Classic Cars

Maintenance

admin — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 06:32:51 +0000

Owning a classic car is a never ending story of maintenance and repair work. You have to fight corrosion, tired suspensions, leaking rubber seals and soft-tops etc.
And even though most classic cars are not in daily use you also have to with signs of wear out on engines, piston rings and other parts.
If you happen to drive your car even in winter, you should wash it regularly because of the salt on the streets. Otherwise the salt will be responsible for even more corrosion. But make sure it can dry properly.
The electric wiring also is something you should always keep an eye on, as damages can be a potential fire hazard, especially behind the instrument panel where a lot of wiring can be found. You should check this area regularly and repair things as soon as possible.
Before you start driving your car again in spring, you should really check everything properly and make sure your car is in a perfect condition and safe. And never forget if there wasn’t the maintenance on your car, it wouldn’t be that much fun.

Retro Classics in Stuttgart, Germany

admin — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 12:09:56 +0000

From 12th to 14th of March there will be the annual classic car fair Retro Classics in Stuttgart.

Besides several exhibitions like 100 Years of Alfa Romeo or 200 Years of Peugeot, you can see presentations of the Schörghuber Group, Mercedes-Benz Design Center, Prototypenmuseum (the Museum of Prototypes) in Hamburg. On different auctions classic cars will be sold and you can of course also see motorcycles and trucks and you can learn about electric engines during the last 150 years.

There will of course be an international car parts market too on the Retro Classics and lots of entertainment like fashion shows and music.

Lovers of Porsche sports cars can not only see the latest model, the Porsche Boxster Spyder, but also its predecessors, the Rometsch Spyder, the Mathé Porsche and the Porsche Typ 64.

Car Parts English-German Part 6

admin — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 09:30:23 +0000

This is the sixth part of my car parts dictionary. The last part will follow next month.

English	German
seat belt	Sicherheitsgurt
sedan, saloon	Limousine
serial number, chassis number	Fahrgestellnummer
shaft sealing	Wellendichtung
shock absorber, shocks	Stoßdämpfer
side window	Seitenscheibe
spark	Zündfunke
spark plug	Zündkerze
spark plug spanner	Zündkerzenschlüssel
speedometer	Tacho(-meter)
speedometer shaft	Tachowelle
starter	Anlasser
steering	Lenkung
steering angle	Einschlagwinkel
steering axis inclination	Spreizung
steering column	Lenksäule, Mantelrohr
steering shaft	Lenkspindel
switch	Schalter
switch-on voltage	Einschaltspannung
tail lights	Rücklichter
tank capacity	Tankvolumen, Tankinhalt
test lamp	Prüflampe
tire, tyre	Reifen
to throw in gear	einkuppeln
to throw out of gear	auskuppeln
toe-in	Vorspur
top dead center, tdc	Todpunkt
top gear	höchster, schnellster Gang

More Classic Car Events 2010

admin — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 06:38:42 +0000

27 March, 2010 – 4th Annual Early Bird Car Show
27 March, 2010 – Lone Star Lug Nuts 4th annual car show at City Park
26 March, 2010 cruise nite at Kilgore Whataburger. Kilgore, Tx, United States, http://lonestarlugnuts.tripod.com
18 April, 2010 – The 2nd Chasewater Transport Show, a Vintage and Classic Transport Show, with hundreds of vintage and classic vehicles, and attractions for all the family including fun fair, bouncy castles, market stalls and demonstrations from Midland Fire Engine Services and others. The show is raising funds for the Midlands Air Ambulance. Chasewater Country Park off A5 near Brownhills, West Midlands. http://www.chasewatertransportshow.com
22-24 April, 2010 – Manx Classic 2010, a three day sprint & hill climb event in the Isle of Man. The sprint and hill climb event will last for three days and take place at three venues in the Isle of Man, includeing the new Governor’s Sprint in Douglas, hill climbs at the Sloc, near Port Erin, and one part of the famous TT course at Lhergy Frissell in Ramsey. http://www.manxmotorracing.com
25 April, 2010 – 4th Ashley Classic Car Gathering. It is a charity car show for Water Aid with BBQ, Tombola and Entertainment for all family. Admission Free. The Ashley Hotel, Carton Road, Worksop, Nottinghamshire, S81 7JR, UK. Email: porterbrook@blueyonder.co.uk

1920 AV Monocar

admin — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 06:48:15 +0000

The 1920 AV Monocar was a quite funny little car with a very low driving position with the driver’s legs stretched out forward into the pointed nose of the car. The engine is mounted in the rear, driving the rear wheels. And even though the little AV Monocar might look strange, it was a quite popular cycle-car of its time. It was somehow a mixture of a motorcycle and a small car and offered more comfort and stability than a motorcycle.
AV of Teddington in Middlesex was founded by Ward & Avey Ltd. They bought a cycle-car design from designer John Carden and started to produce monocars.
The cars were single seaters, as the name Monocar already indicates, steering was by wires, and the transmission of the V-twin air-cooled JAP or Blackburne motorcycle engine was by chain through a Sturmey Archer three-speed motorcycle gearbox.
The tiny car was a simple little machine and easy to repair when things went wrong.

