News

PDI

Our 1971 MGB Roadster has been undergoing its PDI with technician Jonn. Here are his notes: Carry out Pdi and road test. Adjust idle speed.

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Conquest Windows

Jonn has been fitting the window assemblies to our 1954 Daimler conquest. As they both were hitting the A-pillar, Clinton modified them to get a

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PDI

Our 1971 MGB Roadster has been undergoing its PDI with technician Jonn. Here are his notes:

Carry out Pdi and road test. Adjust idle speed. Washers not working. Inspect behind dash and found pipes had come off the back of the manual pump. Reconnect and test, ok. Horn not working and switch faulty. Engine breaths a bit from pipe to atmosphere. Remove rocker cover and get Clinton to weld a pipe outlet to front corner and order a breather catch tank to be fitted.

Rub down area around outlet welded in by Clinton. Paint with Dtm matt black and leave to dry. Refit and secure, ready for breather catch tank to be fitted.

Fiat 1900 A Inspection

Classic car technician Steve has been looking at our 1952 Fiat 1900 A. Here are his notes:

Wheel cylinders either seized or leaking and contaminated brake the brake shoes. All parts have been removed and sent away for refurbishment.

Jacking mount corroded and require welding.

Exhaust system corroded and poorly repaired.

Picture of old frayed chassis to engine earth strap and new replacement.

Conquest Windows

Jonn has been fitting the window assemblies to our 1954 Daimler conquest.

As they both were hitting the A-pillar, Clinton modified them to get a better fit. The driver’s door window mount was drilled out and a nut and bolt were fitted to secure it.

Our Morgan Goes Into Storage

A couple of weeks ago, James Webber won our 2011 Morgan 4/4 with just over 1000 miles on the clock.

Along with the stunning car, an optional 12 months of free storage was also part of the prize that James was lucky enough to win.

As James lives in London, he has decided to keep the car in our secure storage facility for a while. He has family in our area so at some point in the near future, he will visit his beautiful low-mileage car safely tucked away in a climate-controlled Carcoon.

Congratulations again to James on winning our 2011 Morgan 4/4.

Win Our Vanden Plas

Our 1981 Austin Vanden Plas is now live on the Bridge Classic Cars Competitions website.

On September 17, 1974, the Vanden Plas 1500, based on the Austin Allegro, was released as the successor to the Princess 1300. It was equipped with British Leylandโ€™s โ€˜Eโ€™ series 1485cc overhead camshaft engine, and had a single SU HS6 carburettor, producing 68bhp at 5500rpm.

Unlike the Princess 11/1300s, the Mark 1 model did not include the picnic tables on the back of the front seats, and it had slightly less rear legroom compared to its predecessor. However, it featured highly polished burr walnut on the uniquely designed fascia and door cards. The seats were upholstered in leather, with bound Wilton carpets over additional sound deadening covering the floor, and the cabin roof was trimmed in nylon cloth. A total of 3,640 Mark 1s were produced before the Mark 2 model was launched in October 1975.

The Mark 2 Vanden Plas 1500 had revised suspension settings, offering a much-improved ride, while the engine and transmission remained unchanged. Inside, the rear seats were adjusted and moved back to provide more legroom, and due to customer demand, picnic tables were added as a standard feature to the rear of the front seats. A total of 7,318 Mark 2s were produced before the introduction of the Mark 3 model in October 1979.

The Mark 3 models (like this one) underwent slight name changes. The manual transmission version retained the 1485cc engine but was now fitted with twin SU type H1F4 carburettors, increasing the power output to 77bhp at 5750rpm. This version was named the Vanden Plas 1.5.

Externally, the Mark 3 cars featured a flat boot lid, black surrounds for the front and rear windscreens, black door mirrors, and side indicator repeaters on each front wing. Internally, a radio and front seat headrests became standard features, and the interior door handles were changed from chrome to black.

The Vanden Plas factory at Kingsbury closed in July 1979, with all remaining cars finished at MG Abingdon. Production of the Mark 3 ended in August 1980, with a total production run of 752 manual and 232 automatic models.

