Bulletin March 2017 Page 1

www.vccsa.org.au

Bulletin of the Veteran Car Club

of South Australia, Inc.

Vol. 11, No. 08 – March 2017

Chairman: Hamish McDonald 8556 2271 Public Officer: Dudley Pinnock 8379 2441 Treasurer: Tim Rettig 8338 2590 Rallymaster: Neil Francis 8373 4992

Committee: Phil Keane 8277 2468 Julian McNeil 8272 8759 Andrew Hayes 8271 9111 Ian Voysey 0432 454 942

Secretary: Peter Allen 8353 3438 Address for Correspondence: P.O.Box 193, Unley Business Centre, Unley 5061

Email: secretary@vccsa.org.au Website: www.vccsa.org.au Website Coordinator: admin@vccsa.org.au

Bulletin editor: Frank Cord-Udy 0432 751 227 editor@vccsa.org.au

From the Chairman

Well ‘Mad March’ is finally here and as a proud South Australian, we all know this is a particularly very busy time for us all with the V8’s racing through the city streets, the Fringe, the Adelaide Festival and all the other events that take place in and around the City. Let’s add another event and hold our annual Creepy Crawly Run for 1 and 2 cylinder vehicles! Taking place well away from all the headaches and traffic of the city limits, the VCCSA invites owners of all veteran vehicles (even those vehicles with more than the 1 or 2 cylinders) to join us as we traverse the relatively flat plains of the southern vales on the 5th of March. This run is always well patronised by our club and ends up being a very enjoyable event. Unfortunately for me, my little Brush

project won’t be taking part this year with progress starting to slow as my work commitments steadily increase. However, the good news is that there has been a considerable bust of enthusiasm up to now with a new timber chassis made to replace the one that was broken and a new body being completed. Whilst still on the topic of 1 and 2 cylinder events, the Victorians are finalising their annual 1 and 2 cylinder event for 2017 to take place in Hamilton. I hear there are already several SA members showing an interest in attending and this is fantastic. We look forward to hearing more on how this event unfolds. I would like to share with members the unfortunate news that Neil Francis (our enthusiastic Committee and Co-Rally Master) has been hospitalised with acute Leukaemia. This would be a shock to many, and on your behalf, we have passed on the best wishes of the VCCSA to Neil and his family. Winston Churchill once said, ‘Attitude is a little thing

Member of the Association of Veteran Car Clubs of Australia (AVCCA)

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that makes a big difference.’ Keep positive, Neil. We all look forward to you driving your Napier again with us on your recover. Happy veteran motoring. Hamish McDonald (Chair)

Meetings The Club holds informal gatherings at 8pm on the first Wednesday of each month, except January, at the Colonel Light Gardens RSL, Dorset Ave. Park behind on what was the bowling green, enter from Windsor Ave. Assemble at 7.30 for a pre-meeting chat. The only formal club meeting is the Annual General Meeting, held on the first Wednesday in July each year.

Wednesday 1st March - Refettling the Straker Squire motor by Terry Parker

Wednesday 5th April – Rally report from the RACV One & Two cylinder Rally, Hamilton Victoria by Julian McNeil/Larry Clarke

Wednesday 3rd May – Club member sharing information on their car collection or past rally recollections.

Upcoming Club events 5th March Creepy Crawly Run for 1 & 2 Cylinder Vehicles – McLaren Vale.

Open to all Veterans, with a focus on 1 & 2 cylinders vehicles.

Start: 10:30am (for an 11am Start) McLaren Vale & Fleurieu Visitor Information Centre 796 Main Road, McLaren Vale

• Trailer  parking  available  (please  contact  to  confirm  arrangements)  

Finish: Wirra Wirra Vineyards (for a light lunch in their new Cafe) McMurtrie Rd, McLaren Vale

• Total  Distance:  43.1  km  (26.8  miles),  approx.  50  mins  

9th April Combined Club Run with the ‘Gawler To Barossa Veteran & Vintage Run’. Organised by the Gawler Veteran, Vintage and Classic Vehicle Club, this run is from Gawler to Greenock, via Lyndoch, Tanunda & Seppeltsfield. The run is for cars, motor cycles and commercials up to & including 1930 only. Those participating VCCSA members will meet at 8:00am at White Road, Gepps Cross then proceed as soon as possible to the start in the Gawler TAFE car park, Lyndoch Road (South Side - next to Fasta Pasta) by 9.00am. Contact the VCCSA Run Co-ordinator, Phil Keane on Ph: 8277 2468 for further information. NB: Large area for trailer unloading at the start in Gawler and at the destination. Rally start time: 9:30am Cost: $10 entry per vehicle includes morning tea. Contact: David Prest: 0438 112 266 & email: vvrun@gawlercarclub.com An entry form was included with the February 2017 Bulletin.

