SABCC Movie Night - Fast Fun!

The first SABCC movie night was certainly a hit. Nearly 30 SABCC'ers came to the inaugural event at the Garagemahal Theatre.

The movie night was hosted by the always gracious Richard and Donna Cunningham at their home in Daphne. They worked very hard to transform their large garage building (the Garagemahal) into a not-too-shabby movie theatre.

When the movie goers arrived, they were met the by the aroma of freshly-popped popcorn, courtesy of the popcorn machine ably operated by our own popcornmeister Jack Ross. The screen area of the theatre was separated by eight foot tall black drapes that kept the movie theatre darkened from lighted concession area. Ice cold soft drinks, yummy candy and hot coffee were there for the enjoyment of the patrons.

Early arrivers were treated to a series of Little Rascals shorts prior to the start of the feature film. Everyone found the perfect place for their chairs and settled in for the showing of Grand Prix starring James Garner. The film was a long one - three hours - but time for an intermission midway through gave everyone a chance to refill popcorn bags and pick up another soft drink.

With the feature film ending around 10:00PM, the happy film fans packed their gear and headed home. Nearly everyone there asked about another movie night at some point in the future. Maybe the club can organize a short drive and a group dinner prior to the next one.

The club certainly thanks Richard and Donna for their hard work and generosity in hosting this fun event.

An MG That Never Was

Like all car builders, MG produced proposals for new or replacement models as part of their ongoing effort to stay competitive. In the early '70s, MG explored a number of potential replacements for the Midget. Sadly, none were ever approved for production by whatever corporate overlord there was at the time.

One my favorites was a mid-engine study done under the code ADO21. This razor-nosed coupe would have had a 1500cc, transversely mounted four cylinder E-series engine. Like the production Mini of the time, the car would have had interconnected Hydrolastic suspension.

You can read more about this car that never was at Austin Rover Online.

British Car Festival 2009

As you know by now, British Car Festival is October 24. This year's show theme is "Celebrating 50 Years of Mini". And here for the first time, the official artwork for the show is unveiled. Mark your calendars, download the entry form, polish your cars. We'll see you there!

Movie Night

This Saturday night is SABCC's first movie night. We'll be the guests of Richard and Donna Cunningham at their home in Daphne. The world-famous Garagemahal will be transformed into the Garagemahal Theatre. We're showing a 'racy' movie (the kind with numbered cars) and there will be popcorn, soft drinks and theatre candy. If you don't know the way to the site - get in touch.

Separated at Birth - - Part 2- The Backwards Cap

The new MINI Coupe Concept

A Hip Hop Star

An 'Ace Cafe' for Our Area?

I had the pleasure of meeting a young man at the MINI of Pensacola event who is from Fairhope and drives a modern MINI.

I was out in my classic Mini Sunday afternoon and on returning from Fairhope, I spotted a familiar Pepper White MINI in my rear view. Waving, I turned off scenic 98 onto a side road and - low and behold - it was the same young man and his wife from the Pensacola event. We chatted briefly and he noticed the Ace Cafe London sticker on the rear window of my car. He went on to say that his goal was to have a restaurant operation inspired by the Ace Cafe up and running in the Fairhope-Daphne area in the next 12-18 months.

He said the restaurant would be motorcycle/automotive themed and he planned to have various theme nights, ala Ace Cafe London. I told him to keep us in the know and that SABCC members would certainly be there in force and often.

I invited him to attend one of our meetings or events. He can share his plans with us then as he sees fit.

And a Great Time Was Had by All!

As mentioned in an earlier post, SABCC was invited to attend the Grand Opening of MINI of Pensacola this past Saturday. We caravaned over - a group of six British cars and several club members in 'civilian' models. SABCC'er Tom Schmitz came over from Lillian in his Mini Cooper 'S'.

The weather was threatening all day, but we stayed dry all the way to the dealership on Airport Road. When we got there, we were greeted by the sight of almost 60 modern MINIs parked near the showroom. We were warmly welcomed and asked to park our cars for a panoramic group photo which can be found here.

