The Autoshite Day Trip 2010 - Stondon Museum - 26 Sept

[garycox]

A great day out today, thanks guys!

 

That museum is awesome. Did anyone take a pic of that horrible DAF estate?

[Dead_E23]

Did anyone take a pic of that horrible DAF estate?

You mean this thing, lurking behind the Tula?

 

 

(Actually, I stood for a few moments admiring it; istr the interior was nicely set off by some unsavoury-looking baggy seatcovers)

[seth]

Aha! At least someone got a photo of the Trigger Jumper. Well done Dolly.

 

Oh apologies for dashing off early and I know I didn't get to say "see ya!" to everyone but I had to get beck to attend to "business".

[Guest]

I didn't know there was going to be a girl there!

[AXrescuer]

Didn't you? Pog did say that he would be going!

[michiel]

Some of you are much older/younger than you seem online...

[AnthonyG]

I didn't know there was going to be a girl there!

 

Indeed. Mrs Trig seemed remarkably tolerant of Mr Trig's shitehunting activities, even the mother in law is now taking photos of 'crap cars' apparently !

 

It was a great day, good to meet people and put faces to 'made-up' names!

 

Museum was pure autoshite in every way from exhibits to signage, even the gift shop, full of old headlights and 1970s car radios.

[Maestroman]

What a great venue! I even bought some out of date crisps and a Wolseley radiator grille as souvenirs!

 

I didn't get to say hello to everyone unfortunately, but Dollywobbler, AnthonyG, Tortsten, Barrett, Minimad, Watanabe, and a few other I didn't know who they were on AS - it was great to meet you

[RedSparrow]

That place looks EPIC.

So sad that I couldn't go - bloody foot!

Hope you all had a good one, looks like you did.

[Electric Leyland]

Thoroughly excellent day out (despite weather) and fabulous to meet up with everyone.

 

Enjoyed very much chatting to everyone I spoke to, sorry if didn't manage to talk to you but I was quite overcome by the whole situation, so many cars and people, and the museum itself! Just ..... wow. Couldn't have picked a more appropriate place.

 

Did folks stay long in the pub after we left? Even my team won the football afterwards (sorry Alan!). Perfect day.

 

Roll on the next one!

 

More pics, no apologies for repeats either...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Electric Leyland]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Spottedlaurel]

Looks like a great time was had by all, and what a place!

 

I was with you in spirit, carting loads of magazines which Baz had kindly let me have into the shed and then laying underneath the Laurel fitting new idler arm bushes for its MoT.

 

Next year...

[Guest]

'Twas an epic day out.

 

My photos to follow shortly.

[whitevanman]

Looks like a crackin' day out, shame I work weekends from April to September, can we do a meet in March or October next year? I can probably come to that one

[trigger]

It was a cracking day out, The best I've had for a while, even Mrs Trigger said how much she enjoyed herself and how nice everyone was, It will be nice to see more of you next time though

 

My biggest disappointment was not having enough time to look at everyone's cars outside properly or get to chat to get one as much as I'd like, I don't think the rain helped much neither as we all had to shelter inside the cafe and might go back again just so i can get more photos!

 

anyway here's the few that i did get.

 

 

 

The 'Managements' jalopys.

 

 

Pandamonium's Merc, I heard this spinning it's way up the road as it was leaving!

 

 

 

I think these two belonged to the museum.

 

 

alf892's stunning Rover 12 (far to posh for autoshite! )

 

 

Dolly's err.. Dolly.

 

 

Pog's chavmobile

 

 

Mr Lobz van (this made me have a little lob-on to)

 

 

The Liberator's amazing 33000 mile Alfasud.

 

 

Seth's MX-5 powered Herald.

 

 

Oldford's mint sofa dodging Sierra.

 

 

Wuvvum's Innocenti.

 

 

Torsten's rocket powered Acclaim.

 

 

GarethJ's Ginetta.

 

 

Tontops Cossie.

 

 

and 109landys3's 1600 Maestro, Apologies to angrydicky and M'coil who's Austin A35 and Saab 900 i never got as they turned up late and it was raining later on!.

[trigger]

My museum photo's didn't come out all there great but here's a selection of a few.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[trigger]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I must of took more then i thought i did!

 

Then just before we left for the pub we was greeted with this bunch!

 

 

 

 

 

Oh there's Dickys A35 and M'coil's Saab.

 

Here's the link to the rest of my photos http://www.flickr.com/photos/triggersca ... 027676942/

 

See you all next time!

[oldford]

We were looking into this hall from outside in the car park. The car on the end closest to the window next to the Sierra is a Ferrari. The following could have only been said by a hardened Autoshiteist:

 

'Is that an Allegro Police car at the back?'

 

 

Another picture that captures the ambience of the location, taken in the refreshments area:

 

 

Could do with a bit of gaffa tape for added strength and protection from those screw heads.

