Hello and welcome to the second instalment of Cars and their Owners. Now the first entry which was my SEAT Ibiza FR will not be too hard to beat in terms of rarity or excitement, but even so, I've made sure this instalment features a car a bit more, vintage. Step forward Geoff Twigg and his marvellous Alpine Renault A110 1600S.
I met Geoff at Motorsport at the Palace earlier this year and although there were many cars on offer I felt rather drawn to his A110 1600S - I think the colour was the main reason for this. I felt compelled to have a chat with him to find out more about the car and the story behind it.
Vital Statistics
Make: Alpine Renault
Model: A110 1600S
Year: 1971
Priced paid: Unconfirmed
Engine: 1.6 litre petrol with forged pistons and twin 45DCOE carburettors, rear-mounted.
Power: 138bhp
0-62 time: 6.9 seconds
Top speed: 134mph
Gearbox: Five-speed manual
Torque: 106 lb ft
Drivetrain: Rear wheel
MPG: Unconfirmed
CO2 emissions: Who knows?!
What does it have?
This is a car designed for time trials and classic rallies so don't expect to find a stereo or air con, this car has one aim and one aim only - to provide a pure, classic motoring experience.
How long have you owned it and why did you buy it?
In my two periods in Motorsport it has always been rallying. I started in the 1970’s, initially with a Mini doing night road rallies and the odd stage event. (Then we did not have much in the way of safety requirements, road and stage were very similar, for stages you just had to wear a helmet!)
I then built a Group 1 Hillman Avenger and competed in Castrol Autosport National stage championship rounds, and a number of International rallies (RAC, Welsh and the Manx three times). It was during this period I saw my first A110 in the flesh on the RAC rally. Unfortunately it was Pat Moss assaulting a log pile - the log pile won.
I then retired from Competition until the 1990’s when I started back in Historic Rallying, mainly road event but a few stage events were competed in. I found and rebuilt my 1965 Mini Cooper S and also purchased and restored a 1962 997cc Cooper for events where cars were required to be 1962 or prior to qualify for overall awards. I was competing in the Corsica Retro in the S when I came across an A110 in the flesh again and some local ones also appeared at one of the rest halts. At this point I decided I would like one.
I remortgaged the house and persuaded my bank manager that it was a good investment! And so I purchased a 1971 1600S in 1998, it had been prepared and had been competing in Historic stage events, but not very successfully. My plan was to do long distance regularity events in Europe and therefore a number of modifications were made.
What work have you put into it?
A long range fuel tank was made and fitted in the front and a full size spare wheel installed inside behind the seats. The gearbox was changed to provide taller gearing and the camshaft changed from a race to a road.
The suspension spring rate was softened and later ride height was raised as the rear would bottom out when corning hard with a resultant breakaway of the rear, very difficult to control. Finally a mileage trip was installed, initially a mechanical A1FAB Gemini, but this was not accurate or reliable enough so now I have an electronic trip with a sensor on the front hub.
What do you like most about it?
The Looks and driving it hard uphill!
What don't you like about it?
A bit low and cramped as I get older!
What is the most memorable drive?
An Classic Trophy rally in France, the nighty section over the Alps.
What will you buy next?
A Hillman Avenger, guess why?
A big thank you to Geoff and the time he has given to tell me about his wonderful Alpine, if you think your car is worthy of getting featured then get in touch.