THE HIGHLIGHTS & LOWLIGHTS
STRIPDOWN
‘My M530 was restored and resprayed at home. Inspecting the condition of the metalwork involved stripping the interior and removing many of the body panels. Fortunately, the boot came in handy for storing the parts I’d removed!’
MORTEFONTAINE
‘Matra Automobile held an event for Matra owners at its test track at Mortefontaine in September 1997. Over 20 cars from the UK attended, in addition to around 400 from continental Europe. Four of the UK cars won prizes in the concours, including my M530.’
BACK HOME
‘My M530 was built in Creil, but production shifted to Romorantin later that year. I’ve taken my M530 to Romorantin on a number of occasions, including in May 2000, when the new Matra museum opened. Sadly, much of Matra Automobile’s town centre factory site was demolished after the company’s demise in 2003.’
ENGINE OUT
‘After 45 years and 150,000 kilometres, I reckoned that it was finally time to treat the M530’s engine to a rebuild. Having taken it apart, I was very happy with what I found.’
NEC
‘Closer to home, my M530 has featured on the Matra Enthusiasts’ Club UK stand at the NEC Classic Motor Show many times since the 1980s, including in 2016 when it shared the stand with another rare Matra – a Rancho Découvrable.’
FIFTY YEARS
‘My M530 took part in the model’s 50th anniversary celebrations in France, gaining a new logo to mark the occasion. The missile in the background is a Matra R530 after which the car was named.’