Motoring JUNE Classic 2015

The Malta Independent on Sunday • 14 June 2015

The Malta Independent on Sunday • 14 June 2015

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Land Rover launches Heritage Driving Experience

• Heritage and modern Land Rovers and off-road facility added to the Land Rover portfolio of driving experiences • New UK facilities, exhibits and specially-prepared heritage vehicles • A variety of customer packages available; drive by decade or by model • Bookings now available at www.heritagedriving.co.uk he new Land Rover Heritage Driving Experience is now fully open at the company’s customer test facility in Fen End, West Midlands. For the first time, customers can experience Land Rover’s rich heritage through driving vehicles from the Series I that started the legend in 1948, to famous military vehicles such as the 101 Forward Control transporter and the iconic classic Range Rover on and off-road at a new customer facility in the heart of the UK. A variety of packages will be available allowing visitors to focus on a particular decade or era, or to journey through Land Rover’s heritage, right up to the present day line-up. Professional instructors will be on hand to provide direction, interesting facts and anecdotes to ensure visitors get the most pleasure and excitement from their time on the circuit or on the new off-road track. Customers will also have the opportunity to view stunning vehicle exhibits in detail and browse a fully stocked merchandise outlet.

Land Rover packages start at £40 for passenger rides with an expert Land Rover Experience instructor. Example Land Rover Heritage Experience packages include:

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The Series I, II and III Vs Modern Defender (£85) Drive a Series I, II or III, followed by today’s vehicle they became – the Defender. See how Land Rover’s adventur-

ous DNA has passed from generation to generation, and how these classic machines took on the world’s toughest terrains.

Land Rover Historic Drives (£90) The opportunity to drive the vehicles that started the legend, both on and off-road, choose from an original Series Land Rover, a classic Range Rover or a more unusual creation – the 101 Forward Control – a transporter designed for the British Army.

Range Rover Then & Now (£125) Compare the classic Range Rover with its 2015 offspring, both on and off-road. Time behind the wheel includes a track induction for a higher speed experience, and time off-road putting both cars through their all-terrain paces.

Land Rover – The Collection (£250) The full Land Rover Experience incorporates all the key models in the brand’s history from the 1940s right up to the 2010s, including the Series Land Rovers, special military vehicles, collectible expedition-prepared vehicles and the modern line-up from Defender to Range Rover.

Complementing the newly introduced Land Rover experiences, a range of Jaguar experiences are also available:

Jaguar Experience (from £95) Passenger rides and driving alongside a seasoned professional, visitors can choose from individual models such as an XK150 or Mark II saloon, or selected pairings such as the Series 1 and Series 3 E-type, or even an E-type with its modern counterpart, the F-TYPE. Le Mans Experience (£750) Re-live the experiences of legends such as Mike Hawthorn and Duncan Hamilton with drives in the iconic C and Dtypes that dominated the world famous 24-hour endurance race in the 1950s. This package also features drives in an XKSS and F-TYPE R Coupé, and includes lunch.

Grace and Pace Experience (£2,000) A full day of driving Jaguar Heritage legends, from postwar racers to sports saloons, coupés, roadsters and much more, including the new XFR and F-TYPE R Coupé models. The Grace and Pace day also features opportunities to drive creations from the company’s Special Operations division, and includes chauffeur-driven transfers to lunch.

Further packages are available as well as a number of gift voucher and special promotional packages as new models are added to the experience. Visit www.heritagedriving.co.uk for more details.

2015 Mdina Grand Prix all set for 11 October he Valletta Grand Prix Foundation is pleased to announce that applications for the Mdina Grand Prix 2015 are now out. The event is open to pre-1976 cars and since places are limited, the Foundation encourages prospective participants to apply forthwith. Closing date is the 31st of August 2015 however the organisers reserve the right to close the applications before. The competitive part of the event will this year comprise of The Thomas Smith Mellieha Hillclimb on the 8th October, practice and timed laps on the 2.3Km Mdina Circuit on Saturday 10th October and races on Sunday 11th October on the same Mdina Circuit.

If interest is forthcoming, demonstration runs by classic motorbikes could also be accommodated. Applications for these will be launched shortly.

It is advisable to read carefully the terms and conditions on the application to ensure early invitation.

