. Write with picture to:-Arnold. G. P. van OS Jr. P.O. Box 198 Eindhoven 5600AD Netherlands Tel: 40 - 118900

ohapwick fIouse fIole! SHAPWICK SOMERSET T A7 9NL TElEPHONE AS HCOTT (0458) 21 0321

Sun 6th

sat 19th

SUn 27th

APRIL

saturday 2nd

'I\lesday 12th

sunàay 17th

Club Calendar

SOUTH WEST AGM. will be held again this year at the pleasant venue of The h~ll House Restaurant , Poundisford Park near Taunton starting at 2.3Opm . Hot and cold lunches will be available at Ipm . Please support your committee with a large attendance ta start the 1988 season in our Section .

Skittles evening Alvis Owners v Vincent/HRD motorcycle at the Blackmore Vale Inn , Marnhull , Sturminster Ne~on , Dorset . Buffet supper arranged. Stong armed heavy drinkers please contact Camp sec , Brian Chant for more details .

The Annual General ~~tin9 of the Club will be he ln at 2. 1Spm at Hopcrofts Halt Hotel , on the main Oxford ta sanbury Raad A423 , near Steeple ASton. This was the venue in 1985 and is 13miles north of Oxford . There will be r educed rates (E.56 per person for two nights incl dinner and ~T) for members wishing to stay the weekend . Bookings for a~tion should be made di rec t to the Hotel: contact Mrs Jenny Naffine tel : (0869) 40259 . A Buffet Lunch will he automatically reserveà for aIl Council members , section Secretaries and Chairmen , so if the re will be any absentees please let me know . Any other people requiring a buffet lunch @ E4 . 50 per head please book with me by v~dnesday 16th March at the latest enclosing a cheque made payable to the AOC (which wi ll not be cashed until early April). Those not requiring the buffet lunch may make alternative arrangements direct with the Hotel .

NORTHERN: Big End par ty . AlI Fools Night. 8.3Opm onwards , bring you r own bottle . Revived SAE 140 masquerading as 'Hot pOt'. AlI iàiot members welcome. For àetails tel : CHoIt (061 432) 5501 .

SJUTH EAST J(;Pi at 'Itle F\lnch 80'0.11 , cakwood Hill , nr O:::kley , Slrrey 8pm . v~ shall be seeking a new Section secretary this year as Joan Kay wishes to stand down after th ree and a half years. We do have one norrdnation already , Malcolm oavey , a stalwart worker in the section for many years, but aIl nominations will be we lcone. It is hoped that the meeting will be followed by a video Duxford 1987 , or slides brought along by members of the same event or other interesting moments .

EAST ANGLIAN AGM at Thurston Grange Hotel near Bury St F.drrounds. wnch 12 . 3Opm , about ES. Gather for lunch f rom midday. l'~eet ing 2.30 pm . This is a use fuI occasion to learn of our new ventures for the corrdng season and the secretary can pass on the hot news f rom the Club AGM. It is also a good social gathering and a chance to air your views. please inform Jack Clover (~·lOOdton 291) if proPOsing an agenda item or requiring lunch .

Date to be announced . EAST ANGLIAN TOy and model collector s fair at Sible Hedingham Hall combined with motor run and lunch.

32

saturday 23rd

SUnday 24th

MAY

Silverstone VSCC Meeting

MIDLAND AGM to be held at the Redesdale Arrns Hotel, Moreton in Marsh, Glos, one of the largest and best preserved coaching inns in the county with an award-winning restaurant. Meeting at 2pm. Good choice of reasonably priced bar snacks available. Display of Alvis cars with mini-concours prize. NUmerous local attractions for non-participants: Batsford arboretum, the swells, the Slaughters, Chipping Campden museurns, SOurton on the water etc etc. Nurnbers for lunch please to the Midland Secretary as soon as possible.

Fd/SUn 6/8 NOR'lHERN: Lakes Weekend. Once again by popular request this weekend is to be held at the Tarn HOws Hotel which is situated in an elevated position above Hawkshead. A full programme of events is planned for the weekend as meITtlers will remerrber from last year. Please book early as roorns are allocated on a first come first served basis. The price for two nights dinner, b&b plus sunday lunch is E70 including vat. Children sharing with parents is E50 per person. non-residents requiring dinner or sunday lunch is ElO & E6.50 respectively. Details & bookings fram Mick Fletcher on (0254) 60999.

