Back V8 Newsletter for April 2003 Copy of the four page newsletter published in Safety Fast! Teal Blue 2101, the first rubber bumper V8 owned by Geoff Allen, the V8 Historian and Archivist, as it appeared on the 1976 BL calendar. (Photo: BL) This month we have details of the programme of events planned for the V8 25th Anniversary celebrations in 2003, a review of the V8 Register over 25 years, some views on the V8 Website from three members, and news of the V8 Cornish Tour 2003 which is being put together by Gordon Hesketh-Jones. V8 25th Anniversary Year 2003 For 2003 we have a programme of V8 25th Events with the focus on a week of activities running into the Club's annual International MG Weekend meeting at Silverstone in June. That week starts with the second annual Don Hayter Talk on Sunday 15th June and ends on Friday evening 20th June with a V8 Dinner at Silverstone. The programme has been devised to enable our overseas members to join us during that week and over the Silverstone weekend. Summarised details are below but full details are available on the V8 website at www.v8register.net or if you need a printed guide by mail or fax, just call Victor Smith on 0208 392 9434 or send a fax on 0208 392 9673. Please note, forms for each event can be downloaded from the website and used for each application to the individual event organisers. V8 Pass For the V8 25th Anniversary week of events we have arranged a very useful V8 Pass which will give you admission to virtually all the events including access to the International MG Meeting at Silverstone over each day of the long weekend meeting put on by the Club. The good looking V8 Pass is on a blue cord lanyard is only £35.00 and represents exceptional value. Cheques for the pass and tickets all the events should be payable to "V8 Register - MG Car Club" and not to the event organiser. Just three events are not included in the V8 Pass and they are clearly noted below. Sunday 15th June 2003: RV8 - concept, development and production David Bishop and John Yea, the RV8 Development Programme managers, will be talking to a group of V8 enthusiasts on what inspired the RV8 development team to do what was an extraordinary low budget project - creating a modern classic sportscar to keep the name of MG alive as a modern brand. Peter Buckles will chair the event and comments "projects like that just don't happen like that any more". The availability of MGB bodies from the BMH Body Plant and fuel injected V8 engines clearly were the essential inputs but it needed enthusiasm and imagination to make it happen. Many of our V8 enthusiasts contributed to the project including Roger Parker, the late Trevor Taylor, Ron Gammons and of course Peter Buckles and his team at the leading specialist parts supplier, Moss Europe. This talk is the second in the series known as the annual "Don Hayter Talks" and the similarities with the fascinating story Don Hayter related on the "Development of the V8 at Abingdon" in 2002 are so similar - a low budget project, a rapid development programme, and initiative and flair of an inspired design team. In both cases the result was a V8 which enthusiasts recognise as extraordinary cars in terms of driving pleasure and smooth V8 power. The talk will be at the Beales Hotel in Buckingham with members gathering at 1.30pm for a prompt start at 2.00pm. There will be an open discussion following the talk. Tickets are £10.00 and available from the event organiser Peter Buckles at Moss Europe on 0208 867 2020 and at pbuckles@moss-europe.co.uk by email. Monday 16th June 2003: Visit to the BMH Witney Body Plant The visit will include a guided tour around the various production stages when hopefully they will have MGB bodies in hand. Tickets are £5.00 and available from the event organiser Peter Buckles as above. That visit will be followed by a visit to Club Office and then a visit to a new MG Exhibition at the Abingdon Municipal Museum which opens at the beginning of June. Tuesday 17th June 2003: Visit to MG Rover at Longbridge The visit is a guided tour of the plant. Numbers will be limited, so V8 enthusiasts are encouraged to contact the event organiser Peter Buckles early to reserve a place. Wednesday 18th June 2003: A non competitive V8 Tulip Tour The tour will cover an attractive 125 mile rural circular route through Oxfordshire which starts from the Beales Hotel Buckingham with stops for lunch at the St George Hotel in Lower Brailes and for a cream tea at the Killingworth Castle Hotel. The tour route is set out on "tulip cards" and involves careful navigation and a quiz. Tickets are £28.00 per car (covering both the driver and navigator) which includes both lunch and tea. There is a modest charge for additional passengers. Bookings should be sent to Gordon Hesketh-Jones on 01736 763053 or from manningford@btinternet.com and the V8 website where there is a form for bookings. Note this event is not part of the V8 Pass package. Thursday 19th June 2003: Visit to Blenheim Palace at Woodstock in Oxfordshire This visit is organised by Peter Beadle and booking in advance is necessary. Meet in the car park at 11.30am for a guided tour of the house. Prior bookings with Peter Beadle on 07977 629258 or at arb.parts@btinternet.com will help our party secure the preferential group rate of £8.00 so members will have the concession pass on arrival. Friday 20th June 2003: Collecting the V8 Beer Run from the Hook Norton Brewery to Silverstone This has been an enjoyable annual pilgrimage for Victor Smith for over twenty years and will involve a visit to the brewery and lunch at a Hook Norton pub in the village. A guided tour of the brewery is available at £7.50 starting at 10.00am prompt but early reservations will be essential to secure a slot. Contact the event organiser Victor Smith on 0208 392 9434 or at victorsmith((atat))v8register.net for reservations. Friday 20th June 2003: V8 25th Anniversary Dinner This will be held in the new BRDC Clubhouse at Silverstone Circuit with members assembling from 7.15pm for dinner at 8.15pm prompt. The evening will follow the brisk format of the memorable V8 Dinners held in Sulgrave over the first 15 years of the V8 Register and include the notorious V8 toasts and awards. Tickets are £32.00 each and early reservations are strongly recommended as we are limited to only 120 places. Bookings to Lesley Smith at lesleysmith((atat))fosterwyatt.com or on 0208 392 9434 (tel) or by fax on 0208 392 9673. This event is not included in the V8 Pass package. Saturday 21st June 2003. Club Dinner at Silverstone We are encouraging V8 members to attend the Club Dinner and are coordinating tables where V8 enthusiasts would like to be gathered together. If you are going to the dinner and want to join a V8 table, contact Victor Smith. Note this event is not in the V8 Pass package. Sunday 22nd June 2003: V8 Track Laps For the anniversary year V8 members will have an opportunity of driving their V8 around the track at Silverstone starting at 11.40am. In previous years this has proved very popular with MG enthusiasts. The V8 Track Laps will also be an opportunity for the spectators around the track to see a splendid collection of V8 powered MGs in great numbers to underline not only the V8 25th Anniversary but also the 30th anniversary of the launch of the V8 in 1973. The entry fee is £15.00 and early booking is recommended with the event manager Gordon Hesketh-Jones as it will be a popular event - see his contacts above. Gordon, together with members of his family, will marshal the assembly area from around 11.00am. For V8 members not familiar with the location of Silverstone or the layout of the Circuit, there is a complete guide on the V8 website at www.v8register.net with maps and tips including finding accommodation in the Silverstone area from the helpful ladies at the Tourist Information Office in Brackley on 01280 700111 and the useful website at www.southnorthants.gov.uk which has an excellent tourism section with details of all the farmhouses and guesthouses offering bed & breakfast in the area, together with small and larger hotels. The base hotel for the V8 25th Anniversary week is the Beales Hotel in Buckingham and again details are on the V8 website. For overseas members wishing to hire a car for their visit or members with their V8 off the road, one of our RV8 enthusiasts Tony Merryfield runs the classic car hire specialist The Open Road based in Warwickshire - full details of their two MGs and other classics are available at www.theopenroad.co.uk or on 01926 624891. Pages 2 and 3 V8 Register - fun and practical support for V8 enthusiasts over 25 years! Practical mutual support and the camaraderie of a band of V8 enthusiasts have clearly been the essential features which have driven the V8 Register for 25 years. But how has the V8 Register developed as the leading specialist group for MGBV8 and RV8 enthusiasts and achieved recognition as one of the most successful classic car groups? This review looks at where the V8 Register is today and how it has come about, and then some