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Link to the terms and conditions www.vallettagrandprix.com/EN.General_Rules___Regulations.aspx MALTA OFFICE : Josef Abela, Email: josef.abela@vallettagp.com Mobile: +356 9947 7735 PR: Ivan Bartolo Email: ivan.bartolo@vallettagp.com Mobile: +356 9947 3377 UK OFFICE: Grant Ford, Email: mdinagp4uk@gmail.com Mobile: 44 (0) 1243263364 ITALY OFFICE / Rappresentante in Italia: Dr Matthew Camilleri Email: info.italy@vallettagp.com Mobile: +39 3428730591

The Malta Independent on Sunday • 14 June 2015

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Best British Car of all t Classic & Sports Car – • Global poll launched to find the best British car ever with the winner revealed at Classic & Sports Car – The London Show this autumn • Top ten shortlist includes icons as varied as the Austin Seven, Jaguar E-type, Mini Cooper S and McLaren F1 • Unveiling of the best British car of all time will be just one incredible story at this new London celebration of all things historic in motoring • Classic & Sports Car – The London Show will feature more than 300 of the world’s most prestigious classic cars from worldfamous collectors and world-renowned classic car retailers • Held at one of London’s most majestic venues, Alexandra Palace, the event will run from 30th October to 1st November • To vote for your favourite British car and to buy tickets for the show simply visit www.classicandsportscarsh ow.com

Austin Seven hat’s the best British car of all time? Mini Cooper S or McLaren F1? Jaguar E-type or XKSS? Range Rover or Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost?

There’s only one way to find out: visit Classic & Sports Car – The London Show this autumn.

That’s because Classic & Sports Car is conducting a worldwide poll to find the British car that people hold closest to their hearts – and the winner will be revealed at the magazine’s new historic motoring show, held at Alexandra Palace from 30th October to 1st November.

Classic & Sports Car magazine has already polled 100 key figures in the classic car world to establish a top ten shortlist and now wants all enthusiasts to have a say in which car should come out on top.

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The criterion for the shortlist was straightforward: the car simply had to be recognised and acknowledged as British, so it didn’t matter whether it was an Italian-designed Aston Martin or an American-engined Jensen. And selections could be made for any reason, so cars such as the original Mini and Austin Seven sit alongside technological tours de force such as the McLaren F1 and road-going racers such as the Jaguar XKSS. Led by the expert editorial team from Classic & Sports Car – the world’s best-selling classic car magazine - key players tasked with producing an overall shortlist included McLaren F1 designer Gordon Murray, Lotus Head of Design Russell Carr, Pink Floyd drummer and classic car collector, Nick

Mason, Dire Straits front man and classic car enthusiast, Mark Knopfler, plus motor racing author and commentator, Simon Taylor.

They debated a long list of cars with strong cases made for much-loved classics as varied as the Aston Martin DB5, Bristol 405, Ford Escort Mexico, Jaguar D-type, Rover SD1 and even the Gordon Keeble.

Lotus had the most models on the longlist, but only one – the Seven – garnered enough votes from the panel to make the final top ten. The models ranked 10 to 20 were Lotus Elan, Elise and Elite (type 14), Land Rover, Jaguar XJ6 and XK120, Bentley Continental R Fastback, Ford Transit, Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato and the MGB. The final top ten shortlist is as follows: Austin Seven Bentley Speed Six Ford GT40 Jaguar E-type Jaguar XKSS Lotus Seven McLaren F1 Mini Cooper S Range Rover Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Contenders for the crown will be on display at Alexandra Palace alongside the eventual winner. Speaking about the contenders, McLaren F1 designer Gordon Murray singled out the Mini: “It’s the work of a genius – a true game changer. Fantastic packaging and styling, a front-wheel-drive pioneer with brilliant handling and motorsport success as well.

The true success story is that the Mini was absolutely classless.”

A big proponent of the Jaguar E-type was

Lotus Head of Design, Russell Carr: “Its projectile styling must have looked staggering when compared to the Austins and even Ferraris of the day. Its design has real speed and sophistication. The dramatic long bonnet and cab rearward proportion combined with delicate intakes and chrome detailing still get kids to gawp.”

