Issue 223 IVS & Issue 56 RC

Description

IRISH VINTAGE SCENE ISSUE 223

The January 2025 issue of Irish Vintage Scene is our Christmas edition, and as always we’ve a special giveaway inside with some great prizes on offer, as well as our annual Head Skimmer crossword! On the cover is a now-very-rare Mk2 Fiat 127 Sport with a very special connection with its Co. Kerry owner – he first owned it in the early eighties, before he was forced to emigrate and sell off the car. In the early 2000s, lots of detective work eventually tracked it down again, and it was treated to a full restoration. Our second feature car is a Triumph 2000 Mk2 that was stored in a Co. Tyrone garage for four decades before being recently rebuilt by a local enthusiast, and returned to the road for the first time since 1983.

This month’s featured tractor is a small but beautiful Leyland 154, which was bought for the current owner by his dad when he was just eleven years old, but has only recently been restored and finished. Our motorcycle feature showcases three fabulous fifties bikes from the same collection, namely a 1953 Matchless G80, a 1954 Velocette 500 MSS and a 1959 AJS 650, while this month’s featured commercial is a 1965 Austin FG tipper that was recently bought and restored by a long-time fan of this unique lorry design. Lots of the usual favourites are in there too, so don’t miss out!

RETRO CLASSICS ISSUE 56

The January to March 2025 issue of Retro Classics goes on sale at good newsagents shortly, or is available direct from us by pre-ordering online quickly and conveniently, and as usual we’ve another highly varied selection of feature cars to bring you. Sitting pretty on the cover is one of the most impressive BMW E30s we’ve seen in years – a 318is M-Tech 2 that’s been thoroughly reworked by its owner, and now packs a four-litre V8, air suspension and nine-inch-wide Borbet wheels all round.

Further into the mag, we showcase a stunning VW Karmann Ghia that was built by John Maher Racing in the 2000s, complete with a very hot 1776cc engine with Porsche cooling conversion. We look back to nineties peak hedonism with a rare and fearsome, 420hp wide-body Bentley Continental T, as well as a Volkswagen Scirocco that was recently found as a rolling shell and returned to the road. We round this issue out with a very special Vauxhall Magnum 2300 that’s been part of the same Co. Armagh family since it was new in 1975.

Event reports in this issue come from the Causeway Coast Mini Show, the Lancaster Insurance NEC Classic Motor Show and the VAGE Show & Shine, and we also round up the year’s Future Classics racing series and the historic and modified classes in the Irish Tarmac Rally Championship. Our regular detailing guide is packed with tips to survive the winter months in your pride and joy, and we take a look back at the often-quirky car ads of decades past, so don’t miss out!