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No 88 Summer, December 2011

Price $5.00

We will start off the festive season by asking a question How many Horse Power is in this Photo submitted by Alan Town of the UK MOC and the proud owner of the TG. He has offered a substantial prize for the neatest, nearest correct answer, scribble your calculations on the back of a $50 note, submit it to Fred who may or may not pass it on, the other catch? You have to go to England to collect.

To all our readers

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This has been a rushed edition, no proof reading involved, so it comes to you warts and all. First a comment comes via correspondence from Geoff Goodwin of Mel-bourne, see page 20. This relates to lack of local content in our magazine. This edition appears to be an exception to the rule. All I now ask is that

you all keep up the good work by keeping the articles and stories flowing in. His second comment relates to the article on page 21 of the last mag; P 21 refers to Maverick Bond sticking “PMMA (whatever that is)”. Turn to page twenty for the answer!

It has come to our attention Those with Shannons insurance polices should ensure choice of repairer is still noted, other Suncorp polices are removing it.

Other correspondence received We receive magazines and newsletters from many associated clubs and organizations, some of these are done on an exchange bases, others I pay for. Over the past months more and more are being received electronically by John and Fred. Any members who would like cop-ies, again of the email versions please let Fred or John know. Received electronically are:-) RUM cars UK SIVA Western Australia Microscotic Scotland MOC UK Received as hard copy and always interesting reading :- Fiat Focus Sydney Scootercar register newsletter UK (quarterly) The British Two Stroke Club ‘Plug Whiskers’ Victoria. The Historic German Vehicle Register of Australia, Victoria. Microcar Club New Zealand The Goggomobil Register of Australia. Rootes Group ‘Inverted Commer’ Victoria. Copies of these would incur printing and postage costs. We send copies to all of the above in addition to Shannons and the CMC. It has also come to our attention that copies of our magazine are held by the State Library of NSW.

Club Preamble

'New to the group and renewals'

No information forthcoming for this section

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Fred’s Ramblings Here’s a tip when under emotional stress, head for the nearest tip. On Sunday, for solace, I took half of our kitchen to the tip. The other half was still attached to the walls; we’d planned that. We had brand new (to us but old to the bloke who flogged it) kitchen dresser, to replace the cupboards. It’s springtime. What do you expect? It’s time to spruce things up and make them fresh, again. It wasn’t a big deal. A screw here, a bump there, here a whack, there a crack, everywhere a smack, smack, and within moments the old would be out, the new would be in and we’d celebrate with a cup of tea and cake. The car would stop sulking and start working again because she’d have her garage back now the new cupboard was in the kitchen. Simple. The world would return to spinning on its axis. You already know what happened. It’s the same thing that happened to you and everyone else who thought they’d jump into a pretty simple job late on a Saturday afternoon. Pulling out cupboards is not like weeding the garden or pruning the roses. There’s always more to the story. Always a surprise lurking out of view. Like a hole bigger than the cupboard!! Anyway, Sunday that’s when I headed for the tip. I took the neighbour’s kids too: not to throw them out but, because for reasons I fondly remember, they love going there. We all do. If you have a good tip where the guys in fluoro let you take your time and wander about a bit, you probably love your dumping ground as well. On the right day, a tip is a $10 ticket to a station wagon-load of happiness. If there’s a busted up surfboard and they want to attack it like a Mutant Ninja and smash it into another thousand pieces, you let them. Not only that, you encourage them! YOU hold the surfboard for them. It doesn’t matter, it’s the tip! This is where all the junk goes to really die. The tip is it! The end of the line! Sayonara and thanks for the memories. All the bits of rub-bish know the huge tractor with the gigantic crush-everything wheels to make land fill. A crate-load of stubbies was right where we parked and the boys were on to them in a flash. “Can we smash ’em? Can we? Can we?’ I made out as though it was a tough decision. And then, magnanimously, “Of course you can!’ “Yeaaaaaaaaah. You’re the best”. They threw the stubbies high, they threw them low, they lined them up and chucked rocks as if they were in a stubby smashing shooting gallery. The boys found old spray cans and wrote their names on everything and it really didn’t mat-ter. Rocks were slapped into the mire with ancient, rusted golf clubs. Cars, bikes and scoot-ers were inspected “just in case”. It’s not quite like the old days when we were sent off into the world of rubbish to pick our way through the treasure. If we’d had our way we’d go home with more than we’d dumped. These days, there are rules and the kids had to limit their exploring to the edge of the mess. I did have to draw the line at smashing the back window of a really dinged-up old ute but only because someone was driving it at the time. We probably lasted an hour before being asked to move on, and it almost made the pain of the hole in the kitchen wall at home go away…… Almost!

