Bright and Shiny Swift

It was a dark and stormy night…as the saying goes. The rain and gale force winds made life very miserable for folk in some parts of the country. By the time I took the dogs out for their walk the rain had eased off but it was still blowing a gale.
We took a different route today as the ford over the river was once again impassable. So I visited the Vintage Car Club Museum in Brayshaw Park. The members were having a busy social morning and invited me to join them for morning tea.
The Vintage Car Club has over 250 members. They have an impressive collection of lovely cars amongst the membership. A number of cars are on display in their museum and they rotate them from time to time.
I was most impressed with the 1915 Swift. Built in Coventry it is a 15hp 3 litre model. This particular model is one of two known to exist in the world today. The other car is in England and is owned by a Mr Michael Radford, grandson of the original design engineer responsible for this car.
This locally owned car was found in a farm shed, near Stratford in the North Island in the early 1960s. It was in a very dilapidated state and really only a pile of rusting disassembled parts. It has been lovingly restored to its full glory with no significant parts having to be made except the rebuilt wheels.
My thanks to the owner for providing details about this fascinating car and allowing me to publish this image.