of the key personalities who have contributed to the successful development over the years. Bracken 1218 owned by David Waterton from Buckinghamshire, a former V8 Committee member for many years. (Photo: David Waterton) "What does the V8 Register do?" is understandably a frequent query from new members and they soon see the emphasis is on providing both useful technical and spares information for running and maintaining V8 powered MGs, together with a compact programme of social events. The practical mutual support provided by the V8 Register is best illustrated by the technical and spares information in the two popular workshop notes series which began shortly after the V8 Register was formed in 1978. The two series have produced a staggering 555 useful notes in 14 volumes and today they are available on convenient CDs in Word and PDF formats. Those notes have come from contributions from members with useful explanations of maintenance concerns and spares tips they have found from running their V8s. So in that sense the V8 Register facilitates sharing of information for mutual benefit and one of the most memorable examples was the late Ian Lloyd and fellow members tracing the changed part number of an RV8 clutch slave cylinder when faced with a report from his local MG Rover dealer that such a vital part was "no longer available"! The V8 Register is a particularly sociable group with the annual gathering at the International MG Meeting at Silverstone organised by the MG Car Club, an annual long weekend V8 Tour, visits to le Mans, the V8 Curry Evening each February and the Sunday lunchtime gatherings at Hazeley Heath in Hampshire. Geoff Allen, a founder members of the V8 Register and formerly in Rectifications Department at Abingdon for over 27 years. (Photo: Victor Smith) Peter Beadle, a founder member of the V8 Register member when he was parts manager at University Motors, Epsom back in 1978. (Photo: Victor Smith) The key factors behind the formation of the V8 Register were an early sense of camaraderie between V8 enthusiasts even before the Abingdon Factory had ceased production of the MGBGTV8, and of course the natural attraction of V8 power for an MG enthusiast! The first gathering of V8 enthusiasts was at the Club's Silverstone meeting over the May Bank Holiday in 1979 with an inaugural V8 annual general meeting and dinner on the Sunday evening at a hotel at Weedon Beck, just north of Towcester. Geoff Allen, Peter Beadle, Jerry Bright, Paul Busby, John Dupont, Alan Kingwell, Mike Maude-Roxby, Victor Smith and Tom Studer were there and a V8 Committee was formed. Over the following five years the enthusiasm and energy of V8 enthusiasts resulted in an enormous rate of growth in terms of the V8 Workshop Notes series and membership. The very popular annual V8 Gatherings at Silverstone and entertaining V8 Dinners in a marquee on the lawn of the Thatched House Hotel at Sulgrave were well attended and enjoyed. The understated character of the BGTV8 is for many V8 enthusiasts the attraction of the model - "a nimble car with effortless performance with the luxury of V8 power which is both flexible and economical - features which continue to have a special appeal for V8 enthusiasts today!". In many ways the V8 has remained an undiscovered classic sports car and consequently prices have never been driven up by "chequebook investors" - so it remains a car which is seen as good value in every sense! "Do you welcome V8 conversions?" has been another frequent query from new members and the clear answer is Yes! - V8 conversions have been a very welcome feature of the V8 Register from those pioneered by Ken Costello and the many examples subsequently produced by Beer of Houghton, the Huntsman Garage, Brown and Gammons, Clive Wheatley, Medway Sports cars and MG Motorsport to name just a few of the V8 Conversions specialists. BRG 5018, a good looking Costello GTV8 owned by Paul Denton in Cornwall. (Photo: Paul Denton) An unusual feature of the development pf the V8 Register is that many years after the model which inspired the formation of the V8 Register had ceased production, another V8 powered MG was launched by Rover in 1992 - the MG RV8. Here was a V8 Roadster with a classic look but substantially re-engineered with sophisticated engine management systems. It has proved very popular in the UK, Holland, New Zealand and Australia. It has also been popular in Japan where an extraordinary 80% of the production was sent! Now with the tough and costly local annual "Shaken" vehicle