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Chummy heads for home

[ July 25, 2012   //   ]

A 1928 Austin 7 “Chummy” Tourer is heading home to Britain after a long and often poignant history, thanks to international movers Anglo Pacific International.

Registered in Berkshire, England the 749cc four-seater was laid up in 1957 rather worse for wear only for Charles Pocklington to come to the rescue in 2000 whereupon he painstakingly rebuilt and repaired her until she was roadworthy again in 2004. Charles competed in her around Surrey’s Brooklands race circuit but devastatingly, just one year later, cancer took Charles’ life. His friend Bob Thompson took the “wee car” under his wing.

Bob continues: “With the Austin 7 finding a new lease of life just as Charles lost his, the least we could do was keep her safe and sprightly in his honour. In 2008 my wife and I moved to Nelson, New Zealand, and naturally the car came too. Joining the New Zealand Vintage Car Club we campaigned the car in hill climb sprints and mud plug trials gaining plenty of admirers. With a little modern tuning on the engine the Chummy is now quite a nippy little beast” – clearly, an Austin with attitude.

But this year the Thompsons returned to the UK and, of course, Charles’ Austin 7 made the 20,000 kilometre move with them.  Anglo Pacific was entrusted with coordinating safe delivery of this special cargo. Import coordinator Tahmina Ijaz said: “We’ve transported a huge variety of vehicles over our 35 year history – star cars from movies, powerful motorbikes, top notch supercars and much loved vintage vehicles such as Bob’s Austin 7. We work to internationally recognised quality standards to make sure everything from loading and stowing to customs formalities and delivery goes without a hitch. We wish Bob and “Chummy” many more years happy motoring around the British countryside.”

The Austin 7 was the brainchild of Herbert Austin and produced from 1922 through to 1939 by the Austin Motor Company.  Totally changing the face of motoring in the UK, it was the first truly affordable motorcar for the working man – reliable, cheap and capable of 40mph Nicknamed the “Baby Austin”, it was one of the most popular cars ever produced for the British market.

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