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Private Notes
It's an emotional start for the series as Quentin falls in love with the automotive icon that sums up the feel-good 60s American Dream. We rub shoulders with pretty people and even prettier cars at London Fashion Week and compare a million-pound classic Mercedes against its swoopy modern counterpart in the classic desirability stakes. You’ll be surprised which one raises the eyebrows of the highbrows.
There's a five grand classic that divides opinion like brussel sprouts, and we follow Chris Routledge, classic car expert and auctioneer, as he discovers a finny 60s land-yacht that’s been forgotten in a hedge for thirty years. And if that’s not enough, Jodie goes all misty-eyed when she takes the wheel of a six million pound late-50s Italian V12. Which one? Think James Coburn, Bridget Bardot, Bob Hope and Ralph Lauren…
If you fancy a hand -built, high-tab 70s four-seat convertible that’s still criminally undervalued, stay tuned and see why Quentin bought a very special classic that even Lady Ga Ga agrees is pure glam-rock. And it’s the model that saved a very famous car company from going under. We also tell you how to drive classics and supercars without having friends at Fort Knox – and which one gets the warm approval of passers by and other drivers. Being waved out of a busy side turning is a breeze in this one.
Plus there’s another budget classic, reviewed by Mastermind-winner and arch old car fancier Alex Riley, plus Chris ‘Barn-find’ Routledge uncovers a 1920s French gem that hasn’t seen daylight for decades. You can watch Jodie put her perfectly manicured toe down on the road-race circuit that kicked off the podium champagne phenomenon. Watch her shout out loud with unalloyed joy.
Enzo Ferrari called it ‘the most beautiful car ever made’ and it doesn’t have a prancing horse on the bonnet. Will Best takes a mildly tuned 1800cc MG Midget around a famous track.
Alex Riley meets someone almost as mad as he is, and gets to play with an ambulance, fire engine, ultra -rare caravan and a specially equipped Land Rover. And we join Ayrton Senna’s nephew, Bruno, for the first in a series of racetrack laps in classics against the clock.
We begin with another of Quentin’s all-time great cars - the Range Rover – so influential it kicked off the global cult of the SUV. The Rangie, as its affectionately now know, has become a world-wide status symbol and the wheels of choice for everybody from Beverly Hills housewives and minted-up bankers to well-heeled farmers, horsey types and of course the Royals.
Then we ride with Jodie and Quentin – in an ultra-rare Citroen DS convertible – to Monaco - the principality of petrolheads to meet one man realising a lifelong dream of historic racing round Monaco’s legendary road circuit. And it’s a circuit strewn with danger.
Meanwhile, the inimitable Alex Riley turns an 80s amusement arcade game into reality, and chases Ralph the Slasher in a five grand Porsche 928, and Bruno Senna unveils and unleashes a beautiful, highly-tuned 60s V8 Mustang hardtop for another race against the clock. It's another heady combination of style, speed and automotive brilliance.
A real classic treat in this week’s episode – a Ferrari Dino 246 once owned by rock legend Keith Richards, who, it must be said, looked after his Ferrari a lot better than he did himself. Quentin takes this silver missile round the streets of Monaco where you need something this special to stand out from the crowd. Chris Routledge sifts through the usual piles of fence panels, paint pots, cardboard boxes and bin-bags to get closer to the truth about a forgotten British mainstay, the Morris 8, while Alex co-drives a road rally on some of the UK’s best stretches, missing all the scenery in the process.
Bruno whips the cover off a serious contender for fastest classic lap of the series. As for Jodie, well… let’s just say she’s following in one of her predecessor’s footsteps – a successful fashion model and racing driver from the late 1920s and 1930s – in a Bugatti Type 35C, one of the most charismatic racing cars ever built.
Quentin’s choice this week might have some people spitting their tea/burgundy/real ale out. Yes, it’s the MGB. But stick with it – there are many reasons why this is a very enjoyable and shrewd acquisition that’s currently undervalued. And the history of this car is, as ever with Quentin, an interesting one. The show sends Alex Riley to Le Mans to stalk a childhood hero – armed with his Scalextric set, and Bruno tames a Jaguar E-type lightweight, or as he calls it, a ‘total beast’, around the circuit – a remarkable racer, one of only 12 ever made and worth a million plus. Be careful Bruno….
Then there’s Jodie’s trip through Italy, which sounds glamorous, but actually involves sleep deprivation and very little by way of comfort. She’s not complaining, though. Would you, if you were invited by Jaguar to drive a 1953 XK120 on the famous Mille Miglia?
Quentin starts the show with two classic versions of one of the automotive world’s most recognisable, popular and longest-standing sports cars… the Porsche 911. One is a ‘wallet-busting widow-maker’ and the other is a more accessible but less troublesome highlight of Porsche’s heyday. Both are air-cooled, and that’s a must. Then Chris Routledge’s eye for detail nearly pops out of his head on discovering a Reliant Scimitar with all the features he hoped to uncover.