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Past Events Sutho’ (or for the un-initiated Sutherland NSW)

Cops and Rodders day out by Scott Stevenson. A spur of the moment outing ended up as a windfall for the Micro Car and Scooter club with two trophies won by the two entrants Scott Stevenson and John Renshaw. The event took place at the Boys’ Town Oval, Engadine on 16/10 and was organised by the Police and Res-cue Services to help raise money for The St George Hospital Trauma Unit. I was looking through my local paper and came across the article advertising a car show/event being put on by the local Police. Upon closer inspection I found that it was being held the next Sunday which was only four days from when I saw the ad and you had to pre-register, damn. I decided to ring the contact number anyway to find out more details only to find I was talking to a Local Police Constable. He said they had now changed the registra-tion of the event and now you could register on the day and e-mailed me the forms, excel-lent. I promptly sent these off to John Renshaw and Allan Wall so others may attend. It was perfect weather as I set out for Engadine being unsure what to expect as it was a new event no one had been to before. Would a Micro Car fit into a “Rodders” event? Anyway it would be worth going if only to drive in my 1967 S800. Upon arrival Police were directing cars to the park up area, a good sign and collecting the entry fee and paper work for entrants. As I drove to my designated parking spot I was pleas-antly surprised to see a little Yellow NSU Prinz already parked a few spots from me, it was John Renshaw! Cars kept rolling in steadily until there were 100 or more. There was quite a variety of cars on show and some were of exceptional quality like the Mercedes convertible parked next to my car. This was restored to concourse quality by the gentleman owner and it was recently in a Concourse event held in Sydney, I was told. It had fuel injection, electric windows and roof all in 1967! Some of the highlights were a stretch Hummer that was nearly as long as a semi-trailer and had three rear axles, seating 24 and a model drag car 1/10 scale with a working jet engine installed that could reach 160Kmh. The small jet engine was

a real work of art and it even had an after burner that shot flames out the back. The guy had it on a table and controlled the engine with a remote controller. The funny thing was the only thing stopping it from literally lunch-ing off the table was his crotch which the nose of the thing was buried into. The engine seemed to have endless thrust and when you thought it had reached the peak it seemed to scream even higher and the guy seemed to be

straining to remain on his feet. I noticed none of the spectators were game to stand in front. Awesome!

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There was also a police dog display that showed how effi-cient these animals are at apprehending violent offenders on command. There was an endless amount of police and rescue equipment to view and the Westpac Helicopter landed to allow close contact by the public which was very interesting. Police rescue had a demonstration of how they cut smashed vehicles apart so as to remove the injured and there was also some live mu-sic. The awards presentation was held to-wards the end

of the day which I was unable to stay for but thankfully John stayed and picked up the trophy for the Most Unique for his Prinz then found himself picking up another for my Honda, which was best Japanese.

GWANDALAN......sounds like a fairytale principality, but no, it is a suburb of the central coast, or rather a charming village of around 3000 people on the southern end of Lake Mac-quarie. Saturday 22nd October was the 50th Anniversary of its one and only school ( primary) and the weekend was a celebration of this, which included the car show, to which our club was invited. Other festivities included stalls, jumping castles kids electric jeep rides, dinners, cruising, and entertainment. It was a longish day as car shows go, especially for us micros, including the 220km round trip and getting there by 9.00 am. The next day was a Chromefest at Gosford, so the (about) 80 great cars mainly hot rods or performance vehicles, included some of these participants who did their warm-up here Judging focussed mostly on things like best engine bay, best upholstery, best paint, best X etc, but there was also a people's choice which went to a very popular early model ( FX ) Holden ( which we all care about fondly ). The cars that stood out consisted of the expected ( and immaculate ) Mustangs, Chevrolets, Fords, GM's, Chryslers, Corvettes, late model HSV's and FPV's , Monaro's, GT's with a good mixture of sedans, coupes, and convertibles. Around 90% were of US origin. Access to the grassy site behind the school was a bit tricky.. it was via someone's house driveway and rear yard. House might have belonged to the school. Weather was spot on, and parked next to a shady tree, with plenty of tasty food and drink available made it a good experience, with proceeds going to charity.

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Lugarno Lions Spring Festival & Classic Car Show 18th September 2011

As I had not been to this show before, I checked their website about three weeks before the event to check times, etc. Having been told by other club members that it was just a matter of turning up on the day and paying the entry fee, I was surprised to find on the website a document titled:

IMPORTANT NOTES FOR PARTICIPANTS

Among many other quite severe restrictions, this document stated that no car would be admit-ted unless it displayed a Pre-Registration Sticker on the windscreen, and arrived before 10:00 am. The Registration Form had to be submitted before 19 August 2011- over a week before I checked the website. On the day of the event, I decided to drive down to the venue at Gannons Park, Lugarno, and come straight back. When I arrived at about 10:45 am, I was welcomed at the entrance with open arms. I was told that the person who had organised the event for many years, had died and his re-placement had got a bit carried away with officialdom. A few days before the event, they realised the error of their ways and changed back to the old system. I was assured that this procedure would apply for the foreseeable future. The Spring Festival was a huge affair with about 100 craft stalls and such. There were full size carnival rides and equestrian events. There would have been about 200 cars on show, many of them being modern cars with sev-eral customised vehicles. There were all the usual muscle cars and the Mini Car Club was very well represented. The Datsun Car Club won the prize for best club show. I was given a position quite close to Scott's Honda S800, which was the only other MCSC car there. The day started off very hot, but a very gusty cool change blew up at about lunch time. Each entrant was given a voting form and a numbered tag to attach to his car. The VIP Choice awards were given to the three cars that scored the most votes from their peers. My “Emma” managed 1st Place, no doubt because of the rarity and “cuteness” of the car.

Tim Dalton

Mind-Activating breaking

German researchers at the Berlin Institute of Technology have devel-oped a mind activated braking sys-tem that can use electrical signals from a driver’s brain to apply a vehi-cle’s brakes over a tenth of a second before he of she moves to physically depress the brake pedal. While it might not seem like much, the time saved could mean the difference be-tween a close call and a divesting collision.

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Strange things you never knew about microcars!

There was ‘another’ Citroen: Andre’s cousin Joseph built his own electric prototype called the Velccar.

2011 Willoughby Street Fair at Chatswood

It is becoming an MCSC tradition to provide some of our cars and scooters as the 'biggest' little group of vehicles to be part of the Willoughby Street Fair each year. (Well, we are the only group of vehicles !) On Saturday 10th Sept, Boon Lim ( Lloyd), Scott Stevenson ( Honda S800), Allen Wall (Heinkel), John Renshaw ( NSU Prinz), and Keith Wall ( Lloyd ) provided the display of our micros, joined with the many cultural groups, Musicians, dancers etc and ' proces-sioned ' through the Chatswood CBD. Nice weather meant big happy crowds, and all went well until, as usual, the traffic conditions out of Victoria Street meant we came to a grinding halt. Normally we turn left to return to the start to park and mingle with the crowd and sample what the stalls have to offer, but this time our local guide ( Boon ) took some of us right and about 20 mins later we were parked and free to explore. Apart from the many and varied Fair attractions, a highlight this year was a tour of the new $170 Million ( approx) entertainment centre and library. It looks very good, and I will watch out for an event that I can attend and check out the acoustics etc. There are two main ven-ues , one Concert Hall, and one Theatre. Seats look very inviting. The local Orchid society put on an excellent display that we could see as we walked through the complex. The library is also looking very good with state of the art facilities for residents.

Regards from John Renshaw ph 02 94848666 mob 0412848666

Picture 1: One monster Pickup in multi blue paints ( towering over the Prinz ) was in fact a very interesting wedding car (guess they carry a step ladder for the bride to get to her seat ?)

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Just in time for Christmas

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At $15 each one or two for you & some to give away

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Safe Passage in India Travellers in India might be advised to walk rather than take a bus of taxi. More than 15 per cent of drivers in public transport vehicles and police cars in Delhi have failed driving tests held by the Institute of Driver Training and Research. The Times of India says

Lambretta 48 The great success of the NSU Quikly moped convinced Innocenti to attempt a foray into Italy’s competitive moped sector. At the 1954 Milan Exhibition, with great fanfare Innocenti launched the Lambretta 48, which, in its view, would make as big an impression as the Lam-bretta had only a few years before. The model 48 clearly draws its inspiration from the Quikly, both in its plated frame and its two gear overhang engine. Particularly quite due to its large silencer the model 48’s soft sus-pension also made it pleasantly comfortable. Although derived from the biggest selling model in Europe, the Lam-bretta 48 did not achieve the results hoped for, a myriad of problems were never entirely resolved. And, in addition, the high position of the saddle provided a serious drawback for many potential buyers. It went on the be manufactured under licence in Argentina by Siambretta, with the same modest success.

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From 1958 Sydney Motor show official catalogue.

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Fred reports he had a good time travelling to Adelaide Attending Bay to Birdwood event and back.

As normal on these trips I don't go anywhere in a straight line, first stop was at The Rock near Wagga to visit a long time friend George, he is not as car mad as some of us, he helps me a lot with computer programs and movies.

Thursday 22nd September I continue on to Mildura to deliver a Villiers motor to Frank he took me to see his Goggo coupe and Renault cars restoration progress by Brett Pye. If only Bret lived near Sydney, he would get a lot of work, a real craftsman. Stayed the night and in the morning admire and photograph his Zeta Runabout then shown the vineyards and have a farm-ers life explained.

Leaving Mildura drive to Renmark to visit Alan where we swapped Zeta information also looked at the wheelbarrow he designed and was building. Later in the afternoon made my way to Tony at Lox-ton, I didn’t get too lost getting there, only by 30km. Another Zeta sports enthusiast, he took me to the local pub for a meal. Had the biggest Beef Schnitzel I have ever seen or tried to eat, it fell of both sides of the plate. In the morning get shown his

(non) restoration progress before picking a huge box of oranges. These I gave to John and Jo who I stayed with in Lewiston, north of Adelaide. John is another member of the Hillman, Humber car fraternity. Sunday 25th attended at West Beach for the run to Bird-wood in the Adelaide Hills. Just under 2000 vehicles as-sembled for the event. There caught up with Geoff Good-win (club member) who trailered his Trojan from Mel-bourne also found there a four-wheel BMW Isetta ready for the run. I left my card, so far no reply back. While

waiting to start was told of an unusual, factory produced, prototype Hillman safari wagon for sale. The Bay to Birdwood drive was good to start with, sun shining 20+ degrees brought the crowds out, they lined the streets waving and cheering us on. This drive was ok initially but became bumper to bumper, stop start traffic the closer we got to the suburban and city shops, then all the way to and past Holden Hill. From there the

traffic flow was two way all the way up the hills, in previous years this had been one way allowing for overtak-ing of slower vehicles.

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At Tea Tree Gully I picked up Graham Cuell, an ex Lightburn employee who I have been corresponding with for months, getting facts about the production of the prototype Zeta run-abouts. We stayed together for the day, inspecting the cars on display, having an ice cream etc. In the museum we crawled over the Runabout on dis- play, this way he was better able to ex- plain moulding prob-lems they had when Harold decided to put a cowling over the headlights and fins on the roof line. Monday I visited another John in Stepney a Messerschmitt owner who was recovering from a bout of food poisoning. That afternoon saw (Hillman) John going to look at the safari wagon, of coarse I had to buy it; it appears was factory produced prototype with all the bells and whis-tles that were used on the Humber and Singer range. On Wednesday we stripped a lot of parts off it for me to bring back to Sydney including Chrysler factory blue prints, new parts gaskets etc. The body shell will have to be collected next year! Tuesday 27th Sep saw John and I in his Humber Scep-tre participate with the Maitland Auto Preservation Society’s hosted trip to Snowtown, this stopped at Kulpara 120km north of Adelaide for morning tea, what a spread, can tell the ladies there are members of the CWA! At Snowtown we had free time to wander around gathering info on the huge 47 tower units that make up their turbine wind farm, located on the Hummock and Barunga Ranges this including taking photos of a turbine blade display that is 43.25 metres in length. The Snowtown pub was organised for smorgasbord lunch that I had trouble eating on top of the scrumptious morning tea. The rest of the afternoon was

spent visiting local members car collections these are stored in three areas, one of which is the old bank, but defiantly not the one with the macabre background. The majority of cars were of UK origin—Rovers, Humbers, Daimler, Rootes group Wolseley and Morris.

Wednesday saw John and I in pouring rain, stripping the unusual and rare parts off the Safari

wagon, later in the day load-

ing down my Hillman wagon with these parts for the trip home, just hop-ing I wouldn’t have to (wouldn’t be able to) sleep in it from now on.

On one of the shelves at Snow-

town! We all know pommy

cars leak oil but brake fluid ?

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Thursday started on my way back, stop-ping in some wine and olive oil tasting places. At Renmark again with Alan to see his Lloyd and Zetas. Collections. In the evening. Alan took me for a drive

around a new suburb to the local club to talk Zetas and have another (this time) just large veal schnitzel. Friday morning made an early start toward Swan Hill, stopping at vineyards and Mildura on the way. Although arranged, missed getting to see a Vespa 400 car, Luke and Karen weren't home, the car appeared to be under a tarp but a big dog in the yard put me off hanging around. A note left I pressed on to Sebastopol near Ballarat to find Bill and Sue not at home either. Just finished writing a note when they came home they had been delayed getting travel info for a planned USA trip next year. I was given a warm welcome and made to feel at home.

Most of Saturday morning was spent helping Bill reroute the Teleflex cable so we could get the gear changing adjusted correctly then fix up some wiring and make other minor ad-justments to his Messerschmitt. From there stopped in for a chat with Shane at Albury before getting back to George at the Rock for my final night away. He had copied several movies and programs for me. Home 6:30pm Monday 3rd having covered 3200km at 8lt per 100k, in old money 2000 miles at 31.5mpg not bad for an old girl! Then had to face problems caused by an almighty electrical storm (I'm told on Saturday 1st lunch time) A lightning strike blew up the local telephone exchange that has had Telstra tecos' all around Colo Heights. Talking to them said the strike went round inside the exchange, blowing up just about every-thing, welding all the bus-bar and arking between frame bolts. Thursday there were 9 Telstra vehicles and even more tecos

installing a temporary MEOW (mobile exchange on wheels), there were still computer con-nection problems to sort and lines burnt 2 & 6km away from the exchange. Horrendous storm, horrendous damage. Saturday the 8th a week later, I got service for about an hour, finaly fully on line Sunday arvo albeit with crackles. The storm also blew my shed and house circuit breakers so the fridge went off, fortunately all electrical stuff was disconnected, I learnt the hard way to do this after last Decembers storms. Spent two days sorting things out, Email was ok as it's satellite broadband.

Aren't you glad you don't live in the bush?

Alan’s Zeta Sports with Mini engine Alan’s proper Zeta Sports

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MonoTracer Bike Is Singularly Fantastic

Traditional motorcycles are OK, but this is the future. We need future things. And the glass/Kevlar/carbon/steel MonoTracer bike certainly looks like it’s from the Utopian, roundmobile world to come. Featuring a fully enclosed cabin for less drag and less pebbles in the face, the MonoTracer’s 130hp BMW engine goes 0-100 in 5.6 seconds and hits speeds up to 250kph. They say (web site) “we don't do the Monotracer for soccer moms nor for show-off boni bankers. Our machine separate the men from the boys. We don't need to pamper to all the "modern" needs that may be out there”

The Tron Lightcycle doesn't look like any motorbike you’ve ever seen before, the Swiss MonoTracer has been electrified for the new MonoTracer-E model, which still fits two people for a comfortable, eco-friendly ride. The super-exclusive MonoTracer — just 100 will be built next year, at about $70,000 a pop — is a fully-enclosed motorcycle with training wheels. The carbon-fibre two-seater combines Porsche-like performance with scooter-like fuel economy, accelerating from zero to 62 mph in, a claimed, 4.8 seconds while still returning 65 mpg. With the perfect blend of performance and luxury, the MonoTracer just might be the sports car of the future. Former Swiss Air pilot Arnold Wagner has been playing with enclosed motorcycles since 1982, when he built a prototype of the Ecomobile. It looked a bit like a Tylenol capsule with wheels and used a BMW motorcycle engine for power. Wagner and his sons built more than 90 Ecos — most were sold in Europe and Japan, al-though a few made it to America — before a fire destroyed the moulds a few years ago. Rather than give up or simply recreate the Ecomobile, Wagner and his two sons went back to the drawing board. The MonoTracer sports a carbon fibre and Kevlar body reinforced with aluminium crash and roll bars. The engine cradle, retractable outriggers — they keep the bike from falling over at stoplights — and steering head are aircraft-quality steel. Power comes from the same 1200-cc four-cylinder engine BMW uses in its K-bikes. The engine produces 113 horsepower, which may not seem like much until you realize the Monotracer weighs just over 1,000 pounds. Amenities include air conditioning and a full-on stereo. Driving the MonoTracer is a lot like riding a motorcycle – twist the throttle and go – but it’s got a clutch pedal instead of a lever. The MonoTracer will lean into corners at a super-bike-like 52 degrees, while ABS and traction control will keep you from getting in over your head.

Below is the 2011 electric version

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Nostalgia Corner

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Reverse charge… could this have been a ‘60s inspi-ration for the Mercedes-owned Smart cars? With its entire length barely more than the width of an average sedan - which allows it to park rear-to-kerb just about any where - it could have been! The caption accompanying this 1967 photo, however, revealed very little about the tiny four-wheeler “Electric cars were to wean the world from oil - but now their out-look is uncertain.” (1960s) The number plate probably said it all though. Photo: Fairfax Archives.

