NERVOUS SURGEONS

 

With the co-owned black PA Cresta, due to be featured in the local newspaper 'The Luton News' Nick & Jon decided that this could be an opportunity to unlock a treasure trove of spares, from within the local area. With this also being the then hometown of Vauxhall production the brothers thought the press coverage may lead to various spares being offered to them.

The article featured other members of the South Beds Cruisers, with the brothers offering their phone number, for anyone to contact them on.

2 days after the paper was out, the brothers received a call, with someone offering not just spares but a complete car. It was a genuine low mileage example, from 1961, in olive green, and the car was located under a mile from the Vauxhall factory. Nick & Jon were not originally very keen on the car as the 61 model had been subject to a dramatic facelift and rear end redesign which did not particularly appeal to the brothers who heavily favoured the 58 – 59 model, despite this they arranged to see the car the next night, and duly arrived at the owners address, where they were greeted by his wife who ushered them into the living room. Here they met the owner who was clearly not in good health. He explained why he had contacted them: - he wanted his car to go to genuine enthusiasts.

He went onto explain the reason for the car only having covered just over 15000 miles, he had purchased it secondhand from Vauxhall in 1962 as it was at that point a company car being used from new by one of GM's senior managers, he had subsequently been promoted and had returned to the US, with the PA being offered at a knock down price to any employee who came up with the folding!

He had purchased it with the intention of passing his driving test, but strangely this achievement had eluded him in the intervening years. The PA had been delivered the very short distance to his house where it had sat for 18 years. He informed the gob smacked duo that he had regularly started the car up and reversed it out of his garage, checked all the levels run the engine for a short while, then re-parked it in his garage. He even had the fuel tank topped up via a friend who had brought fuel in 5 gallon cans to him.

He now wanted to sell the car and had seen Nick & Jon in the local paper, he told them that a neighbour had asked him to sell the car to him, but he reasoned he did not want to be able to see the car when it was sold, so had contacted the brothers instead.

Finally they were taken out to the garage, whereupon the doors opened and their jaws hit the ground. In front of them sat a truly immaculate car, the paint was certainly faded, (the owner confirming that he had never polished the car) but apart from a small amount of bubbled paint on the front wing, the car was in superb condition. It even had the original clear seat covers still on the seats, with the rear looking like they had never made the acquaintance of a buttock!

The car was started and purred away, with the brothers exchanging glances which began to reflect the same concerns, this car was way above what they would be able to afford.

As the discussion turned to the value of the car, the owner would not quote a figure instead opting to ask the brothers to make him an offer. Eventually, the brothers left after agreeing to ring him before the weekend. Over the next few days they gathered their resources together, but as the looks between them in the garage had suggested they only managed to raise £300. They rang the owner, and informed him that in their opinion the car was worth in excess of £1000 and was therefore beyond their finances, he agreed it was worth that sought of money but wanted to know if they could not afford that much, how much could they afford. The brothers were embarrassed, but informed him that they had only managed to raise £300, his reply to that was swift, “it’s yours”.

Despite their protestations he would not change his mind insisting they conclude the deal quickly. In this day and age, all of this would unfortunately be ringing alarm bells, is it his to sell, is it a ringer, a cut n shut, but not in those days.

2 days later a rather sheepish duo were again trying to convince the owner to advertise it and sell it, this time in person. The owner and his wife were having none of it and insisted that the £300 that they had was sufficient. The deal was finally done and the brothers took ownership of the PA Cresta.

Jon got into the car and started it up, whilst Nick guided him back up the owner’s narrow drive. Nick descended the sloping drive down to the road and was still giving guidance to his brother, when he spotted a police car coming down the road towards him, he signaled with his hand to his brother to stop reversing, his hand signals became more frantic followed by desperate shouting at his brother to stop, but the PA was now descending the drive at an ever increasing speed on an almost certain collision course with the patrol car. Within a few milli seconds Nick was jumping out of the way as the PA whizzed past him just missing the back end of the police car, which continued on its way oblivious to the potential carnage it had just avoided. The PA however, was still on the move as it continued its journey across the road bouncing off the kerb until it finally came to rest.

Jon was ashen faced as his all too brief life had flashed before him, luckily the previous owner had not witnessed this, and the brothers soon diagnosed that a lack of brake fluid had resulted in the pre Alton Towers terror ride. The master cylinder was soon filled up, the brakes bled and the PA on its way back to the brother’s house. Where they began to wonder what to do with their second Cresta, which was in such good condition. For the next few weeks they remained undecided, but their indecision paled into insignificance when they learnt that the previous owner had passed away. They realized now, why he was so keen to sell the car, at such a low price, he knew he was dying and wanted the PA to be looked after properly.

This put a new burden on the brothers, but they decided that the best thing to do was to sell the car, as after 18 years it deserved to be used and no matter how they tried they could not take to the facelift model.

The PA was advertised for sale at £1500 in the press and at Custom shows that they attended, the shows proved to be the most effective route, with an 18 year old showing significant interest in the car. So much so he was driven over from Stevenage by a few of his friends to see the car, which the brothers had now relocated to one of their lockup garages on a nearby estate.

He liked what he saw and left a £100 deposit subject to his mother seeing the car and agreeing to its purchase as she was going to providing the finance.

Call the fashion Police, note the South Beds Cruisers Sweat shirt

A week later he was back but this time with his mother and like her son she was impressed with the car, but unlike her son she wanted to see the PA outside the garage and to take it for a test drive. The lockup was situated in one of two rows of garages which although they faced each other, one row was set below the other. Jon started the car and edged it out towards the light Nick was once again guiding him out of the garage to ensure the car did not get scratched in the tight lockup. Suddenly, Nick recognized the terror etched across his brother’s face, as once again the car was moving but Jon could not stop it, the car shot past Nick heading down the incline towards the other row of garages. The car was heading straight for one of the up and over aluminum garage doors, which if it had stayed on this course would have resulted in potentially minor damage, but Jon was destined to try and repeat the Titanic and hit the garages with a glancing blow, instead he hit square on the concrete support to the side of the door. The thud sound overlaid with scrapping metal confirmed to the bemused on lookers that this particular scenario had not ended well. 

The once near immaculate PA had a decidedly ‘V’ shaped bonnet, grille and bumper. In the silence that followed, Nick assures me that he could hear the faint sound of the money for the car blowing away in the breeze!

Once again the PA had lost all of its brake fluid, resulting in not only the damage but also to the much reduced price they achieved for the car later that week. Interestingly enough it was still purchased by the 18 year old and 2 years later the brothers saw the PA at Knebworth looking absolutely fantastic. So if you have any cars you want crash testing Jon is your man!