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Craig Ranson

Managing Director – Bridge Classic Cars

Donut Media – March 2020

March 31, 2020

Automotive media powerhouse, Donut Media have used video of our TVR Grantura race-car in their TVR Mini-Documentary. The popular youtube series see’s presenter James Pumpfrey

Read More »

Jensen 541S Returns Home

March 31, 2020

We’ve had to say goodbye to our lovely Jensen 541S as it returns to it’s owner. Our skilled technicians are incredibly familiar with Jensen vehicles

Read More »

TR5 Parts arrive

March 25, 2020

Our TR5 Restoration continues as another load of parts arrive. We’re currently waiting on the bodywork to arrive to really start making progress on this

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Two Wonderful Classics Leave Our Showroom

April 7, 2020

We’ve sold two lovely classic vehicles this week. Both of which are going to the same owner!
•••
Our lovely low milage Morris Mini is being kept in it’s stunning original condition. Having covered under 30,000 miles, this example really is a great find for any Mini enthusiast.
•••
The Fiat 850 Spider is going to return to it’s former glory. To make her fully roadworthy the engine will need some attention to get running perfectly. The brakes would need recommissioning and a full service should see her ready for a MOT.
•••
The very same customer has a wonderful Citroen DS23 that will hopefully be entering the workshop when we are able to reopen. This vehicle needs similar treatment to our Fiat 850 Spider to pass a MOT.

1960 MGA – Archived Photos

April 6, 2020

More archived images sent through to us from Mike, owner of our 1960 MGA.

MDJ 783    MGA 1588CC MRK 1

HISTORY AND OWNERSHIP

I bought this beauty as my first car on 17th June 1970, from a friend who in 1975 bought it back from me.

In 1980, as my best man, he drove me to my wedding in it. 

Subsequently, around 1985, he gave the car to his wife as part of their divorce settlement.

This lady happened to be a childhood friend (Les) from the age of 12 and in 2019 I tracked the car down to her new address in Shropshire, where it had lain in a barn for 28 years.

As a member of Porsche Club GB, in March 2019 I attended an Open Day at Bridge Classic Cars, Woodbridge, Suffolk.  I was highly impressed with their operation and discussed the possibilities of restoring the MGA.  Resulting from this, I contacted Les and bought it back from her at the agreed price.

The original intention was to re-commission the car to roadworthiness.  HOWEVER, as the inspection and dismantlement progressed, the only option was to be a total restoration.  As the owner of Bridge Classic put it, my car was:  “A perfect example of hidden secrets”!

At the time of writing, the car is 80% finished to Concours condition. 

OWNER HISTORY

First Registered to McLean & Appleton Ltd Motor Dealers. St Helens. Lancs.  01/07/1960

1st Owner:  David Longshaw, Hale. Cheshire.  12/01/1961

2nd Owner:  John Wainwright, Stalybridge. Cheshire.  16/01/1962

3rd Owner:  M.E.J. Clements, Burton upon Trent.  30/12/1966

4th Owner:  M.C. Colyer, Burton upon Trent.  17/06/1970

5th Owner:  M.E.J. Clements, Burton upon Trent.  1975

6th Owner:  Mrs. Leslie McLurg, Newport. Shropshire.  1985

7th Owner:  M.C. Colyer, Barford. Norfolk.  12/07/2019

Michael C. Colyer                                                                                                          06/04/2020

1957 Jensen 541 R: Now in Primer

March 31, 2020

Chris has been working hard in the paint shop recently. He’s been working on our Jensen 541 R restoration. The car has now been painted in filler primer and masked up. The doors have been painted with an extra step of filler primer as they are aluminium. Now the body is in final primer and has been fully sanded and smoothed. As soon as our workshops reopen we will be ready for the very exciting colour coat phases of painting.

Great work, Chris.

1960 Jensen 541 R Seatbelt Mounts Fitted

March 31, 2020

Dave, one of Bridge Classic Cars’ skilled Classic Car Technicians has custom fabricted mounting bracket for our Sabelt racing seatbelt setup.

He’s fabricated the centre seatbelt point for the three point seatbelt harness and mounted the seatbelt point to the chassis. Wonderful work, Dave.

Donut Media – March 2020

March 31, 2020

Automotive media powerhouse, Donut Media have used video of our TVR Grantura race-car in their TVR Mini-Documentary.

The popular youtube series see’s presenter James Pumpfrey delve into the history of an automotive manufacturer. This episode was focused on the history of TVR. A marque that is close to our hearts here at Bridge Classic Cars with our very car featuring in the video.

