Our TR3 takes its first drive with its new owner Karl for a special event. We always love to see our competition winners enjoying their new cars but the update from our TR3 winner Karl Reilly was even more special.
In our second installment of Meet The Team Mondays, we talk to our Workshop Manager, John. John has been working with cars his entire career, starting as soon as he left school. This interest blossomed from working alongside his father
Fresh paintwork and new tires are on the agenda for the Nissan. The 1996 Nissan Patrol arrived at Bridge Classic Cars needing a thorough once over to restore its adventurous spirit. Last week it had its primer completed, allowing the
The Jensen 541R receives new interior trimmings in its latest restoration step. The Jensen 541R’s next pitstop in its renovation journey has been in the trim shop where it had the full works done. The makeover included fitting the side
Although it has a long road ahead of it, we’re already pleased by the progress the TR5 is making. Our Triumph TR5 is set to have the full works here at Bridge Classic Cars. As a long-standing restoration project, we
This morning we took a walk around the workshop to take a peak at how our engineers are getting on with the current projects. 1996 Nissan Patrol The Nissan Patrol is almost ready to be set free on adventures again.
The 1967 Jaguar MKII lives on to purr another day. This 1967 Jaguar MKII arrived after having been broken into and its interior gutted. After some careful surgery, the Jaguar’s interior was repaired to its previous pristine condition. The next
The 1971 Lotus Europa is set to travel to Scotland for restoration with its new owners. Back in September, a dusty 1971 Lotus Europa barn-find found its way into the Bridge Classic Car family. After a thorough clean, it started
The Morris Minor is in its final stages of restoration. So far, we have already fitted the gearbox, installed new handles, latches, wheels. The paintwork has been refreshed, wings and rubbers restored, and front grills replaced. The most recent work
We were recently mentioned in Vision Suffolk’s magazine in an article about two recent Mini winners. Chris Allitt and Courtney Barker both won Minis as a result of entering our monthly competitions. You can see the article in edition 28
“We all buy a ticket in the hope we win, but we never expect to win.” Our most recent winner, Karl Reilly from Essex, was delighted to receive our 1957 Triumph TR3 today with his lucky ticket number 4174. He’s
Pete has been working on our beautiful classic 1951 MG TD. Pete has just finished fitted the new steering rack into the car. ‘The steering rack presented a few challenges”, Pete explains. “Due to the length of rack, I’ve had
Two beautiful classic Jaguars have arrived at the Bridge Classic Cars Workshop today. Both very different cars, but both undeniably special examples. Firstly we have the 1963 Jaguar SS100. In for a couple of minor repairs highlighted by a MOT
Antony has been working on the first stage of our our 1996 Nissan Patrol restoration, getting on top of the rust! He’s been cutting out any rotten or rusted metal and been welding in fresh steel. Frustratingly, the further inside
Sunday saw Classics at Glemham return for another year. Held at the fabulous Glemham Hall grounds in Suffolk, the event was one of the first car shows to go ahead since the COVID-19 pandemic. Most of this summer’s shows had
This beautiful 1949 MG YT is back with us at Bridge Classic Cars. We had the pleasure of restoring this car for the MacDonald family. The YT has been entered into the Concours d’Elegance at Blenheim Palace this year with
In the workshop today is our gorgeous 1937 Triumph Dolomite. Having worked on this car in the past we are very familiar with this vehicle. It’s been getting a lot of attention form everyone here at Bridge. We just love
The next job for Paul and Chris to tackle is the wing mirrors of our Nissan 300ZX. Paul removed the damaged wing mirrors from the vehicle and has passed them over to Chris in the Paint shop. Chris firstly prepared
Arriving in our workshops this week as a future restoration project we have our 1979 Arrow Daytona (Ferrari Daytona Recreation). The car is a non runner due to an engine fault not too long ago which resulted in the car
Kath and Brian has done a wonderful job transforming the roof lining of our Jensen 541R. There’s a lot of black components on this Jensen specification. The roof lining however is finished now in this sumptuous perforated cream headlining fabric,
Our 1982 Porsche 911 is in the workshops to have a couple of areas of paintwork addressed. The front nearside wing has a small but deep scratch that needs repairing. The rear spoiler has unfortunately suffered the effects of having
