Club Profile: Petrol Heads

In our first Club Profile for a while, we get to know the Petrol Heads American Car Club...

The club was started by Darren Dupree, who has a passion for classic cars and motorcycles. A few years ago, club members decided to hold a car show as a one-off event to raise some money for charity, but also a fun day for all the family to enjoy. To their surprise everyone kept asking them what they'd plan next and if a monthly meet would be organised. It never even crossed their minds; however, they thought they would try a monthly breakfast meet which had about 10 cars to start with but then, as word got around, it went to 20 and 30 and one summer meet saw about 100 cars attend.

Once they hit 1 000 members, they had to bring in some other help to manage the club, so they now have Cameron McKenzie, who also runs the North Wales area of Petrol Heads. The club then went on to social media, where its Facebook membership recently reached around 4000 members worldwide. Now the club has its own website - www.petrol-heads. co.uk - where you can get hold of a range of merchandise for both adults and children. Darren and Cameron then recruited help from other club members Matthew Logan, Stephan Rauch and Cat Sells. The main man that does all the organising at their meets on the day is 'Marshal' Mick Darlow.

Petrol Heads club members attend meets and hold shows together and they enjoy a good chat and each other's company - which to them is what a car club should be about. They also love to give back to the community and regularly raise money for local causes. If you would like any more details about the club, feel free to get in touch: darren@petrol-heads. co.uk or cameron@petrol-heads. co.uk - the club is free of charge, the only requirement being a passion for cars and motorbikes. If you would like to attend one of the monthly breakfast meets they are held on the last Sunday of every month from 9am to 11 .30am at Runnymede Pleasure Gardens, Egham, Surrey. Feel free to email Darren or Cameron to be kept up to date with events and locations. You can meet some of the members, their cars and their

* stories on these pages!

David Dilley's 1977 Pontiac Trans Am has a 400cu in/6.6-litre V8 motor.

Keith Perry's Camaro was sold to him as having a 350cu in small block, but it was actually a 305cu in when it arrived. That was removed and a new 383cu in stroker motor was fitted, with AFR aluminium heads and much more as time went on, including a new TH 350 gearbox and rear end gears.

Derek Parsons drives a Dodge D150 1987 pick-up truck. It has the 318cu in engine with a 727 three-speed auto transmission and still wears its original paint: dark blue over silver. It has been in the UK for roughly five years and came all the way from Alabama; Derek loves a square truck and this fits the bill perfectly, plus it's comfy with no squeaks or rattles.

This is Dixie's 1958 Cadillac Sedan de Ville, Series 62 (extended deck) - bumpers re-chromed, seats and headliner re-trimmed. Engine is a 365cu in, with a three-speed Hydra-Matic transmission. The extended deck model measures 18ft 9in long with a width of 6ft Bin and weighs in at 5300Ib (2400kg). The bodywork had been resprayed around 30-odd years ago, but unfortunately not in the correct shade of green. It was originally a Colorado car and was imported to the UK in 1987.

Robert Wilson's 1964 Pontiac Parisienne runs a 4.7-litre VB.

1966 Mustang GT tribute. The original 289 was replaced with a fourbarrel 302 motor. "She's got an automatic transmission, a pony interior and she's a bad influence!" says her owner, Margaret Hay.

1969 Dodge Charger 440cu in /7.2-litre big block with a 727 Torqueflite three-speed auto transmission. Owned and loved by Jim Warren.

This is Darren O'Connell's 1970 Dodge Charger 500 440cu in/7.2-litre big block with a 727 Torqueflite three-speed auto transmission.