Club news, February 1985

Recently, something called a Rebuild Seminar has become rather popular amongst those clubs which are large enough to organise them, and one club which was in at the beginning of them is the MG Car Club. As well as a repeat of the very successful MGB seminar later this year, the club is organising its fifth T Register rebuild event, for those intending to restore MGs from 1930 to 1955. This is a one-day project and it will take place at Syon Park on Saturday March 23rd. The cost of £8.50 covers the seminar, lunch, and admission to the Museum where, of course, some of the most famous MGs are to be seen. Tickets are available from David Barnes, 18 Easton Rise, London W5.

The Singer Owners Car Club is organising a trip to Holland on May 15th-21st for their members in conjunction with the Dutch Singer Owners Club. The club successfully combines all Singers in its enthusiasm, from Edwardians to Roots

Group Vogue and Chamois, but its real love is the sportscars of the nineteen-thirties – the 9 bp Le Mans, 1½-litre six, and the Le Mans Replica racing cars. The secretary is Martyn Wray, 52 Waverley Gardens, Stamford, Lincs PE9 1BH.

A repeat of 1983’s “Highland Fling Rally” is being organised by the Scottish section of the Veteran Car Club for May 12th-18th. It will be based at the Dunblane Hydro Hotel, a very comfortable centre from which to venture forth on the choice of runs arranged for each day, while various visits and evening activities are included in the price. Requests for bookings or information should be addressed to G. McCartney, 73 Kethers Street, Motherwell, Scotland.

Within the BMW Drivers Club a register of 2002 Turbos has been announced, and there is a proposal in the quarterly BMW Driver for a Cabriolet Register too. But of more interest to non·BMW drivers is an article called “Confessions of a Service

Manager”, in which one of the breed defends his profession and asks for more consideration from the customer, in particular better briefing about problems. He also breaks down a hypothetical hourly labour rate of £13.50: the bulk goes toward running the business and the building, £2 is profit, the mechanics gets £3.50, and 50p is “unrecovered time”. This is explained with the comment “Somebody has to pay for hours which we can’t book, i.e. waiting for parts at the store counter, 100 time, and old fashioned skiving.”(!)