Our original Grantura video can be seen below, this restoration project is available for sale:

1970 Ford Capri 3000 E Interior Trim Work

March 31, 2020

Friend of Bridge Classic Cars, Phil has come to us to re-trim the steering wheel on his stunning 1970 Ford Capri.

This will be one of the last elements of this car’s beautiful restoration.

antique.inc – March 2020

March 31, 2020

antique.inc have shared this stunning photo of our 1961 Jensen 541S on Instagram. This vehicle was fully restored by ourselves here at Bridge Classic Cars and was one of the first Jensen 541’s we fully restored.

Since then, we have worked on several of these stunning vehicles and become very familiar with their quirks and intricacies.

Jaguar E-Type Racecar Restoration Update

March 31, 2020

Mauro, one of Bridge Classic Cars’ vehicle technicians has been hard at work fitting more components onto our Jaguar E-Type. He’s recently fitted the fuel filter, fuel pump and exhaust heat shield.

Mauro has also tidied up the radiator hoses and completed that job.

Jensen 541S Returns Home

March 31, 2020

We’ve had to say goodbye to our lovely Jensen 541S as it returns to it’s owner. Our skilled technicians are incredibly familiar with Jensen vehicles and we have become one of the most trusted Jensen specialists in the UK.

This 541S was brought in to us to repair the front bonnet, relocate the front bonnet latches and to replace the front bonnet grilles. Finally the vehicle was MOT’d before trusting our good friends at Russell’s Transport to transport the vehicle home. Please note, the vehicle was transported before the latest government advice to avoid all non-essential travel. We have since closed our workshops for the safety and health of both our staff and customers.

Ford Capri 3000 E Steering Wheel Restoration

March 26, 2020

We will be restoring this steering wheel off a Capri 3000. This will include all the metalwork and re-trimming to restore it back to a wonderful condition. Work will commence as soon as our workshop re-opens.

1956 Austin Healey in The Workshop

March 26, 2020

This lovely Austin Healey is on its way back to being fully roadworthy once more. It’s current owner brought the car in to us at Bridge Classic Cars to diagnose why some bodywork and chassis components are not aligning perfectly.

Dave, one of Bridge Classic Cars’ skilled technicians got the car up on the ramp to diagnose the issue. It’s clear that the front end has had a crash in it’s lifetime. As such, the chassis has compressed quite heavily on one side, leading to an uneven frame.

We’ve advised that the chassis would benefit from major structural repairs. At present the vehicle is going back to the owner.

GB Refinish Supplies Visit Bridge Classic Cars

March 26, 2020

We’re always looking for tools and technology that allow us to deliver the best results for our customers. As such, we felt it was time to upgrade our Paint mixing station. With the wonderful help form Dean at GB Refinish Supplies we’re now online with a new Lechler paint system.

This system allows us to use the very best in colour reading technology. The new paint spectrophotometer reads colours with industry leading precision.

Thanks for all the support Dean! We can’t wait to use the new system.

TVR Grantura Home Restoration

March 26, 2020

As you may well know, we love a TVR Grantura here at Bridge Classic Cars.

We own a 1962 TVR Grantura Racecar and have recently restored a 1960 TVR Grantura. Images Below.

Friend of Bridge Classic Cars, David Hall has been undertaking his own home restoration. After seeing our stunning completed blue Grantura, he’s been to us for a bit of advice on his own project.

Keep up the great work, David! We look forward to seeing her completed.

1000 ‘Likes’ on Facebook

March 26, 2020

We would like to thank each and every one of you for following Bridge Classic Cars. Whether you’re here for the Restorations, Servicing, Classic Car Sales or our Classic Car Competition, we’re hugely grateful for your support.

1964 Mercedes-Benz 319 L Camper

March 25, 2020

Many years ago we were in talks with Paul who owns this lovely 1964 Mercedes Benz 319L camper. At the time he was interest in Bridge Classic Cars carrying out the restorative work on the camper to get her back on the road. Various circumstances unfortunately meant that the camper did not make it into our workshops back then but we have recently discussed now being the perfect time to complete the restoration.

Our role, at present, will be to perfect the exterior lines and replace any metalwork that requires attention. Once we are happy with the repair work we will prepare the body shell and paint. At the moment a colour is yet to be decided but this is not crucial at this stage.

Paul has collected all of the chrome work, trims and windows so as part of our task, we will refit the exterior components once painted and return the camper ready for the bespoke interior to be fitted.

We really hope to see this lovely vintage camper enter our workshops very soon.

Here you can see the original Mercedes Camper before restorative works commenced.