Scott has been working hard on our Peugeot 504 project. This lovely classic was in need of some serious rust repairs. As with all rust repairs, it’s very difficult to tell exactly how far the rust has penetrated into the
Brian and Kath have been flat out the past few weeks since returning to our workshop. They’ve been tackling the interior on our two Jensen 541R’s. Brian has been mainly working on creating the bespoke wooden panelling and Kath has
We recently painted our lovely little 1996 Mini. The car has now been fitted up by our good friend Ted at Team C Racing and is back with us to have a few minor repairs and touching up in the
We took a look back at one of our favourite restoration projects, the 1949 MGYT. This car already has such a rich history and priceless sentimental value. Read the story of our 1949 MGYT restoration below…
Bridge Classic Cars would like to thank everyone who entered our 1964 MGB Roadster competition. This donation was made on behalf of each and every one of you who supported our first ever competition. Thank you to all the wonderful
Dave has been installing the newly trimmed seats into the car. They really do look wonderful in position. He’s currently fitting the driver side seat. Firstly, Dave installed the seat rails before mounting the seat onto the rails. The four
We’ve fitted a new grille, manufactured by Bride Classic Cars on tooling disigned in house. Made from stainless steel rather than the soft alloy that Jensen made from new. The spotlights that are notorious for coming loose have been re-secured.
We’re delighted to present to you our recently restored TVR Grantura! ? A stalled restoration, this Grantura was brought to us at Bridge Classic Cars to complete restorative works. We’re honoured to have brought this wonderful British sports car a
Entering our classic car workshop this week is our breathtaking Aston Martin DB5. Famously, one of James Bond’s most iconic vehicles, it’s easy to see why the DB5 has become such a cult classic. This lovely example is in with
We always love to see our competition winners enjoying their new cars but the update from our TR3 winner Karl Reilly was even more special.
Last Thursday Karl drove his sister Claire to her wedding at Brasted’s lodge in Framlingham Pigot. Our TR3 makes for the perfect ‘Something Old’ and ‘Something New’!
“It was such a shame it rained all day, Karl tells us. “But it was still great fun to drive with the roof up.”
“My sister loved it, it really made her day! The owners of Brasted’s Lodge loved it too, it received a lot of attention!”
As it turns out, Karl had won the car a day after his 50th birthday. After a challenging year, our TR3 was the perfect birthday present for Karl and the perfect ride to Claire’s wedding.
Congratulations to the happy couple, Claire and Andy!
John has been working with cars his entire career, starting as soon as he left school. This interest blossomed from working alongside his father who also took a fascination with cars and frequently visited race car meets with each other.
Following his childhood with cars, John’s career led him to work with Vauxhall for 29 years. After a sufficient amount of time working as a technician there, John moved on to making sports car replicas with Suffolk Sports. John then came to Bridge Classic Cars where he’s been ever since, making him one of our longest working members.
John is our Workshop Manager, meaning his role is to oversee and troubleshoot any projects going on at Bridge Classic Cars. We know that projects are always in safe hands with John as his time with us is coming up to 10 years.
Back at home, John has a number of motorbikes as well as his dream car, a Ford Escort RS 2000 MKI. John tells us that he’s always been into having his own cars and restoring them, “I’ve always had two or three motorbikes and cars at home to tinker with”.
Fun fact: The car that was most popular in the year of Johns birth was the Nissan Datsun 240Z
The 1996 Nissan Patrol arrived at Bridge Classic Cars needing a thorough once over to restore its adventurous spirit.
Last week it had its primer completed, allowing the next stages of paintwork to commence. The Nissan has now had its DH6 Safari Nissan Green and Volkswagen Zing Grey paint applied as well as having its chrome bumpers completed.
The front and rear disks and pads required checking when the Nissan arrived. These have since been replaced.
During its restoration, the gears had been removed to allow for a full check-up. As detailed here, Pete added red paint to the pieces which allowed him to carefully assemble and realign the gears, making for a perfect and careful re-installation.
The Nissan has also had its tires refurbished, making it one stage closer to being road ready.