Our 1981 Vanden Plas is one of those 752 manual models. It was actually built at the Austin factory at Longbridge before being finished and Trimmed at MG Abingdon. Originally leaving the factory finished in Silver Grey Metallic, it was repainted in the late 1980s in Rover Cashmere Gold over Vanden Plas Tan trim.

Since being in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop, it has undergone some paint repairs as well as having a new water pump fitted.

Driving Our 1971 MGB Roadster

Earlier today, Craig and Nick took our 1971 MGB Roadster out on the roads around the Bridge Classic Cars workshop.

It’s safe to say…it was a very enjoyable drive.

There are still a few hundred tickets left if you want the chance to win this beautiful classic for just a few pounds; but they are selling fast!

Enter here.

The All-New MG HS SUV

MG has just released an exclusive preview of the all-new HS SUV. This is ahead of the carโ€™s global debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed on Thursday, 11th July.

Replacing the current model, which has been extremely successful for MG, the all-new HS is said to offer a contemporary, sophisticated design and an interior with enhanced space and an array of new, driver-focussed technology.

There will be two powertrain choices โ€“ petrol and plug-in hybrid (PHEV) โ€“ with the Plug-in Hybrid variant promising to offer an unmatched all-electric range for the class.

It looks great and I can’t wait to see what happens on 11th July.


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An E-Type Road Trip

We recently received an amazing update from one of our customers regarding our beautiful 1970 Jaguar E-Type Series 2.

Not only is the car being used, it has been used for an incredible road trip. Travelling well over 1000 miles, our E-Type was driven from Southwold to Plymouth before boarding a ferry to Santander. It was then back on the road to Burgos, Salamanca, Douro, Porto and on to Santiago de Compostela. ย 

They then arrived at the Parador Gil Blas in Santanilla del Mar.

An Old Friend On An Adventure

Back in January last year, Steve won our 1975 MGB GT V8 through Bridge Classic Cars Competitions. Since then, Steve has become a great friend to the team here.

This past weekend Steve took his MGB (now called Velma) to the Inter-club International Weekend at the Three Counties Showground in Malvern.

Not only does Velma look incredible in Steve’s photos below, but Steve also reported that she made the 340-mile round trip with no issues at all!

It’s fantastic to see winners enjoying their classic so thank you Steve for sharing this trip with us.

10 To 80 per cent charged in 5 Minutes

Nyobolt, a Cambridge-based company, has introduced its electric vehicle (EV) prototype capable of ultra-fast charging. Collaborating with design and engineering firm CALLUM, Nyobolt is aiming to demonstrate its advanced battery technology in real-world conditions. This technology looks to solve the problem of long recharge times by charging from 10% to 80% in under five minutes.

Key Highlights

  1. Ultra-Fast Charging: Nyoboltโ€™s batteries, tested with a 350kW DC charger, achieved a 10% to 80% charge in four minutes and 37 seconds. This is twice as fast as the quickest-charging vehicles available today. A full charge provides a range of 155 miles (WLTP).
  2. Extended Battery Life: Unlike traditional lithium-ion batteries that degrade with frequent fast charging, Nyoboltโ€™s technology maintains over 80% battery capacity even after 4000 full charge cycles, equivalent to over 600,000 miles.
  3. Sustainability and Efficiency: The batteries incorporate innovative materials and cell designs, reducing heat generation and energy loss. This leads to lighter, more efficient EVs that are cheaper to produce and operate.
  4. Scalable Production: Nyobolt plans to begin low-volume battery production within a year, scaling up to 1000 packs annually by 2025, with a potential capacity of two million cells per year.
  5. Retrofit Potential: Nyoboltโ€™s technology can be integrated into existing EV platforms, significantly enhancing charge times and battery longevity without requiring extensive vehicle redesigns.

Innovative Technology

Nyoboltโ€™s progress in ultra-fast charging comes from a decade of research led by Professor Dame Clare Grey and Dr. Sai Shivareddy. The batteries feature patented carbon and metal oxide anode materials, coupled with low impedance cell designs, allowing rapid electron transfer and minimal heat buildup during charging.

