Birmingham NEC Classic Motor Show

R3GG

Club Member
Hello,

Who's going to the NEC this weekend and where are you coming from? I may go up from Devon just for Sunday.
 

R3GG

Club Member
Gaz 300 - looks great, wish there was more interest on here in general for I'm a bit late to the party but I will say hello if I make it IMG_20190605_204133_515.jpg
 

Rob Gaskin

Treasurer
Staff member
Site Administrator
You've done well to fit 5 cars on the stand - is that a 'larger stand area than standard'? Back when I ran our stand we could only fit 4 cars on it - 240Z, 280ZX, Z31 and Z32.

SV200841.JPG
 

JK240

Club Member
CZR have a stand too with three cars on it. John Jacklin's Sam, Jon Newlyns car and Brad Mottier's Safari rally replica.

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Albrecht

Well-Known Forum User
CZR have a stand too with three cars on it. John Jacklin's Sam, Jon Newlyns car and Brad Mottier's Safari rally replica.

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Brad Mottier's car is actually a tribute/hat tip to the Aaltonen/Todt 1972 Monte Carlo Rallye 3rd place Works 'No.5' car, 'TKS 33 SA 4150'. The original car is still owned by Nissan and forms part of their Heritage Collection housed at the old Zama plant.

Brad's car was originally built by Greenwood Motorsport (engines by DJR) with some wonderful attention to detail (check out the Works LHD style handbrake lever and mechanism relocation) and some serious commitment from Brad.
 

JK240

Club Member
Thank you Alan, I knew as I wrote it, I should just put Brad's Car... !

And I suppose being a vice president of GE helps with 'serious commitment'
 

Albrecht

Well-Known Forum User
Thank you Alan, I knew as I wrote it, I should just put Brad's Car... !

And I suppose being a vice president of GE helps with 'serious commitment'

Probably helps with the financial commitment, but I'm talking just as much about attitude and appreciation. Brad even went to Japan to look at The Real Thing for inspiration/reference. The KS wheel replication was a case study in doing it right, in my opinion.

Obviously the car has to comply with modern competition safety regulations and requires a lot of special equipment for the types of events he takes part in, but for me it invokes/evokes the spirit of the original cars and certainly has that 'X' factor...
 

uk66fastback

Club Member
Can someone a lot more knowledgeable than me (not difficult) tell me why MBP 72J has different front indicators to the UK cars I'm used to seeing - that have the ones above the front bumper. No doubt there was some regulation meaning they had to be moved at some point?

I hope if I look inside the open window of MBP 72J I might see this on the front seat ... May 1971 edition of Autocar

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Albrecht

Well-Known Forum User
Can someone a lot more knowledgeable than me (not difficult) tell me why MBP 72J has different front indicators to the UK cars I'm used to seeing - that have the ones above the front bumper. No doubt there was some regulation meaning they had to be moved at some point?

It's a long story (you can ask Jon about it if you go to the show) but that car was essentially built as an Australian market car, and got 'diverted' to the UK for show/press duties. Notice also the absence of front indicator repeaters, as was common with Aus/NZ market cars. The first two cars imported to the UK were like this.

Then-new UK/Euro Type Approval regs in 1969/70 caught Nissan slightly on the hop, and it was found that the height of the standard design front indicators did not comply. They had to make a re-design of the front valance corners, and mounted indicators above the front bumper.

You'll sometimes hear the story that "the boat was diverted" from Aus to UK, but that's nonsense. The two cars were simply not sent from Japan to Aus, and were sent from Japan to UK - via mainland Europe (probably Antwerp?) - instead.
 

SeanDezart

Well-Known Forum User
You'll sometimes hear the story that "the boat was diverted" from Aus to UK, but that's nonsense. The two cars were simply not sent from Japan to Aus, and were sent from Japan to UK - via mainland Europe (probably Antwerp?) - instead.

Is this the basis Alan of the story of Belgian Zs being used at Earls' Court...was that 'OVB ?
 

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Albrecht

Well-Known Forum User
Is this the basis Alan of the story of Belgian Zs being used at Earls' Court...was that 'OVB ?

I think you've got the wrong end of the stick there.

Thanks Albrecht, great stuff. What was the reg of the other one and does it survive as well? Is that known?

The other car got registered 'UAR 603J', and went through a chain of ownership to end up being used in HSCC racing by Ian Pearce and then ex-BMC works driver Peter Riley. As far as I am aware, it is still in the ownership of Tim Riley, Peter Riley's son.

They were chassis numbered 'HS30-00034' & 'HS30-00035'.
 

Albrecht

Well-Known Forum User
I think you've got the wrong end of the stick there.

...as in the reg/identity of the other car I mean.

Its certainly possible that 'it came via Belgium' turned into 'it was a Belgian car' via chinese whispers. There's been so much nonsense written about old Japanese cars over the years that anything is possible.
 

SeanDezart

Well-Known Forum User
...as in the reg/identity of the other car I mean.

Its certainly possible that 'it came via Belgium' turned into 'it was a Belgian car' via chinese whispers. There's been so much nonsense written about old Japanese cars over the years that anything is possible.

My definition of being a Belgian car is one with a Belgian registration plate - if 'they' managed to import a car through Antwerp and then exporting it without registering it there.....all the better !

But yes, I confused OVB with UAR - I'll ask Tim if he still has it.
 

Albrecht

Well-Known Forum User
My definition of being a Belgian car is one with a Belgian registration plate - if 'they' managed to import a car through Antwerp and then exporting it without registering it there.....all the better !

N.V. DATSUN BELGIUM S.A. - based in Brussels - was a really important base for Nissan at the time. Antwerp was a key port for their cars and parts. It would make sense for the first two cars imported into the UK to have arrived in Antwerp from Japan, and then to be onward-shipped to the UK. The first batch of Works rally Zs came into the UK via that route.

Historically there have been a lot of conflicting stories about the first few UK cars, most of which don't make sense or otherwise make you feel a little bit like taking a pinch of salt with them.

Key point here - for me anyway - is the difference between LHD and RHD cars. The car shown at the 1970 Brussels Salon show was (naturally) LHD, and yet I hear stories that this was 'the' car subsequently taken to the UK for the 1970 Earls Court Show. If that was the case then somehow it changed from LHD to RHD on the way. It is - I believe - just a mistaken report.
 
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