The Ford Edsel

admin — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 07:16:13 +0000

I’m not sure if “Every day something else leaks.” should be the right description for that certainly very unique car. The Edsel was a brand of the Ford Motor Company but from 1957 to November 1959 only 118,287 cars were built, 2/3 of them at Louisville Assembly Plant and 7,440 in Ontario, Canada.
Of course the Edsel was different than others and it was designed to be this way. 18 different body styles were available among them a full line of station wagons. You could get the cars in 90 colour combinations, such as Alaskan Gold, Sunset Coral or Sahara Beige. The oval grill was a lot talked about as it in a way looked like a horse collar, a toilet seat or even a woman’s genitals.
Some drivers had problems with the push button transmission system which was located on the steering wheel were normally the horn was. Many drivers shifted gear instead of honking the horn. And it was prone to shift unexpectedly from “park” into “drive”, so it was wise not to walk in front of an Edsel.
But even though the car looked different and was different, it only was a car with four wheels and four doors. And this seemed to have been part of the problem. Even though it was a great car to drive it only was a kind of ordinary car that just looked a little different. It might have sold better if it had been able to fly or anything like that. Even with a grill looking like a toilet seat. I still think it is a great car in a way and the many different colours really are marvellous.
Anyway the Edsel was a marketing failure and the Ford Motor Company spent $ 350 million to design, launch and prototype the car. Fewer than 6,000 Edsels seem to have survived but now are a highly collectible item amongst lovers of vintage cars.

Museums in Germany

admin — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 07:01:28 +0000

This is a list of museums in Germany that might be of interest for you:

Motorrad-Museum in Augustusburg – Schloss (Palace), Saxony: Here you can see a collection of classic DKW and MZ motorcycles. On October 3, 2010 there will be a vintage car meeting. www.die-sehenswerten-drei.de
August Horch Museum in Zwickau, Saxony: The museum is the place where August Horch had his car factory for decades. Here the Horch, later the Audi and the East German Trabant were produced. www.horch-museum.de
Autostadt Wolfsburg in Wolfsburg, Lower-Saxony: In the Autostadt you do not only see new Volkswagen cars but classic cars too. This is a place for lovers of old and new cars. www.autostadt.de
Feuerwehr- und Technikmuseum in Eisenhüttenstadt, Brandenburg: Firefighting from the 16th to the 20th century, with old fire engines and tools, is what you can see here. www.museen-brandenburg.de
Fahrzeugmuseum Suhl in Suhl, Thuringia: Here you can see the legendary “Greifzu” racing car. And you can learn about the long vehicle manufacturing tradition of the town. www.fahrzeug-museum-suhl.de
Auto- und Technik-Museum in Sinsheim, Baden-Württemberg: Here you can not only see the old Concorde but also classic cars from different countries, racing cars, vintage race cars, and much more. A visit will really be worth it. www.technik-museum.de
Porsche-Museum in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen, Baden-Württemberg: Here you can see 80 Porsche cars and learn about the history of Porsche car manufacturing. www.porsche.com
Deutsches Museum in Munich, Bavaria: In the Verkehrszentrum (traffic centre) local branch of Deutsches Museum, you can see lots of vintage cars, motorcycles, and more. Also see the main museum and the Oberschleissheim airfield. www.deusches-museum.de

Car Parts English-German Part 5

admin — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 07:00:19 +0000

This is the fifth part of my car parts dictionary. More will follow next month.

English	German
manual gearbox	Schaltgetriebe
needle bearing	Nadellager
negative pole	Minuspol
number plate	Nummernschild
oil filter	Ölfilter
oil pump	Ölpumpe
oil sump	Ölwanne
oil-drain plug, screw plug	Ölablassschraube
one disc dry clutch	Einscheibentrockenkupplung
opposite angle	Gegenwinkel
output	Leistung
paintwork	Lackierung
parking light, side light	Standlicht
passenger seat	Beifahrersitz
piston stroke, travel	Hub
positive pole	Pluspol
radiator grill	Kühlergrill
rear axle	Hinterachse
rear lense	Rücklichtglas
rear light	Rücklicht
rear track	Spurweite, hinten
rear view mirror	Rückspiegel
rear wheel	Hinterrad
rear window	Heckscheibe
registration number	Autonummer
reverse gear	Rückwärtsgang
rim	Felge
rocker	Kipphebel

Alfa Romeo 6C 2300

admin — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 06:42:36 +0000

Alfa Romeo 6C 2300 When industrialist Nicola Romeo took over the Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili (A.L.F.A), the name Alfa Romeo was born. It is a name long been associated with some of the most exciting Italian cars on the road. One of them certainly is the Alfa Romeo 6C 2300. The sporty car was developed in 1934 and sold from 1935 to 1939. It had a straight 6 engine designed by Vittorio Jano. The Alfa Romeo 6C 2300 was available as Touring, Granturismo and Pescara. The cars were the first in Europe to be fitted with four wheel independent suspension. They also had a single disc dry clutch and transmission with synchronized 3rd and 4th gear. The 6C 2300 was replaced in 1939 by the 6C 2500 which was produced, except during WW2, until 1952. And besides that, Alfa Romeo will be celebrating its 100th birthday this year.

Classic Car Events 2010

admin — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 07:41:12 +0000

24 January, 2010 – The Grand Restauration Show and Classic Vehicle Auction in The Exhibition Hall, Royal Norfolk Showground, Norwich NR5 OTT. It is an auction of classic and vintage cars and motor cycles and automobilia auction.
5-7 February, 2010 - The Bremen Classic Motorshow is the first big vintage car event of the year in the north of Europe. It is a high quality vehicle fair with more than 550 exhibitors from 11 countries. The name of the special show this year is “Bella Macchina”, documenting classic Alfa Romeo cars. At the Bremen Classic Motorshow you can see everything about rally and racing for two and four-wheelers. The Bremen Classic Motorshow certainly is an event you shouldn’t miss.
13-14 February, 2010 – The Footman James Great Western Autojumble & Charterhouse Auction, a vehicle auction run by Charterhouse and a huge autojumble at The Royal Bath & West Showground, Shepton Mallet, Somerset, England.