[worldofceri]

Wow. That place makes Cov Transport Museum look like Tate Modern. It's amazing. I have a crafty day off work next Tuesday; I'm going.

 

Top turnout from the Autoshite hardcore... I didn't go because a) I'm new here; I'm shy; 3) I have no (roadworthy) shite; d) I was otherwise engaged.

 

Definitely up for the next one though...

[Mr H Sceptre]

What a bloody brilliant day out

 

Great to meet everyone, & apologies to those folk I didn't get the chance to chat to much.

 

For me, the car of the museum was the stunning orange Peugeot 104/ZA.

 

The vehicle of the carpark was that strange white contraption rusting away in the corner.

 

Quote of the day was (forgotten who said it, sorry) along the lines of "If any more old cars show up, this carpark is going to end up like a dogging carpark with all us lot here". Brilliant.

 

Jumper of the day.............well, there can only be one winner here eh Trigger.

 

 

 

What time did folk stay in The Crown until? Would have loved to have stayed longer, but driving home pissed up probably wouldnt have been too wise. I ended up heading back to London with Mr Leyland (via ditching cars at his work in Steveenage), where we had a fair few more ales & discussed what agreat day we had.

[michiel]

Re that last pic; please don't tell the H&S officials... what a place! Love that prewar Peugeot. And (almost) all your cars guys!

[Angrydicky]

We stayed until about 6ish I think, I took the M1 and M25 on the way home, it was pissing it down the whole way but the A35 didn't miss a beat once and I had it up to 70 a few times

 

Got home at 9pm - very tired!

[pandamonium]

 

Pandamonium's Merc, I heard this spinning it's way up the road as it was leaving!

 

 

 

I didn't think anyone would have heard... erm..

it was wet.. my tyres are crap...

[Lankytim]

Gutted I missed this, I was otherwise engaged but pretty local in Thurleigh. Maybe next time!

[alf892]

It was a great day out and it only took me an hour to get home.

 

Mind you it is only about 30 miles..........

 

where next??

[trigger]

Quote of the day was (forgotten who said it, sorry) along the lines of "If any more old cars show up, this carpark is going to end up like a dogging carpark with all us lot here". Brilliant.

 

That would have been me as well..

 

I was a bit worried about you driving back in the A35 Dicky in that weather, It was nerve racking enough in my car let alone in your car, at least you made it home safely.

 

I enjoyed the pub (apart from my jacket potato) but was the smoke from the open fire getting to anyone else?, I stunk of smoke when i got home.

[Angrydicky]

 

I was a bit worried about you driving back in the A35 Dicky in that weather, It was nerve racking enough in my car let alone in your car, at least you made it home safely.

 

I enjoyed the pub (apart from my jacket potato) but was the smoke from the open fire getting to anyone else?, I stunk of smoke when i got home.

 

Thanks for the concern Trigger, luckily it was ok even though the weather was terrible and the traffic was very heavy. I was worried about your lovely Kadett out in all that rain, I hope you carefully dried it off before it went back in its garage

 

Re the smoke, I didn't actually notice. I thought it was Barrett and his roll-ups...

[garycox]

There was smoke in the pub?

[trigger]

I must have a sensitive nose then!

 

And yes Dicky, I gave her a dry as soon as i got it in the garage, I'm glad it's been so waxoyled and undersealed in the past!

[Guest]

Yes. What an interesting day out that was.

As for Stondon - BANG ON TREND, so well done Management. Have a sporadic collection of snaps by way of gratitude.

 

Where to start?

Well, for one thing I was in charge of getting us there. Inevitably, that meant MM5 and my good self arrived late. We had come down from Walsall as I'd seen a set of KN Geminis I fancied for my Amazon. The fact that the PCD was better suited to a Rover SD 1 was the merest trifle. I prefer tea if it gets cold enough. It also meant that Stondon was 92 miles away, instead of 158.

 

My s[h]at nav did not appreciate the nuances and \ or rolling hills of Bedfordshire. The A507 was a particular point of contention, leaving guess work to fill in the blanks left by the maps that hadn't been updated on the TomTom since 2004. Having passed an inderminate Shelby GT350 at least three times, a Maestro themed greenhouse and umpteen picket fences, we surged past the scrappily signposted entrance on a surge of turbodiesel torque. The penny only dropped as to the museum's whereabouts when we spied a quartet of Berkleys farting into the carpark, patchily surfaced with broken tarmac and aggregate.

Several familiar vehicles were in attendance.

 

 

2CV, unencumbered with Hatred, scourge of the wheeled rainforest.

 

 

Management's Audi. This looks almost identical to the one that accosted me at Retro Rides 2007, whereby a card was produced and I was told my 120 'would fit right in'.

 

 

Seth was leaving as we pulled up. Replete with unusual engine note, he roared back to London.