inspection requirements in Japan from the third year after initial registration and the high cost of owning and garaging these cars, many RV8s are appearing at auctions in Japan and flowing back to the UK and over to Australia. So RV8 owners with UK specification RV8s were initially concerned as they had felt the exclusivity of the model in the UK would have maintained its £26,000 launch price but now many RV8 enthusiasts have begun to realise that the greater volume of RV8s in the UK will encourage specialist parts suppliers like Clive Wheatley to hunt our sources of RV8 spares and services. This can only be to the benefit of all RV8 owners in the long term. Specialist RV8 reimporters like HS Imports have been very active buying up the better quality RV8s in Japan and returning them to the UK or sending them to Australia. There is now a substantial flow of RV8s to the UK, many with extraordinarily low mileages and in very good condition. Those cars are being snapped up by discerning V8 enthusiasts, some with the surprise bonus of a retrofit EPAS power steering system. A similar flow of RV8s is going to Australia but unfortunately regulations introduced in New Zealand in 1997 have blocked further imports there. So could there be a third coming for V8 power in an MG - well it seems so with the arrival of the incredible 965bhp V8 powered MG SV. One of these cars will be in the V8 25th Exhibition of MGV8s at Silverstone in June this year as Richard Ames of Ames MG Rover of Bury St Edmunds has very kindly offered his car for display. Flame Red 0342, the RV8 owned by Ian Cranston. (Photo: Ian Cranston) The personalities in the V8 Register have always played a major part. John Dupont and Peter Laidler contributed many of the workshop notes in the first few years, Peter Beadle was a mine of information on V8 spares (initially at University Motors, then the Sprite & Midget Centre, later Moss), Geoff Allen ran his own business servicing V8s after the closure of the Factory where he had worked in Rectifications Department for over 27 years and has been a knowledgeable V8 Historian, the urbane Mike Maude-Roxby organised the early V8 Dinners and wrote some of the best V8 Columns we have had, the late Geoff Seaton for his technical knowledge, Philip Morgan and Paul Busby could have got jobs at a kipper smoking factory for their V8 BBQ activities, the late Chris Dodds for his energy in getting the V8 Register going downunder, Alan Kingwell for his endless good humour, Howard Gosling as an able chairman for many years in the 1980s, David Franklin for breathtaking performances in the road-going V8 on the track at Silverstone not to mention his toasts at V8 Dinners, Ron Armstrong for launching the popular V8 Tours in Scotland in 1993 whilst chairman, Gavin Bailey as V8 Scribe, Jim Gibson as chairman, David Waterton, Keith Rowson and Adrian Hand for their periods running the V8 Regalia, Roger Parker for generous technical support for many years, Victor Smith as founder and V8 Registrar, Bryan Ditchman for his editing the RV8 Workshop Notes series, David Brown as treasurer, and our current chairman Peter Buckles for the positive approach he brings to any activity. The members who contributed in the early years included Mike Dunlop, Brian Field, Chris Hall, Tony Hilton, Colin Light, Dougald MacNeil, Ian Polley, Mike Satur, Barry Sidery-Smith, Ian Storry, John Targett, Eric Studli, Jeff Ward, Norman Ward, and Tony Watts. Upwards of 90 V8s parked up by the V8 Marquee at Silverstone 2002. (Photo: Victor Smith) Tahiti Blue 4182 of Geoff Broad, a fine V8 Roadster Conversion built by MG Motorsport, was up for sale earlier this year. (Photo: Geoff Broad) Clive Wheatley, a V8 enthusiast to the core, helps V8 owners by sourcing difficult spares and providing specialist services like back axle refurbishments for the RV8. (Photo: Victor Smith) Page 4 V8 Website - what do members feel about it? Launched at the end of May 2002, the V8 Website has developed into a site with over a hundred webpages packed with technical information for V8 and RV8 enthusiasts, a rolling calendar of events, complete contents listings of the two workshop notes series, spares offers, and an online registration form. There is also an active bulletin board where members can post messages and V8 technical queries for discussion, or to simply seek help from fellow enthusiasts. The monthly hit rate reached 1,635 for January and in February it climbed rapidly with members logging on for details of the new RV8 technical information CD supplied