Nyoboltโ€™s co-founder and CEO, Dr Sai Shivareddy said “Despite some OEMs showing fast charge times in the region of 15 minutes, a closer inspection reveals the charge is usually across a limited SOC region specifically chosen to limit the amount of life taken out of the cell; for instance, between 20-80 per cent. Typically, the charge profile will only hold these peak charge levels for a short amount of the charge time. Nyoboltโ€™s low impedance cells ensure we can offer sustainability, stretching out the batteryโ€™s usable life for up to 600,000 miles in the case of our technology demonstrator.โ€

Broader Applications

Beyond their use in the automotive industry, Nyoboltโ€™s fast-charging batteries are set to be put to use in other industries requiring high power and quick recharge cycles, such as robotics and heavy-duty commercial vehicles. Nyobolt is already in discussions with eight major automotive OEMs about adopting their technology.

Shane Davies, Nyoboltโ€™s director of vehicle battery systems said โ€œWe can enable OEMs to build excitement back into the segment, which is literally weighed down by legacy battery technology currently. Our Nyobolt EV demonstrates the efficiency gains facilitated by our fast-charging, longer-life battery technology, enabling capacity to be right-sized while still delivering the required performance. Nyobolt is removing the obstacle of slow and inconvenient charging, making electrification appealing and accessible to those who donโ€™t have the time for lengthy charging times or space for a home charger.โ€


Future Prospects

Nyobolt’s EV prototype serves as a proof-of-concept, demonstrating the potential to drastically reduce charging times and enhance battery durability. This development lays the foundation for more sustainable and efficient electric vehicles, potentially transforming the EV market by addressing one of its biggest pain pointsโ€”charging time.

Shivareddy concludes โ€œOur extensive research here in the UK and US has unlocked a novel battery technology that is ready and scalable right now. We are enabling the electrification of new products and services currently considered inviable or impossible. Creating real-world demonstrators, such as the Nyobolt EV, underlines both our readiness and commitment to making the industries see change is possible.โ€


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The Classic Car Lifestyle

Bridge Classic Cars is known for award-winning restorations and classic car competitions. However, over the last 20 years, we have become so much more.

We have worked extremely hard to build a community of friends and like-minded enthusiasts who share our love for all things automotive and we are beyond proud of what we have achieved.

Trying to sum up what we have built in words alone is almost impossible. So this is the story of ‘Tony’ and what Bridge Classic Cars has done for him.

There are many ‘Tony’s’ out there and we hope to meet so many more as we continue to grow and evolve as a business.

Thank you to everyone who has joined us so far and we can’t wait to take you with us into our next exciting chapter.


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Fixing our enclosed trailer

Our enclosed trailer sees quite a few miles every month! With our transport team always out and about across the country, we have a very strict inspection regime for it and occasionally repairs have to be done.

This week, the team have found that the rear marker lights on the trailer weren’t operating correctly. So the trailer was taken off the road in order for our wiring guru (and workshop manager John) to take a look at and get it back up and running again.

After checking the usually suspects such as bulbs and connectors, John dove into the power box which controls the power distribution throughout the trailer. After performing his wiring checks, he found a single wire had corroded and was not allowing proper connecting, so with a replacement wire run to the lights and testing – he was happy to release our trailer back out onto the open road with the transport team.

Rare Barn Find Motorbike

At the upcoming H&H Classics motorcycle sale on July 3rd, being held at the National Motorcycle Museum in Solihull, there is a very interesting motorcycle for sale and it is one that has spent most of its life off the road.

The auction will see a wide range of motorcycles, from sporting to touring models, in various conditions go up for sale. Of the more than 200 lots in the auction, around 70 of them are offered without reserve.

1951 Vincent Black Shadow Series C

One of the most exciting bikes, at least in my opinion, is a 1951 Vincent Black Shadow Series C, which has been off the road since at least the late 1970s and was likely last used regularly in the 1960s. The Vincent Owners Club has confirmed its factory-correct number status. Upon its discovery, the bike was found to be in fantastic condition and rolled freely. Even the engine wasn’t seized its decades in storage. Being sold with a comprehensive history file, including sale receipts from 1955 and various engineer reports, this special bike is estimated to sell for between ยฃ25,000 and ยฃ30,000.

Image: H&H

The auction will also feature three other Black Shadows: a 1950 model with subtle upgrades (estimated at ยฃ32,000-38,000), a 1952 Series C with all correct factory numbers and 20 years of ownership (estimated at ยฃ28,000-32,000), and a 1955 Series D from long-term family ownership (estimated at ยฃ26,000-28,000).


