Hampton’s classics dazzle on return

Back with a bang

The summer season of car shows is in full swing, from big ones like the Goodwood Festival of Speed through to more local affairs, such as Hampton Village’s Classics on the Green, on Sunday 18 July, now into its fifth year and back after a COVID-enforced pause in 2020.

Like many such shows, the event, organised by the Hampton Village Traders Association and led by Jane and Nick Witham, the powers behind the local Jolly Coopers pub, is run on a voluntary basis and raises money for local charities.

Inevitably, being a day before ‘Freedom Day’ and with social responsibility uppermost in mind, there were additional complications for the team of helpers than in previous years.

For the hundreds of visitors though, it was a welcome distraction on a beautiful day, offering a happy dose of normality in this corner of south-west London, near C&SC’s HQ.

Terrific turbo

No, your eyes aren’t deceiving you – one of the just 1672 BMW 2002 turbos ever made did make it to a village car show, courtesy of its maker’s support for a local resident, the car having been comprehensively restored just last year.

Certain that the 2002 could take more power, the turbo model was launched in 1973, producing 168bhp and 177lb ft of torque – enough for a sub-7-sec 0-62mph time. It was the first turbocharged production car ever sold.

Current auction prices put its value at at least £150,000, not least because of its rarity. And it certainly turned heads in Hampton.

A BMW bonanza

Remarkably, the BMW 2002 was the most displayed car at Classics on the Green, with two convertibles also on display. Given the weather, they probably had the most comfortable journey home!

The 2002 convertible was launched in 1967, a year after the standard saloon, but from 1971 a targa-topped model replaced it with fixed window frames, earning it the ‘top cabriolet’ or ‘cabrio coach’ moniker.

Fewer than 10,000 drop-top BMW 2002s are believed to have been built.

Animal magic

Two Ford Mustangs were also on show, both attracting numerous votes in the quest for best-in-class awards.

This brilliantly restored ’64 Mustang is a regular on the show circuit. Here it sits next to another show stalwart, the Triumph Stag.

Meanwhile, as is traditional at many car shows, the Chrysler 300C you can just about see lurking behind underlines the truly eclectic nature of automotive enthusiasm! 

The boss

If your classic car show is organised by a pub landlord, it’s only fair that he or she gets to display their daily driver – and in Nick Witham’s case it’s all the more appropriate given he drives around at the wheel of a 1996 Austin FX4 Hackney Carriage.

Underlining his enthusiasm for black cabs, this is the third Witham has owned and is notable for being completely restored, while its numberplate is a gentle reminder of who’s boss.

Silver service

This Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow was first registered in 1970, and is a fine example of the car that reminded buyers of the firm’s ability to innovate as well as deliver a truly luxurious driving experience.

Highlights included the arrival of disc brakes and independent rear suspension, while from the end of 1969 power came from a 6.75-litre V8 delivering 189bhp. It also featured a rear self-levelling suspension system, although earlier cars also had a similar function at the front of the car.

The Silver Shadow was also notable for being a (slightly) more compact replacement for the Silver Cloud, but offering increased interior space.

All shapes and sizes

A more handsome Ford Cortina might be hard to find – although it was keeping some rougher, tougher company at Hampton’s Classics on the Green.

This 1966 Mk1 1500GT stands out for its Dragoon Red exterior – an original colour that was offered only briefly – and its restored vinyl black interior.

Completing the line-up here on the far right are a Ford F100 Ranger, made in 1980 and an early seventh-generation version of the model, and a Jeep Wrangler Rubicon, first registered in 2010.

Glamour model

The Ford Galaxie – an all-American rival launched to stem sales of the Chevrolet Impala – earned its name in 1958 as its maker attempted to cash in on excitement around the space race… not because of its gargantuan proportions. Luckily Hampton has a big village green!

Despite the two-tone paint and chrome and stainless-steel flourishes, the Galaxie was considered a more toned-down car than rivals the Impala and the Plymouth Fury.

Stars and stripes

Here’s more Americana – and it always draws a crowd. The Cadillac Series 61 Coupe (foreground) and Buick Special Series 40 Touring Sedan Model 41 added yet another dimension to this incredible show, highlighting the eclectic tastes of car enthusiasts.

The Cadillac 61 series was launched in 1939 but production was then suspended until the war concluded, buyers thereafter splitting between self-drivers, who preferred the shorter model, as seen here, or chauffeur-driven longer-wheelbase examples.

Flamin’ hot

Say VW, air-cooled rear-engine, rear-wheel drive and torsion-bar suspension out loud and chances are fellow car enthusiasts will utter the word ‘Beetle’ before you can move on – but the VW Type 3 Notchback was a long-lived modification of the theme designed to win more family-minded buyers in the 1960s and ’70s.

The three-box body and 1500cc engine certainly fitted that brief, while the Porsche Fuchs alloys seen here added a degree of pizzazz. The paintwork, however, is very much a modern addition – albeit an effective one to our eyes!