Commenting on the Austin Seven, Simon Taylor said: “There were cheap cars before, but they usually had fewer wheels and fewer cylinders than a real car. The miracle of the original Austin Seven was that it really was just like a proper car, but smaller. It paved the way for all the successful small cars that followed, from Great Britain and overseas.”

Classic & Sports Car is calling on all enthusiasts to rank the shortlist of cars. To cast your vote, simply visit www.classicandsportscarshow.com before the closing date of 1st August. A random draw will select 25 participants to receive a pair of free tickets to the show.

“It’s enormously exciting that we will be crowning the best British car ever at Classic & Sports Car – The London Show,” said group editor, James Elliott. “There’s no doubt that this shortlist has been the subject of some debate – but we’ve arrived at an amazing top ten, chock full of icons and pioneers. I cannot wait to see what people vote as their number one, a car we will reveal with all the pomp and ceremony it deserves at Alexandra Palace this autumn.”

Tickets for Classic & Sports Car – The London Show are now on sale, visit www.classicandsportscarshow.com to book yours.

Silver Flag promotes best of Italy in its 20th anniversary he 20th Silver Flag hill climb, which takes place in Vernasca in the Italian province of Piacenza on June 19-21, has attracted over 170 cars to celebrate the ‘Best of Italy.’

Former motor racing and rally drivers Sandro Munari, from Italy, and Henri Pescarolo, from France, will take part in

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this year’s event driving a 1970 Lancia Fulvia 1.6 HF, former East African Safari, and a rare 1968 Matra-Ford MS 630 respectively.

Other important entries include a 1954 Maserati A6GCS Berlinetta Pininfarina, one of only four built with Pininfarina body and a 1936 Maserati 6/4 CM, which was the first produced and a works car in the Montecarlo GP, amongst other marques

such as Alfa Romeo, Lancia, Bugatti, Ferrari, Jaguar and Porsche.

As a lead up to the June event, Silver Flag took to the streets of the city of Piacenza to revive the traditional ‘Circuito di Piacenza’ on the weekend of May 9-10. Over 40 cars were present at the commemoration and run eight laps of the original track, divided into two categories as in the 1947 race.

Chris Routledge, Managing Par tner of international auctioneers Coys and sponsors of Silver Flag, said: “We have suppor ted Silver Flag for eight years and were delighted to sponsor this additional event, which was a great precursor to this year’s hill climb, with a fantastic grid of amazing cars in a beautiful setting.”

The Malta Independent on Sunday • 14 June 2015

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time to be revealed at The London Show

Jaguar E-type

Range Rover

The Malta Independent on Sunday • 14 June 2015

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Renault celebrates the 50th Anniversary of the Renault 16 • 2015 marks the 50th anniversary of one of the most ingenuous cars of its day – the Renault 16 • R16 was first prestige vehicle to feature a tailgate, providing unprecedented versatility for its day • Modern and avant-garde equipment specification • Voted ‘Car of the Year’ in 1966 • Over 1.8million were made during the model’s lifetime 1965: The Renault 16, the original family ‘Voiture à Vivre’ The history of Renault’s family cars started 50 years ago in France during the post-war boom. In early 1965, the brand unveiled an innovative new vehicle at the Geneva Motor Show: the Renault 16. This new hatchback featured an original body shape founded on a two-box design complete with a tailgate for access to the boot. The model combined functional qualities with elegant looks and no fewer than six windows, carrying over the ingredients that were behind the success of the Renault 4 to an upmarket family vehicle. It was the perfect family car.

Renault’s determination to innovate The project to design a successor to the Frégate was an ambitious one, especially as Pierre Dreyfus – Renault’s CEO from 1955 to 1975 – wanted it to stand out from its rivals. “We have to take a different approach,” he proclaimed. “Cars can’t just be four seats and a boot any longer. They must be viewed as a volume.”

The result was the Renault 16, a radical car penned by Gaston Juchet and signed off by Dreyfus

who predicted it would be “a car for families drawn by modern consumer society.”

Crossover thinking The Renault 16 was a cross between a saloon and a van, a design that made it exceptionally versatile for the era. The boot could be arranged in four different ways, with a carrying capacity ranging from 346dm3 to 1,200dm3 thanks to a sliding, folding and removable rear bench.