1929 Brough Superior SS100

One of the most valuable bikes up for sale is a 1929 Brough Superior SS100, which is estimated to sell for between ยฃ240,000 and ยฃ280,000. Known as ‘the mysterious SS100,’ it was first registered in 1944 and is believed to have a unique prototype frame that differs from the standard version.

Image: H&H

1922 D.S. Malterre

There’s an even rarer bike that will be available at the auction though. A 1922 D.S. Malterre, the only known survivor of the two examples made. This superbly restored, Indian V-twin-powered motorcycle has been displayed at the Goodwood Revival and is estimated at ยฃ22,000-26,000.

Image: H&H

Other Bikes Available

If you prefer more recent bikes, then a 1968 Godet 1330GT, built to the previous owner’s specifications by Patrick Godet, is estimated to sell for between ยฃ48,000 and ยฃ52,000. Having seen little use due to the owner’s busy schedule, this bespoke motorcycle is ready for a new owner.

A 1977 Triumph T140D Silver Jubilee is also available, described by H&Hโ€™s Mike Davis as the best example he has ever seen. With only 14 miles on the clock and meticulously maintained, this limited-edition model, produced to celebrate Queen Elizabeth IIโ€™s Silver Jubilee, is estimated to sell for ยฃ8,000-10,000.

The oldest lot in the sale is a 1913 Douglas 2 ยพ-hp, estimated to sell for ยฃ7,000-9,000. In original condition, it was discovered in the 1980s and has since been re-commissioned, earning a Pioneer certificate in 1983 and participating in the Pioneer Run numerous times.


Auction Details

For more details about the auction and the available lots, visit H&H Classics.

All lots can be viewed in person at the National Motorcycle Museum, Solihull, on the afternoon of Tuesday 2 July from 12pm โ€“ 6pm. The sale commences at 1pm on the following day.

Anyone interested in bidding on any of the lots can do so in person,ย online, via telephone or by leaving a commission bid.


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Progress on our 1956 Jensen 541R

Our workshop team have been steadily making progress on our 1956 Jensen 541 which is in the finishing workshop here at the Bridge Classic Cars workshop in Suffolk.

Our technician, Paul, began with working on test fitting the rear window catches to line up correctly with the stunning interior built by our in-house trim team. Once checked, Paul could fix them securely in place. Then he moved on to getting the drivers side door test fit to work out the gaps and line up through carefully adding and taking away specifically sized shims. Once he was happy with the doors fitment, Paul went under the bonnet of the classic GT car.

To begin with, he fabricated the new battery mount for the car specifically to work within the confines of this specific chassis. And finally, Paul could test fit the radiator into the chassis to begin working on radiator mounts for the car.

Closer and Closer – Getting the last few remaining jobs done on the 2022 Bridge C-Type

The workshop team are crossing off the last few remaining jobs left to do on our 2022 Bridge C-Type Replica with Jon and John working their way around the homage to the greatest era of sports car racing.

Here’s what they’ve been up to: ”Remove rear wheels. Cut rear suspension bolts and replace with new bolts fitted the other way round. Drill out rivets in nearside rear arch and apply sealer. Re drill and re rivet. Trim off excess alloy front arch liner. Seal boot to body area under fuel tank above rear axle. Refit wheels. Adjust and tighten mirrors. Drill and fit fire extinguisher between seats.”

Our SL returns with a noise…

Firstly, we have road tested the vehicle to experience what the customer is experiencing.
Found the noise to be coming from the nearside rear wheel so we have stripped out wheel hub and replace wheel bearing.

Whilst the car is in with us, we have fitted a DAB radio with DAB aerial and microphone.

We’ve also had reported to us a smell of fuel so we have looked into this also. Having stripped out the boot linings to check all fuel pipes we have not found there to be any leaks.

We have remove the dash cluster in order to replace the left hand bulb assembly.

The car is now ready to go but as the weather is so beautiful, the customer has asked us to store his hardtop in the summer months. Great choice. If you have a car, motorcycle or even a hardtop to store check out our amazing storage facility.