The next step in this Nissan’s journey is to receive its trim work for new carpets.
The Jensen 541R’s next pitstop in its renovation journey has been in the trim shop where it had the full works done.
The makeover included fitting the side window panel, rear seats, rear quarter and side panels installed, side scuttle panel, ashtray in the rear side panel, chrome panel trim, center panel, leather into the rear pockets, and the parcel tray leather fitted.
Kath and Brian, our interior trim specialists took time to modify each piece of leather interior, measuring it up by hand to fitting each bespoke trimming. Aside from the centre panel, which retained the original design, everything else had to specially designed for this Jensen, making it one of a kind!
With new trimmings now fully installed, the Jensen is starting to resemble the beautiful car it used to be.
Our Triumph TR5 is set to have the full works here at Bridge Classic Cars. As a long-standing restoration project, we have some big plans for this car.
So far in its journey, it has had all the bodywork done by our classic car technician Mauro, the electrics done by Adam, and the engine work carried out by our engine specialist Ady.
The body has been mounted to the chassis in what Mauro tells us was the most challenging part.
“You have to allow room between the chassis and the body to enable the perfect fit. It’s hard to get it all to line up perfectly.”
With the doors having been added to the body, the TR5 is starting to take shape. It’s a meticulous and time consuming process, but is a crucial stage in this car’s restoration.
Mauro has just finished up our Triumph TR6 restoration project, meaning he’s becoming quite the specialist in working with Triumphs.
Adam has recently installed the wiring loom as well which can be seen below.
The front side lights and back side lights have also recently been fitted and are ready to be accompanied by the headlights.
Within the body of the car, the hand brake cables, prop shaft, gearbox mounting, and fuel pump have all been fitted by classic car technician, Mauro.
Next on the agenda is to fit its headlights, engine, water pump, exhaust manifold, and fan among many other modifications.
This morning we took a walk around the workshop to take a peak at how our engineers are getting on with the current projects.
The Nissan Patrol is almost ready to be set free on adventures again. Pete has given it a general ‘health check’ and service to ensure its exploration spirit is still intact.
The last stage on the Nissan is to ‘blacken’ the underside to protect it from rust and erosion, which is all the more important for adventurous vehicles like this Patrol!
Tamas has been working hard on the latest refurbishments to the MGB which has recently included a new radiator as the old one had developed some rust and holes.
The thermostat has also been refurbished along with its housing and the grill. Tamas has also installed new reversing lights as well.
The Rosytle wheels are currently in the hands of our paint specialist Darren who’s just finished applying the first layer of paint to neaten them up.
The Red MGA has had a seasonal refurbishment with a heater being added to accommodate for the cold months approaching!
Paul tells us that “the car originally never had a heater in, so the parts have been shipped in from America.”
Its not uncommon to see our classic cars fitted with modern creature comforts such as heaters and radios.
Scott has been working on fitting the doors, making sure the latches catch and shut efficiently.
Darren has also been working on the Peugeot, painting the engine bay. This needed two sets of paint, one for the inner parts and a separate colour for the outer parts to match the body of the car.
The Jensen is still in the trimming shop where Brian is installing the leather padding that sits just above the windscreen. This piece followed the original design but still had to be cut and made by hand.
Brian tells us ‘It’s quite a fiddly job to fit this panel’.
We can’t wait to see the Jensen completed with its smart new leather from our trim experts.
Our classic car electrician Adam has been working on tidying up the Amphicar’s wires and installing a second pump to ensure enough water is removed from within the vehicle. This means a custom made pump bracket will have to be designed and fitted when the second pump is installed.
Our engineer Anthony is currently applying a filler to the engine bay to smooth out any bumps.
A keen eye for detail from Anthony is needed to ensure that the Mercedes doesn’t leave the fabrication bay with any imperfections.
This 1967 Jaguar MKII arrived after having been broken into and its interior gutted. After some careful surgery, the Jaguar’s interior was repaired to its previous pristine condition.
The next stage was restoring the paintwork that had suffered over the years. A small job for Chris in our paint-shop, he’ll have this beautiful classic looking her very best in no time.
