For aficionados of vintage and veteran cars, as well as the public, Sunday, July 11th in the grounds of Terenure College, Dublin, promises great excitement and an unrivalled range of old cars.
It will be the 13th Irish Classic & Vintage Motor Show, which is organised by the Irish Jaguar & Daimler Club. The show will have a great range of marques and some oddities, too. It's expected to be the biggest event of its kind in Ireland this year.
The show runs from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. There will be parking (€3) for about 2, 500 cars. The college grounds are off Templeogue Road and Fortfield Road. Admission charges are €10 per person, €20 for a family and €5 for a senior citizen.
Last year's show attracted over 700 old cars and around 20,000 people, and similar numbers are expexcted this year. John Doyle, secretary of the Irish Jaguar & Daimler Club, says that this is the third year they've held the show at Terenure College. The show is sponsored by Carole Nash Insurance and the proceeds go to charity - helping St Mary's hospital and residential school for children with multiple disabilities at Baldoyle, Dublin.
The organisers will also be making a donation to Terenure College; John Doyle says that the show is held with the permission of the Carmelite Order and that the college authorities go out of their way to make the show an annual success. The only thing they won't allow are barbeques on the grass, dogs or other pets.
A star turn at the show, apart from the cars, will be Sir Norman Wisdom, the comedian, who's now near 90 years old. This week he plays a cameo role in ITV's Coronation Street. His original Rolls-Royce, a 1974 Silver Shadow, now Irish-owned by Co Louth-based collector Michael Quinn, will be at the show. Another guest is expected to be Dublin's new Lord Mayor, Cllr Michael Conaghan.
Countless examples of cars going back to the early years of the 20th century will be there, representing nearly every marque owned in Ireland. One of the most popular marques will be Jaguars, up to 50 of them. The show will also have about 70 old American cars. Each entrant to the show will get a hand-painted commemorative plaque.
Car clubs from all over the country, probably about 30 in all, will be taking part, from as far away as Co Kerry and Northern Ireland. In fact, most of the Irish-based car clubs will be at the show, adds Joe Higgins, the public relations officer for the event.
The Aston Martin Club is taking part for the first time, as is the Historic Racing Car Association, whose exhibits will include Mini, Porsche and VW cars. The Irish Kit Car Club, featured in Motors earlier this year, will be there in all its glory.
The oldest car there is likely to be an 1895 electric car, altho' it hasn't been confirmed. The oddest car will be a 1946 Austin that's been totally jazzed up and given a psychedelic makeover. Commercials and motorbikes will also feature, thus catering for nearly every conceivable enthusiast.
For people looking for bits and pieces to restore old cars, the show will also feature an Auto Jumble. Craft stalls will also be included. The show will have a Victorian-style tea tent for refreshments, and entertainment - including clowns - for children.
Getting the show together is a huge organisational task, but John Doyle says it's all worth it on the day. The Irish Jaguar & Daimler Club, founded in 1980, has about 90 members, of whom around 20 are actively helping in organising the show. John Doyle himself owns and runs a firm in Trim, Co Meath, that makes hair products for women, Organic and Mineral Research Products.
He long wanted a Jaguar Mark II and about eight years ago, bought a 1968 Jaguar 240. In May, it and four other Irish-owned cars took part in an outing to mainland Europe with 160 English-owned cars. The Irish owners and their cars sailed from Rosslare to Cherbourg to join up with their English counterparts. "It was a very good outing and the Jaguar ran very well," claims John Doyle.
