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VSCC Magazine - September 2008 Issue

A special one-off race for ladies will take place at next year's VSCC Silverstone Race Meeting (Date TBC). In the Club's 75th Anniversary Year, Gillian Carr will organise a race that celebrates how many ladies race Pre-war cars with the VSCC. Rather than being a sexist event, dividing the women from the men, the aim is to publicise how many women are participating in Vintage and Historic motorsport and hopefully encouraging more to come and get involved. There are few Clubs who could field an entire grid of very fast ladies so this will be great opportunity to get some good PR for the Club! The race will be open to racing and sports-cars built before 1941; all cars must have a current eligibility form and, of course, race licences will be required. The race will be approximately 6 laps on the National Circuit.

Over the forthcoming months we will secure a date for the traditional 'Spring Start' Race Meeting with Silverstone but in the meantime please keep as many weekends free in April 2009 as possible. If you would like to race please can you do the following:

Contact Gillian Carr at the Club Office so that she can identify how many ladies would like to race.

Let her know if you have a car lined up, otherwise she will try to match you up to an owner who is willing to loan a car.

We will then supply you with an entry form as soon as the date and regulations are confirmed.

If you do not have a race licence and are tempted to come and have a go, Gillian has a list of schools running ARDS courses. In the meantime, why not come and have a taster at the Racy Ladies Track Day, to be held at Rockingham on Sunday 9 November 2008?

Club member Emma-Jane Gilbart-Smith is organising the event alongside Simon Hope of H&H. It will be a quiet, unpublicised day, with morning and afternoon sessions split into groups and lunch. Again, if you do not have a suitable vehicle it may be possible to arrange a 'loan car' for you. Men are banned from the track: this day is for the girls! The cost is £199 per person for the day. For more information please visit www.racyladies.co.uk. Entry forms and a pre-event questionnaire are available to download off the VSCC website too, please see the News Section.

In association with H&H

Interested in taking part in a Ladies Only Track Day Sunday 9th November 2008 - Rockingham

For more information please visit

Racy Ladies Website

Number Plates: An Introduction

By Regtransfers.co.uk

Website Link

When number plates first became a compulsory requirement on New Year’s Day, 1904, there was a long queue of motorists hoping to be issued with A1, the first London issued registration. Earl Russell camped all night outside the County Council offices for the desirable registration and was finally issued with the number the following morning. It is still being displayed today.

Although the massive interest in personalised number plates is a fairly recent phenomenon, it is clear that prestigious and eye-catching registrations have been desirable since the number plates system began. Then the letter or pair of letters at the start of a registration denoted the issuing authority and letters were allocated alphabetically, in order of population size, meaning that ‘A’ was given to London, while modest Rutland received the last combination - ‘FP’.

The appeal of classic cars is self evident. With their traditional charms and individuality, classic, vintage and veteran cars continue to be held in high esteem. Unlike today’s vehicles, many of which blend in with the crowd, a classic car does not go unnoticed and that is one of the reasons that traditional car registrations are also extremely popular. An older registration presents a flash of individuality in an otherwise unremarkable motoring world. Early number plates, particularly those issued prior to 1963 (therefore not containing age identifiers), are appealing because:

Firstly, early registrations contain far fewer characters than later ones and are concise and striking and work well as a status symbol. Perhaps one of the most famous examples of this is Sir Alan Sugar’s AMS 1 registration. Not only is this noticeable, but it contains his initials, which is personal to the Amstrad founder, and also contains the highly regarded number 1. It is clear how important the prestigious number plate is to Sir Alan as although he has chosen to sell his impressive Rolls-Royce Phantom, he continues to retain the registration.

Also they are becoming an ever increasing investment opportunity. AMS 1 is now worth more than the vehicle that carries it. Whilst the value of his modern Phantom will probably continue to decrease there is every chance that the value of the registration number will continue to grow.

Another well-known attraction of private number plates is the potential to display a meaningful message. Many businesses are now catching on to this as does H&H for example as it currently displays 25 HH on the Ford Mustang that Simon races all over Europe. A perfect match.