With the paintwork done, the Jaguar can move onto its final stage of restoration; nursing those bumps and scratches out.
Back in September, a dusty 1971 Lotus Europa barn-find found its way into the Bridge Classic Car family. After a thorough clean, it started to resemble its original self.
When the car first arrived, it had be collecting dust in a barn in Stonham Aspal for some years. You can read more about it here.
The 1971 Lotus Europa ready to begin its journey up north.
Soon the Lotus was purchased by Mr. Kerr Davidson and transported to Scotland by Lets Go Automotive.
Now residing on the outskirts of Pentland Hills National Reserve near Edinburgh, the Lotus will begin its restoration journey by the father and son duo.
So far, we have already fitted the gearbox, installed new handles, latches, wheels. The paintwork has been refreshed, wings and rubbers restored, and front grills replaced.
The most recent work has included replacing the fuel lines, hand-break, rear breaks, rear gearbox engine and steady cable.
Now the next step is reassembly, allowing the Morris Minor to be put back together and complete its restoration journey.
After being with us for almost 12 months, it will be rewarding to see it finally completed.
We were recently mentioned in Vision Suffolk’s magazine in an article about two recent Mini winners.
Chris Allitt and Courtney Barker both won Minis as a result of entering our monthly competitions.
You can see the article in edition 28 available here.
We run our competitions each month. By entering you could win a classic car for under £20! You can find out more by visiting our competition website here.
“We all buy a ticket in the hope we win, but we never expect to win.”
Our most recent winner, Karl Reilly from Essex, was delighted to receive our 1957 Triumph TR3 today with his lucky ticket number 4174.
He’s putting his new TR3 to good use this week, driving a close relative to their wedding on Thursday.
Karl is a Triumph fanatic, already owning a Triumph GT6, meaning the new TR3 will feel at home in the hands of a Triumph Club member.
If you’d also like the chance to be a lucky Triumph winner, we’ve got the TR3’s little sister, the TR4, up for grabs now!
Pick up your TR4 tickets here.
Pete has been working on our beautiful classic 1951 MG TD. Pete has just finished fitted the new steering rack into the car. ‘The steering rack presented a few challenges”, Pete explains. “Due to the length of rack, I’ve had to dismantle the rack before installation. Once it’s in position it can then be re-assembled”. Superb ingenuity Pete! Working on cars of this era presents many challenges. But no job is too daunting for our expert team!
After completing the steering rack, Pete has installed a brand new stainless steel exhaust. The new exhaust sounds lovely, we cannot wait to hear what the vehicles owner thinks!
Two beautiful classic Jaguars have arrived at the Bridge Classic Cars Workshop today. Both very different cars, but both undeniably special examples.
Firstly we have the 1963 Jaguar SS100. In for a couple of minor repairs highlighted by a MOT test. This lovely classic has already received a new steering boot and a new air filter. To fit within the SS100’s engine bay, Paul has modified the filter slightly to perfectly fit. Superb work, Paul!
The 2nd Jaguar of the day is this rare XJRS TWR. Featuring a Jaguar 6.0l V12 Engine, this big cat certainly can roar.
The XJRS is in the workshop for a general health check, as well as investigating some unwanted noises coming from the underside of the car.
The TWR in this Jaguar’s name stands for Tom Walkinshaw Racing. TWR were a race team and engineering firm founded in 1976 by touring car racer Tom Walkinshaw.
TWR became associated with Jaguar in 1982. Partnering with the successful entry of the Jaguar XJS into the European Touring Car Championship.
TWR and Jaguar formed JaguarSport initially to build tuned versions of Jaguar road-cars, such as this gorgeous XJRS. They also produced upgraded versions of the XJ220 and XJR-15 sports cars at a new facility at Bloxham. By 1994, JaguarSport had been liquidated, with the Bloxham factory being overhauled for production of Aston Martin automobiles.
Take a look at the full galleries below of these stunning Jaguars.
Antony has been working on the first stage of our our 1996 Nissan Patrol restoration, getting on top of the rust!
He’s been cutting out any rotten or rusted metal and been welding in fresh steel. Frustratingly, the further inside the car we look, the more rust we’ve found. There is unfortunately quite a lot of rust within the sills and around all four arches.
