Lancaster Classic Motor Show with Discovery 2018

NEC Birmingham November 2018
Welcome to the Cavalier and Chevette Club
Your friendly Vauxhall - Opel Club since 1994
© Cavalier and Chevette Club 2023 We acknowledgement to Vauxhall Motors Ltd
The I’S Had it at the Lancaster Classic Motorshow 2018. I write this on the Monday morning straight after the Lancaster Classic Motorshow 2018. The show build-up started for me early Thursday morning, heading up to the meeting point at Stonebridge Island. I arrived finding a very nice Green Chevette Saloon in the car park, that of Calvin Walkers who had arrived a little earlier having travelled up from the Ipswich area. We waited in the Stonebridge Carvery for everyone else to arrive. Soon Jeremy Lettington with his Cavalier Mk3 SRi arrived followed by Graham Meakes in his Cavalier Mk3 GSi 16v along with Mike Shewan from Hull. Phil Scaife had caught up with them on route in his Jaguar X-Type so they all arrived at the meeting point together. Karl Hobbs was arriving a little latter in his Chevette Estate and was going to meet us at the Hall. Once the Health and Safety paperwork and passes were sorted out, we left the meeting point right when a heavy rain shower arrived. We entered the NEC and joined the quote of classic cars waiting to enter the site. Soon we entered Hall 5 and started building the stand. The other Club car that was on show at the NEC was my Cavalier Calibre, though this was not on our stand but on the Tickford stand, the Calibre was assembled by Tickford. I am also a member of the Tickford Club and was splitting my time between the two stands. Luckily the two were a couple of rows apart so I didn’t have far to walk!! Soon the stand was up and members started assembling the frame work for the Cavalier Mk3 launch display. This was a display that was used 30 years ago in a dealer near Woking at the Cavalier Mk3 launch and was found by me a few years ago. The frame for this was made of a black drain pipe supplied by Phil. While people were doing this, I shot overt to the Tickford stand to give them a hand assembling their display boards they have at the back of there stand. Once that was done it was back across to ours to see where we were. At that point Karl Hobbs called to say he was just entering the site so I went to meet him by the door of Hall 5. We had a rather large piece of carpet this year. This was kindly given to us at the end of this year’s Practical Classic and Restoration Show by Project Shop (www.projectshop.co.uk) who had used it on there stand at this. Many thanks for passing the carpet to us. Once setup up with all piled into Phil’s Jag and headed of to get something to eat before heading to our Hotel’s. The first day of the show arrived and it seemed busier than the Normal Friday at the NEC. People seemed to arrive in waves. We had lots of people taking interest in the car’s. Many saying they had Cavalier Mk3’s as company car’s back in the day, not realising they were 30 years old and many saying they were best car Vauxhall had ever made. Lots of people were looking at the Chevette’s and reminiscing about their parents having one or they had one as there first car. I was jumping between our stand and the Tickford stand and was varying the way that I walked between the two stands. The Calibre was getting a fair bit of interest, and I spoke to a few people that had them years ago. Including one chap who had one as a company car. Then I hit Gold a chap came up to the stand and told me he worked on the Line at Luton making these and told me all about how Tickford became to be involved (something for a future newsletter).Then I had a call from Phil, Classic and Sports Car Magazine had arrived on the stand. With invites to the Classic and Sports Car Awards that evening. We were entered in the Best Website section. This was in the Hilton Hotel that evening. So after the show we headed over to the Hilton, Club Members kitted out in the 30th Anniversary Logged T-Shirts, a special for the event. The awards had a revamp for 2018 and we were treated to a Fish and Chips Meal (other options available). And then went into the awards, there was a talk By Sporting Bear’s and then Simon Taylor from Classic and Sports Car read out the Awards. Sadly, we didn’t win but for a small Club like ourselves to get to the award night was excellent. After the awards we went a nice bar in Resort Word where there was live music to chill out before we headed back to our Hotels. Saturday arrived and we like we had on the Friday had a steady flow of new and old club members come onto the Club Stand. I was still jumping between our stand and the Tickford stand. Tickford members were also coming across to our stand and our club members were also going across to theirs. The other well know Vauxhall worked on was the Tickford Calibra of which there is only about 6 left (almost as rare as the Calibre!!). We had some interesting contact come onto the stand on the Saturday who have parts for the Chevette and Cavalier’s they are looking to dispose of. I also spoke to a few people in the Astra Mk2 Club who I know and one of there members advised me he has a number of Cavalier Mk2 and Mk2 parts to dispose of and said he will email me information I can pass on to Club Members. Soon the show closed and some of us headed out to TGI Friday’s for a bite to eat before heading off to our hotel’s. IThe final day of the show arrived and at 11am on Sunday everyone observed the two minutes silence to marks 100 years since the end of the First World War. Sunday is the busiest day usually at the show and this year it was no exception. Over both the Saturday and Sunday a number people from the press visited out stand including Dan Furr from Performance Vauxhall, Richard and Vicki Dredge from Practical Classics and Jon Burgess from Classic Car Weekly. Hopefully pictures of Club Members Cars will be appearing on future issues of these magazine’s. Before we knew it Sunday had come and gone and the stand was being put away into the back of my car. Once our stand was packed away, I said goodbye to everyone and stayed on to help the Tickford Club pack up there stand. I would just like to say a massive thank you to all who helped out, visited and showed their cars on the Cavalier and Chevette Club stand at the NEC. Another excellent weekend had by all. I know it is a big commitment to show your car for 3 days and being there for 4 including the set-up day, we could not do it without you.Thank you to the 4 people that exhibited cars on the stand: Graham Meakes, Karl Hobbs, Calvin Walker, Jerry Lettington. Thank you to the following people for there help on the stand during the event. Phil Scaife, Simon Downs, Mike Shewan.Club Members and Friends of the Club visiting the stand during the weekend were as follows, in no particular order (apologies if I miss you out, I was probable away from the stand when you visited). Sean Moriarty, Jason Othen, Claire and Phil Wright, Steven Peters, David Norrish, Keith Gooch, David and Dawn Hill, Dave Boob, Jerome Moss, Colin Pizey, Tim Walmsley, Ian Arthur, Andy Ingham (Club Clothing Supplier), Darrell Keen, Ian Newnham, Emma Dodds (Footman James), James Almey, Martin Holloway. Also, thanks to PowerMaxed Car Cleaning products for providing us with some items to give the 4 exhibitors on the show stand. PS: We have sold around half of the 30th Anniversary Mk3 Cavalier Mugs at this event. However, if you could not make the event and would like one, let me know. There £5.00 each, plus postage. However if you are close to me or happy to meet me some where half way between where you live let me know. Contact details in the Front of the Newsletter. Kevin Bricknall (602)