The seats were designed to suit all types of use, from fixing a child seat to a reclined position for resting, and even a couchette position for two. From the outset, the Renault 16 was thought through as a family car which was fundamentally different from anything produced by rival makes.

Technically avant-garde The Renault 16 also marked its time thanks to its modern, avantgarde equipment specification.

Front-wheel drive was still unusual in its class at the time, while the front-central engine ensured first class road manners. The engine, like the gearbox and cylinder head, were made of aluminium and produced using a pressuredie casting process.

From 1968, with the introduction of a TS version (‘Tourisme Sportif ’), a range of innovative new features became standard, including a defrosting rear window, additional iodine headlights, two-speed windscreen wipers with four-jet washers and an interior rear-view mirror with day/night settings.

In 1969, the Renault 16 gained reversing lights, along with front power windows, an electric sunroof and leather upholstery. This rich equipment list made the Renault 16 a prestige car, in perfect keeping with the day’s consumer society trends, and represented a new way to go motoring.

Car of the Year 1966 Unveiled at the 1965 Geneva Motor Show, the Renault 16 surprised visitors with its offbeat styling. However, it quickly won the public over by meeting its demand for simplicity. The gamble was acclaimed by the industry, too: in 1966, the model was

named Car of the Year, ahead of the Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow, no less!

The range-topping Renault 16 TX From 1973 until the end of the model’s career in 1980, the Renault 16 was available with a 93hp 1,647cc engine for the TX version. Top speed round a circuit was 109mph (175kph), while

equipment included central locking and inertia reel seatbelts, innovative features that contributed to improving the quality of Renault 16 owners’ everyday lives.

In the course of the Renault 16’s career, 1,851,502 units were made, chiefly at Renault’s purpose-built Sandouville plant in Normandy.

Mille Miglia reflections: The 2015 #Jaguarmille team on film • Jaguar celebrates successful 2015 Mille Miglia with exclusive film documenting event • All nine Jaguar entries, driven by household names from motorsport, TV and music, completed the epic endurance rally • New film available to download at http://newsroom.jaguarlandrover.com/en-in/jaguar/ ollowing a hugely successful Mille Miglia in 2015, Jaguar Heritage has released a film of this year’s rally, giving viewers an in-depth look at an event once described as ‘The most beautiful race in the world’.

In the year that Jaguar celebrates its 80th anniversary, the official Jaguar Heritage team headed to the start in Brescia with three Ctypes, three D-types, two XK120s and an XK140 driven by famous faces from the world of motorsport, TV and music. Following the Jaguar Heritage cavalcade were a group of media guests driving various examples of new Jaguar XE and latest generation of F-TYPE sports cars.

Supported by an expert crew of Jaguar Heritage technicians, the nine Jaguar entries ran smoothly throughout the gruelling four-day event. Driven by the likes of supermodel David Gandy, model and TV presenter Jodie Kidd, and musician Elliot Gleave – better known as

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Example – the Jaguar Heritage team finished strongly in the Mille Miglia’s regularity trial rankings, too.

Jaguar Design Director, Ian Callum, who was driving an Ecurie Ecosse D-type said: “It’s a huge privilege to be part of that car’s history – because it’s made even more history now, being part of the Mille Miglia. This year’s drive was pure enjoyment for me, pure exhilaration. This event is amazing – it gives you a unique feeling for what the car is about. It underlines exactly what the Jaguar brand is all about.”

TV chef and renowned car collector James Martin – who drove a Jaguar Heritage D-type with adventurer Charley Boorman – said of the event: “You feel elated at the end. It’s just the most amazing feeling. I’ve been through the turmoil and the heartache of not finishing the Mille Miglia so to be able to cross that line...I’m a tough Yorkshire farmer, but I had tears in my eyes!”

The Malta Independent on Sunday • 14 June 2015

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Fiat Ritmo (Serie II) Cabrio Bertone Palinuro

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

research by John Peel

FIAT RITMO (1978-1988) ‘the hot hatch 105TC is now highly sought after’ he 1978 Fiat Ritmo, styled by Bertone of Italy, was the most distinctive looking small family car in Europe on its launch. It was badged in Britain and the U.S. as the Fiat Strada but failed to attract many Ford Escort/Austin Allegro buyers because of its unconventional appearance.