Our 1989 Porsche 928 S4 takes a special trip

Alongside our 1958 Austin Healey 100/6, our transport team were given the task of safely delivering our 1989 Porsche 928 S4 to a special location recently for filming with our marketing team.

Tony, our transport driver, expertly navigated the narrow country lanes to get this stunning long-legged GT car to location for the team to make it look like a million dollars and… you’ll be able to see the results of that very very soon.

Time for some TLC – Our 1998 BMW E36 M3 Evo comes over to the workshop

This stunning 1998 BMW E36 M3 Evo has been in long term storage for quite some time now. Recently, our transport team took a trip to our secure, secret storage facility – The Hangar, to pick up this incredible 1990’s sports coupe.

After being taken out of its protective bubble, the car was loaded into our enclosed trailer and brought to the main workshops here at the Bridge Classic Cars Suffolk HQ.

Back to its core – stripping our 1973 Ferrari 246 GTS

The 1973 Ferrari 246GTS ‘Dino’ has been in the Bridge Classic Cars workshops for a few weeks now with the restoration team getting started on revitalizing this iconic sports car. Most recently, the car has been in with our body team aswell as our workshop teams to begin the process of repairing corroded and damaged sections of the car.

To begin with, the workshop team have been carefully removing all of the trims and accessories from the exterior of the car – making sure to catalogue and document each piece that is removed for the moment when it is ready to come back together in our brand new finishing workshop.

After that, the car could be transferred into our body shop for Chris and his team to begin the process of taking the cars paintwork back to reveal areas of corrosion and damage highlighted during the cars assessment. Most notably, the sills which have actually corroded all the way through in places along with other areas which will require the careful and delicate attention of our fabricator, also called Chris.

Recommission work on our Daimler Conquest

Loads has been happening this week on our 1954 Daimler Conquest as we continue to work through the recommissioning process.

Some key activities include; securing the ignition switch into the dash. Jon has remove the reserve tank cable and blanked hole with a grommet. He has remove the carburettor suction chambers and pistons.

We have removed the float bowl tops and cleaned all parts. Then moving on to adjusted the float arms and checking the needle valves before refit. The jet depths have then be reset.

The carbs have been rebuilt and we have refitted the air filter, new spark plugs. The coolant has been drained too.

Jon has stripped the steering column centre and attended to a short circuit in the wiring loom inside the column.

Work continues on the steering column as we cut the wires to length and make new loom for horn and indicators. Make connections at horn push/indicator switch in centre of steering wheel.

Jon and John have rebuilt the loom down the shaft whilst Clinton went off to repair the split in the column tube.

Adjust ring inside steering wheel for indicator cancel function. Tap out the thread in the ring to secure and tap out the grub screw hole for securing centre to wheel.

We have then fitted the column tube, olive and securing nut to lower column and tightened in the correct position so indicator the switch was at the top of the steering wheel. Next up was to connect the wiring and test but the horn remained temperamental. The fault has been traced to the horn itself. We’ve now remove the horn and ordered a new one.

Finish grille top plate replacement and re-secure the grille.

We have tightened the bonnet catches each side and lubricated.

Wire in front fog lights. We’ve measured the lengths and madee twin core looms to run from the switch on the dash to each fog light before remove the fog lights and testing the bulbs. Both ok.

Jon has run wires along the existing loom and into the car, connecting them at the fog light ends and reassembling. The loom has been tested by connecting to the live feed from ignition, all ok.

Connect to fog light switch.

Make small wire from sidelight feed on back of light switch and connect to other side of fog light switch.

Turn on sidelights and test. Ok.

Connect the earth wire for interior fan and test.

Tighten offside mirror.

External work next. We have inflated the tyres, torque up the wheels and refitted the wheel trims.

The nearside window have been refitted and we have elongated the holes as the window catches on the A pillar. A bit more fettling required on this one.

Progress on our 1989 Daimler Double Six

Our technician Jon has been hard at work getting our 1989 Daimler Double Six back into fully working order. Here’s what he’s currently been doing ”Remove rear wheels. Cut rear suspension bolts and replace with new bolts fitted the other way round. Drill out rivets in nearside rear arch and apply sealer. Re drill and re rivet. Trim off excess alloy front arch liner.seal boot to body area under fuel tank above rear axle. Refit wheels. Adjust and tighten mirrors. Drill and fit fire extinguisher between seats.”