Scamp (see below) The Scamp was one of many electric car projects of the late 1960s which was intended for eventual production but never made it. The firs prototype was completed by Scottish Aviation of Ayrshire, Scotland, in 1965 but the car’s debut was not until 1967. A simple glass fibre - bodied two -seater just under 7 feet long, it used twin series-wound ventilated DC electric motors which it was claimed

could take the car to a to speed of 35mph. Its maximum range was 26 miles. Ten of the twelve Scamps built were allocated for evaluation by various Electricity Boards, the remaining two being kept be Scottish Aviation. Despite vague plans to productionise the Scamp as “the commuter car of the ‘seventies’, to sell at around £UK 350, nothing more came of this short - lived project.

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Overseas UK news

Enthusiasts from Lanca-shire, Merseyside and Cheshire teamed up their microcars with somewhat larger vehi-cles at the St Helens-based North West Mu-seum of Road Transport in the summer (July 2011) parking along-side veteran double-decker buses, fire engines and a fascinating mixed bag of old commercial vehicles, includ-ing a classic milk float. The event was one of a series of year-round special displays staged to attract visitors to the museum which is run entirely by volunteers. "It was a great day out and convenient for most of the microcar owners that we currently know about in the North West," said Alan Town, Multi Micro Owner Club member, who organised the team run-out comprising of Isetta, Trojan and Messerschmitts (TG500 and KR200) to St Helens. The museum traces its history back over 30 years when a small pioneer group got together to raise funds to preserve one of the town's trolleybuses. The collection, now housed in the former local bus depot, includes vehicles owned by groups, individuals and the museum's own examples. David Tattersall and I, are endeavouring to build up a Micro Enthusiasts Club group here in the North West of the UK, so any “perspectives” are welcome to reach us. Alan Town (our roving correspondent)

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From intrepid reporter, Phil Martin, on return from Europe

His email went on: Attached is the scanned article for the Vespa 400 and a couple of pictures of the micro cars I saw in Amsterdam. Note they have no number plates as they drive on wide bike lanes!

Model CH26 is an automatic diesel engine and although the maximum speed is only 45 km/h (28 mph), this micro car measures only just over 3 meters in length which makes it completely friendly when it comes to manoeuvring tight parking spaces or those narrow European alleys. The two seat, 3065mm long car is powered by a 523cc two-cylinder diesel engine that generates 5.4 hp, and it claims to weigh just 769 pounds. It promises a fuel efficiency of 75mpg. It costs $19,000

The other cars often seen around Am-sterdam are called Canta. There is really only enough room for a single occupant. The vehicle is pro-duced by a company called Waaijen-berg Company, and the vehicle is very popular with people who have a disabil-ity or an illness that affects their mobil-ity. The Canta measures a tiny 1.10m wide, 2.30m long and 1.65m high. Con-veniently this measurement also hap-pens to be the maximum measurements

for a disabled vehicle for which no driving license or parking permit is required. The car is usually only seen in the cities and strangely unusually red, the car has a 45kmh speed limit. Starting price is around 11,500 euros, and with various ad-ons the price can rise to 17,000 euros, but if you are disabled you can get some help from the city and they will subsidise some of the cost.

Things you never knew about microcars: There have been numerous examples of micro plagiarism: for instance, the Hoffman was a close copy of the Isetta and the Julien MM7 mimicked the Rovin D3

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Located in Enfield, Sydney is a collection of interesting bikes:-) 1 Yamaha Pasola 50cc two speed automatic. Last registered 2004. Can be restored, 95% complete, needs tyres, brake lin-ings. A Haynes service manual is included. 2 DRZ electric bicycle 48 volt, has spare electric motor, bat-tery charger included. Sprung at front only, could be regis-tered, brand new, Chinese make. 3 Dxian motorised bicycle about 35cc, gearbox has one for-ward and neutral only, auto clutch, four stroke motor OHV electric start, sprung at front only. Electric wiring needs atten-tion, brand new Chinese make could be registered.

Yamaha Mini two stroke 50cc approx. Sprung front and rear. Mo-tor will not turn, suitable for spares only. Negotiable around $1,500 for the lot, not sure if he will split the col-lection. Phone Vince 02 9642 1968 mail to 26 The Causeway, Enfield, 2136

Correspondence Received Hi John & Fred. Just a comment on the mag; thanks very much, by the way, I always enjoy reading the col-lection of articles you put together. Pity there is not more local content, but I know that’s not the editor’s fault! I will try to make the promised contributions in the next few months. P. 21 refers to Maverick Bond sticking “PMMA (whatever that is)”. PMMA is polymethylmethacrylate. (I think that’s the spelling, I’m an engineer, not a chem-ist, and a pedantic chemist might insist it needs some punctuation.) This is the material most of us know as Perspex, along with a few other brand names (e.g. Plexiglass, Lucite, and a few others). The word Perspex is often used for this material without a capital P, as that par-ticular brand name has become ubiquitous like biro, Hoover, etc. I think most of the win-dows of my Trojan are probably PMMA, as is the canopy of the ’Schmidt, no doubt. It was one of the earliest fully transparent plastics, not as hard as glass or as strong as polycarbon-ate, which I think came along much later, but a popular material from the 1930s onwards where a less brittle and easy-to-form glazing material was needed. Regards, Geoff G

For sales

If ignorance isn’t bliss, I don’t know what is!

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Bill Guthrie, now residing in Canberra when he’s not posted overseas on assignments has several scooters for sale. This info was supposed to be in the last magazine but Fred forgot! Slap on the wrists Fred.

Hi Al (and Fred) I’ve decided to sell off a few scooters to help pay for some ‘other scooter projects’ as I’m a bit over stretched at present. I had decided poorly (looking back with hindsight) of restor-ing my 1967 Australia Post Vespa, 150 Super into some-thing else hence the metallic light blue paint job but stopped mid project. I thought keeping it accurate to its originally should have be the way to go. It’s a wonderful thing hind-sight. Having spent a shed load thus far and needing more money to repaint it back is more than I can do for the fore-seeable future. Also given my change in direction in what I’d like to constitute the basis of my collection. So I’ve decided to let this go along with some other scooters includ-ing my much prized Bundespost R200 Zündapp Bella. Al I know you need another scooter like a hole in the head but I thought I’d offer you this scooter first (the Aust Post Vespa) given your current vocation. A great deal has already been done and I think I’ve acquired all the necessary parts for its completion, so it should be a no brainier to finish off. You could either simply put it together as is or repaint it back to GPO Red and have yourself a good original Australia Post bike for a mere $3,000. I’m off again for a month in a week’s time so I won’t be able to advertise these on eBay until my return in August. If you’re not interested that’s fine please use the club mag to advertise them in the for sale’s column. The Australia post Vespa which does have the racks but no bags; $3,000, The Bundespost R200 Zundapp Bella is 97% complete, no box; $2,000 My Vespa VNA 125 goes well but has some minor non structural damage; $1,500.

I’m contem-plating sell-ing a few other com-plete scoot-ers but I’ll wait to see how these go first, kind regards, Bill

Vespa VNA 125cc

Vespa 150 Super, motor rebuilt.

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Hi there everyone, just circulating this around Siobhan Ellis is looking for this particular scooter. or if you know the guy in the photo. She said “This is the guy, with the Vega, when it was sold 10 years ago. So about 2000, apparently he had a few Vegas as had a farm out west somewhere”. Thanks Siobhan Email siobhanellis@hotmail.com

Messerschmitt KR200 This is a deceased estate car that the family did intend to restored! Ray bought the Schmitt in 1975, he drove it into shed, & there it has been ever since. It comes with a floor mat that Ray bought (not installed), 4 books in a black wallet, some a bit tattered, & one photo copied. Also, a few bits & tools. It needs new bubble, windows, rub-bers & some linings. It is up on blocks. Mark turned the back wheel when he was here, & he says motor is turning over. On paperwork that Eileen has, the engine no is 2475202 & chassis no 67891, “I have not checked this, Ray believed it to be 1958 model.” Offers over $12,000 will be considered as Ray refused an offer when alive. Contact Eileen Har-vey 07 3800 1350 mob 0427 723 586 the car is located near Brisbane.

Hi Alan, Thought I would enquire to see if anybody in the club would have an interest in a complete engine including barrel, piston hub etc off a 1964 Lambretta Centro. The hub turns without any problems and it appears to be all ok other than the obvious rebuild of the insides of the engine. Also have petrol tank in good condition for an LD and a set of twin seats for series 1 or II that I am selling. Contact Alan Wall for Richard's contact details.

For sales continued

Messerschmitt parts. John Agostini, in Perth has left over and surplus parts he is willing to part with, at a fair price. These are a KR200 profile frame part number 1302 and a pair of aluminium window frames left and right # 1310/11 asking $1200 for the lot, maybe negotia-ble. Contact John via post 8/26C Cohan St, Carlisle, 6101, Perth, WA, phone 08 9353 2866.

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For sales and Advice Hi Fred, Sorry for taking so long to get back to you with this info. Please see attached pix of the Goggo. The vehicle was last registered in Victoria some years ago. Vehicle has been stored undercover for the last 15 years. Currently located in Broken Hill, NSW. Price now very negotiable as is. Any costs associated with trans-port would be the responsibility of the purchaser. If any of your members are interested, please contact me via this email address. I will be happy to provide any further details they may require. Thank you. Regards Anthony Dellar ajdellar@bigpond.com Ed If I remember correctly this has a Lloyd LP600 chassis & front motor under it?