Sunday saw Classics at Glemham return for another year. Held at the fabulous Glemham Hall grounds in Suffolk, the event was one of the first car shows to go ahead since the COVID-19 pandemic. Most of this summer’s shows had been canceled, so it was delightful to see the one of the first classic car events return.
The sun was shining, some spectacular classic cars were on display and it was a superb meet for the regions classic car enthusiasts. With special COVID-19 precautions in place, it was a superb family day out.
This beautiful 1949 MG YT is back with us at Bridge Classic Cars. We had the pleasure of restoring this car for the MacDonald family.
The YT has been entered into the Concours d’Elegance at Blenheim Palace this year with the preparation of the vehicle entrusted to us.
There was a fuel leak which Ady has fixed by fitting a new carburettor needle valve and seat.
Along with fixing some of her internal complaints, some aesthetics have also been corrected in our specialist paint shop by expert painter Darren. “I’ve polished out some minor scratches in the paint work and worked on some localised rust marks.”
The car will also been fully detailed by Viper Auto Valet and perfected in preparation for display at Blenheim Palace.
We love seeing this car back at the workshop, we’re honoured to have the pleasure of working on such a special car. The story of this car is simply incredible!
In the workshop today is our gorgeous 1937 Triumph Dolomite. Having worked on this car in the past we are very familiar with this vehicle. It’s been getting a lot of attention form everyone here at Bridge. We just love this lovely classic.
It’s in today with John as the water pump is weeping and there is a leak on the fuel sender unit.
To repair, we will firstly inspect the leaking area and fix where nessasary. We will also check the fuel tank seals and sender unit.
The next job for Paul and Chris to tackle is the wing mirrors of our Nissan 300ZX.
Paul removed the damaged wing mirrors from the vehicle and has passed them over to Chris in the Paint shop.
Chris firstly prepared the mirrors for paint, repairing the damage. He’s masked up the glass, rubbed them down, filled with filler, rubbed down filler and then applied primer.
Chris then gave the primed mirrors one more thorough rub down, ensuring the surface is perfect before paint.
He then applied the colour coat and top coat lacquer. Great work!
The mirrors will now head back to Paul to be installed into the vehicle.
Arriving in our workshops this week as a future restoration project we have our 1979 Arrow Daytona (Ferrari Daytona Recreation).
The car is a non runner due to an engine fault not too long ago which resulted in the car sitting with a blown engine. A second V12 Jaguar engine has been sourced and may be the resolution when restoring the car.
Over the years the owner has collected many many original and after-market Ferrari Daytona parts so although the car is extremely well produced and very close to the original Ferrari Daytona there are certain areas that do make the car less aesthetically pleasing. The interior, for instance, is not as close to an original Ferrari Daytona as it could be so original Ferrari interior parts have been purchased.
The entire car will be restored in our workshops later in the year with a new colour combination and a number of upgrades to further improve the car.
Kath and Brian has done a wonderful job transforming the roof lining of our Jensen 541R. There’s a lot of black components on this Jensen specification. The roof lining however is finished now in this sumptuous perforated cream headlining fabric, expertly trimmed by our Trim Shop team. They begun by fitting the restored roof bars into the roof of the car, using the old headlining as a template, it was a challenge to get the fabric to fit perfectly without any creases. This required the fabric to be kept taught from all angles. It’s now finished and looking wonderful.
Our 1982 Porsche 911 is in the workshops to have a couple of areas of paintwork addressed. The front nearside wing has a small but deep scratch that needs repairing. The rear spoiler has unfortunately suffered the effects of having slight moisture. The car has been sitting under a cover and we believe the cover has allowed moisture to get in but not to breath which has resulted in a very minor bubbling effect. This area will need to be stripped of paint, treated, prepared properly and re-painted.
Whilst in, we will look to repair a small tear in the roof lining. We are aiming to repair the area in situ, without having to replace it with new. itr would be lovely to keep the existing roof lining but we’ll assess the results once complete to see whether it is to our satisfaction.
Finally, all four wheels will undergo a full refurbishment.