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7th May Ladies Run to Kingston House for a restorative Deavonshire tea.

Built in 1840, Kingston House is one of South Australia's oldest remaining houses. It is still being used today. The quiet beauty and hidden charm of the House and Reserve make it a favourite picnic spot for visitors. Location: 5 Cameron Ave., Kingston Park 5049 Run details are being finalised and will be published in next months Bulletin.

Upcoming Local & National Club events

4th-5th March 32nd Power of the Past, Mt. Barker Oval.

6th-19th March RACV 1 & 2 Cylinder Rally, Hamilton Victoria organized by the Veteran Car

Club of Aust.(Vic). Entries closed on 24th February.

2nd - 7th April National High-wheeler Rally – Orange NSW.

21st May Copper Coast Classic Cavalacade, Copper Coast, South Australia.

In association with the Copper Coast Cornish Festival this event is for enthusiasts of cars & motorcycles manufactured on 1985 or earlier.

The rally entry forms and full details are available from the web site www.kernewek.org and the The Kernewek Office at the The Farmshed Tourist Centre, Kadina.

24th – 30th Sept National Veteran Vehicle Rally 2017, Clare Valley, South Australia.

The Expression of Interest Form and Rally Registration Form are available from our web site http://vccsa.org.au/events-2/National-Veteran-Vehicle- Rally-Clare-2017. Coordinated by the Sporting Car Club of SA and the Veteran Car Club of SA, the 2017 National Rally will be based in the regional township of Clare, the focus of the Valley’s rich blend of attractions and activities, including vineyards and wineries as well as regional mining and pastoral commerce. Contact Peter Templer 0417 081 502.

29th Sept – 5th Oct 2019

Model T Ford Annual Rally 2019, Maryborough, QLD.

30th Aug - 6th Sep 2019

The Horseless Carriage Club of America (HCCA) South-East Australia Region – are proposing to hold an International Veteran Tour in Bathurst NSW from 30th August to 6th September 2019. Expressions of Interest – Russell Holden: 0422 219 911

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Upcoming Swap Meet events 12th Mar Campbelltown 19th Mar Clare 5th-7th May Naracoorte

21st May Kapunda 18th-19th Nov Bendigo

Notices

The Club Committee has been informed by the Treasurer of a noticable cost increase, accumulated over the past year, in the printing of this ‘Bulletin’ publication for distribution to our members and to share a copy with other clubs. The Committee is investigating the impact of the increased printing costs on our Club Fees as this may necessitate an increased fee this year for those requesting a hard copy of the Bulletin. Many clubs provide electronic versions of their publications and the following Australian Motoring Clubs have provided us with a link to their publication during the last month:

• Veteran Car Club of Australia (Queensland) Inc. http://www.vccaq.com/veteran-torque

• Veteran Car Club of Australia (Vic) Inc. http://veterancarclub.org.au/ then follow the Brass Notes link.

• Historic Motor Vehicles Club Inc. http://www.hmvc.org.au/category/magazine/

For sale /wanted

WANTED –

1 x BUFFALO WIRE WHEEL TO TAKE A 30 X 3.5 tyre as per photos.

Contact: Ian Voysey 0432454942 Email: coxseyim@gmail.com

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WANTED Electric brass CAV model B headlight for my 16HP Darracq to replace one stolen.

It is about 250mm in rim diameter and 210 deep. See photograph. Condition is unimportant as I only need the side fittings for the fork. Contact: David Martin Mb: 0410 377 876 REMINDER - National Veteran Vehicle Rally 2017 – Registration & Entry Form is on the website http://vccsa.org.au/events-2/National-Veteran-Vehicle- Rally-Clare-2017

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A Trip to the movies - Club Run on 5th February 2017 Story & Photos By Julian McNeil On the 5th February a large contingent, (circa 40 members, partners & friends) of the Veteran Car Fraternity assembled at the Mitcham Cinemas for a showing of the film Genevieve.

