Issue 104 (Jan. 2015)

Description

The January 2015 edition of Irish Vintage Scene (Issue 104) is on sale now, and as ever is packed with a wide variety of interesting vehicle features. On the cover this month is a lovely story for several reasons; this 1977 VW 1200 was bought new in Kells, Co. Meath, and even though it passed through many owners since then, it never strayed far from the greater environs of the town. Having fallen into serious disrepair, it got its lucky break when it was picked upon by a young female car fan, who has now completed its restoration with the help of her dad. Our second feature car is also air-cooled, rear-engined and an automotive legend; this Fiat 500L is a pretty rare right-hand-drive model, and was rescued in poor condition from an underground car park in Dublin a couple of years ago and restored by its enthusiastic owner, just in time for his daughter’s wedding.

Our main tractor feature this month is a really fantastic tale of reunion, and one that got plenty of attention in the national media during the year. It tells the story of Charlie Keegan, the first Irishman to win the World Ploughing Championships in Austrian in 1964, and the efforts that his grandson, Michael, took recently to honour the 50^th anniversary of that victory by restoring the Deutz D40L tractor his late granddad used in that competition so that it could be put on display at the 2014 National Ploughing Championships. Our second tractor feature looks at the restoration of a Massey Ferguson 165, which really stands out from the crowd due to the fact that it wears a restored canvas Flexi-Cab, an unusual sight on the rally fields.

Motorcycle-wise this month we bring you another reunion story – Vinnie Monahan’s restoration of the Yamaha V50 that his father bought brand new in 1980 – while our commercial feature looks at a beautiful Ford Thames 400E pickup that’s recently been restored to stunning condition in North Co. Dublin. We’ve lots of event reports this month as usual, including the 50^th National Steam Rally at Stradbally, the Mountbellew Vintage Show and the ‘Spirit of Dunboyne’ Festival of Motorsport, and as this is our Christmas issue, we’ve plenty of special giveaways with some excellent prizes to be won! You won’t want to miss the January 2015 issue of Irish Vintage Scene; get yours today!