2024 Exploits
To Barcelona by 30-98: Mark Brett
|
Since I retired three years ago, Pina and I have become like teenagers. If one says "What do you think if we..." the other one says "Yeah, why not" before anyone has a chance to think it through. Off to Barcelona then, by Vauxhall.
A month earlier, the car had a big electrical short en route to Prescott. A burnt-out dynamo, blown diode, blown LED bulbs and even the phone charger cooked. Huge thanks to Robson and Francis of SW16 who re-wound the field coils in a hurry, but it wasn't until 3 days before our planned departure that I found a diode that worked right without blowing fuses. We nearly cancelled. Our route was a straight-line south from Calais to Barcelona to the east of Paris, down through the deserted Massif Central to Carcassone and the Pyrenees, 90% on D- and N-roads. Thanks to Paul Sunnicliffe for great ideas of roads and sights in the area. Three days in Barcelona were great fun. We spent half a day at the brilliant Comminges circuit museum getting info on our Delage that raced there in 1947 and 1949. Our journey home up the west coast was less fun, rain and wind for 5 straight days. Home, wet and cold, over 2,100 miles in 12 days with only two minor glitches on route. The mag slipped on its carrier allowing the vernier drive to jump a tooth without falling out. Miracle! A one-minute fix. And we have a squeak from a rear wheel that needs looking at. The car used a litre of oil and not a drop of water. A testament to the strength of the 30-98........ |
VSCC Archie’s Challenge: James Portway & Joss Jones
Organised by The Frazer Nash Car Club. 7th August 2024
Every 5 Years the Vintage Sports Car Club holds a week of events to celebrate the founding of the Club in 1934. This year it was centered around Stratford upon Avon in the first week in August after the glorious annual event at the Prescott Hill Climb the previous weekend. Every day of the week the Club organises a competitive event and a tour and so if you are there, there is no excuse not get to get your vintage car out and about.
After navigating in a fantastic Riley 9 ‘TT Sprite” on the Tuesday I was entered for ‘Archies Challenge’ with a group of friends on the Wednesday. This event was set up as a multi venue Targa with 12 sections laid out at 6 different venues. It was set up as being very much a team event with everyone being encouraged to enter in teams of three. So we had got together a team of 3 x 30-98 Vauxhalls.
Myself in my 1924 ‘E’type with a Velox 4 seater body, Tim Jones and his son Rufus with his lovley and well campagned 1926 ‘OE’ Type with a Wensum Body and Erica Pilkington and with her ’26 OE type with a beautiful boat tail body from a Bentley.
There were 67 Entries – 32 Frazer Nash’s, 8 fast Austin 7’s, 6 Vauxhall’s and a fantastic array of Vintage sports cars – Riley’s Bentleys, Alvis’s and a 10 litre Theopile Schnider!
So Team ‘Super- Excellent’ were set up to take on the Nash’s! Except unfortunately Erica’s gearbox gave out, after a disagreement between 2 gears half way up Prescott on Saturday, so had to be replaced by her trusty Austin Seven Ulster on the day.
After scrutineering we set off to the first 2 courses at Stratford Race course – a fast Gravel road with some simple bollard work followed by a large Grass auto test – Great fun in a 1 ½ ton car on thin beaded edge tyres with an exuberance of power!
What followed was a fantastic day. 100 odd road miles were interspersed with a brilliant mixture of driving tests on all the different surfaces you could want - sticky tarmac at a go-cart course, gravel at a Rally school, a grass track and then a couple of terrains very similar to West Suffolk members with a tight Farmyard layout and an old aerodrome perimeter track.
Joss, my navigator, is one of the brilliant new young members enjoying the VSCC and its events and she did not put a foot wrong all day – We had a clean run on all tests! Although not necessarily the fastest, the Vauxhall has a rather hopeless turning circle, but quick enough to end up 10 overall. For the Vauxhall - 2 wheel brakes, beaded edge tyres and 102 years old in the company of so many Nashes and fast vintage specials this was a fantastic result.
Great perfomances by my other 2 team mates put us 3rd team overall – It really was a Super Excellent result!!
Every 5 Years the Vintage Sports Car Club holds a week of events to celebrate the founding of the Club in 1934. This year it was centered around Stratford upon Avon in the first week in August after the glorious annual event at the Prescott Hill Climb the previous weekend. Every day of the week the Club organises a competitive event and a tour and so if you are there, there is no excuse not get to get your vintage car out and about.
After navigating in a fantastic Riley 9 ‘TT Sprite” on the Tuesday I was entered for ‘Archies Challenge’ with a group of friends on the Wednesday. This event was set up as a multi venue Targa with 12 sections laid out at 6 different venues. It was set up as being very much a team event with everyone being encouraged to enter in teams of three. So we had got together a team of 3 x 30-98 Vauxhalls.
Myself in my 1924 ‘E’type with a Velox 4 seater body, Tim Jones and his son Rufus with his lovley and well campagned 1926 ‘OE’ Type with a Wensum Body and Erica Pilkington and with her ’26 OE type with a beautiful boat tail body from a Bentley.
There were 67 Entries – 32 Frazer Nash’s, 8 fast Austin 7’s, 6 Vauxhall’s and a fantastic array of Vintage sports cars – Riley’s Bentleys, Alvis’s and a 10 litre Theopile Schnider!
So Team ‘Super- Excellent’ were set up to take on the Nash’s! Except unfortunately Erica’s gearbox gave out, after a disagreement between 2 gears half way up Prescott on Saturday, so had to be replaced by her trusty Austin Seven Ulster on the day.
