by rmad
28. April 2009 18:52
Back in the UK this time and we're with an old favourite from the rmad archives - Hot Car: a particularly dog-eared copy from back in 1973.
First of all, look at the price...20p - it sounds cheap but back in '73 you could go to the cinema, buy a fry up, pop down the pub for a pint and still have enough money for the bus fare home with that (OK, I made that up...but it sounds nearly credible). Talking of cheap, how about a set of wide rims? 7.5x13 for £3.80 outright? It'd be rude not to...
Street Machine Magazine is still six years away at this point, but more and more custom stuff is appearing in Hot Car. Cars like these two Morris Minors are a great example of the changing scene in the UK:
The blue saloon is running a Shorrock's supercharged MGB motor. The rest of the running gear is all classic stuff - Lotus Cortina axle on Wolseley leaf springs, Riley front suspension and a set of Wolfrace slots - 5.5x13 front and 7x14 at the back. Interestingly the photos were taken by a young chap who lived locally (in Norwich) called Mike Key. You want to know about 'Snoopy' don't you? The ex GPO van has now got a 3000 Zodiac V6 where the gearbox should be thanks to the work of Ilford boys Alan Stevens and Ivor Cooper. Those look like standard Minor rims up front but a set of Wolfies adorn the Zodiac axle at the other end. The text says of the wheel choice: "there's a lot of 'em about - beards seem to be catching too". It seems we've dropped in on two emerging trends.
Further proof of the customising explosion is this ad for the new Moskvich. Sadly, I reckon the main picture is retouched (unless there's a factory custom Mosky stuck in a barn somewhere waiting for someone to find it!), but I like the idea! Having read the text though, I'm not entirely sure if they're advocating such modifications or not. Maybe we could persuade the owner of the pair Racer86 found in our recent Carrington Arms report to turn one of his into a replica?
As ever, we like to dip into the classifieds for some unlikely-priced time travel bargains...
Admittedly, the Series 4 isn't the prettiest of Sevens but at £975 for an 'immaculate' example I'm prepared to suffer. Finally, we have a piece from the Extra! Custom Guide! mentioned on the cover. How to fit some new lights to your ugly old Beetle. The piece starts with the line 'When it came to handing out tail lamps the Beetle was obviously at the back of the class'. Luckily 'metal artist' Steve Taylor was on hand to save the poor Beetle using a set of Anglia van units. Do you think Steve made a stack of cash in the 90's selling all those liberated oval tail lights to prospective Cal-look Bug builders?
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