Scott has been working hard on our Peugeot 504 project. This lovely classic was in need of some serious rust repairs. As with all rust repairs, it’s very difficult to tell exactly how far the rust has penetrated into the vehicle until you start cutting it out. As Scott has found, in this case there was a lot of rust! Work like this needs to be done correctly to future-proof the car and keep the vehicle in top shape for many years to come.
Scott is now at the fabrication stage of this extensive repair. He’s been shaping and welding in fresh metal, replacing what has been cut out.
Cracking work, Scott!
This wonderful classic Peugeot will head over to Chris in the paint shop when Scott has finished. Once in the paint shop, Chris will begin shaping and perfecting the bodywork in preparation for fresh paintwork.
Brian and Kath have been flat out the past few weeks since returning to our workshop. They’ve been tackling the interior on our two Jensen 541R’s.
Brian has been mainly working on creating the bespoke wooden panelling and Kath has been working with our leather and fabric.
The old interior has been used by Kath as a template to cut our fresh leather to. She has then fitted the new leather to Brian’s bespoke built wooden panelling.
We’ve now finished work on the front two seats and the rear seat base and back swab of our black 1960 Jensen. The next stages will be to fit the headlining which will be a gorgeous cream colour. This should offset the black leather and black exterior paint wonderfully!
We recently painted our lovely little 1996 Mini. The car has now been fitted up by our good friend Ted at Team C Racing and is back with us to have a few minor repairs and touching up in the paint shop. The work is now complete and the car safely back with Ted to continue the rebuild.
We took a look back at one of our favourite restoration projects, the 1949 MGYT. This car already has such a rich history and priceless sentimental value. Read the story of our 1949 MGYT restoration below…
Bridge Classic Cars would like to thank everyone who entered our 1964 MGB Roadster competition. This donation was made on behalf of each and every one of you who supported our first ever competition.
Thank you to all the wonderful NHS staff and key workers across the country. We are immensely grateful for your courage, resilience and compassion in these trying times.
Stay safe, stay well and stay positive.
The Bridge Classic Cars Team
Dave has been installing the newly trimmed seats into the car. They really do look wonderful in position. He’s currently fitting the driver side seat. Firstly, Dave installed the seat rails before mounting the seat onto the rails.
The four point racing seatbelts are being custom fitted to the chassis.
We’ve fitted a new grille, manufactured by Bride Classic Cars on tooling disigned in house. Made from stainless steel rather than the soft alloy that Jensen made from new.
The spotlights that are notorious for coming loose have been re-secured.
Air vent grille screws were loose due to worn fibreglass body sections. Area has been fibreglass re-matted and re-drilled to the correct size to ensure a tight fit.
Bonnet catch release suffers from fibreglass cracking due to the incorrect opening of the bonnet.
This are has been remitted, strengthened and hardware refitted to ensure longevity of the repair.
The front section has been totally resprayed as incorrect front bumper alignment lead to the bonnet rubbing against the bumper skirt causing damage to paint.
Both horns were faulty and we have fitted original, refurbished horns from our stores.
Front bumper skirt has been moved forward. Non-standard rubber protection has been removed to ensure that the front skirt sits away from the bonnet valance to elevate rubbing causing paint damage.
We’ve also removed the clock, refitted new batteries and replaced.
Re-alignment of bonnet and inner wings to stop bonnet rubbing on inner wings and damaging the black paint.
We’re delighted to present to you our recently restored TVR Grantura! ?
A stalled restoration, this Grantura was brought to us at Bridge Classic Cars to complete restorative works. We’re honoured to have brought this wonderful British sports car a new lease of life, what are your thoughts?
Thank you to Butley Priory for allowing us to shoot at such a wonderful location.
Check out the entire restoration diary via the following link:
https://bridgeclassiccars.co.uk/category/projects/completed/1962-tvr-grantura/
Entering our classic car workshop this week is our breathtaking Aston Martin DB5. Famously, one of James Bond’s most iconic vehicles, it’s easy to see why the DB5 has become such a cult classic.
This lovely example is in with us to remedy some engine niggles. It will be seen by our classic car engine specialists to diagnose and remedy the issue.