We signed the register and were given souvenir T-shirts and stickers that commemorated the day. We found several MINI owners from south Alabama and invited them to visit one of our meetings or activities. Sandy Sansing (who is the dealer principal) presented a check to club president Noel Eagleson to fulfill their British Car Festival 2009 sponsorship commitment. We found Mr. Sansing to be a pleasant and affable gentleman who shares our enthusiasm for classic British cars.

MINI of Pensacola laid on a fine cookout with hamburgers and hot dogs fresh from the grill. Afterwards, a special birthday cake to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Mini was shared with the attendees.

Congratulations, MINI of Pensacola! A special thanks to the Panhandle MINIs group, Ms. Sheila Lohbeck of MINI of Pensacola and all the M-O-P personnel.

Photos courtesy of Ron Wolverton- SABCC & Chris Calohan - Panhandle MINIs

Old Speckled Hen Now Available Locally

Attention MG fans: Old Speckled Hen Beer is now available in south Alabama.

A lot of MG owners know about the old MG factory runabout with a speckled paint job. Most of you know that a special beer was created in Abingdon to celebrate the 50th anniversary of building MG cars in that same village. For those of you who don't know the story, here's a snippet from the Old Speckled Hen web site:

"Old Speckled Hen" was first brewed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the MG car factory in Abingdon, Oxfordshire. Named after an old MG car which was used as the factory run around, they would park the old MG Featherweight Fabric Saloon outside the paint shop where it would normally get spattered in paint and so it became known as the ‘Owld Speckl’d Un’. This turned into "Old Speckled Hen" when the beer was unveiled.

Since then the finely balanced beer with a distinctive rich malty taste and fruity aroma has attracted many fans, including the fox, who is always on the hunt for his Hen.

Old Speckled Hen is now being stocked at the World Market store at the Eastern Shore Center in Spanish Fort. They have a pretty nice selection of beers from around the world and you can even mix a six pack to try new brews.

Pub Quiz a Big Hit

SABCC's general membership meeting was last night and we had a fine time. The activity for the evening - after the business portion of the meeting was concluded - was a traditional UK-style pub quiz.

Mike Darby took on the role as quiz master and the main focus was on general knowledge of all things British. We were split into random teams and and we worked together to come up with answers to the sometimes difficult questions.

The winning team was presented with their own spotted dick. Right - canned spotted dick pudding from Jolly Old.

I'll report back on how it tastes.

A Hot Lap in a Hot Cat

Most of you have had experience with the cool Gran Turismo 4 game software for the Sony Playstation. As many times as we've gotten one set up for meetings and activities, nearly everyone has had a chance to channel their inner Fangio. I know of at least three SABCC members who having this game system and GT4.

Here's a video posted by someone taking a hot lap at the old (pre-chicane) LeMans circuit in a Jaguar XJ220. Now that's one car I have not been able to unlock, but I'd love to have it in my GT4 garage! Enjoy.

Why is This Truck on the Blog?

Because there's something about it that most of us are familiar with and no, its not that its an ice cream truck.

This beast is the International Harvester Metro-Mite - a familiar sight around 30-40 years ago as it made deliveries of all sorts in urban areas. It was based on the International Harvester Scout frame and was targeted at large city fleet owners. The sliding doors and nearly 'standup' driving position made it a favorite of drivers.

Still don't know? It was originally powered by a British Motor Corporation "B" Series engine. Yes, the "B" Series that can be found in numerous British sports cars, saloons and light trucks.

I imagine that something this big powered by a 1,500CC four cylinder engine would be a bit pokey.

Plymouth Cricket

In the early 1970's the American Big Three needed a small car to compete with the offerings from the UK and Japan. The first energy crisis (gas went from 30 cents to over 50 cents per gallon - when it could be found) underscored the fact that US offerings were somewhat lacking.

GM produced the Vega and its derivatives and Ford brought out the Pinto. Chrysler was stuck with the Dart/Valiant twins as its economy cars; the SIMCA cars they sold really didn't catch on with buyers. Having just purchased the UK Rootes Group a few years prior, Chrysler funded the development of the new Hillman Avenger. The Avenger was what Chrysler needed to fill its US small car gap.