SUnday l5th SOU'lH EAST: Classic Car gathering at Yew Tree, Frieth. Midday.

sat/SUn 2l/22nd INTERNATIONAL ALVIS WEEKEND. DUXFORD/CAMBRIOOE. Dinner and accommodation will be at the Sorrento Hotel this year on a first come first served basis. ROOms are limited but there will be overflow arrangements. Approx cost Dinner B&B - E27.50 per head. Dinner only E7.50. Please contact Malcolm Davey for bookings on (0732) 833038. FUrther details next month.

SUn/MOn 29/30 EAST AN:;LIAN: Enfield pageant. Club Stand plus al! the interest of a large event. Contact John Oliveira.

Sat/SUn 4/5th SOUTH WEST ALVIS WEEKEND at Shapwick House Hotel, (near Bridgwater) SOmerset is the new venue for 1988. we shall take over the 300 year old house and grounds for the weekend. Saturday - pub lunch and tour, tea and dinner at the Hotel. sunday SOuth west Alvis Day in the Hotel grounds with lunch, tea and bar facilities. 19 bedroorns available. Booking now open. First come, first served. Details from Rod yeend, 9 The plain, Thombury, Bristol. tel (0454) 415541. See Hotel ad on page 28.

JUNE

SUnday 5th

SUnday 12th

'lUesday l4th

Slnday 3rd

NOR'lHERN: visit to Houghton TOwer, preceded by lunch at Royal oak (to be confirmed).

EAST AN3LIAN: visit to Oxborough Hall, near oownharn Market.

SOUTH EAST: ouxford debriefing meeting at the PUnch SOwl, oakwood Hill.

MIDLAND ALVIS DAY to be held at the works.

33

Thursday 7th

'lUesday 12th

SUnùay 17th

SUnday 31st

SOUTH EAST: Auto day with Bracknell Rotary club.

EAST ANGLIAN: Annual evening trip to Assington.

s:xJTH EAST: Roving meeting from Rlnch 8Owl, oakwood Hill.

EAST ANGLIAN DAY. A fine new venue in the grounds of Framlingham castle about 6 miles NE of Ipswich in SUffolk. A fine castle in the pretty village of Framlingharn with good selection of pubs, hotels & B&B establishments. The event will start on Saturday lunch time for those who wish to make it a weekend. More details later. OORTHERN: Club stand at Newby Hall car rally.

SUnday 7th NOR'lHERN: run similar to the one held at the yew Tree last year.

sat/SUn 20/21st EAST AroLIAN: second informal weekend centring this year on the home of rnenber Maurice Gallaher at Ardleigh, nr colchester. More details later.

SUnday 4th

SUnday llth

SUnday 25th

sunday 2nd

NORTHERN: Club stand at Holker Hall car rallye SOUTH EAST: Annual cricket match versus Bentley Drivers Club

NOR'lHERN ALVIS DAY at Harewood House.

SOUTH EAST ALVIS DAY at Chessington.

EAST ANGLIAN: Lunch Date.

Sat 22/Sun 23 WELSH WEEKEND. would much appreciate maximum support from members of wales sub-section, but aIl are welcorne. Details to follow from TOny Saunders.

May 22nd: Historic Transport Pageant in association with Leicester Mercury at Abbey Park, Leicester. Details susan HOllis, Leicester 512512 Ext 2251/2/3. 24th/27th April, 4th Coppa d'Italia srI cio Diemme caffe, via caprera 31 - 35138 Padova, Italy tel (049) 8713311. 23rd/26th June: venice to Deauville. contact as above 10th septernber Cappa d'Italia OOlomiti. QDntact as above. 31st July: watchet 1000, Concours d'elegance. non-competitive drive from Minehead via oonster and the Blue Anchor sea front to watchet. Rotary Club of the C)lantocks. FOr details SAE to P R Strong, AlI Hallows, Gt House St.,Tirnberscombe, SOmerset TA24 7~ 24th JUly: Vintage veteran Rally, GUildford. Details from G E Brown, GUildford 33695. salisbury area railshow with British Rail/ 24/5 September. pre-1940 vehicles required. details David Taylor (0256) 782119. 16/18th September: Automobile Club de Champagne 10th Champagne Rally. paris/Deauville Rally 7/10 october. Details for both above from Gen sec. 3/4th April. Midland Festival of Transport, weston park, Shropshire. Autojumble and aerojumble. oetails frem Jeff Price, tel: 021 502 3713.

34

FINANCE FOR CLASSICS GREYLEA CLASSIC ENTERPRISES are specialist finance

consultants for the purchase of Classic and Collectors vehicles. Let us help you purchase your next classic!

