OWNER’S VIEW

Steve Cole

Cole has worked hard to make his late 1300 as refined as possible, and it shows. “I had 8s in the ’70s and always wanted a 10,” he recalls. “I was in China when this one came up for sale in Belfast, and my sister trailered it home for me! The chrome had been redone but the body was far worse than advertised. It’s amazing what you can find: I bought panels from Greece and Holland as well as France. Barkston did a superb job of the rebuild. Mechanically it was good: its one lady owner had done only 13,000 miles. It’s up to 30,000 now, in four years I’ve covered more than she did. I’ve done a lot of work on the exhaust, and added soundproofing to make it quieter – the body was thin. It’s so reliable now that I’d go anywhere in it!”