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History Underneath its quirky looks the Ritmo used most of the front-wheel drive running gear which could be found in the more conventional looking 128, which continued until 1984. Ride and handling were considered adequate if bouncy, steering vague, imprecise and extremely heavy, and the gearbox was much-criticised. A cheaper alternative to many other cars in its class from manufacturers such as Ford and Renault, the Ritmo struggled to attract buyers outside its native Italy and Spain. The 1.1 L (60 bhp), 1.3 L (65 bhp) and 1.5 L (75 bhp) petrol engines were reasonably refined and economical, but were underpowered for the size of the car, and unexciting. In 1980 the Ritmo diesel was introduced with the 1714cc engine (55bhp) from the 132. In the following year the Ritmo Super was introduced with a variety of small changes and, most significantly, revised engines with 75bhp (1300) and 85bhp (1500). Also in 1981 was born the first sporting Ritmo, the 105TC. This used a 1585cc Fiat DOHC engine derived from that in the 131 producing 105bhp. A few months later the Ritmo Abarth 125TC was introduced. This was a heavily modified 105TC with a 1995cc DOHC with 125 bhp, ventilated front discs, a new ZF gearbox, revised suspension settings and strengthened components.

Technologically, the biggest

innovation of the Ritmo was not the car itself, which took the underpinnings of the 128, but the way in which it was manufactured.

Fiat, already an industry pioneer in automated assembly, took the ambitious step and made the Ritmo the first car to be almost completely built by robots, earning the car the advertising tagline "Hand built by robots". In the UK, a memorable television advert, showing the robots assembling the car to the strains of Rossini's The Barber of Seville was shown.

The so-called "Robotgate" system made the car cheaper and quicker to manufacture, but the Ritmo also suffered a terrible reputation for poor build quality, unreliability, fragile interior trim and electrical problems.

Few Ritmos survive; they were hit hard by the infamous "rust-bug" which afflicted most Italian cars of the 1970s and 1980s thanks to the use of low-grade Soviet steel which was supplied as part of the deal to supply Soviet manufacturers with car designs and production tooling.

In addition, there were mechanical problems, such as the very rapid wearing of the gearbox which some owners suffered. Selecting a gear in a hurry resulting in crashing and scraping sounds from underneath, and extremely jerky progress.

The resulting bad publicity severely dented Fiat's reputation in export markets, and although it was successful in its home Italian market, the car failed to make much impact elsewhere in the world. The severe rust and unreliability problems for which the car was infamous, led to Fiat's withdrawal from the U.S. 1982 A 1982 facelift saw the Ritmo's styling become much more restrained and the name changed from Strada to Ritmo for the US market. (It became the Strada II in

Fiat Ritmo Abarth 125TC

Fiat-Ritmo 1978 the UK.) A hot hatch version — the 130 TC — was added, with a 2.0 L engine and capable of nearly 120mph. It was sporty-looking and huge fun to drive but not an ultimate hot hatch in the same vein as the Volkswagen Golf GTI. The Ritmo Cabriolet was launched in 1983 but low demand saw production end after just two years. It looked striking and was better cheaper than a Golf Cabriolet but not up to Volkswagen standards in terms of quality or ability.

The year 1988 saw the last Ritmo roll off the production line and the

more conventional Tipo take its place.

The Spanish twin Spanish car maker SEAT began their history as a Fiat licensee, making rebadged clones of Fiat cars, until the agreement was dropped in 1982. From 1979 to 1982 a Spanish version of the Ritmo, the SEAT Ritmo, was produced in Spain near Barcelona. When the licence expired, SEAT had to change the least possible number of pieces in their model range so that Fiat could not sue them on the basis of patent infringement, and the SEAT Ritmo

yielded the SEAT Ronda, under production until 1986. Before the Volkswagen Group takeover, SEAT showed to the press a black Ronda unit with all the in-house developed parts painted in bright yellow to clear all doubts about their rights to go on assembling the car, and also about the future of the firm SEAT and their factories.

Later, a 4-door version of the Ritmo was developed on the same underpinnings, called the Málaga.

SEAT's subsequent takeover by Volkswagen saw the Fiat heir models being quickly killed off, including the Málaga.