The picture above is taken in Japan, where Adrian took his beautiful car on a rally passing stunning spring time scenery.
Adrian shooter certainly has some serious history with transport, having been heavily involved with British Rail, then led a Management Buyout of Chiltern railways, and more recently involved with a business that’s looking to recycle old trains into stunning refurbished commuter trains utilising the latest battery tech.
Away from trains, Adrian’s other interest is vintage and classic cars, and one thing I’ve learned about Adrian is that he is certainly not someone that locks his vehicles up in a shed all year long, to never see the light of day. Quite the reverse in fact. Adrian and his wife (Barbara) have covered many continents in their 1952 Bristol. Just a few of their adventures include: rallies driving from England to Europe’s north cape and back via Norway; touring New Zealand, Spain, Germany; and even two 8 weeks trips across the US, Canada and Alaska in a land rover defender.
Quite a (Hi)story
His prized 1935 V8 coupe wasn’t a car that was always in a condition to drive over continents, although it had certainly done some travelling before Adrian became involved in its history.
Originally made in Canada, it was subsequently sold to a new owner in South Africa where it remained until 1995. It was then briefly in England before being exported to Jersey in 1997.
I’m sure if cars could talk it would have had some interesting tales to tell from its nearly 60 years in South Africa, not least surviving a world war.
Making it Shine Again.
Adrian came across the car in 2007, still in Jersey, at a local dealer. “The car bodywork was still in pretty good condition for its age, most likely due to its significant time in South Africa and avoiding the damp, salty roads of the British Isles. However mechanically the vehicle was rather tired in most areas” Adrian said.
It was at this stage that Adrian turned to BE Automotive in a bid to restore the vehicle so that it was up to the rigors of touring.
Adrian had come across Belcher Engineering (BE Automotive) about 25 years previously, where he needed some experts to restore a Ford Model A Coupe engine, in which he later competed in the Peking to Paris rally, which at ~9300 miles is a rather gruelling test for any car, let alone a car built in 1930!
Belcher Engineering completed a total engine rebuild on the 1935 V8 coupe in 2007/8, including converting the car to electronic ignition. A new recondition standard gearbox was installed and behind this a Mitchel overdrive unit was fitted to reduce RPM for more comfortable highway cruising.
“In 2007/2008 Belcher Engineering did extensive work on the V8 engine which basically consisted of a total rebuild due to the worn condition of the older engine. We also rebuilt and repaired both the front and rear axles, steering and radiator, primarily down to the worn state they were in. At this time we also converted the car to 12v (from 6v) to improve starting and headlamps for night time driving” said Gary Miller. (MD Belcher Engineering)
Following this work Adrian toured all over the UK and France racking up many miles, and more importantly using the vehicle to its full potential.
Living on the Edge
In 2016 the V8 coupe was off to Japan for a 4 week rally. There were one or two slightly scary moments, when the original brakes struggled to stop the V8 coupe on a steep downhill section. Adrian was forced to complete the last 3 days of the rally in a rental car.
“Things went very well until first gear failed and the brakes proved unequal to a very long steep downwards gradient.” - Adrian stated
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A Japanese policeman takes an interest in the car, all in good spirit.
Once back home, the Coupe came back to Belchers and this time a 5 speed Toyota Supra gearbox was fitted with a new bell housing. The change is gearbox led to a conversion from banjo rear end to open drive, which in turn led to a prop shaft change/some suspension work.
Disc brakes from a Landrover Discovery were also installed to replace the original cable operated system, which should eliminate any further brown trouser moments.
“The discs themselves were highly modified by our in-house machine shop with support flanges fitted to accommodate the wire wheels of the 1935 car. This was a machining requirement because despite disc brake conversion parts being available from the USA, they would not accommodate or support the wire wheels of the original car” said Gary Miller
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Riding into the Sunset
Adrian has also completed a rally driving from China through Tibet, Nepal to India which he completed in a Land rover defender.
“With the summer sun shining down, the V8 coupe still gets a good drive on a regular basis”, Adrian said.
(Adrian sadly passed away recently, we wish his family well)