Chrysler made a few changes to the Avenger to make it become the Plymouth Cricket. Only the 4-door sedan and 5-door wagon were ever offered in the US. The 1500cc engine was standard as the Avenger's base 1250 being a little underpowered for US driving. Front disc brakes were standard; these were originally optional in the UK. A full complement of options included vinyl tops, air conditioning and upscale trim packages.

As a result, Chrysler sold the Linwood, UK-built Avenger in the most lucrative of markets under its Plymouth brand. Poor quality and a lack of youth appeal meant that sales were limited. In short, the Plymouth Cricket was basic, honest transportation, but it was dull as dishwater.

Did you own a Plymouth Cricket? Let me know in the comments section.

SABCC August Activities

August should be a month full of things to do with your British car. Here's what's on tap so far:

August 11 - SABCC general membership meeting. Along with the usual business meeting, we are planning on our first-ever pub quiz. Mike Darby has agreed to be quiz master for the evening. If you aren't familiar with the pub quiz phenomenon, it's popular in the the UK and recent former colonies. The participants are split into groups and the quiz master asks the questions. Usually the quiz is general knowledge subjects. Our version will likely not have any prizes - just 15 minutes of fame.

August 15 - SABCC has been invited to the grand opening festivities of the new MINI of Pensacola. These folks are this year's prime sponsor of British Car Festival, so we'd like to show our thanks and support by taking a nice selection of cars over for the event. There will be food, door prizes and other fun things to do. We'll plan on leaving from the Scenic Overlook in Spanish Fort at 1:30 PM. Everything should be over by 4:00PM

August 29 - SABCC Movie Night. Richard and Donna Cunningham have graciously offered to convert the world-famous Garagemahal into a movie theatre. We'll have an automotive-themed movie and light refreshments. We might even have a short subject, newsreel or cartoon to start things off. Bring your own chair - yes, La-Z-Boy recliners are OK. Film starts at 7:00PM. Be sure to tip your usher.

The Ability to Go is Good - Stopping is Better

You may remember an earlier post about brake issues with the mighty Mini. The wheel cylinder came in and it went on without much fuss. Bleeding the brakes went fine and a minor adjustment got them back to their previous OK state. A big thanks to Richard Cunningham for the use of his garage and for his help in getting the old girl stopping again.

Since my first day of ownership, the Mini required a two-stroke approach to stopping; one pump and then another to brake the car. It became a habit - if you want to stop, pump the pedal.

The members of the Mardi Gras MGs invited SABCC to attend their tech session at the new (and beautiful) Chris Meyers Nissan dealership. Mike Darby - restoration expert and all round top bloke - was there and he didn't much like the idea of repeated pedal pushing. So, up on the lift the Mini went and Mike looked at the adjustment.

The rears seemed fine, but the fronts were either fully tight or or completely loose. Off with the drum to have a looksee. It turns out that the rear adjusters are the common screw-in type with wedges doing the actual adjustment. The front brakes are quite different. Yes there are two adjusters, but instead of being a multi-turn threaded affair, they are a cam type. A half turn is all you need to go from full tight to uselessly loose. The shoes on the front looked brand new, too.

The theory is that the shoes were replaced on the front at some point in the recent past - before it came to this country - and they were probably never adjusted.

Taking the newly fettled Mini out on the road, I nearly stood it on its nose! The first pump to wake things up actually stopped the car. What a revelation.

Once again, I get by with a little help from my friends.

I Miss Junk Yards

Does anyone know if 'pull it yourself' automobile junk yards still exist?

The last one I went into was the old Plateau Wrecking yard in Plateau, Alabama. If my foggy memory serves me, it was on the east side of US Highway 43 just before Papermill Road. I had to go in there to find some used pushrods for my '62 Olds Cutlass.

There was something about dragging your own tools in and hunting down the car you needed so it could give up its parts to keep your ride on the road. You knew that all the cars and trucks there had some serious stories to tell if they could only talk. Each one of them was a brand new vehicle at one time and source of pride for their owners. The bent ones obviously met an untimely end, while the relatively straight ones probably succumbed to some expensive mechanical malady.

Once in a while during my travels for business, I'll run across a scrap yard full of old cars and trucks and I get the urge to stop and take a tour.

Tetanus shots, anyone?