The HPC Classics with Miles Hardy
It’s me, Mark Stone, and in this episode of the Backseat Driver Podcast, I’m joined by Miles Hardy, a leading name in the world of classic and high-performance cars and the driving force behind HPC Classics, a respected dealership dedicated to exceptional sports and collector vehicles.
Miles shares the story behind the founding of HPC Classics, explaining how a shared passion for cars among him and his partners evolved into a thriving business built on expertise, authenticity, and an eye for true automotive quality. I explore with him the unique challenges and rewards of sourcing and selling classic vehicles, as well as the attention to detail that sets HPC apart.
As Miles looks ahead to his next chapter, stepping into the world of competitive racing, he reflects on the thrill, discipline, and dedication required to succeed behind the wheel. This episode is a celebration of the enduring appeal of classic cars, the community that surrounds them, and the drive that keeps the spirit of motoring alive.
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Transcript
I'd like to introduce to the backseat driver a man who is one of the leading lights in HPC Classics, a sports car dealer, a classic car dealer, a TVR enthusiast.
Speaker A:Yes, they do exist and he's soon to become a racing driver, which means his moderately muddy, slavish lifestyle will probably come to an end, given how much it all cost.
Speaker A:But apart from all that, I'd like to introduce Miles Hardy to the backseat driver.
Speaker A:Miles, welcome.
Speaker B:Cheers for having us, Mark.
Speaker B:Much appreciated.
Speaker B:I'm excited about this how, firstly, what.
Speaker A:Does HPC Classic stand for?
Speaker B:So it's our three initials.
Speaker B:We actually wanted High Performance Classics originally and we found when we were looking around that someone in New Zealand had already got that.
Speaker B:So we're ah, oh, that's ruined that then.
Speaker B:And then I think I sat at home and realized I was like, hang on, our initials are hpc.
Speaker B:We've just got to add a Classics to the end of that.
Speaker B:So it's my surname, my business partners, Chris and Francois, it's their surnames as well, Fitz and Calvino, and that's us.
Speaker B:HPC Classics, that's how it started.
Speaker A:And how did all this come about?
Speaker A:Is dealing in sports cars and classic cars a family business or were you lured into it?
Speaker B:It's not, no, it was, it was one of those like the rest is history type situations really.
Speaker A:Ye.
Speaker B:Francois was looking for a Pre Series Lancia Zaghetto double bubble roof type thing and funnily enough, I was stiffing around one today.
Speaker B:So it's funny how things go full circle.
Speaker B:He had asked Chris, whose background is in motor racing, so he's worked for the likes of CKL, he's done time with McLaren, he's built cars that have won championships and whatnot.
Speaker B:The BMW Renault World Series.
Speaker B:So he's pretty handy on the Spanners.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:He asked Chris, you know, can you find me a car that is worth Me investing in?
Speaker B:And Chris sort of responded to him, said, yeah, we can be and tell you which one to go for, but.
Speaker B:So I don't follow the market but my best mate, I. E. Me, does.
Speaker B:So you kind of wanted to chat to him and see what's worth putting your money into.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:So we did.
Speaker B:We took a day out in London and had a little look at some cars, had a few chats and within a couple of hours, France.
Speaker B:I was like, oh, you two know all about this, you've got all bases covered, you should start a business.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:And oh yeah, really, the rest is history.
Speaker B:Three months later we had the keys to a Unit and that was it.
Speaker B:Immediately into lockdown.
Speaker B:We thought it was game over.
Speaker B:So it was, it was a scary time, but we're still here, so can't complain.
Speaker A:So, I mean, from the sounds of it, you are the man that sources things and the other two are the ones that spanner and do whatever.
Speaker A:So it's like a combination of three talents.
Speaker B:Well, Francois is the man that gave us the opportunity to do it.
Speaker B:So he's the man with a little bit of money that, yeah, made things happen.
Speaker B:Yeah, Chris is definitely the man behind Spanners.
Speaker B:He's very good with facts and figures as well.
Speaker B:So, yeah, he's a.
Speaker B:He's.
Speaker B:I'm basically the guy that, you know, smooths people into bringing their car to us or for us to buy, sell, restore, whatever we're doing.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:And then Chris is the one that looks at it.
