THE LEGEND THAT WAS MIKE THE PIPE
Mar 15th
STEVE HOLE pays tribute to Mike the Pipe
Everyone in motorsport (from bottom to top) classic, kit and custom car scenes all knew who Mike the Pipe was.
Who was ‘Mike The Pipe’? His real name was Mike Randall and for nearly thirty years his workshop at the unassuming 12 Stanley Park Road, Carshalton Beeches (people often say it was Wallington, which is very nearby, but technically it is in Carshalton Beeches) was the UK’s exhaust hub.
Randall first came to prominence when he worked for Vic Derrington and Bill Terry at TDC Components in Kingston-on-Thames, next door to the main V.W. Derrington More >
A REAL STRONGHOLD
Mar 10th
It’s not often that a brand-new manufacturer of brake calipers appears in the UK. The last one was Great British Sportscars’ ATR Products division which joined their existing range of dampers and throttle bodies.
The latest comes from new company Stronghold Technologies and the man behind the venture needs no introduction as it’s Robin Hall, designer of the FBS Census, Edge Devil and the quite brilliant, Wells Vertige.
Never one to mess around, preferring to take the view ‘if it’s worth doing; do it right’ approach he’s even set up a new production facility in Dorset.
The company’s first product is a beautifully More >
RARE OPPORTUNITY TO OWN A RAYVOLUTION EVO KIT AT A BARGAIN PRICE
Mar 10th
My friend, the mega-talented designer, Tony Lafaye was formerly the manufacturer of the brilliant Rayvolution EVO three-wheeler.
Tony was in touch this week to tell me about an opportunity that a totalkitcar.com three-wheeler enthusiast might well be interested in.
He has available a 90 per cent complete un-built EVO kit package, ready-to-go with full build advice and assistance available to the buyer.
Priced at £5500, the kit is located near Paris but even factoring in a van hire and ferry journey it still represents a bargain price. Of course, if you are based in Northern Europe to have an advantage.
If you want to More >
NEW TOOLS?
Mar 10th
The big, NEW and TOTALLY FREE Machine Mart catalogue is out now and it is packed full of all the tools and equipment you need! Whether you’re a hobbyist, DIY enthusiast or professional, you’re bound to find something for you.
Featuring over 900 MASSIVE price cuts and new products, the 492-page spring/summer catalogue is a ‘must have’ for anyone seeking a huge choice of tools and equipment at unbeatable value.
With thousands of items of tools and machinery in the new catalogue and a further 15,000 extra products online, you’ll be sure to find all the tools and machinery you need.
The NEW More >
A LOT ON YOUR PLATE
Mar 10th
Discovery channel’s Salvage Hunters: Classic Cars has shone a light on Sheffield-based, family-owned number plate manufacturer, Jepson & Co’s vintage and classic number plates in the latest series.
A big hit with the classic and kit car scenes, Jepson & Co recently featured in the show’s first episode of the new season as Salvage aficionado Drew Pritchard teamed up with automotive expert Paul Cowland for a motoring mission.
The duo bought and restored a Jenson Interceptor Mark III and in the first episode of season eight, Pritchard was seen researching the history of the car and discovered service history documents throughout the years. More >
DON’T BE A DRIP
Mar 10th
If oil drips on the driveway are becoming tiresome and try as one might, you cannot solve the leak, then this is the product for you.
Produced by Wolfsburg West from AMS 3304 Silicone, these oil strainer gaskets utilise aerospace material to solve an age-old air-cooled VW issue.
Whilst cork and neoprene gaskets have a habit of cracking or deforming over time, these silicone seals can be re-used over and over, saving you money in the long run, on both gaskets and oil too!
Priced at £13.75 the kit is supplied with new copper washers and a drain plug washer and can be More >
PUMP FUEL
Mar 10th
Merlin Motorsport receives a lot of enquiries from customers who are trying to replace a worn or sometimes failed Facet Fuel Pump for various applications; from kitcars to historic racing cars to diesel generators and dumper trucks.
There are a few different specifications for the more popular Facet pumps – from the rectangular Solid State fuel pumps to the racing Spec Cylindrical Red Top Facet pumps.
See – FACET FUEL PUMPS
They also have a handy article where they try and help you to identify your existing Facet pump so that you can find the most suitable replacement.
LIQUID ENGINEERING IS BACK
Mar 10th
Castrol Classic Oils has announced the reintroduction of an iconic original premium engine oil for younger and modern classics – Castrol GTX.
Widely remembered as the oil that popularised the Liquid Engineering slogan, Castrol GTX is a premium 10W/40 mineral engine oil specifically developed to meet the day-to-day motoring needs of vehicles built between 1978 and 1993.
Cars from the late 20th Century are now highly collectable among the next generation of classic enthusiasts aiming to experience the cars that were unattainable in their youth.
After two years of painstaking research, Castrol Classic Oils has responded with the reintroduction of Castrol GTX Classic 10W-40. Using More >
KEY TO THE HIGHWAY
Mar 9th
If you’ve got one of those sophisticated new car keys for your daily driver, this piece might be of interest.
Iconx International Ltd, the automation technology division within the Timpson Group which is renowned for cutting new keys has launched a new website, Keynow.com, which aims to end the expensive and time-consuming process of replacing a lost car key by enabling replacements to be ordered online.
Any new key for a car or van sold in the last 20 years must be programmed to the vehicle before use. If on losing a key an owner then uses the second key and loses or More >
A TRIBUTE TO JOHN PARRADINE – DELTAYN PROTEUS, PARRADINE PEGASUS & JJR 525S
Mar 9th
I was very saddened to hear of the death this week of John Parradine, aged 72.
The late John Parradine 1950-2023
To regular readers and kitcar enthusiasts, John will need no introduction as he first appeared on the kitcar radar in 1985 with his Jaguar-based roadster the Deltayn Proteus.
John was always very kind to me and my first contact with him was when I worked for Kit Cars & Specials magazine in the eighties. We sponsored the Stoneleigh show back then and I was tasked with the job of arranging ‘interesting’ cars to appear on our showcase stand in the then new cowshed foyer More >