 

 

A beautiful 1500 Alfasud was parked up next to Mr.Lobster's 4 Van. I later learned this belonged to Liberator.

 

 

Management leave to enjoy the comfort and surroundings of the nearby pub in 'Henlow'. (AXRescuer : 2010 : forum)

 

 

We arrived in the middle of a bubblecar meet up. The three wheeled Berkeleys were the most common marque.

 

 

SM was crumbling away in the car park gracefully. I tried to look past the towrope and deflated oleopneumatic suspension. As with the CX Turbo we were to encounter later, Stondon is a depressing place if you're an Opron era Citroen.

 

We got a fleeting glimpse of the autojumble-cum-garden centre that comprised the giftshop when MM5 and me were left alone to go round the museum itself. We had but an hour and we weren't going to waste it.

The first hall proved to be a mesmerisingly inconsistent amalgam of scattered epherma and chronological ambivalence. There seemed to be no dominant theme or organisation anywhere. To be honest, this was quite refreshing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The first car that struck me was the second generation Piazza. Imported from the USA, it carried little over from the disasterous first car that sold so poorly in the UK. By 1990 Isuzu had abandoned car sales for the far more lucrative 4 x 4 market. The new Piazza was a front wheel drive warm hatch with only a passing nod to its predecessor - namely the powered 'eyebrows' that uncovered the whole of the headlight cluster on full beam. Why these cues, first seen on the Iso Fidia and Alfa Romeo Montreal, were incorporated into a dumpy Geo Storm spin off is anyone's guess. It looked at home in Stondon strangely enough, dwarfed by an Interceptor III that was narrowly avoiding the incoming rain.

 

Grim weather was the essential foil for an Autoshite meet. It was pouring down when we pulled into the car park, and such inclement weather was still making its presence felt inside the converted sheds of Stondon. A late 50's Bentley suffered the ignominy of incoming droplets as the rain pattered down on the corrugated roofing over our heads. A 105 E Anglia cowered within its orange peel paintwork as a natural drain sluiced through a central support as the resident cat looked on, wondering why a single Ford was parked amongst a sea of Vauxhalls.

A staff member was later seen making the most of the moist climate by wiping down a damp DeTomsaro Longchamp without the often tiresome need for a bucket.

 

 

The sheer variety of cars within each ramshackle hall was stunning, and equally bereft of logic. Your eye would first be caught by an FSO 125P, and then by a Panther J72, or an Outspan Peugeot 104...the list was endless, and baffling. The collection itself felt like a deeply personal one, with cars chosen on merit rather than any kind of canonical preference. Where else would you see a Lancia Beta Monte Carlo nose to tail with a Trabant 601?

 

 

The exhibition halls were bursting at the seams, with some very worthy candidates left outside to brave the elements. Casualties included a Mk 2 Granada and Mk 1 Transit (both in Police livery) as well as a TRX shod CX GTI. Dollywobbler wished he hadn't seen that one.

 

 

 

 

This Mk 2 Granada looked like a concours police recreation that had recently been pushed out into the elements. It deserves better, otherwise it might as well be sectioned up and put on sale in pieces like its brethren in the gift shop whose component parts were sale amongst the CKD sheds and 'best before' crisps.

 

 

Stondon's eclectic vehicle selection is at once its greatest asset and worst enemy. Their stock really needs to be slimmed down without losing the chaotic sense of vareity that permeates its walls. Motorbikes, military equipment, cars and bicycles were all fighting for space and attention. Few were concours, several were soggy and most had more than their fair share of Isopon shaping their exterior panels.

 

 

 

The haphazard layout of Stondon made the discovery of the rare and quick machines all the more fascinating. Amid the motorbikes, the sopping wet lino and terrifying doll \ painting dichotomies stood a tidy Lotus Carlton, still sporting the OEM numberplates it was supplied with from Mann Egerton. As befits a Stondon exhibit, it was near - impossible to photograph.

 

 

Mark and I half stumbled out of the final hall and into what can only be described as a bizarre bazaar of car boot sale, breaker's yard and B&Q. The good bits were not for sale. The bad bits were covered in dust. The interesting bits were either too expensive or otherwise purchased by us. I got my hands on a small piston which I've since inverted and used as a pen pot. Mark bought its twin and a battered Smiths oil pressure gauge.

 

 

We both noted EL's comments in the guest book on the way out.

 

How can one sum up Stondon? A garden centre full of cars? One man's paean to the past hundred years of transport?

It's all of this and more. It even has a recreation of a battleship (tours available) overlooking a gravel pit.

A place better embodying Autoshite has not yet been created.

 

 

 

An early Alfasud has since made 'the list' of cars which I aspire to own later in life.

 

 

 

One from the heyday of the British motor industry....

 

 

....And to finish on, one from the era Autoshite will always cherish.

 

Thanks for a great day out Management!