Owning cars
To car people there's no such thing as a spare garage, because if there's even the tiniest piece of land onto which we can put a classic, that's exactly what we do. But my parents weren't car people back in the eighties when I was 15, so they did have an unused garage – and my mum's friend Alistair had his eye on it. Alistair lived in Cheltenham where parking was at a premium, and when the winter hit, he persuaded my mum to garage his (t)rusty Triumph for him.
Good things often come in threes, and Ian Macaulay’s collection is proof positive. WORDS AND PHOTOS: SAM SKELTON THE MAGIC NUMBERCOMMUNIST COLLECTION The classic car bug is addictive. And Ian Macaulay has it. Never short of classics, his current fleet includes not only Eastern Bloc heroes, but also a pristine Mazda MX-5 and a delightful Austin Metropolitan.
It’s only original once. Long ago, Gary Bartlett’s original-paint E-type was green. Interview and portrait Paul Hardiman. This Jaguar E-Type Fixed Head Coupé was purchased new, in opalescent dark green with black trim, on 24 March 1966 by Don T Hughes of Grosse Point, Michigan. My guys knew I was looking for a 4.2 covered-light fixed-head E-type – but it had to be completely original. I was working at the GM design studio in Warren, Michigan, and one of my guys called me from Muncie, Indiana.
Some cars are neglected and fall by the wayside, others are more fortunate and get restored. Only a select few are lucky enough to be maintained in perfectly original condition from new. Romer Adams' Austin Somerset is one of them. STORY TOLD TO SIMON GOLDSWORTHY AUSTIN SOMERSET AN ORIGINAL SURVIVOR Austin Somerset. A car that has survived nearly 70 years without a rebuild and is in fi ne shape. I know you couldn't have bought this Somerset new because you are far too young!