More than 700 classics converged on Roverfest at Wroxall Abbey from 11-13 August to celebrate a half-century since the launch of the first Buick V8-engined Solihull model, the P5B. Enthusiasts came from as far afield as Australia, New Zealand and the US, while cars had been driven from across the continent – including Italy, Germany and The Netherlands – to the Joint Rover Clubs Midlands gathering.
Lars Edwardsson, general manager of workshop equipment specialist Verktygsboden, had brought his whole family over from Sweden for a tour of the UK in his 1973 3500. “We’ve spent about a week in Wales,” he said, “and we’re going to The Cotswolds tomorrow, then into London. I’ve only owned this one about four years, but I’ve been driving Rover P6s since ’85.”
Lee Kingham’s 3500 – resplendent in Avocado with a black vinyl roof – was one of the last two P6s bought by The Met: “They were built on the same day in December ’76, registered in February ’77 and then put into storage for a year. I was lucky in that the person who bought it from The Met kept all the details of the spec and equipment.”
Denne historien er fra October 2017-utgaven av Classic & Sports Car.
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Denne historien er fra October 2017-utgaven av Classic & Sports Car.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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A Breath of Fresh Air- Alfa Romeo's exotic, V8-powered Montreal was like nothing the marque had made before, but can it compare with a Porsche masterpiece, the 911S 2.4?
The stereotype of the ItaloGermanic automotive rivalry is that the Latin car will be brilliant to drive, but poorly built and ergonomically flawed, while the Teutonic will be the opposite. Yet these 2+2 sports coupés both ran against orthodoxy. In the Montreal, Alfa Romeo created an outlandish-looking two-door more comfortable, more powerful and more refined than anything it had produced for decades. Meanwhile, Porsche continued to refine its back-to-front, austere and increasingly aged 911. Neither took a traditional development path, but both created thrilling and individual cars that have echoed through the decades.
Daring to be diminutive
AMC's Gremlin and Pacer, and Ford's much-derided Pinto, led America's response to the threat of imported European compacts
THE LONG WAY ROUND
There is a great tradition of overland trips by Land-Rover, but the tale of this 70s Aussie epic and the car itself was discovered by chance
Handsome cab
The Phantom V limousine marked the beginning of the end for coachbuilder James Young, but this Rolls-Royce represents the craft at its very best
DOING IT FOR THEMSELVES
Racing for their own F1 teams brought some drivers success and an enduring legacy. For others, it turned into a nightmare
20 30 LITRES CYLINDERS, 400BHP......AND MORE THAN A CENTURY OLD
Thunderous torque, flame-spitting stub-exhausts, white-knuckle thrills - and hopefully no spills - aboard a trio of Edwardian racing titans
ICON.
The three top-selling vehicles in the USA in 2023 were pick-ups, topped by the Ford F-Series. This is the truck that started it all
Blurred Lines
lan 'Del' Lines blended the V8 burble of Triumph's open GT with real practicality in his Stag V8 saloons and estates
Home of the brave
The innovative Silverstone proved a hit with keen amateur drivers. To mark its 75th, Healey's club racer returns to the circuit for which it is named
PLAYING ALL THE ANGLES
Alfa Romeo's wild RZ eschewed the jellymould styling of the period to offer a striking, wedge-shaped take on open-topped performance motoring