Vintage Fun and Games at Heston

On February 16th the V.S.C.C. held its second driving-test meeting of the year at Heston. Forty-two vintage and 23 p.v.t. vehicles entered. Most were old friends but we noticed A. W. Hay’s long-chassis 1936 blown 1.750-c.c. Alfa-Romeo d.h. coupé, C. S. Legge’s 1927 Lancia Lambda with unusual fabric saloon body, and D. J. Wright’s potent and original 1930 Hyper Lea-Francis two-seater. Gahagan’s G.P. Bugatti felt the proximity of spring and shed a back wing en route but at least it is nicely original, unlike a bogus Ford V8-engined G.P. Bugatti lurking in the car park. One of the scruffiest cars competing was J. M. Fleming’s curious tail-finned 1937 Lancia Astura coupé. We sensed a hint of Railton’s about the place but they still don’t compete, do they Mr. Monro? Neither did Monro’s Invicta this time.

Erskine Hill’s open 3.3 Bugatti was resplendent as ever, including £200-worth of hydraulic brakes with those ribbed backplates and Dr. Harris even had drilled levers on his Fraser-Nash, which didn’t prevent him from hitting a marker in the wiggle-woggle. At least half-a-dozen Austin Seven “Chummies” were present and unusual cars presented by spectators added variety, these including a Westcar with a fuel filler as large as a VW’s, a Belsize Bradshaw, a very early Vintage Buick two-seater, one of the first, very upright Hillman Fourteen saloons, a splendid vintage Scott motor-cycle, a Salmson, a hot Morgan tricycle, several Lea-Francis, Clinton’s Lancefield-bodied 5-litre Bugatti saloon and a short Jarvis-bodied Type 40 Bugatti with alloy wheels, while two Singer Juniors were even competing, a saloon and a tourer, the latter with a silly name on the side to spoil its disc-wheeled originality. —W. B.