The concept of removing a number plate from its original car is not welcomed by all. For some, this action takes away the link between a car and its history and means that it lacks authenticity for the new holder. However consider that many older registrations, such as A1, are only around today because they have been removed from the original vehicles and re-issued to newer ones. Unlike many vehicles from the twentieth century, which no longer exist, registrations are indestructible. This means that today, we are able to hold onto the link with number plate’s history.

However, classic and vintage car owners should be aware that, should one decide to remove the original registration, for whatever reason, it does not necessarily have to be placed onto another vehicle. Instead, one may choose to hold the number on retention. The fee for doing this is £105 – an £80 assignment fee and £25 retention fee. Private number plates can be held indefinitely on V778/1 certificates but must be renewed annually for £25. Vehicles manufactured prior to 1 January 1973 may display traditional, black, metal plates, with white, silver or grey characters but one cannot display a plate which is newer than the car on which it sits – illegal.

One may not think that older cars and personalised number plates have all that much in common. However, they have one very specific similarity – both will always stand out from the crowd and will be forever cherished.

VSCC Magazine - August 2008

Our sponsorship partners, H&H, will be taking up station just downhill from the Pardon hairpin this weekend. As per last year all are welcome to meet the team and take advantage of the fine views offered by their location. An added attraction will be the wonderful cars on display ahead of the company's October I Ith-I2th 2008 Haynes International Motor Museum auction.

1937 Frazer-Nash BMW 328 Roadster
One of a small number of right-hand drive BMW 328s made, the two-seater was campaigned at Prescott in 1946 by its then racing driver owner,
Gillie Tyrer. A keen 328 exponent who would later own one of the ex-Mille Miglia cars, Tyrer campaigned this particular Frazer-Nash supplied example with considerable verve between 1945 and 1947. Still boasting matching chassis and engine numbers, its desirable specification includes a period oil cooler, ZF gearbox and triple SU carburettors (a Frazer-Nash modification).The subject of an extensive restoration in the 1990s, it remains 'on the button'.

1937 Aston Martin IS/98 Short Chassis Tourer
One of only forty-two surviving Short Chassis cars to have been fitted with Abbey tourer coachwork, this particular example was treated to an extensive restoration in the mid 1980s by A.B. Price. Still highly presentable, it boasts a Speed Model cylinder head, full-flow oil filter and various other modifications all aimed at increasing its performance and drivability. Increasingly sought after, the 2-Litre Astons are still conspicuously undervalued when compared to their 1.5-Litre siblings.

1955 Lancia Aurelia B24S Spider
Although one of just fifty-nine Aurelia B24S Spiders built to right-hand drive specification, this particular example has spent its entire life in Italy. Prepared by its first owner to compete on the Mille Miglia, the Lancia sadly never made the start line. However, the two-seater remained part of his family for some forty years before the second owner treated it to a 'ground-up' restoration during the late 1990s. Wonderfully preserved by the Italian climate, the car remains substantially" original. Eligible for a number of prestigious historic events, the Pininfarina penned Aurelia B24S Spider is, and always will be, a style icon.

l948 Allard J1 Trials Car
Known as The Appleton Special', this purposeful two-seater was built to compete in sprints, hillclimbs and trials. Based around an Allard J1 chassis, it featured a Mercury 'Flathead' VS engine, Marshall supercharger, fiddle brake, gearlever 'kill switch' (for clutchless changes), hydraulically adjustable shock absorbers, different sized front / rear wheels and minimal overhangs. Reputed to have competed in the RAC Trials Championship, 'JYH 613' also apparently distinguished itself at Silverstone and Prescott.

Autosport - July 2008 Issue

ALFA HOLDS OFF FLYING FRAZER NASH

SEVEN SECONDS was all that separated a crude chain-driven Frazer Nash Supersports model from a wonderfully sophisticated supercharged straight-eight Alfa Romeo SC after a gruelling hour of pre-war sports car racing in the fifth annual BRDC SOO retrospective.

Resplendent in Philippe 'Phi Phi' Etancelin's sky blue livery, the Italian stallion won of course, with Simon Hope and owner Peter Neumark up, but the gallant Meadows-engined hybrid of Justin Maeers and Charles Gillett was snapping at its heels.

