1956 Ford Zephyr Zodiac

This car was displayed on the stand of the 'Five Stars - Ford Mk1 Consul Zephyr Zodiac Owners Club' at the Northern Classic Car Show at the G-Mex Exhibition Centre in Manchester in August 1990.

It's a 1956 Ford Zephyr Zodiac with a 6-cylinder inline 2,262cc engine, and was also referred to as a Ford Zodiac MkI after the Zodiac MkII was introduced later in 1956. The brochure of the event said this about the car:

 

'The stand this year celebrates the 1953 win of the Marque in that year's Monte Carlo Rally. Our car is owned by Andy Davies of Chorley, and won Best Car on our annual Manchester to Southport run.'

 

This is obviously not the actual car that won the 1953 Monte Carlo Rally - that was registration number VHK 194, and was driven by Maurice Gatsonides with Peter Worledge as his navigator (the rally number was 365 though). The DVLA say that KRJ 735 still exists and has only recently been re-taxed for another year.

 

Maurice Gatsonides, by the way, is much better known as the inventor of the 'Gatso' speed camera.

1935 SS Jaguar 90

This is a photograph that I took in September 1985 at the Northern Classic Car Show at Belle Vue, Manchester.

It's a 1935 SS Jaguar 90 which has a 2,663cc six-cylinder inline Standard engine. In 1936 the SS60 was replaced by the SS100 and car production stopped in 1940. In 1945 'SS' was dropped from the company's name, becoming simply 'Jaguar'. 

Citroën 11 Cabriolet

I photographed this car at the Northern Classic Car Show at Belle Vue, Manchester in September 1994.

It's a Citroën 11 CV Cabriolet, a car that was produced from 1934 to 1957 with five different engine sizes during that period. It was succeeded in 1957 by the ID19.

1929 Chevrolet International

This is a photograph that I took at the Northern Classic Car Show in a very poorly lit G-Mex Centre in Manchester in August 1994.

It's a 1929 Chevrolet International which should have a 6-cylinder inline 194 cu in (3,179cc) engine. The DVLA record says that it has a 2,630cc engine and has been untaxed since March 2001.

1936 Ford CX

This car was on the stand of the Ford Y & C Model Register at the Northern Classic Car Show in the G-Mex Centre, Manchester in August 1987.

It's a 1936 Ford Model CX, a de-luxe version of the Model C, identifiable by the chrome strips across the radiator. It has the 4-cylinder inline 1,172cc Ford side valve engine that was used by many builders of 1950s 'specials' including the early Lotus cars.

1959 Ford Anglia 100E

This is a photograph that I took at the Northern Classic Car Show at G-Mex, Manchester in August 1987.

It's a 1959 Ford Anglia 100E which has a 4-cylinder inline 1,172cc sidevalve engine. The Ford Anglia was produced from 1939 to 1968 with four different models, the 100E being the third of these, 345,841 of which were built between 1953 and 1959.

1955 Triumph TR2

This is a photograph I took at the Northern Classic Car Show in the G-Mex Centre in Manchester in August 1987.

It's a 1955 Triumph TR2, one of 8,636 cars that were built between 1954 and 1955 and was powered by a tuned version of the Standard Vanguard's 4-cylinder inline 1,991cc engine. The DVLA record shows that it is currently taxed up to 31 May 2025.

1936 Wolseley 25hp

This is a photograph I took at the Northern Classic Car Show in the G-Mex Centre in Manchester in August 1987.

The note I made at the time was that it was a 1936 Wolseley 25hp and it appears to be a Wolseley 25hp Super Six Series II. The DVLA record says that the engine capacity is 1,725cc (though I can't find anything to confirm this) and it currently has a SORN.

1939 Solar Ford

This is a photograph that I took at the Northern Classic Car Show at the G-Mex Centre in Manchester in August 1994.

It's a 1939 Solar Ford used in midget car racing which originated in the USA in the 1930s. The cars compete on ¼ or ½ mile dirt or paved tracks with 4-cylinder engines of less than 2 litres and the races are normally for not more than 25 miles.

1954 Citroën Big 15

This is one of the cars displayed at the Northern Classic Car Show at G-Mex, Manchester in August 1987.

It's a 1948 Citroën Big 15, built at Slough in the UK, and has a 1,911cc 4-cylinder inline engine. It's the English equivalent of the French-built Citroën 11 - the difference in the numbering being caused by the way the horsepower of the engine is calculated in England and in France. The 'Big' in the name of the car denotes that it is a long wheelbase vehicle, and the chevrons on the front of English-built Citroëns are behind the radiator grille whilst on French-built cars they are in front of the grille. This car is still registered with the DVLA who say that the colour of the vehicle is now red.