County Consul

How do you like your Ford Consul? These neighbours – a Consul Classic Capri on the left, and Consul on the right – highlighted the breadth of talent to carry the name badge.

The 1964 Capri is a late version of the car, production of the two-door coupe only running from 1961 until ’64. It featured design elements from Ford’s Thunderbird and Galaxie Starliner, but was too expensive to make long-term, being replaced by the Cortina-derived Corsair.

The Consul is a Mk2 from 1961 – and this is an early version of the 375 launched that year. Contemporary testing put its top speed around 80mph and its 0-60mph time on the wrong side of 20 secs.
 

More Fords

Some will say the Mk1 Ford Escort shows its maker off at its majestic best, the radical Anglia replacement the first car to come out of the newly-created Ford of Europe initiative, albeit behind the now-iconic Transit van.

It was manufactured in the UK at Halewood, and the car at Hampton’s Classics on the Green was from 1971 – making it a midlife version of the model, built in this iteration from 1967-1975.

The Lotus Cortina in the background is – of course – in the classic Alan Mann racing colour scheme, campaigned proudly and hugely successfully around Europe in the ’60s.

Swede sweetie

Don’t, whatever you do, call it a P1800 – because it is, of course, the Volvo 1800ES, a variant launched in the autumn of 1971.

While mechanically similar to the P1800, the redesigned body featured a far more estate-like profile, the increased luggage space promoted by its maker as being ideal for carrying golf clubs or hunting equipment. Naturally…

Production ceased in 1973, the car falling victim to stringent crash tests in the US that would have required engineering work considered too costly to justify.

Super Nova

Around 200 Nova Sterling GT kits are reckoned to have been sold in the 1970s – although various replicas and revivals are believed to have extended that run to 5000 cars over the years.

The work of UK-based Richard Oakes, a 23-year-old with more ambition than experience, the quirky Nova still draws a crowd today for its striking styling and oddball canopy.

This example proved a crowd-pleaser, scoring well in the public-voted car of the show after drawing much attention all day long.

Flying the flag

Maybe just maybe, this is the picture we should keep to hand to describe what a village car show stands for should any aliens land, the marvellous and much-celebrated Lotus Esprit enjoying the limelight alongside a glorious example of the Austin Metro.

The cars pictured here hit British roads just a year apart, the Metro getting there first in 1988, followed by the Esprit in 1989.

While the Metro may carry every hallmark of a bygone era, its significance should not be underestimated; in the 1980s more than a million were sold in Britain, putting it second only to the Ford Escort in the sales charts for the decade.

Meanwhile the Esprit is an early example of the Peter Stevens redesign, famous for delivering everything you might expect from a Ferrari or Porsche (except, maybe, a little dependability) for a fraction of the price.

A tidy trio

Which drop-top would you put your money on to turn more heads: Citroën 2CV, Bentley Brooklands or Jaguar XJ-S?

This corner of the green belonged to the 1980s and ’90s, pitching French simplicity against some of the more brutish elements of the British car industry.

The 2CV, registered in 1985, represented the beginning of the end for the iconic car, as its popularity fell in the wake of the AX’s launch. It lived on until 1990 – surprisingly, perhaps, the UK buying more examples than France (both topped by West Germany).

The Bentley is a late example from 1996, hitting the roads just two years before production ceased, but benefiting from a late update of a light turbo taking power from the 6.75-litre V8 up to 300bhp.

Meanwhile, the Jaguar boasted a 3.6-litre straight-six, coupled to a five-speed manual transmission. The XJ-SC convertible featured a central targa-type structure, fixed cant rails above the doors, and fixed rear quarter windows. Six-cylinder cars can be identified by a raised bonnet centre section.

Unlikely housemates

Holding a car show in a village where a senior McLaren engineer resides has its benefits, and the proximity of the McLaren 720S Spider to the Fiat 500 is no coincidence either, as it is a beloved part of the same family. One of the two cars resides with them at home, and has enjoyed a few tweaks during lockdown – we’ll leave you to guess which.

Perhaps inevitably, the 720S turned the heads of visitors most successfully, the coveted Hampton Classics on the Green Best Modern Car accolade heading back down the M3 to the esteemed McLaren Technology Centre; it’s not yet known whether this latest award has made it into the firm’s trophy cabinet.

But which has more charm? The McLaren is pretty cool, but the 500 ensured it was far from overshadowed.

Left or right?

Peugeot 205 GTI or Alfa Romeo Spider? There were some intrepid pairings on show, this duo providing some tough mental battles for fans of ’90s cars, not least because both were sporting ‘for sale’ signs.

The GTI – this one a 1.9-litre example – is almost certainly the most iconic Peugeot of all time, and a regular contender for the best-ever hot hatch, a fact that has sent values through the roof in recent years.

The Spider, meanwhile, sits on many a ‘most beautiful’ list; and although earlier versions tend to steal the limelight more than this Series 4 1992 model, there’s no denying its allure.