Moving on.

Okay.. Time to come out of the closet! The reason I bought the Jeep in the first place, and now a second one, is to take both of them to Egypt and drive the pistes once driven by The Long Range Desert Group. This blog will now, seamlessly change into a new one to be found here!

A week in the life.

Progress on the second Jeep ‘Willy’ is progressing at a brisk pace. The body tub was soon off and I have been over to Jeeparts, in Shrewsbury, with a big - ish, shopping list. I dropped a careful off at the Matt Savage Overland Preparation Barn last week and, as I type, brakes are being rebuilt, wheel bearings replaced and repairs started to the floor panels. Meanwhile, back in the jungle, I took the original Ford Jeep, ‘Henry’ for a 320 mile round trip to Betws y Coed for a spot of fun on some old Droving Roads. It was 16 hour day, but worth every minute. The Jeep ran perfectly and managed to cruise at a respectable 50 -55 mph. There will be a couple of small issues to attend to before I can truly sign it off as ‘finished’, but they can wait a while.

Up and running.

The latest folly arrived at The Matt Savage Overland Preparation Barn today and we thought it might be worth trying to start it to see just how good, or bad, it was, before ripping it apart. A can of petrol appeared, a battery and a spot of hot wiring and with a tentative shove of the starter button the engine burst into life. First signs are good. No smoke and ran well. A run up the test track indicated all was well in the transmission too. All it needs is............

Irresistible

It was September 2007 when I started this Blog, having bought a 1943 Ford Jeep in need of a full rebuild. That Jeep has now been on the road for 18 months and recently had it’s second MOT test. It therefore made perfect sense to buy another one! This time it’s a Willys Jeep. Also made in 1943. There are a few very small detail differences between the Ford and the Willys. Back then, Willys came up with the best design, but lacked the manufacturing facilities to supply the big military contract, so the building was shared with Ford. I bought this Jeep from the same guys I bought the last one from as they had ‘a few’ when I phoned them up. A deal was struck and it will be up at the Matt Savage Overland Preparation Barn within the next two weeks. First inspection indicates that it should need less work than the first one. It has an engine!

I need help.

A couple of busy months and I feel a weakness coming on. Someone please stop me! The whole rusty tale could be about to start a new chapter. Watch this space...............

Hot new rubber.

Remember my Jeep? Not mentioned the old girl for a while, but it’s still here, ready for combat at the drop of a flag. I’ve finally dug deep and bought a new set of tyres. The ex (very ex) Range Rover 205-16’s wobbled their last wobble a week ago to be replaced by Michelin ZXL’s. Pals dave and Roger Tilton helped out on Bank Holiday Monday and we wrestled with black rubber all afternoon. A test run at about 5.00 confirmed they were a delight and no trace of wheel wobble. When we removed one of the old tyres it transpired I had trapped a section of inner tube between the halves of the rim. So, no wonder they could not be balanced. My fault and not repeated this time. Split rims are a learning curve. Not sure about them yet, but they are fine right now.

Wait a minute. It's the same work bench! Look at the handle on the drawer. We must have had that bench for 40 years. Good bench.

A big clear up.

When you reach the point that it is quicker to go out and buy a new screwdriver/spanner/hammer/flange sprocket, than find the one you know you’ve had for years, it’s time to clear out the garage. Will and I did just that this weekend, helped by our pal Ian and his 10 year old son, Casper. A load went to the tip and the rest was sorted out into boxes scavenged from the road side and recycled. It was very rewarding as I’m sure like minded readers will appreciate.

Camp as a row of tents.

Tried this out recently, on short term loan from Nene Overland. The Ford Ranger was boring, but did the trick and the Camper that dropped into the back was most comfortable. The boys and I lit a fire and cooked up some grub. White wine and beers cooled in the stream and we had a jolly night round the camp fire while the rest of the Country watched something called ‘X Factor’, whatever that is. It was raining a tad, but who cares. Good clean fun.

The Goodwood Revival 2009.

My first visit to the Goodwood Revival Meeting and what a spectacle! About 90% of the capacity crowd were in costumes from 1940’s to 1960’s. Dressed in polite clothing, people were most polite! So many interesting cars one became rather dismissive of anything not mouth watering. My favourites in the car park were the two Messerschmitt’s and the Bedford Camper Van. I could go on and on. A great day thanks to a free tickets from my pal Rod, the Photoshop Guru.

My other car's an old 4x4 too.

Always a thrill to get an MOT certificate. Dug out of it’s resting place of six months in my lock up, persuaded to start, tyres pumped up and £1.15 lavished on a new exhaust gasket, fitted after dinner one night. A pleasant trundle up to a remote garage in Derbyshire where the owner races classic bikes. A thorough test of the few things on an old Land Rover that apply in such tests and Bob’s your uncle! He even commented how good it was to drive. A new ‘Tax Exempt’ disk in the windscreen and away we go for another year. The bike in the picture is a stripped down CB 350. Very successful apparently.

Ashby Folville Sept 09.

An early departure from the City saw me parked, in the Jeep, on the hallowed turf of Ashby Folville Cricket Club at 5.45. 10 minutes later the field was full and others had to park in the field opposite. The usual eclectic mix of bikes and cars, but a delightful Messerschmitt took my fancy behind the pub. I had one of these in 1969 and made the colossal mistake of selling it, running and with an MOT, for fifteen quid! This one would be worth about £9,000 now. Mine, as any expert will see, was the earlier KR 175. That's a 16 year old me with eye wide shut snapped by my Dad on a new Polaroid camera. The big Yank Tank was built of steel that, even without paint, was so thick it will never rust. A group of us stayed until about 9.00 pm, by which time it was dark and a bit chilly. A brisk dash south on the B6047 was most rewarding. No screen, eyes streaming teeth full of flies from grinning too much, then overtaken by The Thunderbug which disappeared very quickly leaving nothing more than a whiff of Casrol ‘R’ diminishing roar of big V twin. Good fun!