Hire Purchase * Business Leasing * Personal Loans for Homeowners *

* Dealer Enquiries We1come *

*

* Subject to Status * * Written details on request *

* Free vehicle location service * Telephone Graham Chapman on 01-291 2049

(My collection includes a 1947 Alvis TA14, 1948 Jewel caravan, 1959 Ford Prefect and 1967 Daimler 2.5L)

Or write to GREYLEA CLASSIC ENTERPRISES Il Kirkdale, Sydenham, London SE26 4NB

(Licensed Credit Brokers)

'ŒADE~

General starter motor, alternator, dynamo repairs and rebuilding, eut-out and regulator resetting. Call Alliter on (0635) 67493.

Performance driving courses, castle combe Circuit, Wilts. FWD saloon car instruction on Peugeot 205 GTi or Fiesta XR2. Details (0249) 660136.

spax for the design and manufacture of competition dampers for specials and conversions. Technical help. Bicester (0869) 244771

Autonotive Art: oil paintings from photographs. 20% discount is E70 for l6x20 original. Details (0977) 550471.

Optical Coating Services for resilvering of headlamp reflectors. E13.50 each (0689) 76442

Chromatics now have specialist classic car chrorrdng facilities in NUneaton. Phone quotes usually possible. (0203) 641009.

custorn built windscreens (01) 427 5657.

Magnetic and other signs for competition use. (0932) 568402.

35

TECTU8 ENGINEERING

Specialists in the manufacture of reproduction mechanical campanents far Veteran, Vintage

Md Tharaughbred Vehicles

CASTINGS AND MACHINED PARTS One-offs and Small Setches

ta Sample or D,awing

RESTO RATION AND REBUILD OF MECHANICAL ASSEMBLIES

Engines. Gearboxes. Axles. Steerlng Geer. Pumps. Superchargers

ENGINEERING FASTENERS STOCKED Mail Order Worldwlde

3J years of Mechanical Engineering Expertise 'Mde knowledge and experience of Vintage

and Thoroughbred Vehicles

CALL US TO DISCUSS YOUR REQUIREMENTS

KEITH TAYLOR (Restoration and Remanufacturel

JULIAN TAYLOR (Fastenersl

MILL LANE, HEMINGBROUGH SELBY, North Yorkshire Y08 7QX

Telephone (0757) 638310

Classified Ads

CONDrrIONS: NEI'ŒER 'lBE CLUB R)R THE EDI'IDR CAN ACCEPT RESroNSIBILITY FOR STATFJœNl'S MADE IN ADVBRrISEIŒHl'S. 'l'BESE MAY BE EDI'l'ED, SIDJLD PRBFBRABLY BE "J.'ïPEJiRI'l" AND MUS!' BE IN 'lBE EDrroR'S BANDS TBREB CLFAR WEFXS BEFORE '!BE FIRST OF 'lBE MJm'B OF ISSOE. '!BE BDI'lOR CANYJT ACCBPl' RESKIiSIBILITY POR mœœs ARISIOO mlM ~ SUllŒSSIœ8. <::BAIm'S:PRE-PAID QNLy. PLEASE mc:IOSE REMI'rrANCE OF El (tmmERS): E3 (l«lIHŒJœBRS): OR ES ('œADE) (OTBBR '!BAN FOR SPARFS FOR SM.E illICB ARE FRBE), PAYABLE m 'lBB ALVIS œNERS CLUB FOR BACH INSERTION. REPEAT ORDERS AT 'lBB SNœ RATE. OYERSEAS PAYMEHl'S BY IIfl'BRNATIœAL KlNEY ORDER OR S'.l'ERLIR; DRAF1'. ANYaŒ WISBIR; 1.'0 ADVERTISE 'lBEIR CAR WI'lB A PIDIDGRAPB SIDlLD REFER m '!BE DISPLAY AD RATES AT '!BE PRlNl' OF mIS BOLIB.rIN

1963 TD21 series 2 Ready for respray, complete with second car (if wanted) for flnlshlng reg no 3162 KV. E2250 tel: (0884) 217. Devon. Brierley.

1962 TD21 Series 2 Dro~ead: Chassis, suspension, brakes aIl overhauled in last year. Most work by Red Tnang e plus new hood by Hightone. Taxed MaY, MOT until April. wire wheels with new tyres. Car needs sorne bodywork and respray to complete. For sale with valuab1e registration no 3251 TD. E6000 ono. MYnard (0908) 312475.