Jensen 541S Work Complete

March 25, 2020

We’ve completed yet another stunning Jensen. This 541s has now had its MOT and is ready for the owner to drive again. We’ve fixed all the niggles the owner had with the vehicle and it’s now ready to be enjoyed once more. great work, Team!

Ford Consul Engine Restoration

March 25, 2020

The owner of this wonderful 1959 Ford Consul came in to see us as the engine was smoking on start up. This is often a sign of worn valves guides. You can see in the videos below just how worn they are.

Ady, Bridge Classic Cars’ engine specialist will now undergo the following work to get this lovely classic running as it should.

The head will have new valve guides fitted and have an unleaded conversion to have a hardened seat fitted.

All the valves will be refaced. You can see how heavily pitted the valves are, unleaded fuel has burned some of the seat away.

New gaskets have all been ordered up and will be fitted when we reach the assembly phase.

We will also investigate the cylinder bores as there is a deep grove in one of the bores which may result in a broken piston ring. It looks like there has also been a head gasket go in it’s time as cylinder one has had water damage to the bore.

TR5 Parts arrive

March 25, 2020

Our TR5 Restoration continues as another load of parts arrive. We’re currently waiting on the bodywork to arrive to really start making progress on this project. The chassis continues to be built up within our workshop and is now up on wheels.

Austin Healey 3000 Workshop Update

March 25, 2020

How is this for a transformation!?

Darren has done a sterling job repairing the dent on our Austin Healey 3000. We’ve also given this stunning classic a full service and MOT. We’re delighted to play our part in seeing such a wonderful vehicle back on the road for plenty more smiles to come.

Introducing Bridge Classic Cars Competitions

March 24, 2020

We’re delighted to announce the launch of Bridge Classic Cars Competitions❗

? Our first giveaway is this gorgeous classic MGB Roadster. ?

https://www.facebook.com/BridgeClassicCars/videos/250426509454697/

⬇️ For more information and to get your tickets, follow the link below. ⬇️

https://bridgeclassiccars.co.uk/competitions/product/1964-mgb-roadster/

Ford Anglia Brake and Clutch

March 23, 2020

Pete and Ady have been working on our ford anglia. They’ve fully serviced and fitted new brakes, brake master cylinder and clutch master cylinder.

Ady has fitted new spark plugs and has begin stripping down the carburettors to get the engine running correctly again.

MGA Update

March 23, 2020

Paul has recently fitted the wing badges and engine fan into the car.

1960 MGA Soft-top Restoration Begins

March 23, 2020

Our MGA restoration continues as the soft-top is being stripped down. The metal components will be sandblasted and painted, while the fabric components will be re-upholstered in our trim shop.

Mercedes Sprinter visits the workshop

March 23, 2020

This Mercedes Sprinter, ex broadcast unit came in to our workshops for us to take a look at the paintwork condition. Unfortunately, as is often the case, most panels are suffering with age and rust is making its way through the body panels. A lot of work ahead for the van, in order to get her looking fresh and lovely once again but it is certainly not too big a challenge. This long wheel base Sprinter is undergoing a transformation over the coming months to be used as a mobile editing and office space for motor-racing photographers whilst at the track.

With the current events in the world the season’s are paused which gives us time to look at the best way to tackle the issues at hand.

Jaguar E-Type Racecar Restoration Update Part 2

March 23, 2020

Mauro has been progressing with our E-Type racecar build. He’s now installed the following components as part of the ‘re-building’ stage.

  • Water hoses
  • Fuel pump
  • Fuel lines
  • Fuel filter
  • New stainless steel exhaust
  • Brake servo heat shield

Great work, Mauro!

Jaguar E-Type Racecar Restoration Update Part 1

March 23, 2020

Mauro has been working on our stunning Jaguar E-type racecar. We’re now at the final stages of re-fitting all the vehicles refurbished or new parts. He’s fitted the below components recently.

  • Steering column
  • Wipers
  • Brake fluid reservoir
  • Alternator and alternator heat shield
  • Water pump and new gasket
  • Radiator and water hoses
  • Horns
  • Ignition coil
  • Fuel tank and fuel lines

Aston Martin DB5 Carburettor Rebuild

March 20, 2020

Our gorgeous Aston Martin is having a full Carburettor Rebuild to enable the engine to run correctly once more. Ady, Bridge Classic Cars’ in-house engine specialist will now set to work giving the carburettors a through strip down and service.

Bridge Classic Cars are award winning Classic Car Restoration and Maintenance specialists. Your pride and joy is in safe hands with our expert Classic Car Technicians. Take a look at our awards here.

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© Bridge Classic Cars Holdings Ltd, T/ as Bridge Classic Cars. Registered in England and Wales with company number 5047706.