through the enthusiastic parts manager Keith Baylis at Ames MG Rover. But what do members feel about the website and how useful have they found it? Two members provide their views. V8 Website homepage at www.v8register.net - most of the webpages are only two or three clicks away. Dr Gavin Bailey (RV8 BRG 0766 and V8 Glacier White 0199) from Surrey reports "for over a year I had been thinking about acquiring an RV8. Like many members I had toured the BMH body plant when it was at Faringdon and had seen the RV8s being built when the y were new. I even had a ride in a Rover demo RV8 (Black 0003, ADD401- K 574 FKV) in which a number of us had runs up and down the nearby bypass. According to the person from Rover who brought it along, it was used as a hack with the objective of putting in as many miles as possible - what I wouldn't have given to help them! Little did I think that some years later I might be in a position to buy an RV8 of my own. Although I have had a GTV8 for many years, I was no great expert in RV8s and found the V8 website was invaluable in identifying specialists or private individuals with RV8s for sale. The bulletin board was also useful and not only allowed me to post questions but also track queries and responses from other members - all helpful in building up my knowledge before I finally took the plunge. The V8 Register has always been a mine of information so the first thing I did after acquiring the RV8 was to invest in a set of workshop notes. The V8 website, and in particular the bulletin board, brings the V8 Register alive facilitating communication between members not only across the UK and mainland Europe, but around the globe. Recently I acquired an RV8 hardtop through one of the adverts on the V8 website and when I found it would not fit my car, made contact with a fellow member, Nick Yates, through the bulletin board who had owned a hardtop for his RV8 and came to my rescue with the information I needed. Little did I know I would need a fitting kit which replaced the standard tonneau bow brackets for brackets with slightly wider slots to accommodate the hardtop fittings. They have now arrived from the supplier so the hardtop will be on shortly. All in all, the V8 website is a great achievement and a credit to both the V8 Register and the MG Car Club". Tim Hipwell (RV8 Oxford Blue 1133) from Cornwall, a longstanding V8 enthusiast who used to own Bracken 1106 now owned by Alistair Shaw in Suffolk, reports "as a member of the MG Car Club for more than 26 years you can tell I am no spring chicken but that has not stopped me from embracing the "techno-age" and enjoying the delights of surfing the Web. You may think that classic cars and the internet might be poor bed fellows but the V8 Register has shown that with a superb site dedicated to all V8 versions of the MG marque. A comprehensive homepage immediately gives you a taste of what is in store and you are only ever a couple of clicks away from whatever information you may need, either as a V8 owner or an interested "surfer". Of particular interest to V8 enthusiasts is the bulletin board where you can exchange messages with other V8 owners, and the two comprehensive workshop notes series are a superb source of information on problems and solutions that other V8 owners have discovered - often the hard way. The V8LIFELINE, a listing of V8 specialists providing V8 services and spares, will put you in contact with more professional help should you need it. The Links webpage means useful contacts are only a click away. Perhaps of slightly less use but entertaining all the same are the V8 Photo Gallery and the V8 Enthusiasts Gallery where you can view the beautiful cars and their not so beautiful owners - I include myself in this category. Whether you are a dedicated V8 owner or just someone with an interest in these very special MGs, this is the website for you!" So how will the V8 Website develop over the next twelve months? Well a full index for the V8 Workshop Notes series will be posted now the Omnibus CD has been completed, further RV8 auction reports from Japan will continue to keep members up to date on the action out there, and an e-commerce facility will be introduced to make payment for CDs and regalia easier, particularly for overseas members. But if you have ideas, do let Victor Smith have your suggestions for how the website could be developed. V8 Workshop Note 168 Thatcham immobilisers Richard Groves (Blaze 1898) from Kent has some interesting comments on the effectiveness of these