§peed 25: EYR 215, rough rolling chassis, rebuilt engine, 6 rebuilt wheels with brand new tyres, pll0s, radiator, bonnet, bulkhead, wings, seats, tank etc., E9000. Chris BoIt (061) 432 5501 (e).

Member wishes to purchase any pre-1933 Alvis, vintage 12/50 preferred including part restored or special. p1ease phone (0752) 347713 (e)(w/e) to arrange viewing anywhere.

Firefly/Firebird tourer or saloon in sound caondition. Tired but honest paintwork preferred to recent respray. Please tel: Shrewsbury (074387) 4298.

New member with young fandly actively seeking four seat convertible, TC21/l00, TD,TE, or TF Drophead, as reliab1e second car so good mechanical running condition preferred. Tel: Robert Jones tel: (0404) 822919.

Vintage Kismet compressor trolley tyre inf1ator, hand operated 3 ft long. ElOO. LOrd (061) 456 7202.

SPARES twrl'ED

12/70 engine carplete or just a block. My condition considered. Please phone Barry King-Smith, Rowlands castle, HampShire, (0705) 412874

36

The Ah'i\ Thrtt Lit~ Coupe ha~ the ume \.\dl-provcd enginc and th,mi, 3\ the ~loon. bUI n fine..! \.\lIh A

d;"ungui hed l'el pl'ilctial TIc:kforJ Coupe body. It i .. :l full four \C:loIcr \.\I(h IlcncwU\ Joor"( to PCmUt ca\}' ac.:o~

10 :tnd from the feu \C.u~. Intcrlor furnl~hmg1 and appomlmcnt .. Irc of the hl~~t qw.ht\, Indudlfli: high t;l'2dc

kalller uphoblC:ry .and \.\<LInuI (.Ici:. bœrd :lnd doar mouldingl. The '" mdo\.\ hnc and ,lcnder \creen pliLan gi\~

good \'j, ill tlit), from :all \C:m in the car. The hoOO c.ln he rolded ~dt 01\ :a coupe-de· .. ' lIlc or (olJed fbt :1\ an 0rell lourer, and Il can bc lowcrcd or r.li~d from in~idc the car, the hingc Jockmg mtdunJ,m bc:lnli CIOntmllC'\! l'Il'

mlcrior handl". In \);ad ""'Qlhcr. wilh the hOO\1 r:1i \cd the coupe ha\ ail the w.lrnuh :and cernfofl of Ihe' n loon

J tI'tOUnl/iff' IhL Jf't'rr"fW anJ dlJurnin,g Jrlm-." "'lit A,,·,~.1>'." ' ·ct>ru.ry l'th,l~l.

P R C E S Saloon 1I.250 0 0

Ilurdu\C Tu ,C521 ,. Coup< ,CI.m 0 0

Pul"Chbc Tu lm , '11\c IbowC" J'n." u,-:luJ( :->muh"

AIr ConJlI .. ..,U"' L"rut

THREE LITRE DROPHEAD

E ngl nc. Six cylindcr, O"(rh"Jd \":lIve , ALV 1S Thrco: U!." of 8.J mm. bore Q() mm. siloke, ,iving a C2p:icily of2,993 C.e. R.A.C r1IIinl26 25 h.p. Chr,"",:, iron cylinder block wilh dC lach~bk hnd 11'101 ov",h(ad .... ~! .. es .clualed by ALVIS design push , ods and .ocke. m.:chllmlm. O"mhafl dn,..,n by duplex chain ",ilh spring-Io.oded aU!<lU\alic chain Icn"un.:. . Dyrlllm,caLl)' balanccd

~fa~~;~~~~u;h~~~~d~::7l ~,~n~~d"~a:~;t.Shl~~i~::i;~lbr:~~Onnn~~~g~~~ ",ilh fo. ccd f«d 10 main and big end beadnil and roch. $haft; subme' g"d o;l pump, Il,·a. d.i ' ·cn from cam,hafl. T "'111 S.U. carburc!lers, and Luos coil and dinribulOr ignuion splcm wuh auwrnalic alld v~cuum advance and retard.

Cooling. Pump circulation wi!h bclt-driven fan, IhermOSIJlicall)' controllcd. CapacilY, Ihree gallol\$.

