1970 MORRIS OXFORD SERIES VI

Eddie’s choice of classic, the perfect birthday present to himself, brought back plenty of family memories. And it’s going nowhere!

‘Ithought I’d treat myself for my 40th birthday, and decided that it was either going to be a car or a Harley Davidson! In the end I went for some nostalgia, and as I remembered the Oxford Series V that my father had when I was younger, it was an easy decision. Also, I’d got a bit tired of modern cars being so complicated to look after, so it was a chance to buy something that I could work on myself – the mechanicals are very simple so I can fettle and fix it on the driveway just like my dad did.

‘I started looking through the classic car magazines and found this one for sale in Prestatyn, North Wales, which is only about an hour away from me. The advert didn’t provide much information, but I’d driven a few Oxfords before and wanted to avoid a basket-case. This one fitted the bill.

‘It drove well on the way back home, and closer inspection showed that I’d bought a solid one, although there was a bit of minor rust bubbling in the usual places like the sills, wheel arches and around the headlights, so that was the first job to tackle.

‘I’d just been made redundant, but a Mercedes-Benz dealer I did IT work for agreed to do all the bodywork in exchange for me looking after their computers, so it was a good deal.

‘Mechanically, I do all the easier jobs and have fitted electronic ignition, but after ten years of ownership “Betsy” was getting a bit smoky, so

I treated it to an engine re-build. It was just the usual wear in the piston rings and cylinder bores, and as I like to use good local companies for any work, I had it done by some old-school marine engineers. It wasn’t an expensive job in the scheme of things and means that it’ll be good for plenty more miles.

‘In fact, I drive it throughout the year because there’s no point in being precious about old cars. They need using, and the ‘I drive it all year – there’s no point in being precious about old cars’ only thing I do try to do is avoid putting it away in the garage while it’s wet.

‘It always raises a smile when it’s out on the road and the Oxford is one of those cars that people remember being in their own families. Betsy is definitely part of the family now so I can’t see myself ever selling it. Being so simple means that these aren’t expensive cars to run and with prices for decent ones still so affordable I’d say that they are one of the unsung heroes of the classic car world.’