Classic Car Mart July 2020

Welcome… CLASSICS IN LOCKDOWN I thought you’d be using your convertible today,” commented a neighbour a couple of weeks ago as he saw me unloading the shopping from my wife’s Golf and with the sun beating down on one of the hottest days of the year thus far he did have a point. What he didn’t know of course was that I had indeed originally planned to use my Alfa Spider for the grocery run during lockdown and would have been well within both the letter and spirit of the regulations to do so. But a classic convertible would have stuck out like a sore thumb on the almost-deserted roads and with its rattly exhaust (courtesy of a loose baffle in the centre silencer) I didn’t feel like drawing attention…

I thought you’d be using your convertible today,” commented a neighbour a couple of weeks ago as he saw me unloading the shopping from my wife’s Golf and with the sun beating down on one of the hottest days of the year thus far he did have a point. What he didn’t know of course was that I had indeed originally planned to use my Alfa Spider for the grocery run during lockdown and would have been well within both the letter and spirit of the regulations to do so. But a classic convertible would have stuck out like a sore thumb on the almost-deserted roads and with its rattly exhaust (courtesy of a loose baffle in the centre silencer) I didn’t feel like drawing attention to myself of the ‘lockdown…

Fears that a loss of apprentices amid the Covid-19 pandemic would seriously jeopardise the future of the historic vehicle movement are being replaced by a new sense of optimism as the industry looks to buck the nationwide trend. The pandemic has decimated numbers across the national apprenticeship landscape. A YouGov poll analysed by The Sutton Trust educational charity has suggested that three-fifths have been furloughed, made redundant or lost access to learning. Its report predicted there would be fewer vacancies in future, revealing that apprenticeship starts are already down by seven per cent in the first half of 2019/20 compared to last year, and expected to drop further. Initially, the historic vehicle industry looked set to be heavily affected. The Heritage Skills Academy, based at Bicester Heritage, has made significant steps over…

CHECK OUT LOADS MORE NEWS AT WWW.CLASSICSWORLD.CO.UK PLUGS&LEADS THE NEXT GENERATION Fears that a loss of apprentices amid the Covid-19 pandemic would seriously jeopardise the future of the historic vehicle movement are being replaced by a new sense of optimism as the industry looks to buck the nationwide trend. The pandemic has decimated numbers across the national apprenticeship landscape. A YouGov poll analysed by The Sutton Trust educational charity has suggested that three-fifths have been furloughed, made redundant or lost access to learning. Its report predicted there would be fewer vacancies in future, revealing that apprenticeship starts are already down by seven per cent in the first half of 2019/20 compared to last year, and expected to drop further. Initially, the historic vehicle industry looked set to be heavily affected. The…

MORE CLASSIC NEWS IN CLASSIC CAR BUYER ON SALE EVERY WEDNESDAY SCRAPPAGE THREAT TO MODERN CLASSICS Scrappage incentives to restart new car sales following the Covid-19 crisis could mean the end of the road for modern classics all over Europe. Germany is the first country to acknowledge that it is looking at introducing a scheme to get the car industry back up and running by using scrappage as a means of getting customers back into dealerships. Chancellor Angela Merkel met with executives from Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen Group and BMW to discuss Federal intervention to assist the industry on May 5. France meanwhile has already outlined an €8bn rescue package. Meanwhile, car companies and dealer groups across the UK are lobbying for an incentive scheme similar to the government backed Scrappage Scheme…

Scrappage incentives to restart new car sales following the Covid-19 crisis could mean the end of the road for modern classics all over Europe. Germany is the first country to acknowledge that it is looking at introducing a scheme to get the car industry back up and running by using scrappage as a means of getting customers back into dealerships. Chancellor Angela Merkel met with executives from Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen Group and BMW to discuss Federal intervention to assist the industry on May 5. France meanwhile has already outlined an €8bn rescue package. Meanwhile, car companies and dealer groups across the UK are lobbying for an incentive scheme similar to the government backed Scrappage Scheme of 2009/10. The industry has been hit hard, with new car registrations almost grinding to a halt in April after…