Tra nJml» lon. Four-$p«d synchrom.:sh iC1lrbox oOmp'OI·.:d ALVIS drsi,n wilh c:xccptionally robu$! helical , .:a/'$ moumcd in large d,amcler bearing,. Gelr rIIlio1-4 '09, 5'4-1 , 7,89, 12' 15, tevu '" 12' 15 10 L. Clu!ch, 10 in. Uorg and Ikck. Centn!!ly placcd Ifelr le""r. Hlrdy Spice. propl'llt. shafl w;lh nc-edle roller branng!. Hypotd bc:vd semi- tlo.oling re~r nie.

Uralr.c., Lockhecd full h)'draulic 1""0 leadmg $hue bru", 1 [ m. d,amclu d ruml 2 1 in. wide i 10lal lining area, 189 lQ. lOS. H~nd bnk.: 10 rcar ",hecb Ihrough "'pante linkage operated by pisloi gnp.

TRRMS OF BUSISI-:SS

Siee r ing. 8urman rc-<lrc-ulating b:;Il! Iype 17 in. 'pring JpoI<e whecl, opllonal right or left-hand drive,

Wheeb and T)'rcs. Dunlop dIse "'h«I" th'c stud fixing 1O.',lh chromium pbted n:lV': plaIes. Dunlop 15 ln. ~ 600 in. t)'res,

l'cl ro i Suppl)'. 1<1 1 gallon tank al rear of chusi, ,,'ilb en,ine-driven rnech2mClI prQ5ure ]lump. One plllln te",,'''e opcrotcd by SWllch on dash.

E1ecl r lcal Equlpmc:nt. LUCl$ 12 voll ')'Stem with constant "(Iltage oonlto l and l'emed dyrwmo. 0<\ arnpcrc·hour h:lucr)' ~ t 10 hour rote. llu,lI-1n heal!

~:I~~~~a~~~gre~;nI~~';I:::"pr:~ /ii~;~~i~:el~;t: ,,1~~h~Z~i;~ld~a ~:~s~hanse;

InStrumenl Board. l'ohsheJ fi~ur~d W'dlnm fiued wilh ' pccdomclcr, dock, oi[ pt,'nure sallie, pelrol sauge, "'aH;r IhcnnomclC1, amm~tcr. ignilion \l'unin\; hglll. ignilion 5wltch 3nJ ~lart control. ,\ 11 iOStrl.lmcll15 Iigh tcd inte rllllll y.

Jacklng S)·Slcl1l. Portable $CTCW 1)'1'1': Sl'slcm, cui[)' oper:ned by wh«lbl1lcc Il ach oorncr Ilf Ihc car.

tnlerior. Fro"l di"ided bc:nch Ka lS adiuM~blc for reach. Folding um relt 10 t'Car sc:~t. Upholstcred Ihroughoui ln finell quahty lcal};er wilh garnb h nib and window f",mn ofpolishcd walnu!. Ilca\'l[ycarpctcd fioor ... -ilh feh undcrlay.

Spare Whecl and T ooI" Spare ",hc:cI cankd in cuy alX'l:U tnly bcncalh lugage comparun.:ot, Full kil of !()Ql~ and lyre l'lump.

Dim.:nslona. Whedhuc, 9 ft. l i in,. Track, 4 ft. 6t ins. (fronl), 4 ft. 61 lm. (rcar). Oround cLcarallC(, 711111. Turnmg tirele, 39 fi. 6 ins. O\'er~!llc llgth. I ~ fi. 21 ,ns. O\'cnJ! lO.·idth, 5 fI. 6 ms. Overo]] he,ghl, 5 fi . 3 'ns. We'ght, chanis, 17 ~""t!i. 1,'(I('ghl (CQmpklc C'~r, dry), 281 twts.

O. livny of .v.ry ALVIS ca, Of d ... ,i. i ••• · .. 01 .... t c.,..'''''y. I) .. po'eh '0"" ",he, dot'l ............ th< '"<1"''' of ,bo: ru,d, ... , .. m he un<J,e,\AUn only '1 hi> COI' ..,1<1 ".k. [)<liv •• y Ior • ,-m.d .1 ... can_ he "",,,,,'<cl, .[<houah .... ry .n<l<O\'ul.\l .. "",.1. ,,, ...... , "".I<,m",,· ,"""".",,,n... The Cu<nl"'nr "",vo, ,he ".h' '0 .. "".1 Of ,u'p<nd ..,y ... <t'"",n, rOt .. 1. ur a U. ". <1 .... 1 • .. ·,,110\1' lnculti". ' ''Y habil;'r (or 1",. o. d.n ...... hid • .... r '" .. 'u ,bo: pu"luoot' ,,,,,,.r,,,,", ir I"""m'N r",... mdm_ J,I""y Ju. to .nr .. u .. .. 'Iuo,_v.,l><yo"d ,h. Con'I .. ny·, CQ.II.uI, Q' .houl,[ ,h. Con',>&ny .b.".!"", ,he monufK'U" of .. ,ct. ... nt <1 ... ",. 1'1 .... no" ,,,-,, ,h< infOtmation .nd ,ptcilkll'l<>n ~i .. n ln ,h" n,aJ<)t"" .f< .ubion '0 ." ••• ';on witlwu. ""ti«.

