We have had a visit today from Peter with a collection of Land Rover Series 1 body panels in need of repair. The panels are manufactured using Birmabright, one of the toughest materials to work with. We accept the challenge…
Three of our vehicles feature in the Olympia Historic and Automobile Fair and Auction 2017 official brochure. Our 1959 Austin Healey Frogeye Sprite, 1972 Jaguar E-Type V12 and 1956 Jensen 541 For those passionate about discovering, investing in, enjoying and racing fine historic automobiles from around the world, the Olympia Historic and Automobile Fair and Auction is […]
Marriage of the rebuilt limited slip diff to the rear axle cradle, ready for the installation of the new discs and calipers.
We posted earlier this week images of the bumpers finished in copper. They have now been polished ready for the chrome plating process.
The final few sections of the bright-work have now gone off to be chromed at Wyatt Polishing in Thetford The front grille has been completely stripped back to individual sections. This is best way to achieve the ultimate results. If someone tells you they can re-chrome something like this as one piece be very cautious. […]
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The first glimpse of our 1965 Jaguar E-Type fresh out of the paint shop. Bob was busy working on it as I took the photos so I didn’t want to distract him too much. The first panel to paint was under the number plate section at the back. We still have the front valance to […]
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Arriving in with us today, our 1966 Austin Gipsy. Spent many years right here in Ipswich with original receipts from Firman’s Garage on Norman Crescent dating back to 1982. This 4×4 utility vehicle was originally manufactured in 1962. It is one of four that were originally built for Heathrow Airport to transport VIP’s to and […]
Another trip over to Thetford today, this time to drop off the MG YT bright work. A nice little welcome as we arrived at Wyatt Polishing, Tony had brought his MG Midget in for the day.
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The front underpin is now fitted, as is the front light diaphragms. Just a few more welding issues to tackle and Laura will be done with our bonnet. The styling for our racing series will be seamless. The chrome bonnet trims will be removed and the bonnet will have a completely smooth finish.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_gallery type=”image_grid” images=”9936,9937,9938,9939,9940,9941,9942,9943,9944,9945,9946,9947,9948,9949,9950″][/vc_column][/vc_row]
The first site of our newly formed 5″ Jensen 541S chassis, moments before it was fitted to the beautiful 1960 Jensen 541S prototype that we are currently restoring. Asa has been busy fabricating the piece to replace the rotten component that unfortunately we had little option but to remove. I am hoping tomorrow that I […]
Our 1971 Jaguar E-Type V12 roadster finally got given some fresh air today as we let her outside for a bit. Here we are outside the Bridge Classic Cars headquarters on Deben Road in Ipswich. It was a little nippy out but the sun was shining. The Jaguar E-Type, one of the most admired classics. […]
We are very excited to announce that from Monday 6th February we’ll be taking over one of Ipswich’s longest servicing vehicle maintenance workshops as we expand the Bridge family. Formerly known as Thorp’s Garage on Deben Road in Ipswich it will be business as usual on Monday morning but with a new look and a […]
Fantastic story, written by Andy Russell on the Ipswich Star website from January 2017 Guy Ransom, Commercial Director of Finn Geotherm bought his Bertone X1/9 in 1990 and this ‘bella’ Italian sports car is still a big part of his and wife Claire’s lives. “Having finished university in 1990, and recently married, my wife and I […]
We get asked this a lot, is it best to buy new or re-chrome original parts? Let’s look at the facts: Buying New Who is the supplier of the new products? Are they a reputable company and do they specialise in your particular vehicle? I guess the last part isn’t crucial but it is something we […]
Work continues on the inner arches of our 1971 Jaguar E-Type V12 roadster. The body preparation task is nearing completion and here we have more more images of the inner arches. Once the arches were complete and Tommy was happy with the results, he applies a layer of Zinc primer for extra security in those […]
Wyatt Polishing of Thetford have now completed the majority of the chrome brightwork on our 1960 Jensen 541S and as I was over there collecting Tony kindly showed me the stage he is at with the bumpers. Here we have a very unusual site, the chrome bumpers have been fully cleaned down prepared for the […]
Today, we welcomed back to our Ipswich workshops our 1949 MG YT from the paint shop. She is now completely transformed from white back to the original colour of Clipper Blue. As a temporary fix, the panels were loosely fitted whilst in transit. We’ll now mount the body back onto the chassis, lining up every […]
The weather managed to hold out enough for Laura to completely remove all of the paint from the Jaguar E-Type bonnet. As you can see from the evidence on the floor, it’s not really the job you want to be doing indoors and it’s not the most pleasant of tasks but it’s done, it’s bare […]
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Our 1949 MG YT has now been completed in our paint shop so will return to our Deben Road workshops in preparation for the rebuild. As we speak, John and Asa are across town with the truck and trailer return to bring her back. The first job will be to secure the body shell to […]
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Work has not yet commenced on our 1973 Jaguar E-Type but our intentions are to have it appraised within the next few weeks. Here are some more pictures of her parked up inside our paint shop.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_gallery type=”image_grid” images=”9682,9683,9684,9685,9686,9687″][/vc_column][/vc_row]
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]When the rush hour traffic died down on Norwich Road this morning, we decided to give our 1972 Jaguar E-Type V12 a good run. This was a great opportunity to get some new pictures of her out on the Suffolk roads.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_gallery type=”image_grid” images=”9664,9665,9666,9667,9668,9669,9670,9671,9672,9673,9674,9675,9676,9677,9678,9679″][/vc_column][/vc_row]
Currently in Madeira, Gordon and Eva went to a fantastic restaurant called Chris’s place. The food and service were superb and the wine flowed. When the bill came it they couldn’t believe the price. They asked for a taxi and was informed that there was a courtesy car. They just kept giving! On the way […]
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]In recent months we’ve been reporting lots on the Bridge Classic Cars team working on bodywork preparation. With four separate Jaguar E-Type projects in their various stages of undress, the Jensen prototype and the MG-YT all requiring lots of bodywork attention it has been non stop in our workshops, and it’s been harder for us […]
The bodywork s now fully prepared, primed and ready for paint.
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Laura is still working through removing the rotten areas of the bonnet and replacing with new steel. As our Jaguar E-Type is being built to race the styling, in places, will be a little unconventional. The external aesthetics of the body will be much smoother than the original design. The beautiful lines of the iconic […]
Today’s the day our newly refurbished chassis reunites with the freshly painted ‘Clipper blue’ body shell of our 1949 MG YT. We’ll now loosely fit the body panels and start to rebuild. Once we are in a position where we are happy to tighten the panels we’ll proceed to do so. We’ve had just received […]
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Our 1971 Jaguar E-Type V12 roadster is really starting to take shape now as we enter the final stages of bodywork preparation. The new arches have been shaped and fitted and the new boot lid has been laid into position. A huge difference from when it arrived with us, with it’s huge ‘cut out’ arches […]
Exciting news reported this morning on Ipswich Star website by Paul Geater (Email) We reported news of this amazing development back in June 2016. “After months of speculation Empire Cinema have confirmed the opening date of their new 12-screen cinema in the Buttermarket Centre. The new cinema is the centrepiece of the £35m redevelopment of the […]
The 4 speed gearbox is now ready to be taken over to Last Transmissions in Newbourne to be stripped down and completed overhauled ready to be fitted to our restoration.
So the previous few posts have been us highlighting areas of corrosion that we’ve discovered during the bodywork preparation process. Although it is all very manageable and does not come as a surprise to us at Bridge Classic Cars we are now pleased to be able to provide some positive news. As the saying goes, […]