Work on a former British Saloon Car Championship winning Austin A40 has been completed ahead of a parade at the Silverstone Classic Festival this weekend as the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship continues its sixtieth anniversary celebrations.
The father and son team of Trevor and Simon Parfitt along with Suffolk car restoration company Scott Automotive have had time to completely restore the car that George “Doc” Shepherd drove to overall honours in the 1960 British Saloon Car Championship.
Following the personal stories of car enthusiasts who have owned their vehicle for thirty years or more, The Adrian Flux Forever Cars Blog documented the restoration journey as well as telling the incredible story of how Trevor Parfitt had brushes with a championship winning car for years without realising it.
After 1960 the car was resprayed and re-registered with a new owner. This owner was an acquaintance of Trevors. However, he still didn’t know of the long history of the vehicle.
It took another five years until another friend turned up with the Austin and Trevor recognised the numberplate UCE 13. A subsequent look at the logbook of the car documented the fact that Doc had owned the car. This was the turning point.
After six weeks of trying to convince the owner to sell Trevor the car, the owner relented and now after over fifty years, the car has remained in the Parfitt family ever since.
“Doc” on the way to the 1960 British Saloon Car title in the Austin A40. Credit: Adrian Flux
“I drove it for three years and it was great fun. I loved it then and I still do.” Trevor told the Adrian Flux Forever Cars Blog.
The rebuilding of the car has been “a labour of love that’s taken 10 years and a huge amount of money.” but despite this, he values the fact that the car is a racing machine.
“We’ve spent long enough building it, and now it needs to be used. It would be a shame for it to get damaged, but it’s a racing car, not a museum piece.”
The full story of this car can be read at the Adrian Flux Forever Cars Blog.
If you wish to see the car in the flesh, it will be at Silverstone this weekend for the Silverstone Classic Festival. It will be taking part in the BTCC Diamond Jubilee celebrations. Sixty years of British touring cars.
