Countdown to the NEC Classic Motor Show

Revised Pride of Ownership final 20 revealed as anticipation hots up for flagship classic event.

We’re now only just over a week away from the annual historic motoring flagship that is the Lancaster Insurance Classic Motor Show, held at Birmingham’s NEC from November 10-12. Once again it promises to be a cracking event, with over 3000 classic cars on display, plus 350 exhibitors and traders, the UK’s biggest indoor autojumble and 300 car clubs. We can now get excited about one of the show’s major highlights too, for the final 20 cars for the Lancaster Insurance Pride of Ownership have been confirmed after a late change. The latest addition to the line-up is a 1977 Leyland Mini owned by 16-year-old twin brothers Liam and Ryan Rippard, which was purchased as a restoration project when they were just 10. The finished car has since impressed at many shows and featured on the front cover of our sister title, MiniWorld.

Liam had a bladder stoma in January 2016, which caused a lot of infections, and Ryan had a kidney transplant in November 2016. It was a challenging time, but the Mini helped themthrough. “We used half of our savings, each contributing £500,” the brothers explained. “The aim of the project was to give us both a focus away from ill health and classroom struggles.”

Elsewhere, Brian Kent’s original 1956 Vauxhall Cresta is the oldest car in the final. It’s followed by the 1962 Ford Consul 375 Deluxe that’s been owned by Andy Murrell since 1994 – it was even his wedding car! Further Blue Ovals include the 1970 Escort 1300GT of young restorer Amy Hunter, while James Tiverton has owned his 1982 Fiesta XR2 twice – when it came up for auction at Mathewsons, he was determined to buy it back whatever the cost. Another auction purchase was Ian Mills’ 1987 Escort RS Turbo – an iconic hot hatch that’s now as good to drive as it looks.

Just as lovely is the 1981 Daimler Sovereign owned by Dave McGlynn, as is Andy Salter’s Triumph TR8. Flying the flag for modified cars, meanwhile, comes James Williams’ bike-engined Hillman Imp, which won the UK leg of the Hot Wheels competition. There’s also the 1991 VW Golf G60 Syncro owned by Harry Chodha, which puts out a whopping 525bhp.

In addition, Luke Greenwood’s 1991 Peugeot 205 GTi is sure to draw a crowd, as is Steve Bartlett’s bright yellow 1971 Porsche 911. These are joined by Tahmid Haque’s 1993 BMW 850CSi, a 1971 Volvo P1800 owned by Mark Farmer, the 1999 Toyota MR2 of Darren Letts and the 1991 Nissan Primera of Chris James.

Joshy Hodson’s 1966 Chevrolet C10 Pickup adds an American slant, while two further Brits include Anthony Evans’ gorgeous 1972 Jaguar E-Type, and Michael Cohen’s completely unique 176- mile MG Midget Jubilee. Rounding out the entries in fine style is Phillip Healey’s 1981 Saab 99 Turbo, which he’s owned for more than a decade. The winner will be decided by the show visitors, who will be invited to vote for their favourite, and announced by Mike Brewer on the Sunday. “With such a varied selection of classics, it is going to be very tough to pick a winner,” said Andrew Evanson, Senior Operations Manager at Lancaster Insurance.

We’ll bring you further show updates next week, including news of the finalists for the Meguiar’s Showcase. For more event details and tickets, visit necclassicmotorshow.com.

Phillip Healey’s 1981 Saab 99 Turbo.