Sunday morning 5 July 2026 was clear and sunny ahead of forecast rain storms in the afternoon. Making use of the weather, I headed down to Classic Cars and Coffee. There was a good turnout without the usual congestion. The photos I took were at the end of the morning however when many cars had departed. I don't think I've seen this Lancia Beta before. Sunbeam and a Jaguar Morris Minor van Mini and Moke Is Zaz, is Good! ZAZ-965A https://petrolicious.com/blogs/articles/1968-zaz-965a-zaporozhets Volvo 122S Triumph TR3 Dodge ute The Delorean. Good to see one of these on the road again. Ironically, these cars were something of a joke when introduced in the late 1970s and the company quickly went bankrupt. However, after the movie 'Back to the Future', they became one of the most recognizable cars in the world. The DKW's elegant arse. And a 1947 Jeep celebrating the 4th of July Land Rover My DKW and Mike's Jeep Sexy Saab 900 convertible Dusan's legendary Skoda British fibreglass classic, the TVR Taimar BMW Lotus Elan heading home
Back in April 2026, Shelly and I set out for the second Warren-Blackwood Heritage Rally in Bridgetown. I had opted to take the Tatra down as the DKW did not enjoy the hilly country around Bridgetown so much. I had the car serviced to make sure she was in a fit state for the journey. One of the things I was keen to resolve was sorting out the clutch. When I was filming the segment for the RAC "In my Garage" there was a moment when the clutch pedal dropped to the floor and did not spring back. It was captured on the video and appears in the last five minutes of the segment. Anyway, I jury-rigged a spring that kept tension on the pedal but I knew that was only a temporary repair. When the guys had the car on a hoist, they looked at the pedal box and found nothing wrong, so then checked the connection at the clutch end. There they found evidence of many old repairs and noted the clutch rod was badly bent. They straightened the rod and set it back in its correct position. I subsequently test drove the Tatra several times and noted the clutch was working properly and gears were shifting well. However, one hour out of Fremantle - PING! The clutch pedal dropped to the floor and would not return to position. Fortunately I was in the process of changing gears through a round-about and was slipping into neutral at the time, which allowed me to coast to halt. I could not however get the car into any gear. Once again RAC came to the rescue and had the car towed home. https://rac.com.au/car-motoring/roadside-assistance So, the Tatra's clutch needed to be investigated. It took a while to get a spot in my mechanic friend's schedule - there certainly is a shortage of mechanics who will work on classic cars and bikes. I had her trucked away at the end of May. To our surprise, the issue was not with the clutch rod or the previous repair. In the end the engine had to come out and the connection in the bell housing investigated. Fortunately the whole drive train can be wheeled out the back of the car. The problem was that the clutch activator in the bell housing had jammed against a lubrication nipple. It seems the spring we used to keep the rod in alignment was too tight, pushing the rod hard against the clutch lever. The springs were adjusted and the engine refitted and it was job done. What better time to take the Tatra for a test run than Classic Cars and Coffee. Rain and storms were forecast, which I think resulted in a lower attendance. At least I could park centrally instead of being forced to the outskirts. The weather was absolutely fine however, great for a car show in the morning. Two rear engine legends - Tatraplan and Fiat 500. Citroen CX Landrover and a 1947 Willys (that has been badly modified). The Willys will soon be restored to original military spec. And more Landrover action "Put a tiger in your tank" 1947 Cadillac (I think?) I think this was an Austin Seven converted into a racer Big Bentley Mercedes-Benz 1968 Datsun Bluebird. My first car was one of these. It was brush-painted in tan household paint, but was a great little car. Japanese reliability with body by Pininfarina. Austin-Healey Hillman Imp by DJ Ferraz
Something very interesting and different - Ferret armoured car
Photo by DJ Ferraz Coffee and Armoured Cars Although it was quieter than usual, it was still very busy
The Distinguished Gentlemen's ride is a worldwide charity event that raises money for men's mental and physical health. Several members of the KBG attended this year, some doing the full ride, others just the start. The rendezvous point was Form Cafe in Claremont, near the showground along the railway line. We had a good turnout with 9 bikes at the start. First thing to do is grab a coffee and then stand around talking about bikes.
Star of the show was Jim's 1951 Moto Guzzi Galletto step-thru motorcycle. I call it a motorcycle rather than a scooter as it's certainly something different. It introduced many technical features that would not be adopted for decades. https://www.oldbikemag.com.au/moto-guzzi-galletto-something-crow/
And then we set off. We rode through the pleasant riverside suburbs of Crawley, round Mounts Bay Road and then in to Elizabeth Quay, this year's starting point.
We were among the last to arrive.
Wayne's Norton 1951 Moto Guzzi Galletto. Regardless of what the linked article says, these were only built for 2 years - 1950 and 1951. Dusan's Jawa 350 My 1958 Ariel Leader Richard's 1940s BSA outfit with 2 seater enclosed sidecar. My favourite - a Honda Motocompo. These folding scooters were sold as transport for a "drive your car home" service in the 1980s and 1990s. If you were a little 'under the weather' and couldn't drive your car home and you subscribed to the service, a driver would ride out on their Motocompo and drive you and your car home. The Motocompo would be folded up and put in the boot. Then they would ride it home again. Ahh, the days before Uber. Vintage bikes are actually rare at DGR now. It used to be a vintage only event once. If I remember rightly, this was a 1938 BSA.
The other side of the BSA.
Craig's VBB Vespa
Richard's 1967 Honda CB77 Superhawk A quite nice Royal Enfield Scooter crew Coffee and motorcycles The bikes start queuing to set off From here to the horizon.... Very unusual - Douglas
"And they're away!" There were hundreds of bikes - literally!