”Take outside and disconnect heater pipes. Use hose to flush heater matrix. Clear water flowing after 2 mins. Reconnect and top up system. Run and test”

Washer issues on our 2010 Renault Wind Roadster

John has been working on getting to the bottom of why the washers on our 2010 Renault Wind have stopped working.

To check the pump, John had to jack the car up and remove one of the wheels to get access to the bottom of engine bay. After checking out the pump, he determined that the pump had failed and placed a new one on order.

Charged Up – Replacing the regulator on our 1952 Austin A40

Our workshop manager has been working on our very special barn-find 1952 Austin A40 sports cabriolet.

After it having its first test drive late last week, the team noticed that the charge light was not switch off while running. Looking into it further, John removed the wiring to the dynamo and checked its charge rate which was measured at 17.2 which indicated that the regulator was faulty – so the team fitted a new unit to the car and all was happy afterwards. And, John even had time to fix the interior mirror.

More progress on our 2022 Bridge C-Type Replica

The workshop team at Bridge Classic Cars have been making progress on our 2022 Bridge C-Type Replica. Everyday the car gets closer and closer to completion and with that, the list of major jobs get smaller.

Recently, our workshop manager has been checking off some of the smaller jobs on the tribute to a Le Mans legend. This time he has fitted the leather straps which hold down the spare wheel as well as the side reflectors onto the car.

Moving and Upgrades – Our 1958 Austin Healey 100/6

Our 1958 Austin Healey has been back into the Bridge Classic Cars worshops at our Suffolk HQ to have a couple of jobs finished off before it had a very special date.

The team found that the original kill switch in the car wasn’t working correctly anymore so replaced it with a new one before checking the car over for the transport team to deliver to a very special photoshoot with our marketing team. The results of which, you’re going to have to wait a little while longer to see.

Repairing the seats on our 1952 Fiat 1900A.

Our trim shop have been giving the task of repairing the seats on our incredible 1952 Fiat 1900A. The trim shop at Bridge Classic Cars is one of our busiest departments, but our trimmer Lydia has worked her magic on fixing up the seats of the classic Italian saloon.

The stitching on both seats had popped and somewhere in the cars passed, someone had attempted to fix this with superglue… So Lydia carefully unpicked each section which had been ‘repaired’ in order to fix it correctly. Then she could carefully stretch the covers back over the foam and frames.

Servicing and Checking Over our 1964 Jaguar Mk2 3.8

We recently welcomed a 1964 Jaguar Mk2 3.8 to the Bridge Classic Cars for our team to take a look at a few little issues and also to service the classic Jaguar before taking back to its owner.

Here’s what our technician Julian has done ”Removed float bowls, found rear needle jet stuck on rear carburettor, replaced needle jet and cleaned float bowls etc. Replaced spark plugs, changed oil, checked all levels. Removed and resealed thermostat housing. Drained fuel from tank and filter housing and replaced with 2 gallons. Road test. Advisory notes, rear pinion seal leaking, gear stick linkage worn, rear propshaft UJ worn.”

After that, it was handed back over to our transport team to get the car safely back home.

Brake Work on the 1953 Aston Martin DB2/4

Our restoration team have been making amazing progress on our 1953 Aston Martin DB2/4 at our Pettistree workshops.

Our technician Steve, who is the main technician on the project, has been getting the running gear and brake system back onto the newly refinished chassis of the classic Aston Martin. He has fitted up the original hubs in order to begin work on the brake system with the drums and all hardware in place to begin to map out the intricate network of brake pipes to connect everything up when the time comes.

Off to a new home – Delivering our 1972 MGB Roadster to our lucky winner

Recently, Peter won our 1972 MGB Roadster through Bridge Classic Cars Competitions. But before the team took the trip down to deliver the car to him personally, the workshop checked it all over and then it was handed over to our transport team to get loaded up safe and sound in our enclosed trailer for the journey to its new home.

Once we arrived, Peter met us excited to meet his new pride and joy – and raring to go on the cars maiden voyage under his ownership. You’ll be able to see the video on this very soon over on our YouTube channel.