1904 Darracq 'Genevieve' pictured at the Louwman Museum, The Hague Netherlands For almost all, this would not have been the first time that they would have seen the film and for most they would have seen it many times. That is not the point! For the geriatric fraternity interested in veteran cars it has long become a cult movie – the more times you see it the more you enjoy it. Some of the lines are committed to memory and some are the subject of hilarity over a frothy beverage at the end of a days run. Who has not been ‘intoxicated by the exuberance of their own velocity” in a veteran car? How else would we get away with uttering the lines ‘come on put your shoulder into it’ when exhorting some helpers assisting us pushing our veterans. The attraction on this occasion was that the film has been re-mastered but visual accuracy did not add or detract from the magic of such scenes as when the coffee was spilled on Wendy McKim’s dress when her ‘put upon’ husband was trying to start his Darracq. Unfortunately now all the actors in the film are no longer with us, perhaps the saddest post-script to this film was the problems faced by Kay Kendall. She is responsible for perhaps the most iconic scene where she plays ‘Genevieve, Sweet Genevieve’ on the ‘plumpet’ with such aplomb before collapsing and thus not allowing Ambrose Claverhouse to have his ‘sweet experience’. Kay Kendall went onto marry Rex Harrison who divorced

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his then wife Lili Palmer to marry Kay before she died. Kay’s previous beaux were said to include Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh. Kay died at the age of 32 from acute myeloid leukaemia but had left a legacy in film and theatre and the Kay Kendall Leukaemia Trust was set up in her honour. For other actors in the film this was a stepping-stone to fame – none more so than Kenneth More.

The 1905 Spyker 12/16-HP Double Phæton that was used as Ambrose Claverhouse's car in the film.

Fortunately these days we seldom have to deal with tram lines, fruit cart vendors and little girls scraping up ice cream when we drive our cars. For me one of the most hilarious scene relates to the telling off of the poor fellow who was naive enough to offer a tow to Genevieve in his wifes Allard. Both vehicles, which are also the stars of the film are housed in the Louwman Museum in the Hague where I saw them last year. The subsequent travels of the car after which the film is named is now the subject of a book. It had spent much of its time in the Gilltrap’s Museum in Queensland. The car was restored from the remains of two different models of Darracq, most being a 12hp twin and the radiator at least coming from a four cylinder ‘flying fifteen” Darracq and in fact at the time of the movie it had a 1905 twin cylinder motor in it. So it would not be eligible for the London to Brighton. A subsequent ill-advised attempt to rectify this saw the 1905 motor being removed in favour of a 1904 engine. At the wash up of the Gilltrap’s Museum the 1905 motor was sold separately to Francis Ransley and passed through my hands and ultimately onto Paul Terry who owned Genevieve at the time. It was then re-installed in the car as he appreciated that the value of the car was in its identification with the film rather than it eligibility for the London to Brighton. The film was lucky to have a producer of the quality of Henry Cornelius who was also responsible for “Passport to Pimlico” and the music composed by Larry Adler helps create the unique atmosphere. Perhaps the last word should go to the Veteran Car Club of Great Britain whose co-operation was essential but who added in the opening credit the statement:….. “Any resemblance between the deportment of our characters and any club member is emphatically denied – by

the Club”.

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Rolls Royce 30hp Story By Terry Parker Answering an ad. in the ‘tiser in 1938, Mr Fuss of Torensville paid £35 for a 1906 30 hp Rolls No. 26355. He moved to a property in Virginia where the car stayed, dismantled until 1956. Mr Fuss offered the chassis to Laurie Vinall, who involved Len Vigar and George Brooks in the exercise. Gavin Sandford-Morgan took an interest and soon became the ‘senior partner’ in the enterprise.

Gavin Sandford-Morgan loading the chassis, Len Vigar to the right. George Brooks took the photo. Courtesy of Ian Irwin AOM, we know that 26355 was tested by the factory on 11 January 1906 and was sent to the body builder. There are records of it in UK until around 1920, then nothing more about it has been found until 1934, when Autocars (M. Aunger’s outfit) entered it in the 1934 Veteran Car Club’s rally to Glenelg, another that the ‘official’ lists don’t include. There is a photo, taken at Glenelg, found by GSM. Aungers were importing secondhand cars to sell, and perhaps this was one of them. An arrangement was made with Stanley Sears of U.K. who wanted to restore it and the remains went to him on the basis that it would be returned if the owners paid the costs. Gavin Sandford-Morgan told us in his address to the very first meeting of the new Veteran Car Club that it really was never going to happen and he formalised the sale.

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Mr Sears has passed on, and the car is now in USA.

1906 Rolls Royce 30hp The story has been told many times, but the letters from Fuss containing more details were unknown until Dudley uncovered them not so long ago. I was able to associate them with the photos and Ian Irwin has copies, and has seen that they get into the right hands. Another fine piece of detective work by Club members. This is just one of the auspicious veteran Rolls which have left S.A. I will continue their stories, space permitting, in further Bulletins. Terry Parker

$$$$$$

A pedestrian is someone who thought there were a couple of gallons left in the tank. ~ Author Unknown