'The odometer ticked back to 0000...it only counts up to 9999 the Seven was not intended for crosscontinental trips'

Two Brits drive from Maryland to Tierra del Fuego, via Alaska, in the UK's first people's car

- CHARLIE CALDERWOOOD

Exploring the world in a classic car is the dream of many enthusiasts, but few choose to make the process quite as challenging as attempting a journey equivalent to circumnavigating the world. while driving an Austin Seven. Like all pioneers, serial Seven owner Guy Butcher and partner Eunice Kratky stood on the shoulders of those who had gone before them. John Coleman's 1962 book Coleman's Drive, in which the English schoolteacher drove a baby Austin from Buenos Aires to New York, served as inspiration. Coleman himself roughly followed the route of Aimé Tschiffely, who had completed the journey on horseback from 1925-'28. But while a Seven is faster and more comfortable than riding a horse (just), Guy and Eunice had planned a route far longer than either Coleman's or Tschiffely's.

The idea was to land at Baltimore in the USA and draw a reverse '7' across the New World in celebration of the Austin's 90th anniversary in 2012, taking the little car first to Alaska before beginning the long journey down to the Ruta del Fin del Mundo at the southern tip of Argentina: 25,000 miles, in a car that usually needs an engine rebuild every 20,000 or so.

The Seven chosen was a 1936 car, originally built as a tourer but recreated as a short-chassis 1928 Austin Chummy following an accident in the 1970s. Guy rebuilt the car himself, fitting a trials-spec engine and a rear axle modified with a lower, 5.125:1 ratio to help attack hills.

The trip would be a fundraising journey, so the Seven was liveried with information about the campaign, named BESPK - Bringing Extra to SPecial Kids. Save the Children and the Dame Hannah Rogers Trust would be the beneficiaries of the adventure.