Sean Regan
Full Access Member
- Joined
- Jan 31, 2018
- Messages
- 3,847
- Reaction score
- 4,151
- Location
- "The Tropic of Trafford"
- Hardiness Zone
- Keir Hardy
- Country
The Daily Mail have been running an "All Creatures Great and Small" series from the books by James Herriott which was also made into a TV series.
When yesterday, I opened the paper to this double page spread the story was illustrated by this sketch of a 1936 Austin Seven Ruby convertible.
This is exactly the same model and colour of the first car I bought at the age of 17 in 1958.
I paid £35 for it. It was to be a a "trade in" at the garage where my older cousin worked, he tipped me off about it, so I approached the owner and got it at a good price. The same amount a late friend's father paid for some naff looking seat covers for his new Morris Oxford saloon. The owner was an architect who lived on Wimbledon hill. He's bought it for his wife and had it done up, engine rebuilt and new hood and seat covers. But she couldn't manage the Bendix cable brakes, the stopping power of which was the amount of pressure you could apply to the pedal.
It didn't have the luxury of "real windows." It had side screens, four metal framed fabric covered screens with two plastic windows in each. These could be fitted into sdlots in the doors and sides, folded in half in situ to open. The windscreen hinged at the top and folded forwards. I and my girlfriend at the time on trips out, used to swing it up and lock it in the horizontal position and use it as a picnic table, sit on the bonnet with our legs dangling in the car.
I changed the semaphore turn signals to those "modern flashing indicators."
The illustration doesn't show the windscreen wiper or the motor which was attached to the top of the windscreen frame. From it a rubber tube ran to the inlet manfold as it was powered by the induction. This was a problem in heavy rain if you were driving uphill. As the engine was working hard with the throttle fully open, no air was being drawn down through the tube so the wipers would stop. You had to briefly take your foot off the accelerator, which would cause the wiper to thrash wildly for a brief second to clear the glass but would stop again as soon as you put your foot down.
I drove hundreds of miles in it. Apart from petrol and oil all I spent on it was for a set of remold tyres and 5p for a bearing for the dynamo.
I can still remember its registration number. DPA 227.
I bought it at the beginning of February, drove it around for a couple of months (insured but without "L plates")...well I was only seventeen... and passed my test first time in April.
Sadly I lost all the photos I had of it in a house move.
When yesterday, I opened the paper to this double page spread the story was illustrated by this sketch of a 1936 Austin Seven Ruby convertible.
This is exactly the same model and colour of the first car I bought at the age of 17 in 1958.
I paid £35 for it. It was to be a a "trade in" at the garage where my older cousin worked, he tipped me off about it, so I approached the owner and got it at a good price. The same amount a late friend's father paid for some naff looking seat covers for his new Morris Oxford saloon. The owner was an architect who lived on Wimbledon hill. He's bought it for his wife and had it done up, engine rebuilt and new hood and seat covers. But she couldn't manage the Bendix cable brakes, the stopping power of which was the amount of pressure you could apply to the pedal.
It didn't have the luxury of "real windows." It had side screens, four metal framed fabric covered screens with two plastic windows in each. These could be fitted into sdlots in the doors and sides, folded in half in situ to open. The windscreen hinged at the top and folded forwards. I and my girlfriend at the time on trips out, used to swing it up and lock it in the horizontal position and use it as a picnic table, sit on the bonnet with our legs dangling in the car.
I changed the semaphore turn signals to those "modern flashing indicators."
The illustration doesn't show the windscreen wiper or the motor which was attached to the top of the windscreen frame. From it a rubber tube ran to the inlet manfold as it was powered by the induction. This was a problem in heavy rain if you were driving uphill. As the engine was working hard with the throttle fully open, no air was being drawn down through the tube so the wipers would stop. You had to briefly take your foot off the accelerator, which would cause the wiper to thrash wildly for a brief second to clear the glass but would stop again as soon as you put your foot down.
I drove hundreds of miles in it. Apart from petrol and oil all I spent on it was for a set of remold tyres and 5p for a bearing for the dynamo.
I can still remember its registration number. DPA 227.
I bought it at the beginning of February, drove it around for a couple of months (insured but without "L plates")...well I was only seventeen... and passed my test first time in April.
Sadly I lost all the photos I had of it in a house move.
Last edited: