ZR/ZS/ZT Register News
December 2017 Newsletter
As I write our final newsletter of the year, the Classic Motor Show at the NEC is just over a week away. This show will bring the curtain down on our events for another year, but what a fantastic year it’s been for the Register. In the background the work continues over the winter months as we plan ahead for the coming year aided by the continued support of the Kimber House team. It’s been a busy time for the committee with each member undertaking on their own projects to ensure the Register keeps moving forward, and the momentum we’ve gained so far this year continues.
This year has seen some new relationships created within the classic car world. Classic Car Weekly’s use of a ZR in their ‘£500 Challenge’ was a great opportunity for us to forge a link with them. This relationship culminated in having their ZR on our stand at the Classic Car Restoration Show in March. A number of companies agreed to sponsor some of our events including Peter Best Insurance Services and Rimmer Bros.
Our taste for trying new things continued after our last newsletter in June. We had a very successful, and a very hot, MGLive! with a great turnout of Zeds on both days exceeding the space in our parking area. July was a busy month even without an MG Saloon Day. We headed to Penshurst Place in Kent for the SE Centre’s Summer Gathering at the end of the month – an event the register has supported on a number of occasions in the past. Our final ‘new’ event of the year was the Lancing Motor Show in October. We were more than happy to jointly represent the MG Rover era at the show together with some local enthusiast groups. With over eight hundred cars present and a great day out, the show has been included in our events calendar for 2018. We enjoyed another exciting year of racing too which was brought to a close at Snetterton in October. Next year we will be present at all the race meetings and will be organizing the lunchtime parade laps.
A vast number of new members have joined the club with a Zed this year, or have seen us at a show and are interested in the Register and what we do. The number of members who have joined our Facebook group is a reflection of this – this is very gratifying to see. Our Zeds are now becoming classic cars in their own right and it’s great to see such enthusiasm amongst the visitors at our events and shows.
Our events calendar for next year is almost complete. We are just waiting to confirm a few more dates. Once completed the list will be published in an upcoming Register update. We aim to take the Register out to the members next year with some new venues and exciting locations. Look out for any up-to-the-minute information on our Facebook page or website.
Finally, we’d like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. And to thank ALL of you for your continued support throughout the past year. See you all in 2018.
John Thompson, Chair.
November 2017 Newsletter
At the very end of September Snetterton staged the traditional finale to the MGCC racing season. This year was largely dry on Saturday and wet on Sunday. There were plenty of Zeds on show and it was good to see the two Trophy drivers involved in the Oulton Park shunt both in attendance. In a damp qualifying session Doug Cole took pole for both races, winning the second race, but beaten to the line in Saturday morning’s race by Ross Makar. It was Matthew Turnball in the 160 class who was declared 2017 champion at the prize presentation at the end of the day. There was also a special presentation for Peter Macwaters who stood down as Championship Coordinator after ten years. A good end of the season too for Ian Dowler in the Peter Best Cup with a second-place behind Alan Brooke’s very rapid K-Series Metro in the final round. His 160 coming home ahead of not only the other 160s but the 170s too. It’s noticeable that more 160s are being attracted to this championship. So, another excellent racing season has been brought to a close. Most drivers interviewed at the prize giving said they’d be back next year. Much work to be done over the winter months no doubt! The parade laps coordinated by Geoff were popular too with twenty-nine cars signing up on the Saturday, but probably due to the weather there were no takers on the Sunday!
The following weekend on Sunday 8th October we headed down to Lancing in Sussex for their Motor Show. The was a first for ourselves so it was a ‘test the water’ kind of a day. The event is open to all classic cars and in the end over eight hundred cars were present. We felt it was important to fly the MG Rover flag at this event and to promote the club. The gamble paid off however and we signed up one new member. We were joined in the MG Rover area by some local enthusiast groups, and between us we put on quite a large display. Our cars may have made up a small percentage of the overall show but we felt it was important to be seen at this event. The weather was on our side too with no rain and sunny periods. Definitely an event for the diary next year I think.
October 2017 Newsletter
EVENTS & SHOWS
The penultimate rounds of this year’s Racing Championships continued on the 2nd September
at Oulton Park in Cheshire. A grid of thirty-two cars in the Trophy race were in prospect for
visitors, but unfortunately for the second time this year, an accident occurred in the Trophy
race with one of the competitors being airlifted to hospital. A big shunt occurred during the
first lap of the race – thankfully the driver involved will be okay. In the Peter Best Cup,
Register Treasurer Peter Burchill achieved second place overall. First place went to a
Tomcat, which are now allowed in the class, by a narrow margin of only 0.7 seconds.
UPCOMING EVENTS
We are giving a final call for the Lancing Motor Show which takes place on 8 th October. As
previously mentioned, will be going down there in full force with our gazebo etc to fly the
MG flag and promote the club, ourselves, and the Zeds in the world of classic cars. We still
have a number of Stand Passes left. If you are local or fancy a day by the sea please contact
either myself at the email address at the head of these notes or Paul Money at
paulmoneymg@gmail.com as soon as possible, there is still time to send one out to you. For
further information visit the official Lancing Motor Show page. The 2017 Racing
Championships then conclude at Snetterton on 30th October / 1st November.
September 2017 Newsletter
EVENTS & SHOWS
The relatively quiet holiday month of August allows us to look back at the second half of
July. With the racing championships being north of the border at the beginning of the month,
the following rounds took place on 22 nd at the Cadwell Park circuit in Lincolnshire. We
decided a while back that after the success of taking our gazebo at Brands Hatch we would do
the same here and promote the Register to the members in the area. Overall the day was
warm and sunny. Fortunately we managed to dodge the rain until the late afternoon. A good
number of visitors took the opportunity to book in for the lunchtime parade laps, including
ourselves. Cadwell Park is nicknamed ‘the Mini-Nürburgring’ and having driven around it
you can see why – brilliant!
We then returned to Kent at the end of the month and joined the South-East Centre for their
Summer Gathering at Penshurst Place near Tunbridge Wells. We had a very relaxing day in
the company of the local car groups and the variety of MGs which attended. There was also a
discounted rate to the house and gardens which were well worth a visit.
Taking place over the same weekend as the Summer Gathering was the Silverstone Classic.
This event has been discussed by ourselves many times in the past. The main club attends as
do a number of registers. We might be adding this to our own events list next year. Those of
you who attended the weekend were in for a real treat in the form of Jason Hughes in the
BTCC Kartworld Racing ZS from 2002. According to the team working on the car in the
paddock, they were amazed just how much interest the ZS had created. In its current form,
it’s quite a hybrid. It has a 2000cc Judd engine, which is K-Series based, and not the its
original V6 engine. It also has a facelift front end and original rear. In a grid of forty cars
Jason qualified in nineteenth place, taking seventh place in the first race and ninth place in
the second race.
UPCOMING EVENTS
The racing championships continue at Oulton Park on 2 nd September and will literally be on
us when you read these notes. They then conclude at Snetterton over the weekend of 30th
October/1 st November. Before that however is another new event for us. On 8 th October, we
will be attending the Lancing Motor Show near Worthing in Sussex. We will be going down
there in full force with our gazebo etc to fly the MG flag and promote the club, ourselves, and
the Zeds in the world of classic cars. We have been given twenty-five Car Stand Passes by
the organisers which we will give out on a first-come first-serve basis. If you are interested in
attending please contact either myself at the email address at the head of these notes or Paul
Money at paulmoneymg@gmail.com and we will send them out to you. For further
information visit the official Lancing Motor Show page.
August 2017 Newsletter
EVENTS & SHOWS
July was another busy month for Zed owners and it began in Scotland at the Knockhill circuit in Fife. Although not organised by the club a further two races from the Trophy Championship took place over the weekend of 8/9th July. Later the same month on 22nd, the racing championships continued at the Cadwell Park circuit in Lincolnshire. We were there of course organising the lunchtime parade laps but also with our gazebo and regalia to promote the Register in the area. We then returned to Kent at the end of July as we joined the South-East Centre for their Summer Gathering at Penshurst Place near Tunbridge Wells. There will a full account of these latter events in next month’s update.
UPCOMING EVENTS
We take a breather from events during the holiday month of August before heading to Oulton Park in Cheshire for the next rounds of the racing championships on 2nd September.
If you have recently joined the Register and wish to register your car with us, please contact Paul Money at the following: paulmoneymg@gmail.com . We also have the build-data for the entire production of Zeds if you wish to know more about your car. For further information and up-to-the-minute Register news please visit our Facebook group.