Speaker B:I mean, I can turn the Spanners, but I don't get any time to.
Speaker B:Chris is the one that then looks at it and goes, actually no.
Speaker B:If we want to get it to my, my standards, he then delivers the bad news.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:So yeah, we all, we've all definitely got our own, our own talents, but it's great fun.
Speaker B:All just lovely people.
Speaker B:So that.
Speaker B:And the guys we employ, we're very, very lucky.
Speaker B:They're all friends before we employed them.
Speaker B:And yeah, it's great to have seen the team grow.
Speaker B:Everybody gets on like a house on fire.
Speaker B:So it's more of a community than somewhere to work, which is great.
Speaker A:So, I mean, I conclude you will hold cars in stock for people to go and look at, but also source cars.
Speaker B:We do indeed.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:So we've got sale return cars.
Speaker B:We do own some of our own stock and I do go and find things for people.
Speaker B:So if somebody's after something in particular, which is a mission I was on today, something I can't actually talk about, but yeah, on a mission to find the right things.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's actually a really interesting part of the job.
Speaker B:You get to meet really cool people, travel the country and yeah, it's the story.
Speaker B:I mean, this is why we like classic cars, isn't it?
Speaker B:The stories that come with them.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:And I suppose if you get.
Speaker A:You will go and look at a car.
Speaker A:I mean, it's the favorite thing some days after car A, say somebody's after a Ferrari 308 and you look on wherever autotrade or anything like that and you find about three or four of them.
Speaker A:Then the problem is, do they live up to the description?
Speaker A:I mean, have you Ever been out to see a beautiful.
Speaker A:You'll want to drive it away immediately, but the only way it'll travel back home is courtesy of a jcb.
Speaker B:Yeah, we've been to see a few wrecks, to be fair.
Speaker B:Stuff that has been.
Speaker B:Everybody thinks their car's the best and undoubtedly when it's running and making wonderful noises and whatnot, they do make you feel fantastic.
Speaker B:But we have been to go and see some stuff and you're like, well, it's a day wasted, but at the end of the day you can't win them all.
Speaker B:And it's much better to have dodged a bullet than gone, oh, we'll take it on anyway and just see how it goes.
Speaker B:So that, and I mean on the sale of return side of things, it does happen.
Speaker B:We have quite a few cars that come to us.
Speaker B:You know, you've done all your due diligence, they've sent you all the details.
Speaker B:Great, marvelous.
Speaker B:But I'm going to inspect it and drive it first.
Speaker B:So everything that we have in the showroom because we've only got space for 20, 25 cars tops.
Speaker B:Yeah, they, they've got to be of really high quality.
Speaker B:If I'm not happy with it or it wouldn't be in my garage.
Speaker B:Yeah, I just won't have it there because it's our reputation at the end of the day.
Speaker B:So I turn an awful lot of cars away.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker B:Yeah, it, it sounds horrible at the start.
Speaker B:You know, when you, when you desperate for business, you try really hard, don't you?
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:And you try and appease everyone but actually it's like, do you know what?
Speaker B:That's, that's just a world of problems and every penny I make will go out on warranty work, if not worse.
Speaker B:And it also stands to tarnish our reputation.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker B:Yeah, I'm very careful about what we bring in.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:I mean, what gives an idea of what have you got on display at the moment?
Speaker B:Well, it's an eclectic mix.
Speaker B:It's all stuff that I like.
Speaker B:That's another thing, you've got to be passionate about what you sell.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:So I know there's a lot of high end stuff that I would like to get in in the future, but currently it's all.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's cool.
Speaker B:We've done everything from bomb bugs all the way through to Aventadors.
Speaker B:So it's a pretty eclectic mix.
Speaker B:But in the minute we've got an AC Seeker chassis number four.
Speaker B:So that's a really special car.
Speaker B:Full history braley from thay.
Speaker B:Yeah, really lovely thing.
Speaker B:I've got three Austin Healeys, so I've got one of each, really.
Speaker B:I've got a BT7 which is like a last off the line car.
Speaker A:Yep.
Speaker B:Triple car, really nice, fully restored, beautiful thing.
