Welcome to Issue 42, June 2017!
“Petrol cars will vanish in eight years says US report”. This was the front-page headline of the Daily Telegraph Business section (Monday, 15th May issue).
The article quoted the source document Rethinking Transportation 2020-2030, authored by Stanford university economist Tony Seba.
The demise of the internal combustion engine is based on the premise that people will stop driving altogether and will switch en masse to self-drive electric vehicles. It is said that these are ten times cheaper to run than fossil-based cars with a near-zero marginal cost of fuel and an expected lifespan of 1 million miles.
We would be wise not to dismiss this forecast out of hand. One only has to look back at the pace of technological advances over the past twenty-five years or so to conclude that it is quite plausible.
Mopping the sweat from my brow, I continued reading and was heartened to read that “Only nostalgics will cling to the old habit of car ownership.” “Nostalgics?” that’s us! Oh, good! but my sense of relief was tempered by the message in the next paragraph which talked of banning cars powered by fossil fuels from the cities, then to the suburbs and then beyond. Sacré bleu!
I then took a cold shower to pretend that I had not read any of this and immersed myself in the details of an e-mail from Peter Cole about the 2017 TTT 2 Tour. According to Peter and Vanessa, we look set to have 45 cars booked in at the hotel with up to another 5 cars joining us on the day trips, crewed by owners in the local area.
The following is the content of Peter’s e-mail:
“The routes so far are as follows:
On Saturday, we head to the east of Chichester with a coffee stop at Bignor Roman Palace, then it’s north Loxwood on the Wey and Arun Canal. From there on there are several pubs to choose from for lunch.
After that it’s west towards Haselmere and south again to Midhurst. At Midhurst there are lots of opportunities for a late lunch including the farm shop at Cowdrey Park. From Midhurst there is a choice of either heading directly back to the Weald and Downlands Living Museum at Singleton where we have been invited to join their Vintage and Steam show, or to take a more circuitous route towards South Harting. Click here to see
At the museum, we will have a designated parking spot. From there it’s just a short drive back to the hotel for our Gala dinner; through Goodwood, past the horse racing track, the motor racing circuit and the Rolls Royce factory. The journey distance is 65 – 70 miles.
The Sunday route is still work in progress but we will head west towards Rowlands Castle, after which we are looking at visiting the Victorian brickworks at Bursledon for coffee followed by a trip to Stansted Park Click here to see where we can we can take a late lunch in the Victorian conservatory, ride on the light gauge railway or visit their garden centre. Again, we will have designated parking in front of the house”.
If this whets your appetite and you have not yet booked to come on the tour, there are still some rooms left at the hotel (we reserved 50 rooms). However, it’s best to check with Peter and Vanessa first (01243 267234).
The MG Owners Club has once again invited over John Twist, who founded University Motors in the US in 1975, to present two one-day seminars in October. We are jointly supporting the second of the one-day seminars (the event in Coventry) with the MG Octagon Car Club.
The following details have been received from Richard Monk, General Manager:
“Following the success of last year’s John Twist Seminars at the MGOC Workshop in Swavesey we are delighted to announce that the renowned MG expert will return this October offering his wisdom and insights over two weekends and at two separate UK venues.
Over the weekend of 14th _ 15th October John will present two one-day seminars at the MGOC Workshop in Swavesey; the first is entitled The Complete MGB Tune-Up; the second The Complete MG Lubrication. While over a long weekend 20th – 21st – 22nd October, John will be based at Wroxall Abbey Hotel near Coventry where he will offer three distinct Tune Up seminars on pre-61 MGs featuring the MG Magnette on Friday 20th, the MGA on Saturday 20th and the T-series MGs on Sunday 21st.
The cost of attending a one-day seminar at either location will be £90 which includes a light lunch and refreshments.
Further information about the seminars and booking is available via the link on the MGOC website.”
The next issue of TTT 2 will include a pen picture of John, who has totally involved himself in the world of MGs for more years than he cares to remember.
Just enough space to mention that Dr Christian Bianco is again running the MGs in the Dolomites event from 28th September 2017 to 3rd October 2017. The first part will be based in Sottoguda (BL) in the Italian Dolomites, the second will take place in Hergiswil/Switzerland. Your UK contact is Gary McCarroll 01604 404939. Closing date is 30th May.
JOHN JAMESDISCLAIMER BY THE EDITOR
Totally T-Type 2is produced totally on a voluntary basis and is available on the website www.ttypes.org on a totally FREE basis. Its primary purpose is to help T-Type owners through articles of a technical nature and point them in the direction of recommended service and spares suppliers. Articles are published in good faith but I cannot accept responsibility or legal liability and in respect of contents, liability is expressly disclaimed.
