News and views

Trust you are all keeping well in these strange times, let’s hope 2021 improves over last year! Christmas seems an age away now but this picture showing John Emmett’s D0430 arriving home complete with tree, just before the big day, is a pleasant reminder.

The scene is a stop on the route at Ashleworth Tithe Barn in deepest Gloucestershire and shows quite a mix of competitor’s pre-war cars. (thanks for the photo from Ian Grace of VMR).

Pleased to see D0491 has recently resurfaced, we lost sight of this car some years ago and it is now under new ownership in Germany. As can be seen in this picture it was restored to C Type specification some years ago. We are following up the reference to The Paris-Peking Rally for 1997 to hear how it got on.

Remember the plaques we did for the D Type’s 75th and 80th Anniversaries in 2006 and 2011 respectively? Well, we’ve done another for this year, the 90th which actually falls in October.

These are available from me at just a £1 each plus postage at cost – just email me if you’d like one.

Thanks again to Cathelijne Spolestra we’ve got another period picture of a D Type in action. This is D0307 which is sadly not a survivor but is shown during the 1933 Land’s End trial being driven to a Premier Award by the first owner M H Rowell.

What current health and safety officials would make of the crowd control operating then is not worth thinking about! From the factory records we know that the car was fitted with a four-speed gearbox (optional extra at the time) and a 9/44 crown wheel and pinion but this was changed a year later back to a standard 8/43 one.

Further period items from Cathelijne includes this advert from the ‘Shipley Times & Express’ (Yorkshire) from, I would think, just before the war. Mouth-watering prices for MG’s!

And this from ‘Motor Sport’ for May 1949, the advertiser wanting a PA or PB engine. I wonder if this could be the then D0481’s owner as that car has such an engine fitted?

You will recall this car was for sale and featured in Dispatch 67 and I am pleased to say it has found a new home in Scotland – one end of the country to the other! – but cannot be moved yet due to current restrictions. It will be interesting if a connection could be made from the history files of the car to this advert.

And now what must be the ultimate garage accessory for the
D owner who has everything – a neon sign for MG D!

This is from Mike Goodwin in Florida (D0252) who tells me it’s probably 20 plus years old and is for a beer – ‘Miller Genuine Draft’. What a find.

Pre-war prescott

At the moment there is plenty of optimism about that this event will go ahead and is scheduled for Saturday 17th July. (preceded by optional factory visit on the Friday and followed by the also optional Navigation Rally and Scenic Tour on the Sunday. Full details from the Pre-War Prescott website or Vintage Minor Register). There are at least 4 D’s already entered and another 3 in the pipeline; it would be fantastic if we could beat the attendance record of 8 D’s at the 2016 event especially as this is our anniversary year! (see Dispatch 52).

As usual we have prepared a plaque to mark the occasion – this will be given/sent to all entrants nearer the time. As most of you know I live a couple of stone’s throws away from Prescott Hill Climb so if you need any help with anything do get in touch.