Speaker B:Local car.
Speaker B:I've got 104 which is actually my favorite.
Speaker B:All alloy bodied with a few hundred M upgrades.
Speaker A:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker B:The early short wheel base.
Speaker B:Gorgeous.
Speaker B:It's just so much fun to drive.
Speaker A:That'll be the one where the windscreen slops down as well.
Speaker B:It is indeed.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker B:That is 100m extra but ye, they're just cool.
Speaker B:But you know exactly the thing I'm on about.
Speaker A:And if memory serves, isn't the gearbox the wrong way around for most?
Speaker B:It is indeed, yeah.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Reverse, three speed.
Speaker B:People find it difficult but you just think about what you're doing.
Speaker B:It's lovely.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's nice actually being engaged with the car.
Speaker B:You know, you actually have to think about what you're up to.
Speaker B:But I really enjoy them, I think because the BN2, the later car that was actually the 100M has a normal four speed H pattern.
Speaker B:But the BN1, which this one is the reverse three speed.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:It's like when you drive a vintage with the throttle in the middle, your mind has to work a lot harder to remind yourself.
Speaker A:No, it's in the middle and the brake pedal is where you think the throttle is.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Don't go heel and towie.
Speaker A:But I mean these are cars from an era when apart from the fact you had to have a bit of money about you because they weren't cheap cars but they were when you had to be able to drive.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I mean reading even old books and stuff, you know, people paid for driving lessons and they were really just sort of sent on their way very shortly afterwards with no real accreditation in the early days.
Speaker B:I'd love to have been around then.
Speaker B:It sounds like a right hoop but also really dangerous.
Speaker A:Well, I can remember my grandfather have the.
Speaker A:I can't remember the title or the name of them, but he'd been driving for quite a long while.
Speaker A:Then they suddenly brought in the driving tests and he said, how long have you driving?
Speaker A:Oh, X number of years or there's your license, off you go.
Speaker A:No, they didn't have driving tests.
Speaker A:I forget there was a title for it.
Speaker A:But yeah, they just got given a driving license.
Speaker B:How cool is that.
Speaker A:Yeah, well done.
Speaker B:You survived this far, you paved the way.
Speaker B:Love it.
Speaker B:What else have I got inside?
Speaker B: Volvo P: Speaker A:Oh, very nice.
Speaker B:Oh yeah, it's a.
Speaker B:It's absolutely immaculate.
Speaker B:It was actually on Wheel of dealers, but it's sort of been restored again since then.
Speaker B:Yeah, to a high standard.
Speaker B:It's.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's a really lovely bit of kit.
Speaker B:What else have we got in?
Speaker B:I should have the website in front of me, but I haven't.
Speaker B:I've got TVR Tuscan Mark 1, which has been fully restored by Jason at Stray 6.
Speaker B:That's a really fabulous car.
Speaker B:Again, I've got three people that want that already, so I don't think that's gonna hang around.
Speaker B:Aston Martin Vanquish S the early model, which is a really nice bit of kit.
Speaker B:Again, I'm not big on the big GT cars anymore.
Speaker B:I used to love them as a kid.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:But those are again, because the gearbox makes you think you have to back out the throttle and stuff on them.
Speaker B:So you're quite involved with it.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:I've got the original development TVR Griffith, which is a 4, 5, big valve, really famous car.
Speaker B:Peter Wheeler used to drive it to the races and stuff.
Speaker B:It was the development car for all the brakes, suspension and whatnot on the Tuscans and Cerberus.
Speaker B:Neil Anderson drove it to two hill client, I think it was no sprint championships in a row and it was on the Top Gear and it all.
Speaker B:Yeah, auto car and all the magazine.
Speaker B:So that's a rather famous bit of kit.
Speaker B:Yeah, I've got two TBR T350TS which are both absolutely immaculate.
Speaker B:A Chimera 450.
Speaker B:I've got a Tuscan S, which was again the really famous one that went past the speed camera on Top Gear.
Speaker B:171 mile an hour and didn't get flashed.
Speaker B:So that car, everyone knows that's an amazing car.
Speaker B:Got BMW M535i E12, dogleg manual.