Where’s Alex Riley? Well, Quentin pulled rank and used the money to go to LA and drive a 1957 Ford Thunderbird – the car that Ford introduced to Hollywood by giving one to Sinatra, Elvis and Ms Monroe. Meanwhile, Bruno takes a lovely Merc around the circuit in search of a faster lap time. And then there’s more Los Angeles, and more 911s! This time it’s with Jodie – who meets Magnus Walker, a man with a quirky passion for the 911. He’s a designer, too. Jodie will be in her element.
Episode 8 begins with Quentin imparting his encyclopedic knowledge on the Mini – the car that got off to a bad start what with Stirling Moss being the first to crash it and the fact that nobody liked it… However, BMC’s answer to the Ford Popular and petrol rationing soon became hugely successful and rolled off production lines for 40 years. Then there’s a spectacular barn find – this time in an actual barn – where Chris finds a long-lost Crayford Capri convertible, minus a few finer details…
Alex Riley returns, this time in pinstripe, to showcase a yuppie’s favourite: the BMW 635 CSI. Decent ones are remarkably cheap today, considering their price tag at birth. Then we revert to the Mini theme, in which Bruno pushes a rather special 1965 Cooper S in pursuit of an E-Type-slayer of a lap, and Jodie joins Monte Carlo rally legend Paddy Hopkirk in another Cooper S for some serious sideways action.
Quentin kicks off episode 9 with a much-misunderstood Mercedes, and points out how machismo has denied generations of men the joys of the SL convertible. Perhaps this is why the overlooked Merc marque remains a bargain on the classic classifieds. He also introduces a great way to find out if your car is a worthy classic or not.
We then join Jodie and Quentin on what many consider to be the ultimate road trip, as they waft up a certain stretch of the US Pacific coast in a very nice Buick. Back at base, Bruno sticks with the Mercedes theme and takes a gorgeous ’55 300 SL (yes, the ‘gullwing’ with red leather interior) around the track.
There’s a special guest, too. Secret classic car fan Jennifer Saunders takes an absolutely fabulous Fiat 500 on a tootle around London, before we complete Jodie and Quentin’s idyllic jaunt from the City of Angels to San Fran.
This epic instalment of the show has a theme running through it. Quentin starts with a superb feature on the Aston Martin DB5. Not the one bearing the plates BMT 216A though, that’s still missing without trace. Will Best is back, and takes us on a tour of flat-pack helicopters, jet-packs, stylish watches, a few motorbikes, a Citroen 2CV and other classic vehicles related to the show’s theme. And Alex Riley showcases the Triumph Stag, an excellent classic you can still pick up for not very much money… penny.
Bruno takes a 1951 Aston Martin DB3, which was built only for racing around our handling track. We’re also joined by stunt-driver Ben Collins, who compares today’s Aston Martin Vanquish with a DB 2/4. Jodie rounds off the show with a jaunt in the Lotus Esprit S1, a beautiful car that famously modified into “submarine” in one of the world most iconic spy film series... Guessed the theme yet?
Sir Quentin of Willson starts another packed show with a re-assessment of the much-maligned Ferrari Testarossa. It’s a flashback to the 80s that no longer makes us wince, and Quentin quite rightly points out that Ferrari were right all along with this design classic.
This week’s barn find with Chris Routledge is an absolute jaw-dropper. There is only one Owen Sedanca in the world, unveiled in 1973 but never put into production – and here it is. Here too, is Alex Riley, who meets a family with no less than 33 Austin A30s and A35s in the back garden. Bruno has a real shot at the E-types leading lap time in a rally-spec Ferrari 308 (yes, the Magnum PI Ferrari). And male supermodel David Gandy takes female supermodel Jodie to pick up his first classic purchase – an exquisite 1960 Merc 190SL. How much eye candy?
Jodie then gets to grips with the Jaguar XJ220 ‘hypercar’ once the fastest car in the world
Starting with the wonderful Jensen Interceptor, with its American V8, Italian styling and its truly British approach to production. Interceptorphile Quentin tells us its brilliant tale.
Will Best heads to the seaside to answer another important question: do the public prefer the classic Fiat 500 or its modern counterpart? Alex Riley meets Roger Dudding, who has an extreme classic car collection and Bruno puts a 70s Porsche 911 racer through its paces round the track.
Finally, Jodie falls in love with the Camaro Z28.
The best bits of The Classic Car Show. You’ll find out which of Quentin’s 12 all-time classics are the greatest of the great, see Alex Riley’s now famous arcade game Chase HQ sequence with q black Porsche 928 plus Jennifer Saunders’ deeply emotional homage to the original Fiat 500.
Chris Routeledge gives us another look at that long lost Amilcar while stunt driver Ben Collins (The Stig) shows why Ian Flemming changed Bond’s motor from a staid Bentley to an sexy Aston DB2/4. Bruno Senna flings a 308 Michelotto round our Brooklands track.
Jodie goes to the Monthlhery circuit and drives the most successful racing car of all time the only racer that can claim an astonishing 1800 race victories.