On any Sunday.

The annual VSCC meeting at Mallory Park and a chance to see Edwardian racing cars, racing. Fantastic! I am always impressed by how these leviathans are kept in competitive running order. The 1907 Grand Prix Delage was quick by any standards topping the ton on the Stebbe Straight and lapping in 1 minute 12 seconds. The pits displayed a good selection of quality corduroy trousers too, as old chaps fettled old engines on a sunny August afternoon. The low mileage Renault 4 was for sale. We thought £3500 was a tad optimistic, but it was lovely. ‘Mick’ on 07711 218917 if you’re interested. I resisted, which felt odd.

Algarve classics.

Two rather quaint ‘i-spy’s’ whilst in The Algarve last week. In the late 60’s and early 70’s the Honda N360 and later N600 (This model) were the Japanese giant’s first attempt at a mass produced car and were in manufactured until 1972 along with the far sportier S600/800. This was a gem and appeared un-restored and in everyday use, though ‘enthusiast’ owned according to various badges in the screen. The climate would have helped maintain it, but a secret squeeze of its wheel arches revealed the use of quite thick steel (Engineers technical term). Some panels were plastic to save weight. Autocar’s test back in 1968 recorded a top speed of 77 mph, yet only 36 mpg. They were £589 on the road - £28 more than the Mini. That would have been a good week’s wages for a professional back then. The chap with the moped pitched up each day to flog his stuff, then pottered home again. Lovely little two stroke engine and beautiful sculptured cowling. It had the look of a one owner from new machine and I wanted it.

A brace of Deaux Chevaux.

Fumbling around in the fields and farms that lurk slightly to the southeast of the Millau suspension bridge last week, I was trying to find the perfect spot for a photograph of Norman Foster’s masterpiece, when I stumbled across two of Andre Citroen’s masterpieces from five decades ago. Hard to believe that such barn finds still exist, but there before me on 27th July 2009 were an early 1950’s 2CV and a late 50’s - early 60’s example, ripe and ready to be discovered by some maniac who likes these things. I’ve owned two. Both endless trouble so you can keep ‘em for me. No. I didn’t ask the farmer if they were up for grabs. He never showed his visage, and no, I didn’t poke about underneath to see just how rotten they were. Google maps is lagging behind a bit as they don’t show the completed bridge, but I have marked with a bold 20 point arrow exactly where the barn is in the village of Issis. Good luck you brave enthusiasts. May the best man win!

What a waste.

The Jeep sits here under a fifteen quid Tesco gazebo and all it seems to do is rain. I drove it from Kibworth to Leicester last Friday and got soaked. The gazebo does a valiant job, but the sides of the top buckle with the weight of the water, so there is a permanent puddle in both foot wells. The canvas seats seem to do a marvellous job of deflecting the water and are not, by a miracle, soaked through. Mid July and I should be taking it for a spin in the country. Possibly picking up a few chums and partaking of a pint. Bloody English weather! Forecast is the same all week. Think I’ll go for a pint anyway. Timothy Taylor's beckons.

The Way Ahead.

Last week I went to the DVD Show at Milbrook Proving Ground. Milbrook was conceived and built by Vauxhall in their heyday and is now used by most UK manufacturers (Do we still have any?). I haven’t a clue what DVD stands for, but will have to find out sharpish because I have to write a 1200 word commentary on it for 4x4 Magazine pronto. Anyway. This is the Jeeps Grandson and mighty impressive it is too. Built in Devon by Supacat it is powered by a 6.7 litre Cummins diesel engine - American. It is capable of 80 mph, off road and is an awesome piece of kit all round! You heard it here first, but when these are being flogged off at some Army Surplus sale, bag one. Hope I’ve not given too many secrets away. Who’s that at the door now?

Just for Ron.

There’s one left!! back in the seventies, Ron and I worked together and the company had a pool of dire seventies cars. One of which was a Hillman Avenger a bit like this. Others in the fleet comprised a pair of Austin 1300’s and an Austin Maxi - the one with the seats that folded down to make a bed. Quite useful when one was in one’s 20’s! Our challenge was to drive them as fast as possible and all would show over 100 mph on the clock (probably 75 in reality) None achieved more than 20 mpg, which always surprised the transport manager. I can confess now that I did have the Maxi airborne for a good two car lengths once, over the hump back bridge near Market Bosworth. Sorry.

There's just a small bag round the back.....

Not quite the roll I had in mind for the Jeep, but after the Pick Everard ‘PE in the Park’ event held at Leicester Grammar School last Saturday, I seem to have volunteered to take away the rubbish. Fortunately it was well wrapped and nothing oozed out. The Jeep did make an excellent toy for small children to play in. At most stages of the day there were at least four kids in it pretending to conquer the World. Great fun on a hot afternoon.

All you really need.

I photographed this back in January in the market square of Ben Ghardana, a dusty little shit hole in Tunisia, just before the Libyan border. Looking at it earlier today It represented such a simple and uncluttered life I was moved to print it out, frame it, and stick it up on the wall for all to see. It terms of fulfilling it’s role in life this bicycle represents total efficiency at minimum cost. It probably looked exactly like this ten years ago and will look exactly like it again in another ten years. Lovely.