Registered Niki This is a 1989 model in red, (it must go fast). Registered till March 2012 and is a daily driver at present. The husband is talking of selling it to a back packer, Michelle wants it to go to an enthusiast. Has been regularly serviced by Auto Motor at Leichhardt, recently had a new fan made and fitted that cost $600, the tyres are good and runs well, the asking price is only $1400 maybe negotiable? Phone Michelle Wearn 0407 912 920

Messerschmitt Dome Robert Bodkin, Western Australia, many years ago imported a Messerschmitt dome from England. Due to hard business times it is for sale. The Messerschmitt a Fiat Multipla and MG PB, incomplete, no motor and a 1955 Alfa Giulietta sprint could also be for sale, email bodkinsbootery@yahoo.co.uk phone Western Australia business hours 08 9336 1484

Hello Fred

At long last I have got round to starting what I should have done ages ago, for the past few months I have been putting together a Frisky web site, it will take a while to get all my Frisky info on there, so please bear with me, I’m not exactly the world’s greatest author! I hope you will enjoy what’s on there at the moment, sorry about the blank pages, but there’s lots more to follow I can assure you! Any contribution, correction or suggestions you may like to make will be very much appreciated Could I ask you to visit the site several times to help establish it with Google. I intend to add a “links” page shortly. http://www.meadowsfrisky.co.uk Regards John.

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The objectives of membership are for the preservation, restoration and promotion of Microcars and Scooters, all kept to as original condition as practical. Monthly meetings take place at the Greyhound Club, Boardman Ave, Yagoona, on the third Friday of each month starting around 7.45 p.m. We hold rallies and social events on a regular basis for members and associate with similar clubs here and overseas. Localised personal information and advice can be acquired from our state delegates or web site:

⇒ Victoria: Paul Lucas at Mornington, 03 5975 7203. ⇒ Queensland: Terry White at Kelvin Grove 07 3356 5828. ⇒ Tasmania: John Barrass at Newstead 03 6333 0544. ⇒ Western Australia Zig Pasnicki has put his hand up 08 9397 6315. ⇒ South Australia: Ian Wilson at Clearview 08 8262 3033. ⇒ Queensland Ruth Farrar (BMW specialist) 0438 883 201.

Other independent associated registers and clubs that promote the same ideals are: British two stroke club in Victoria, Goggomobil register in NSW, Microcar Club of New Zealand, Siva in Perth WA, Velosolex Oz group in Vic, and Southwest Brisbane motoring club inc.

The club magazine is published four times a year around the begining of March, June, Septem-ber, and December. Items for inclusion should be submitted to the editor by the 20th of the month prior to publication; receiving information early gives us a better chance of getting the magazine out on time. Rates for half or full page advertisements are available at modest cost.

Membership joining and renewals can now be made by direct debit to Bendigo Bank BSB 633000.East Gosford, to MCSC Inc A/c 122802259. Make sure you put your name in the com-ments section so we know who its from.

During correlation of this publication the MCSC editor believed all reports and information true and correct. However the editor makes no representations, either expressed or implied as to the accuracy of information and data contained herein, and accepts no liability for any use of the information and data or reliance placed upon it. In other words if we got something wrong we are sorry and let us know. This particularly applies to phone numbers, dates and name spelling. We do try our best! All rights reserved © 2011 MCSC.

‘Microcar and Scooter Club Inc’ No 987 6195.

Web site, drive.to/mcsc email mcsc@boxb

Correspondence C/o MCSC. Post Office Box 42, Berowra, NSW, 2081.

President: John Renshaw, ph 02 9484 8666 <pop.nan@optusnet.com.au> Secretary: Douglas Kennedy, home ph 02 9456 2833, email <douglaskennedy@optusnet.com.au> Treasurer: Allen Wall, 02 9707 2296 or 0417 267 173, <alscooters@bigpond.com> Editor: Fred Diwell, ph/fax 02 4565 0219, e-mail <microcarscooter@skymesh.com.au> Membership records John Renshaw, ph 02 9484 8666 <pop.nan@optusnet.com.au> Magazine distribution: John Renshaw and Graham Sims phone & fax 02 9481 8530 Events: Allen Wall, along with committee collaboration Research officer: Douglas Kennedy, contact as above Spare parts adviser: Fred Diwell, contact as above Club plate register & inspector: Keith Wall, and movement day book Ph 02 9790 3803 or 02 9707 2296 CMC delegates: Peter Luks, Allen Wall Public officer: Allen Wall.