Fast moving convoys of identical cars?

[powerdesal]

JJ, 16 inch on the back and 19 inch on the front.

Identical to my 1947 TC, which, to my present disgust I sold for £70............and bought a Mini. Sad or what ?

[Jonzjob]

Spot on PD [:D] Ex Jag wheels and the only way to keep it in a straight line flat out!! With 19 X 4.50s all round it was a 'guess which way it will bounce now' at 70 odd! Mine was a year older at 1946. Chassis number 1461 and my Forces Driving Club Singapore was 1641 [:-))] I also made a bigger profit too when I sold it for £135. That was because after 2 1/2 years in S/pore I didn't have the £100 to ship it back to Blighty. I wept when I sold it [:(]

When I got back to my U.K. posting, Brize Norton, I found out that I could have had it shipped back on one of our VC10s, for free!!! I wept yet again!!

Just as a matter of interest. The 16 X 6.00 on the back are a recognised modification by the MG club.

This was what under the bonnet looked like. Note all the ally and MG badges. I don't think that was quite standard?  Plus the brakes had 10" finned drums fitted so it stopped quite well!

[URL=http://s47.photobucket.com/user/Jonzjob/media/Johns/MGTC3.jpg.html][IMG]http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f180/Jonzjob/Johns/MGTC3.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

Even the rocker box nits were octagonal with MG on them!!

[powerdesal]

I don't have any photos of mine - sadly.

It was bought from a farmer who had it in a shed covered with chicken droppings. A complete-ish car if you included the 4 cardboard boxes of bits that it came with.

It took me about a year to totally rebuild including new plywood floor boards and a handbrake cable fabricated in the power station workshop. It did pass an MOT at first try though.

Whilst I had a hood, it had no side screens which didn't really impress Mrs PD who was at that time my GF, she still married me though !

I used it mostly with a tonneau cover, even in winter.

One thing I do remember was thinking the handling was a bit 'odd' when going to work one day, only to find the axle u bolts on the rear springs had sheared and effectively I arrived at work with fully floating back axle !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was OK after another workshop fix.

It did burn a lot of oil though, I had to keep a gallon can permanently in the car, good for a smoke screen when setting off.

edit, A huge ( 25 gallon ? ) slab tank on the back with no fuel gauge, I don't ever remember having it more than about 1/4 full on my pay as an apprenticle.

[dave21478]

Sorry to bump an old thread.

Anyway, I still see these convoys reasonably often on the same stretch of road.

Last time, a line of 4 Audis went past me very fast so close together....well, they werent quite touching but you would think twice before trying to park a Mini in a gap that small....

Anyway, I caught up with them later, stopped in a layby. They were swapping drivers and all smiles and joking between themselves. They were all Bravo Two Zero types with cammoflage trousers and the like, with a couple of guys giving orders. Video cameras and some other electronic gizmos were stuck to each windscreen on the passenger sides with suction cups.

I asked one of them what the deal was.....Turns out there is a private personal protection....ie bodyguard.....training facility in Beziers and they use this loop of road for their driving skills stuff.....convoy work, client protection, evade and escape drills....All very Jason Bourne.

Mystery solved.

[Lehaut]

Thanks for the update, very interesting.