Classics by The Beach, 05 July 2015
July's Classics was particularly well attended, especially given that it wasn't the nicest of days, with a sharpish breeze off the River Derwent and not a lot of sun. It struck UMPH that there was a bit of an Anglo-bent to the assembled cars, although it was far from an all-British affair.
The first two cars to take UMPH's eye were these great looking Sprites. The quality of the restoration of the one on the left - a II or a II/A - was superb, with deep, glossy red paint and excellent attention to detail. The green III/A on the right was fabulously straight and rust-free. Its owner, John, told UMPH that he drove it regularly and that it was a reliable, fun car to own.
This MGA was also in beautiful condition, with gleaming paint and a very tidy interior. UMPH doesn't know anything about the car, having never seen it before, but he does hope to see more of it around Hobart.
The 3.5 litre Jag featured above was a thing of rare presence and beauty. One could imagine Phryne Fisher owning one. As they say, they don't make 'em like that anymore!
UMPH has been admiring this excellent Triumph TR4 with its Surrey hard-top for the better part of thirty years, maybe more. It's regularly seen driving around Hobart and appears to have had a recent restoration, if the quality of the paint's anything to go by.
Paint quality could've been a theme all of its own, with the duco on the Triumph TR3 below also very, very impressive. As with the Sprite, the attention to detail was amazing, with virtually everything on the car buffed to perfection.
These brass VIN or manufacturer's plates added a real touch of class. |
Like the TR4 mentioned earlier, this MGA is a regular sight on Hobart's streets. For UMPH, its seems like it's always been part of the Hobart street-scape.
By the time he'd got to this early square-rigged MG, the Bentley below it and the Standard Super 10 rounding out this section, UMPH thought he'd settled on an entirely British theme for today's post. After all, there's something rather seductive about the smell of hot oil on cast iron and the III/A Sprite had made him reminiscent for the time, ten or so years ago, when he'd owned a red version.
However, he then saw this lovely VW Karmann Ghia. There was no way he wasn't going to include it; the sleek lines, so unlike the Beetle with which it shared mechanicals, were just too good to resist.
The gentleman who owned this Triumph Herald said he'd had the car in a shed for the last thirty-five years. It was suffering from an intermittent fault on the day, making it difficult to start, but once it was running it was impressively quiet and smooth.
The Herald must be one of the simplest cars built in the last 55 years, with seemingly all the body components and chassis bolting together. The engine's pretty straight-forward, too. |
The MG sedan shown here - based on a Morris 1100 - the Jag, and the Austin Healey at the bottom of the page rounded out UMPH's day very nicely. Of course, there were plenty of other interesting cars to look at but that's the beauty of Classics: you can always be guaranteed an interesting show, with a mix of regular attendees, some fresh cars every month and even the occasional visitor from other parts of the state or the mainland. UMPH knows that he won't have any difficulty finding something to post about come the first Sunday in August.
U M P H.
Might UMPH also start to do an occasional report on the Car Enthusiasts Mid Week Monthly Drive and Lunch? This regular event combines classic cars and food.
ReplyDeleteThe arrangements for the July drive and lunch are,
Delete· Wednesday 15 July - the long range forecast for Wednesday is 10 and some rain, but don’t let that put you off.
· starting at the Rivulet Café, bottom of Angelsea Street, South Hobart,
· around 11.00am for coffee/morning tea,
· departing at 11.30am and arriving around 12.30pm for lunch (cost <$20 for two courses),
· RSVP required by 5.00pm on Monday 13 July: wayne.goninon@utas.edu.au