A happy accident
So, how do you replace a Lamborghini Espada? Having gone halves with Octane’s own Mark Dixon on my all-time dream car, and having not lost my shirt and the rest of my wardrobe during the two years that we owned it, I struggled to think of something to spend the proceeds on after we sold it. Eventually, I whittled my already short wish-list down to just three cars: Moretti Sportiva, Alfa Romeo Junior Zagato and Abarth Scorpione 1300SS. So, naturally, I bought a 1971 Honda Z600 – or, rather, half of one.
It began with a visit to Turin’s Automotoretrò back in February with my mate Chris Rees. Four days were spent window-shopping but little was in my price range – or even close. On the final day, with feet blistered and hamstrings plaited, we retired to the bar – and there I spied something orange. We had clearly missed that corner of the ‘trade’ hall. Just before closing time, parked amid a sea of Ferrari 360s and new-ish Porsches, we found the Z600.
The Honda is a car that Chris and I have both hankered after. So we bought it. There was a mountain of paperwork and no gaps in its history, much of it spent in Sicily. But, with the deal done, there was the small matter of getting it home. Over the Alps wasn’t an option, so Salvatore Botta of Golden Car arranged transportation.
Then we had to register it in the UK. Aside from a problem with the rear brakes (it didn’t appear to have any), and an issue with the legality of the front indicators, there were few barriers to getting it road-legal. However, I live in Shropshire, Chris in Berkshire – to where the car had been delivered
– so it was a while before I had my first drive. And it’s more than I could have hoped for: by far the least powerful car I’ve ever owned, but probably the most fun.
Shame it was assaulted by other cars during subsequent outings. A Land Rover reversed into it, miraculously without damage; then someone drove into the back in stop-start traffic. A bent overrider was replaced with a new/oldstock one from the USA for $25, and a small patch of paint behind the bumper resprayed. Do we go with the black Starsky
& Hutch stripe that all UK cars wore in period? And how about a proper road trip? More soon.