Classic car ownership …a horror story
with a happy ending
By Peter Thomas
My first encounter
with a Mk 2 Zodiac was in June 1986 and will always be known as ‘’the Christine moment’’. This in reference to the opening scene
of the Stephen King book
about a possessed car and it’s geeky teenage owner . For those of
you that don’t know the story . Arnie
Cunningham sees Christine for the first time while driving home from college
with his mate Dennis. He spots the dusty rear fins of a 1957 Plymouth Fury sitting in Roland Le
Bays’ yard ,he shouts to Dennis to stop so he can inspect further . Arnie marvels at the spectacular blood red bodywork of the
unkempt car and against Dennis’ advice buys the car there and then .The ensuing tale
is of obsession and possession by a devilish
force ,needless to say, as with all of King’s work there is horror in abundance .For me the situation had
certain similarities to the opening
scene .I was a 19 year old apprentice
fitter in a British Rail van . I saw my
‘’Christine’’
on the side of the road in Swansea in South Wales ,UK.I too ,was struck by the
spectacular bodylines and presence the car had .She was a maroon and grey 1958
Mk2 Zodiac automatic , registration 745
FNY .I asked Tony ,my boss for the day,
to pull over so I could take a closer look .She was a little tatty and needed a fair amount of
welding on the sills and outriggers but I had to have her .The owner had seen
us from over the road and was coming to
speak to us .I weighed up the
options ,can I afford it ,will I be able to fix her up and will my parents hit
the roof ….probably. I decided to throw caution to the wind and buy the car regardless .I bought ‘’ Fanny’’
,as she was now called , for the princely sum of £225 .I went to the cashpoint for my deposit of £25 and paid the balance the
following day when she was delivered into my parents drive . I ate my tea in
the driving seat as I planned the work and where we would go when she was back
on the road . Unfortunately that was about all I did
in her as I found working underneath a rusty old car much less fun than going
to the pub with my mates .My parents were relieved when I sold the car and I was
happy with a £50
profit .I promised myself that I would persue my
interest in classic car restoration when things were more practical.
I did stay interested in classic cars and a few years later
bought a 1973 MGB roadster in good condition but I found myself still hankering
after another MK2 .I sold the MG a few
years later for a more motorway friendly modern saloon . My ownership of a second MK2
didn’t happen until 1992 when I bought a very tired Consul from a local enthusiast who needed the
room. Again she needed welding but she ran very well and I was mentally
prepared to take on the job .I was a fully qualified mechanical fitter by now
with more mechanical knowledge and confidence to take up the challenge . I got
the car home after doing the deal ( £425 this time …bargain) and set about the
restoration ,making notes and taking
photos along the way .I rented a lock up garage near my home to store the parts
and proceeded well with the repairs to the shell .I was on track for an Autumn
completion ,when one sunny Sunday morning in June my classic restoration came
to a sickening halt .As well as
repairing the shell ,I was sending parts away for rechroming
,powder coating etc and storing them ,bagged and labelled in my lock up ready
for the rebuild .Vandals had broken in
to the lock up the night before and destroyed all my hard work .Newly recovered
seats were burnt ,all 4 doors damaged
and every piece of glass smashed .All the shiny stuff was strewn about
,scratched and broken .I was devastated to say the least .I had a nearly
completed shell with next to nothing to rebuild it with .I couldn’t look at it
for weeks .
Then one day I made a rash decision to get
rid of all remaining items of the car .Within 6 weeks there was no trace of the second MK2 at my
home at all .I sold what I could and a sympathetic scrap dealer bought the
shell and promised me it would go to a good home . I bought another MGB
roadster in 1994 to keep the classic car flame alive .This was stolen in March 1997 and I decided
there and then that owning a classic was too much effort and gave up on them
for good.
Jump forward to late 2005 .The internet was a popular place
in the Thomas household and browsing the pages of Ebay
was a regular occurrence .There were all manner of chrome beauties available to
buy and in all sorts of condition .More importantly my wife didn’t seem to mind
me looking ,even encouraging me to bid .RESULT!
.I did a reality check immediately and recalled my woeful history of classic car
ownership but she egged me on never the less. She said my 40th
birthday is looming so it could be her present to me. She did make one important
demand , no basket cases again .As me spending endless nights in the
garage was a big no no
.So it was a good condition , MOT’d runner or nothing
.RESULT AGAIN !
Enquiries and searches were made over the
next few weeks and after speaking to Del the owners club membership secretary in mid January , I was put in touch with a
very nice chap in London who was selling his two tone blue 1962 Zodiac. A few
phone conversations
were had, details were taken and a visit was arranged .We visited
Ian ,the owner in early March and he picked us up in his Capri. He took us to
his home to see the car ,when we drove around the corner by his house , the car
came into view and I immediately thought to myself …SOLD .She was an absolute
cracker .I did a thorough inspection and everything was in good order. Minor
cosmetic work inside the engine bay and interior but nothing I couldn’t handle
.She came with a lot of history all documented well.She
also has the distinction of being the basis for the Corgi Mk2 in their vanguard
range .So with excellent mechanical records and celebrity status as well buying
the car was a no brainer. I’m still waiting for Hello magazine to call and
arrange a photoshoot ,maybe next week . We had a test drive and the deal was done .A
little more than £425 this time but well worth every penny. A deposit was paid
and I arranged to come back up in a few weeks time to collect the car and pay
the balance. A night out in the West end followed .
We went home on the train the day after and
I kept saying to my wife ,have I done the right thing ?.I haven’t had a lot of
luck in the past with old cars .Shall I walk away from the deal?. She kept on reassuring me ,saying it’ll fine . She had a good
feeling and christened the car ‘’Evelyn’’ after my daughter’s middle name .I’m
glad to say she was absolutely correct about buying the car .
Evelyn has been part of our family now for
2 years . I have clocked up over 2500 miles since I
drove her home from London in late April 2006 .I have had to do some work to her ,mostly minor jobs and a lot of them
because I’m very fussy and wanted her to look her best. I am very pleased with
my efforts and glad I listened to my wife and didn’t lose my nerve .Hopefully
this era of classic car ownership will be a lot more successful than my
previous attempts and more importantly, I don’t suffer the same fate as Arnie and Christine .