After scrutineering we set off to the first 2 courses at Stratford Race course – a fast Gravel road with some simple bollard work followed by a large Grass auto test – Great fun in a 1 ½ ton car on thin beaded edge tyres with an exuberance of power!
What followed was a fantastic day. 100 odd road miles were interspersed with a brilliant mixture of driving tests on all the different surfaces you could want - sticky tarmac at a go-cart course, gravel at a Rally school, a grass track and then a couple of terrains very similar to West Suffolk members with a tight Farmyard layout and an old aerodrome perimeter track.
Joss, my navigator, is one of the brilliant new young members enjoying the VSCC and its events and she did not put a foot wrong all day – We had a clean run on all tests! Although not necessarily the fastest, the Vauxhall has a rather hopeless turning circle, but quick enough to end up 10 overall. For the Vauxhall - 2 wheel brakes, beaded edge tyres and 102 years old in the company of so many Nashes and fast vintage specials this was a fantastic result.
Great perfomances by my other 2 team mates put us 3rd team overall – It really was a Super Excellent result!!
The first? 30-98 Register - Harold Radcliffe
| 30-98_register__radcliffe_.pdf |
Period Photos
From Australia: With thanks to Zeunert Motorsport.
Unknown 30-98 - India
Unknown 30-98. 1925
Schwabenberg Hillclimb, Hungary. Driver: Wilfried von Proskowetz
OE108 (Oz)
OE192
Spot the 30-98s (at least 4!)
E311 - Simeone Museum
E260 at Shelsley Walsh
OE15 - (R F Summers 1923-27)
Period articles
VSCC Bulletin March 1952
| pomeroy_vscc_bulletin_1952.pdf |
Country Life: February 1925
| 30-98_in_france.pdf |
Beaded Wheels (New Zealand):
Where it all began - The Y type Vauxhalls by Leith Newell (Part 1. To be continued)
With thanks to Beaded Wheels, the magazine of The Vintage Car Club of New Zealand (Inc)
With thanks to Beaded Wheels, the magazine of The Vintage Car Club of New Zealand (Inc)
| bw_158_y2.pdf |
And finally - the Wensum
Motorsport February 1966
The following is the answer provided by Bill Ward of Vauxhall Motors Ltd, to a reader who owns one of these fine cars:
The 30-98 Vauxhall “Wensum” was inspired by the 30-ft. sailing-yacht, owned by the then Vauxhall Works Manager, A.J. Hancock. He kept the yacht Wensum at Burnham-on-Crouch and often sailed it over to France. One of his sailing companions was a Mr. Arthur Brasher, the then Styling Manager for all Company-built bodies of the period : 23-60 “Kingston” tourer, 30-98 “Velox,” 14-40 “Princeton” open tourer, 14-40 “Melton” open 2-seater, and 14-40 “Norfolk” saloon, the interior of which could be rearranged for sleeping.
The boat probably originated at Boulton & Paul’s, adjacent to the river Wensum, hence its name, and subsequent inspiration of the 30-98 “Wensum.” Betty Carstairs owned one. She was a great speed-boat enthusiast, which could be a clue to A.J. Hancock having a fast boat on the river Wensum at Norwich (he never owned a power boat). On the bonnet sides of her car where these joined the radiator and just under the famous Vauxhall flutes were the letters NEWG. On an occasion when the car had been in for a general tune-up, upon handing it over to her I asked the significance of the letters and if they stood for anything special. They certainly do, she said—”not entirely without grace.”
It would be more correct to say the interior of the hull of the “Wensum” body was mahogany planking. The little bit of decking at the “cruiser stern” was white pine caulked with pitch. All panels were hand-beaten.
I once accompanied A.J. Hancock and A. Brasher from Luton to Dover, into which harbour their yacht had been driven when returning from France the previous week-end. My job was to bring the car back, because Hancock’s car was at Burnham-on-Crouch. When we got to Dover they couldn’t put to sea due to a heavy sea mist, so we all slept aboard the Wensum and they sailed her round to Burnham the next day.
The 30-98 Vauxhall “Wensum” was inspired by the 30-ft. sailing-yacht, owned by the then Vauxhall Works Manager, A.J. Hancock. He kept the yacht Wensum at Burnham-on-Crouch and often sailed it over to France. One of his sailing companions was a Mr. Arthur Brasher, the then Styling Manager for all Company-built bodies of the period : 23-60 “Kingston” tourer, 30-98 “Velox,” 14-40 “Princeton” open tourer, 14-40 “Melton” open 2-seater, and 14-40 “Norfolk” saloon, the interior of which could be rearranged for sleeping.
The boat probably originated at Boulton & Paul’s, adjacent to the river Wensum, hence its name, and subsequent inspiration of the 30-98 “Wensum.” Betty Carstairs owned one. She was a great speed-boat enthusiast, which could be a clue to A.J. Hancock having a fast boat on the river Wensum at Norwich (he never owned a power boat). On the bonnet sides of her car where these joined the radiator and just under the famous Vauxhall flutes were the letters NEWG. On an occasion when the car had been in for a general tune-up, upon handing it over to her I asked the significance of the letters and if they stood for anything special. They certainly do, she said—”not entirely without grace.”
It would be more correct to say the interior of the hull of the “Wensum” body was mahogany planking. The little bit of decking at the “cruiser stern” was white pine caulked with pitch. All panels were hand-beaten.
I once accompanied A.J. Hancock and A. Brasher from Luton to Dover, into which harbour their yacht had been driven when returning from France the previous week-end. My job was to bring the car back, because Hancock’s car was at Burnham-on-Crouch. When we got to Dover they couldn’t put to sea due to a heavy sea mist, so we all slept aboard the Wensum and they sailed her round to Burnham the next day.
