Sunday, November 28, 2010
Wollongong Car Show
Drove up to Wollongong Car Show on Sunday to check it out. It wasn't a big show but there were some interesting collectable cars, mainly Holdens! Caught up with a few people who had classic cars and met Stuart who has just restored a Rover Coupe. It turns out he just lives down the street from me. The car went well and had many positive comments, as not many people had seen a Humber Sceptre before.
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Wedding Car
Arranged to help out at a friend's wedding by driving some of the family to the beach where the wedding was to be held. Fortunately it was a beautiful day as we have had many wet, cold ones lately. The wedding went off without a hitch and everybody enjoyed themselves. I had cleaned and polished it for the occasion and my Humber Sceptre had many admiring comments, especially from the 2 guys driving the wedding cars - thought it was a unique classic car.
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Shoalhaven 40th Anniversary Rally
I decided to take the Humber down to the 40th Anniversary Rally of the Shoalhaven Historic Vehicle Club. There were a huge number of cars from all over NSW and the ACT, including 50 classic cars, as well as veteran and vintage vehicles. I enjoyed wandering around looking at the variety of interesting cars and motorbikes with some beautiful restorations, especially some early Chrysler coupes. In the afternoon, all the cars went for a drive around the Shoalhaven and then parked at Berry for lunch. I was delighted (and surprised) when my Sceptre won the trophy for Best Classic Car! A credit to Bruce (the previous owner).
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Why a Sceptre?
I purchased a 1966 MkII Humber Sceptre (Old Red) from an enthusiast on the north coast. It was his 7th Humber/Hillman, so he really knew his cars. He spent a lot of time and money on restoring the car to an immaculate condition. It is a unique collectable car in Australia as they were all fully imported. The Humber Club thought there were less than a dozen still in Australia!
Over a number of years, he had the engine reconditioned, new brakes, radiator, tyres and suspension, as well as a total respray and all handles re-chromed! I would hate to have to have restored it from scratch! The car reminded me of the glamorous American cars of the 50’s and 60’s – but much smaller! It looks a real classic car from the 60's and so far it attracts lots of attention, where ever we go. Even Heather enjoys going for a ride!
Over a number of years, he had the engine reconditioned, new brakes, radiator, tyres and suspension, as well as a total respray and all handles re-chromed! I would hate to have to have restored it from scratch! The car reminded me of the glamorous American cars of the 50’s and 60’s – but much smaller! It looks a real classic car from the 60's and so far it attracts lots of attention, where ever we go. Even Heather enjoys going for a ride!
What are the Humber Sceptre Mk1 and Mk11?
The Sceptre was introduced in 1963 as part of the Rootes “light car range”. Similar to the earlier Sunbeam Rapier, the Sceptre was a comfortable four door, four-seater designed for long distance transport in comfort. The Sceptre appealed to those with more money but who wanted a small and economical car. As such, the Sceptre was the car of choice of well-heeled people.
The Mk I had a 4 cylinder OHV unit of 1592cc produced 80bhp and gives a top speed of around 90mph, a 0-60 in about 17 seconds. This was replaced with the larger 1725cc engine from late 1965, the engine also being in a better state of tune than that used for the lower models. The manual transmission model was fitted with overdrive on 3rd and 4th gears and this was a self-cancelling overdrive.
The 4 cylinder in line engine has twin Zenith carburettors, a 4 speed manual overdrive gearbox and live rear axle. Brakes drums at the rear and discs at the front are perfectly capable with dealing with modern driving conditions.
The MkII Sceptre arrived in 1965 and visually the four headlamps are now flared into a new full width grille. Under the bonnet was the five bearing 1725cc four-cylinder engine that produced 85bhp. The Mk II also had a interior update and overall drove as well as the Mk I but with more performance.
As befits its status, the Sceptre had additional sound deadening and was designed to be a quiet and very refined car. It had all the usual luxury items inside, including very comfortable seats and a plush interior with a full range of instruments including, fuel gauge, oil pressure, ammeter and water temperature along with a centrally mounted clock complementing the usual speedometer and rev counter. The car was slightly bigger but, despite all the extra equipment, it was not a lot heavier and this, with the higher tuned engine, resulted in good performance and handling. The Humber Sceptre and the Vauxhall Cresta remain 2 of the British cars that captured the look of the American Classic car that is so loved by the modern day rockabilly crowd. While my Humber Sceptre is now regarded as a collectable car, it is not too big, so I can use it as my every day driving car
The Mk I had a 4 cylinder OHV unit of 1592cc produced 80bhp and gives a top speed of around 90mph, a 0-60 in about 17 seconds. This was replaced with the larger 1725cc engine from late 1965, the engine also being in a better state of tune than that used for the lower models. The manual transmission model was fitted with overdrive on 3rd and 4th gears and this was a self-cancelling overdrive.
The 4 cylinder in line engine has twin Zenith carburettors, a 4 speed manual overdrive gearbox and live rear axle. Brakes drums at the rear and discs at the front are perfectly capable with dealing with modern driving conditions.
The MkII Sceptre arrived in 1965 and visually the four headlamps are now flared into a new full width grille. Under the bonnet was the five bearing 1725cc four-cylinder engine that produced 85bhp. The Mk II also had a interior update and overall drove as well as the Mk I but with more performance.
As befits its status, the Sceptre had additional sound deadening and was designed to be a quiet and very refined car. It had all the usual luxury items inside, including very comfortable seats and a plush interior with a full range of instruments including, fuel gauge, oil pressure, ammeter and water temperature along with a centrally mounted clock complementing the usual speedometer and rev counter. The car was slightly bigger but, despite all the extra equipment, it was not a lot heavier and this, with the higher tuned engine, resulted in good performance and handling. The Humber Sceptre and the Vauxhall Cresta remain 2 of the British cars that captured the look of the American Classic car that is so loved by the modern day rockabilly crowd. While my Humber Sceptre is now regarded as a collectable car, it is not too big, so I can use it as my every day driving car
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