London Servic:c S"tion :

8J2 FINCHLEY RD., LOND ON, N .W. II

ALl'lS LIMI1'ED nOL "III~" 1) 110" f) COVEN'I'lll' l'.inled ln Un_Iond br A. Il. "'.s. 1.1.1 • Loi",«,

1 FOOTMAN.~AMES

ALVIS OWNER CLUB INSURANCE SCHEME F octman J ames & Com p any U m ited h as, t rom incepti o n. prov ided a pro fess iona l ra n ge o f ins ura n ce p o li c ies ca te ri ng s p e cifi ca ll y fo r C lassic, Vete ran & V intage Ca r Owners. A range o f li m ited and u n li m ite d mil eage poli cies are available w ith ag reed va lu e su m s in s ured fo r ail veh ic les over 5 years o f age. T he extensive serv ice also o ffe rs faciliti es fo r wedd ing hire a n d persona li sed number pl ates.

A limited m i leag e sc h eme for the A lv is Own e r C lu b h a s been set u p . Detai ls as s h awn b el ow:-F ully Compre h e n s ive ESO.QO E xcess Any number o f c lub ca r s can be in c luded a n d on ly o ne premium is ch a rged p ro v id i ng overa ll m i leage limita tion is NOT exceeded . a) CS.OO per El ,000 vehi c le va lu e - E15.00 m in im um. Plu s b ) [25.00 fo r 1,500 mi les per ann um. Or c) f:35 .00 for 3,000m il es perannum. Or d) C5 0 .00 fo r 4,000 miles per annum. Or e) C60.00 for 4 ,500 mi les pe r annu m .

Contactl P eter J a m eswith you r individ u al d e ta il s to obtainaconfirme d q uotati on .

Footm an Jam es & Com p a n y Limited was esta blis h ed in 1983 by Pete r F ootm a n & P e te r Jam es. Th e aim to o lie r an e nthusiasti c b ut pro fessio n a l in s ura n ce service on a ra n ge o f s p e cia li st p o li cies. Th e Co m pa n y h as s teadi ly m aintain e d a n d d eveloped thi s initiative a nd n ow h as ava ilab le fac iliti es coveri n g a il aspects o f m otor, d omesti c a nd c o mm e r c ia l insura nces. A il poli c ies a re w ith re putab le Briti sh based in s urers . The Directo rs and S ta ff h ave exte n s ive know le d ge a nd expe ri e n ce in a il a reas o f in s u ra n ce a nd would b e pleased to a dvise the b est po li cy t o s ui t each indiv idua l requi rem e nt. Th e recen t ins ta ll a ti o n o f compu t e rised quo ti ng is a n a ddi t io n a l a id to e n a bl e a s p eedy e ffi cient repl y to e nquiries.

OTHER INSURANCE SERVICES AVAILABLE • Priva te Molor Insu rance. • Classic Molorcycle Insu rance. • Kit, eustom, Replica and Modified

Car Insu rance.

• Household & Personal Insurance. • Commercial Insu rances including:

Molor Trad e, M a rine , Life & Pensions.

FOOTMAN.~AMES Footman James & Company Limited, Waterfall Industrial Estate, Waterfall Lane, Cradley Healh, Warley, West Midlands 864 6PU. Tel: 021 -561 4196/ 2847 / 2848.

RED TRIANGLE AUTOSERVICES LIMITED

Common Lane, Kenilworth, Warwickshire

Telephone Kenilworth 57303

Founded to take over the entire stock of ALVIS SPARES in 1968 with the approval of ALVIS LTD and continues to provide spares

as available to ALVIS owners.

SOLI HULL

M6 BANBURY

WARWICK , STRATFORD-QN-AVON

STQ'N ON THE WOLD

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LEME WARWICK BY-PASS A AT UNIVERSITY TURN

PLEASE CONTACT:

Mr. Rowland Simmons, Managing Director or

Mr. Brian Chrimes, Spares and Service Engineer