immobilisers which underlines the need to select an insurance policy that does not require a system fitted to your V8. (Jan 03) One thing that caught my eye on the V8 Website was the article on Thatcham immobilisers which some insurance companies require as a condition of cover for RV8s. What I have to say concerns my experience with a Thatcham category 2 device which was fitted to my BGTV8, something I had to have done when I bought the V8 in November 1995. I was 23 at the time and the only insurance company who would take me on cover (Peart Associates) insisted upon it. I trained in electronic engineering and car electrical systems have always been one of my stronger points. The immobiliser was fitted by a specialist in Uckfield in Sussex who was approved by the Vehicle Security Installation Board. On getting the car home after the installation it did not take me long to figure out how the device worked and that it could be bypassed in just a few seconds!!! The immobiliser did two things. First it interrupted the feed from the ignition switch to the starter motor relay so all a thief would have to do to get past this would be to pull the two thick leads off the relay and touch them together and hey presto the starter operates! The other thing the immobiliser did was to ground the switched side of the ignition coil, something achieved by means of a grounding wire tied to the bonnet release cable. A pair of wire cutters would have seen to that! I was amazed as this was supposed to be a Thatcham approved security set-up!!! Furthermore, the standard of some of the connections which had been made under the dashboard was appalling to say the least. Quite simply, an installation like this is quite inadequate for an old car like a BGTV8 with a very simple electrical system. What should have been fitted is something known as a Turret immobiliser. This is a device which locks onto the ignition coil and has a special socket mounted on the dashboard, connected by a heavy duty steel braided cable. A unique coded plug is briefly pushed into the socket to disarm the unit which is the same as the Thatcham unit. For some reason, the Turret immobiliser is not recognised or fitted by vehicle security specialists but I would feel a great deal happier with one on my car that a Thatcham device!" Peter Best, of the well known Essex based insurance broker, stresses the need for increasing care with attractive sports cars because the present high volume of car theft is alarming. The requirement for a Thatcham 1 is a general requirement for sports cars over £20,000. Modern, high value cars are very attractive to sophisticated thieves and the aggregate value of cars stolen every month is staggering. The protection devices in new high value cars are becoming increasingly sophisticated so thieves realise they have to steal those cars whilst the driver is in the car with the engine running - often using violence. Alternatively they break into your house to get the keys because in those ways they do not have to overcome the increasingly sophisticated immobilisers. So far the theft claims record for MGBGTV8s and RV8s insured under limited mileage cover with the cars garaged overnight is reasonable and competitive terms are available through Peter Best Insurance Services - their contact number is 01376 573357. Roger Parker commented this note is a "very true and an accurate description of reality. That Thatcham issue is one where far greater security is offered by some other companies' products, yet the only devices with "approval" are what appear to be lesser models. The tendency of a narrow view by insurers does mean there are many more security holes than many people would believe". Victor Smith mentions that it is worth reading through the comment in RV8 Note 117 on page 31 of Volume 4 where the fitter demonstrated to the contributor of that note how the original RV8 immobiliser could be circumvented in less than three minutes by a professional! In many ways the original system fitted to the RV8 (a pre-Thatcham categories system) is quite good, not least the microwave space protection when the hood is down! The plans for the V8 Cornish Tour 2003 are well advanced and full details of the base hotel and programme of eventsare set out on theV8 Website. The tour is being planned by Gordon Hesketh-Jones with whom bookings can be made. Early booking is strongly recommended. Gordon can be contacted at Manningford, Trew, Helston, Cornwall TR13 9QW or on 01736 763053 or at manningford@btinternet.com by email.