Conducting the Alfa's familiar blower whine, Hope whooshed clear of the fast Talbot 105 of Gareth Burnett early on. The Stretton brothers-Sam in one of Geoffrey Taylor's blown Altas and Martin in a beautiful BMW 328 -were also in the chase, split by Maeers, scurrying along in the FN.

Fourteen battling marques, from a 'Birkin' of Bentleys to Tom McWhirter's thuggish twin-rear wheeled Jaguar SS100, made a splendid spectacle, but Sam Stretton's challenge was derailed by a lengthy pit call, Hope relayed Neumark after 12 laps with a 55 sec lead and he went back ahead when Burnett stopped two laps later.

Gillett responded in effervescent style. Hunched over the Hash's spindly tiller and hanging its pendulous tail ever further out of line, he hacked back the deficit to Neumark by around five seconds per 3.17-mile lap, and could see the svelte Alfa on the final lap.

Bronson brought the crackling Talbot home third, ahead of the Delage of Will Mahany/James Baxter, and the recovering Sam Stretton.

Sports Car Market - September 2008 Issue

The newly refurbished Royal Hall served as backdrop for H&H at its inaugural Harrogate sale in April, where 41 lots changed hands at just over $2m—a considerable increase over last year's larger Sl.lm Buxton event. Aston Martins brought some of the biggest money here, with a 1966 DB6 Short Chassis Volante selling at $642k and a 1962 DB4 Series IV Vantage bringing $413k.

Despite presale jitters in the week when most of the U.K. finally realized the credit crunch had hit, H&H managed a successful sale on its first visit to Harrogate. The mag¬nificent and newly refurbished Royal Hall was not yet open to the public, but H&H boss Simon Hope managed to swing the venue as an alternative to H&H's normal northern base of Buxton, whose Pavilion Gardens center is also being redone.

Hope got the two most significant of the three Astons away for top prices. The rare DB6 Short Chassis Volante, restored to a condition a bit short of concours, sold to Europe for a new auction record of $642,510. The 1962 DB4 Series IV Vantage, one of 45 and described as "the thinking man's DBS," had undergone a recent sharp restoration and was bought by an American collector for $413,820.

Prewar cars featured strongly, and a highlight among them was a very original 1937 Lagonda LG45 drophead coupe. Entered by a Northern Irish collector, it was sold to a European enthusiast for $174,240. From the same Lincolnshire stable, the 1926 Delage Dl Tourer and 1935 Railton Eight Saloon fetched $35,937 and $34,848, respectively. All four of the cataloged Bentleys changed hands, with the highest price going to the 1951/1969 Bentley Mk VI special at $54,500—a fearsome brute with an air of the original Excalibur about its lines, but with a turbocharger and drum brakes underneath.

The tidy 1987 Chevrolet Corvette failed to sell at a high bid of $16,000, and this was no real surprise, as C4s are still below the radar of U.K. buyers. But a rollcaged Peugeot 205 GTi 1.9 was a cheap and entertaining sprint/track day car at just $2,475.

A 1956 Jaguar XK 140 restoration project wearing the highly-collectible ( registration number XKA 1 comfortably exceeded its high estimate to fetch $63,162, and the three cars consigned from the Yorkshire Motor Museum found new owners as well, with a delightful 1923 Wolseley lOhp "200 Mile Race" replica recording $50,094, a 2003 Jaguar XKR bringing $37,026, and a 1970 Triumph TR6 totaling $20,147.

The bikes on offer didn't do as well. Of the 14 lots offered, the two stars, the 1979 endurance racing Honda RS1000 and the later version that took Joey Dunlop to a world championship, failed to reach their reserves of nearly $200,000 each. Still, a nice Ariel Square Four with Watsonian sidecar found a new owner at $15,246. Of the other square fours of¬fered, two Suzuki GP racers with Barry Sheene provenance did not sell, but an earlier "customer" machine fetched $21,780.

As the cars offered here demon¬strated, buyers are still spending, which went a long way to restoring confidence after H&H's disappointing Cheltenham auction in February, where the sale rate dipped to 55%. Last year's Buxton event saw 61 of 86 cars change hands for a com¬bined total of $l.lm, and although fewer cars were offered at this new venue, final totals grew by almost $lm.