Speaker B:Really?
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:M90 engine.
Speaker B:Sort of the first Pre M car.
Speaker B:Not the M5, but gorgeous thing.
Speaker B:Jaguar XK120 OTS.
Speaker B:Good value cars because they're unfortunately sort of lacking.
Speaker B:Lacking buyers currently.
Speaker B:So the 50 stuff, you're getting it for less than it would cost to buy before they were restored.
Speaker B:So you're basically getting fully restored cars for nothing almost, which is nice, I must say.
Speaker A:I have a weakness for XK120s.
Speaker A:I do.
Speaker A:Like I'll never have the wherewithal to afford one, but when I've been fortunate enough to drive them, I think they're absolutely sublime to drive.
Speaker B:They're lovely things.
Speaker B:Yeah, I mean they're.
Speaker B:They're just beautiful.
Speaker B:More than Anything to me.
Speaker B:I mean, as soon as you lift the engine bay, that engine's gorgeous.
Speaker B:Anything about it is a beautiful car.
Speaker B:Not cheap to maintain, but they are a wonderful thing.
Speaker B:I've got a lotus Elise S1 which is another nice rarity and I also have a Porsche Macan S which is just a daily driver from one of our clients.
Speaker B:So if they're nice enough people, I'll take on cars that I'm not that into because you could probably tell I'm not a 4x4 man.
Speaker B:And the only other thing I don't have listed currently is Caterham 310R with only 3,000 miles on the clock, which is really cool.
Speaker A:Right, right.
Speaker A:No doubt it's previous owner frightened himself to death in it.
Speaker B:It's just at the point where it's not too much.
Speaker B:It's actually.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's quite manageable.
Speaker B:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker B:A really nice car.
Speaker B:And there's loads of space in it as well, which surprised me because some of the previous ones in.
Speaker B:I'm a bit cramped but this thing's got tons of room.
Speaker B:It's really nice.
Speaker A:I know, I know.
Speaker A:When I, before I bought the Morgan, I tried one and I discovered there was more of me hanging out of the car than was in the car.
Speaker A:So I thought, no, go for something you're actually inside of.
Speaker B:I like that.
Speaker B:So the reason I'm a TBR man, I've got really long legs.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:I'm only six foot tall, but my legs are stupidly long so they basically finish where my tits start.
Speaker A:So you're the ideal man for a Ferrari, for a Dino, because that was all legs and body, wasn't it?
Speaker B:Yeah, I love Adino.
Speaker B:I rigged it.
Speaker B:My first ever supercar experience as a young lad with my identical twin brother was being taken up and down the road in a Dino 246.
Speaker B:Yeah, that a wonderful b, you know, memory that sticks with you forever.
Speaker B:And we also had that, we had a Dino 308 GT4.
Speaker B:If you bought up a 308 for in stock a while ago.
Speaker B:And that is probably up there in my top three cars I've ever driven.
Speaker B:Just such a great all rounder, usable like the best balance chassis on anything ever.
Speaker B:You can see why people race them as opposed to the two seats to 308, the long wheelbase, the trans transversely mounted V8.
Speaker B:And there are loads of firsts in it as well.
Speaker B:You know, the dash was all done by Enzo.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:The only car designed by Bertone.
Speaker B:Yes, they're wicked.
Speaker B:Really amazing cars.
Speaker B:Lovely things and I would, I'd definitely have one.
Speaker B:Yeah, give me half a chance and yeah, I'll jump on one of them.
Speaker A:I mean the thing is, I mean a great friend of mine who was a huge Porsche man bought one because his daughter wanted him to buy a family car.
Speaker A:So that's as near as she ever got when he bought that.
Speaker A:They are an unusual looking car.
Speaker A:They are of their age.
Speaker A:The other thing his had was an oil leak that nobody could ever cure.
Speaker A:But they were an unusual car in many ways compared to the Dino everybody thinks of.
Speaker B:Yeah, they are.
Speaker B:Well, they're completely different and they're completely different to almost everything else that Ferrari made.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:And I think that's why people don't like them because everybody hated the original Dino and now they're 650 grand.
