Moving to Devon

Self Drive Classics Ltd is moving its car hire operation from its original base at Hamstall Ridware near Lichfield to Ivybridge in south Devon. Self Drive classics was established in 2004 and has been successfully hiring classic cars to customers from all over the UK for the past 11 years. The move to Devon is largely for personal reasons but it does give us the opportunity to refresh the business and a great excuse to go out and buy some more cars. 

The theme has been expanded to now include more modern sports car and a few 'fun' cars to make the holiday even more special. We have added a Porsche Boxster and an Alfa Romeo GTV spider for those who want style and performance and a little more comfort than you get in a 60's MG. For the surfer dudes and fun lovers we have a great Jeep Wrangler with a fully removable roof and sides so you can make the most of the Devon sunshine with the security of a full roll cage (also useful for attaching the surfboards). 

The classic fleet is getting refreshed too we expect to add a few more popular classics so watch this space.

As well as classic and sports car hire we have set up www.devonclassicweddingcars.co.uk offering a 1965 Zodiac, a 1968 Mercedes 250se and a Morris Minor convertible as chauffeur driven wedding cars in the south Devon area. Perfect for those who want to do things a little different to the usual wedding. 

The wedding cars and web site are all up and running and we expect to have the hire business established by next spring. 

We want to thank all of those wonderful people who have supported us over the years, spares suppliers, mechanics, specialists and, of course, the hundreds of happy customers who have experienced our classic cars over the past 11 years. So if any of you find your self in Devon then please pop in and say hello!

Classic Car MOT exemption

Last year the government - as instructed by the European Union - made cars build prior to 1960 exempt from the annual MOT. This was met with considerable opposition from the classic car community who could see where this action would ultimately lead. Now it seems the same European law makers are insisting that we extend the MOT exemption to vehicles over 30 years old. This means thousands of old cars would no longer be required by law to be subjected to an annual road worthiness test checking lights, brakes indicators and tyres. For the classic car hire hire industry this is a non starter. At the very minimum we would continue to have hire cars MOT'd annually as well as the usual maintenance older cars require. If you are hiring a classic car you should insist on checking that the car carries a current MOT as well as being satisfied that the car is being regularly maintained. There can be no guarantee of safety especially with older cars when mechanical components may fail despite the strictest maintenance regime. However, to remove one of the most basic safety checks seems insane and, frankly, dangerous. It is my belief that the ultimate goal is to see older cars removed from our roads and this will be facilitated by older cars causing more accidents and being labelled as dangerous and lacking in modern safety features. lets face it, the very powerful motoring lobby would rather we all bought brand new Euroboxes than kept out old classics on the road. I sincerely hope this is one of those daft European directives we will have the guts to ignore but I expect we will end up with this potentially fatal (in many ways) legislation on the books.

Steve's Zodiac

Well the 1965 Zodiac Mk3 is almost there. As usual it is the last little bits that are a problem such as door seals, wing mirror and bonnet rubbers. None of these items are available in the UK although I am told you can still obtain older Ford parts in Australia and New Zealand. Having owned a Mk2 Zodiac and now a Mk3 it does seem a shame that old ford are not catered for, certainly when compared to old Triumphs, MG's or Jaguars. Hopefully the Zodiac will soon be on www.selfdriveclassics.co.uk in the classic wedding car section.