In London's old districts, few have "off-street parking." Almost everyone has to park on the streets. This makes them nice places for carspotting.
I just got home after 2 weeks in Broxbourne, half an hour from central London, where I have been renovating my daughter and son-in-law's house. City trips on my own are a nice break from work. I walk around and take pictures of special cars and enjoy the city's food and drink offerings.
Notting Hill is best known for its market, Portobello Road Market. It is a lively market, despite being a tourist attraction. There are stalls selling tourist junk there, but that is not what keeps the market going. When I was there a couple of days ago, the focus was on vegetable sales. If you walk around the streets around the market, you can find special cars. I walked around the streets around Ladbroke GroveThen you can go towards Holland Park or Shepherd's Bush.
Mayfair is a wealthy area where it is crowded with Rolls-Royces. But many of these cars are chauffeured company cars, and not really that interesting. Supercars are often parked by the hotels along Park Lane. The Mini in the main photo was parked between two Rolls-Royces, without looking out of place.
Can you see anything special about it?
This Mini is built by David Brown AutomotiveThey are converting Minis to electric operation under the brand eMastered, but the car pictured has not been converted to electric operation. But notice the bodywork. It is what the English call “deseamed”. The characteristic joints between the bodywork parts have been removed. I think there are mixed feelings in the Mini community about this. If you do it properly – and expensively, new bodywork parts have to be built.
The car on the left is “deseamed.” Note that the body joints are not visible – such as the joint between the rear part of the front fender against the triangular body piece and the torpedo wall inside, as well as the joints that connect the rear section to the rest of the car.
Other English classics
The Scimitar was Reliant's sports car model that stood out from the brand's simpler models. Scimitar SS1 (and SST) were special variants of the Scimitar – pure sports cars with 2 seats. The car pictured is a 1985 model with a Ford 1,6 liter engine. Over a period of 10 years, 1500 cars were produced. According to howmanyleft.co.uk There are now only 95 of these left on British roads. The number is increasing every year, so there are probably more projects underway.
The car above is a Rolls-Royce Silver Spirit I from the 1980s. All Rolls-Royces become classics, but at the moment the Silver Spirit is probably the least desirable. The successor, Rolls Royce Silver Seraph (pictured below), are still in service in many places despite being more than 20 years old. It may look as if the Silver Seraph will be more attractive in the classic market than the Silver Spirit.
The new face of Rolls-Royce
The car on the left is Rolls Royce Cullinan Black Badge. I like the new face of the model. It helps make the Cullinan less like London's characteristic Hackney Cabs than Cullinan 1. But once the similarity is noted, it is unfortunately impossible to ignore afterwards.
The car on the right is a Rolls-Royce Specter – an electric Rolls-Royce with a range of 520 km – and expensive.
Air-cooled Volkswagen
Near Notting Hill Methodist Church There are always a noticeable number of classic Volkswagens parked in the streets. Right next to the railway underpass is Jack's Garage. They specialize in classic and air-cooled Volkswagens.
Other cars
A 1960 Fiat "Nuevo 500" is worth a closer look in itself. But the olive green Fiat near P is no ordinary Fiat. It has been converted to electric operation with a 15 kWh battery divided into 3 battery banks. The car has undergone a full “nut-and-bolt” restoration in 2018, and was exhibited at the London Classic Car Show in 2020. Unfortunately, it looks like the car has now been left untouched outdoors for quite some time. Has something broken, do you think?
Berkely Square is a park in the middle of Mayfair, slightly recessed from the surrounding street life. There is always a free bench there where you can enjoy a coffee, check your phone and watch the nice cars that pass by, perhaps on their way to one of the exclusive car dealerships nearby. A Ferrari Roma – in the foreground – does not spoil the view.
The mission
English homes have different technical solutions and a different style. I had been commissioned by my daughter to fix the master bedroom which makes up the 3rd floor of the house. Deep wall-to-wall carpets were replaced with parquet and new colors on the walls. It is nice to be able to contribute to creating a Scandinavian atmosphere in an English home.
See
Portobello Market
eMastered – David Brown Automotive
Jack's Garage London