Speaker B:So you know, they were 30 grand 10 years ago and now everybody's been proved wrong because you can place it on a B road and then not as expensive to look after when you get them right.
Speaker B:Yeah, they're light and more fun.
Speaker B:So yeah, they're wicked.
Speaker B:I really like them.
Speaker A:What do you find at the moment classic wise and modern wise which are the makes and models people want?
Speaker B:I mean I'm quite glad I'm sort of preaching from or to the choir here.
Speaker B:The TVR camp.
Speaker B:So the Americans couldn't have them.
Speaker B:Well, they have, but not the Tuscans and things they saw in the movies.
Speaker B:So the 25 year point is now.
Speaker B:So we're selling quite a few over to the us.
Speaker B:There is, there's an awful lot of excitement.
Speaker B:I mean we've sold cars.
Speaker B:Even Sagaris is the top of the line stuff that can't go for five years.
Speaker B:So they're in storage with us but on a service plan.
Speaker B:So they're going to be looked after until they can go over.
Speaker B:So there is, there's a lot of hype.
Speaker B:I mean to me there has to be a special recipe and there are certain cars of every year that will do it.
Speaker B:BMW E9, one of my all time favorites, CSL.
Speaker B:It's everything you could possibly want.
Speaker B:There's that win on, win on Sunday, sell on Monday type thing.
Speaker B:Same as a 280 Turbo, DiTomaso, Panteras, Alfa Romeo, Montreal's I did.
Speaker B:I've told quite a few people to go out and buy these cars when they were a lot less money.
Speaker B:Even you know, Vega HK500s but they were cheap as chicks not that long ago.
Speaker B:Now they're half a million quid.
Speaker B:You just need the right Recipe, it needs to be easy enough to look after.
Speaker B:So American engines are quite nice.
Speaker B:Italian styling is always decent.
Speaker B:If you can get it usable in that, you can fit things and people in it without it being a big struggle.
Speaker B:And servicing parts aren't too terrible.
Speaker B:They need to be rare and actually a bit special.
Speaker B:So wherever you go, people go, oh, yeah, you can come in, that's all right.
Speaker B:And nowadays you want something that's actually quite fast as well, because everybody's used to getting in their two liter turbocharged daily.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:That's faster than anything they've ever owned.
Speaker B:Wow.
Speaker B:It's amazing.
Speaker B:And I'm sat 400 miles off the ground and I can see everything.
Speaker B:So when they get in a classic car, they go, oh, this is terrible.
Speaker B:Way worse than I remember it.
Speaker B:And that's why most of them are being sold cheaply now.
Speaker B:The right things with the right recipe, I mean, things like T350 Sagaris, Tuscans, they've got a massive boot.
Speaker B:They don't even use that much fuel because they're light and they've got less cylinders to feed than most things.
Speaker B:Yeah, you know, they are.
Speaker B:They tick lots and lots of boxes.
Speaker B:Then you look at the rarity, you're like, hang on, they made way less than these and they made their 40s.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker B:I can get a full engine rebuild and an upgrade for 15 grand.
Speaker B:So you can't even start to buy the parts for most things for that.
Speaker B:Yeah, yeah, they are.
Speaker B:They tick a lot of boxes and when you look at the specs on them, you're like very rarely fine tea that are the same.
Speaker B:Yeah, I like the sort of Corvette things like.
Speaker B:Yeah, my one's the only one in the world in this spec.
Speaker B:It's like.
Speaker B:Yeah, that's because you changed the stickers on it.
Speaker B:It's a slightly different setup.
Speaker B:So they are.
Speaker B:You've got to have that right recipe and without that, you're going to struggle.
Speaker B:Things like XJ220s, they are, I think, criminally undervalued.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:And their time will come.
Speaker B:It might not be tomorrow, but it definitely will because the next generation are going to go, oh, I remember having a model of that.
Speaker B:They weren't the generation that had the deposit on one and got disappointed when it was a V6 instead of a V12.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:So I don't care.
Speaker B:It's cool.
Speaker B:It's stealth.
Speaker B:That's why I had a model of when I was a youngster and I could afford to buy it.
Speaker B:So stuff like that is going to start to pick up.
