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| A 1946 Ford Prefect before gallons of elbow grease |
THE 40th edition of SA’s longest-running motorshow this year moves
to the Gold Circle race horse training circuit in Ashburton, less than 20
minutes out of Pietermaritzburg’s CBD.
Organisers expect more than a 1 000 cars at this year’s ruby event
— a far cry from the few cars that were on show at the first event that was held
in February 1976. Apart from cars, tractors, steam engines and motorbikes will
also form part of the show, with lots of entertainment for the child in
everyone.
Motorbike riders and their pillions enter free, although a donation
for Hospice will be appreciated at the motorcycle display area. Adults pay R40
to enter, with children under 16 and pensioners paying R20.
Member of the 100s riders club Neville Henderson predicts it will
be a bumper show and reminds the fans to bring sun block, as the training ground
does not have the trees that gave shelter at the show’s previous venue,
Alexandra Park. The show starts at 7 am and finishes at 4.30 pm. The spectator’s
gate closes at 3.30 pm.
• To get to the Gold Circle training circuit,
drive east on the N3 from Pietermaritzburg to Ashburton. Take offramp 69 and
follow the signposts to reach it. The circuit is 17 km from the City Hall.
Wooing a wrench, instead of a wench
One of the exhibitors at Car in the Park, The Witness journalist Amil Umraw, will be
showing off the dividend from the litres of elbow grease he and his father Allen
invested in an old Ford Prefect for almost a year.
Amil recalls how he came to spend most nights
and weekends wooing a wrench instead of a wench to get an old 1 200 cc car back
on the road after 50 years.
“A flat bed rolled into our driveway with what
looked like a London cabby that had taken a fare to hell and back.
“Under patches of 60-year-old paint and rust
glimmered a 1946 Ford Prefect. My father had purchased it from a farm owner in
the Albert Falls area, where for many a year it was home to rats and spiders.
“We started by stripping the entire car — removing whatever could
be detached.
“We then gave the engine a swing. Lo and behold, after three or
four cranks, the rust-bucket started up and we made it all the way to the top of
the driveway before we realised the brakes didn’t work. We then set about
removing and stripping the engine, cleaning every individual nook and
cranny.
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| Now looking splendid in gun-metal grey. |
“The seats and interior trimmings were sent for re-upholstery, all
the metal trimmings were sent for chroming, the car was sanded down and a few
tack-welds were made here and there before the body was primered and sent in for
painting (which happened in our back yard, much to my mother’s delight).
“What emerged was a splendid dash of gunmetal grey with a silent
blue undertone. No bad at all for an old barn-find.”
The devil is in the detail
Amil said repairing a 50-year-old car was not
all fun and games.
“Finding a radiator hose and the original lights (which the finest
R50 LEDs from a local racing shop were sourced from) were a major problem. Tyres
as well.
“An original 16-inch Jeppi tyre costs R2 400 these days. So we
opted for 15-inch wheels of a VW Beetle. Tyres aside, the old Prefect is almost
back to showroom condition. It’s not ready for the likes of Pearl Beach, but I
think the old jalopy will enjoy sunning her gunmetal flanks at Cars in the Park
this weekend. It really feels splendid, putting a car that was forgotten back on
the road where it belongs.”