1929 Fiat 509A Torpedo

This is a photograph that I took at the Northern Classic Car Show at G-Mex, Manchester in August 1987.

It's a 1929 Fiat 509A which has a 4-cylinder inline 909cc engine. The Fiat 509 was produced from 1924 to 1929 and about 90,000 were sold in that period. The DVLA record says that this car as not been taxed since February 1990.

Singer Owners Club

I took this photograph of cars belonging to members of the Singer Owners Club at the Northern Classic Car Show at Belle Vue, Manchester in September 1984.

I didn't make a note of the individual cars at the time, but I've been able to identify the first four. On the left is a 1934 Singer 1½ litre Four Seater Sports Tourer, registration number US 5285 and next to that is a 1½ litre 1934 Singer Le Mans, BGN 1. The third car is a 1937 1 litre Singer 9, CTB 357 and then a 1936 1 litre Singer Le Mans, APW 971.

1953 Jaguar C-Type

I took this photograph at the Northern Classic Car Show at Belle Vue, Manchester in September 1983.

It's a 1953 Jaguar C-Type with the 6-cylinder inline 3,442cc Jaguar XK engine. It is chassis XKC 053 and was a works team car in 1953 when it finished in second place in the Le Mans 24 Hour race driven by Stirling Moss and Peter Walker, the race being won by another Jaguar C-Type driven by Tony Rolt and Duncan Hamilton. Stirling Moss and Peter Walker took the car to third place in that year's RAC Tourist Trophy race while Peter Whitehead and Ian Stewart finished in third place in the Goodwood 9 Hour race with the car. At the end of that season XKC 053 was sold to the Ecurie Ecosse team.

1939 Rover 14 Drophead Coupe

This is a photograph that I took at the Northern Classic Car Show at G-Mex, Manchester in August 1987.

It's a 1939 Rover 14 P2 Drophead Coupe, a car that was produced from 1933 to 1940 and then again from 1945 to 1948. This 1939 model had a 6-cylinder 1,901cc engine

1955 AC Ace

I took this photograph at the Northern Classic Car Show at Belle Vue, Manchester in September 1985.

It's a 1955 AC Ace and should have the 6-cylinder inline 1,971cc Bristol engine derived from the M328 engine that powered the pre-war BMW 328, though the DVLA record says that its engine capacity is 1,991cc and it is now blue.

1954 MG TD

I took this photograph at the Northern Classic Car Show at Belle Vue, Manchester in September 1984.

It's a 1950 MG TD and has the 4-cylinder inline 1,250cc XPAG engine. The MG T-Type started with the TA in 1936 and ended with the TF which was produced from 1953 to 1955. The T-Type was superseded by the MGA.

1952 Jowett Bradford

This vehicle was on the stand of the Jowett Car Club at the Northern Classic Car Show at G-Mex, Manchester in August 1987.

It's a 1952 Jowett Bradford which has a 1,005cc flat twin side-valve engine, and nearly 40,000 of these were produced between 1946 and 1953.

1937 SS100 Jaguar

This was one of the cars on display at the Northern Classic Car Show at Belle Vue, Manchester in September 1985.

It's a 1937 SS100 Jaguar which should have a 6-cylinder inline 2,663cc engine, though the DVLA record says that is only 1,970cc. This particular car, CHP 402, was one of a 3-car team that won the manufacturers team prize at the 1937 RAC Rally.

1934 Singer Le Mans

I took this photograph at the Northern Classic Car Show at Belle Vue, Manchester in September 1984.

It's a 1934 Singer Le Mans, a special version of the Singer Nine Le Mans car, which originally had a 4-cylinder inline 972cc engine. The 1934 Le Mans Special had a 6-cylinder 1,493cc engine and the cars finished in 7th and 8th place in the Le Mans 24 Hour Race that year. BGN 1 was apparently at one time owned by a colleague of Ian Fleming, Merlin Minshall, and his adventures with the car are recorded by the Singer Owners Club.

1950 MG TD

I took this photograph at the Northern Classic Car Show at Belle Vue, Manchester in September 1983.

It's a 1950 MG TD and has the 4-cylinder inline 1,250cc XPAG engine. The MG T-Type started with the TA in 1936 and ended with the TF which was produced from 1953 to 1955. The T-Type was superseded by the MGA.