Speaker A:I mean you mentioned then the Fastel Vega.
Speaker A:I mean I think they are absolutely staggering.
Speaker A:Fossil Vegas.
Speaker A:Most people don't know what they are.
Speaker B:I think again a lot of cars seeing the doldrums because most people don't know what they are, they don't go.
Speaker B:I mean I think my problem when I was younger was right that's how much I've got to spend.
Speaker B:Let's search all of the world on car and classic to drop any names but that was the only website that was any good back in the day.
Speaker B:You go on there, you look at absolutely every make, model, everything and, and just see we came up with as, you know, best value if you cut me in the middle, BMW and TVR man through and through.
Speaker B:Yeah I've had lots of other things in the meantime as well but that website is great.
Speaker B:You come across stuff you didn't know existed, you have to do some research, you're like cool, right one day that's on my, that's on my to do list.
Speaker B:I've got to have one of those.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:And so think other things that are really rare, special and perform that I undervalued.
Speaker B:I mean Jensen 541 RS.
Speaker B:Pretty cool.
Speaker B:Beautiful car.
Speaker B:Yeah cheap chips, peerless GTs.
Speaker B:Yeah gorgeous things, rare.
Speaker B:I mean they are just delightful to look at from every angle and again they're, they're cheap to maintain.
Speaker B:Yeah you've got fiberglass body, you've got an engine that everybody knows what's, what's not to like and then moving up a step from that you've got the Gordon Keeble.
Speaker A:I was fortunate enough the other week to visit a friend of mine and his friend turned up.
Speaker A:Another one of his friends turned up in his Gordon Keeble.
Speaker B:They're just awesome, aren't they?
Speaker A:Yeah, very refined looking for very, very understated.
Speaker A:They don't look like what they are.
Speaker B:No, no to me they're a wonderful bit of kit.
Speaker A:Problem is they only made just over.
Speaker A:They only made just over 90 of them so you don't find them popping up all over.
Speaker B:Yeah, apparently 101 were made in total.
Speaker B:I think one, the last one was sort of a reproduction out of lots of spare bits that were made but I think most of them survive which is testament to A the people that looked after them and B the care within the club.
Speaker B:So yeah they're on my to do list one day I think they're fabulous things but again they like a tbr they're the underdog aren't they?
Speaker B:They fly under the radar.
Speaker B:And although I do love a Ferrari, I would always tend to pick the underdog because only the people that really know about cars will go, yeah, that's cool.
Speaker A:I think that's my problem.
Speaker A:I mean, people know I love cars and then they'll talk to me about Ferraris.
Speaker A:Now, I've never owned one, I've driven a lot of them, but the modern Ferraris don't do anything for me.
Speaker A:The last of the modern Ferraris that, shall we say, get me excited is the GTO.
Speaker A:The 288 GTR.
Speaker A:I mean, I think they are magnet.
Speaker A:There's something about.
Speaker A:They look like they're doing 200 mile an hour stationary.
Speaker A:There's some things just about is my.
Speaker B:Favorite of what, yeah, what I'd call the modern Ferraris.
Speaker B:When you.
Speaker B:Before you go back to the sort of 60s and the early stuff, the 166 is 280 GTO has always been my absolute favorite.
Speaker B:I've been lucky enough to go for a speed of the GT4, sorry, GT14.
Speaker B:I'm getting my, my model F40 and they are just a wonderful experience.
Speaker B:I've not been out in the 2A GTA, but I get the distinct feeling I'd break a mess in my pants if I did.
Speaker B:Just wonderful, aren't they?
Speaker B:Now, I'm with you on the modern thing.
Speaker B:And it's not just Ferraris, whether it be McLarens, they're just.
Speaker B:They're just all turbocharged and they go bong.
Speaker B:Too often.
Speaker B:They're too wide, so you can't necessarily have fun.
Speaker B:You're like, oh, just get a little bit sideways here.
Speaker B:You can't do that in these massive things because you have to be doing a million mile an hour and it takes up all of the road as it is.
Speaker A:I mean, I was on the launch of.
Speaker A:I think it was the.
Speaker A:Was it the 720 or something like that, McLaren, and they had to get me out of it because the scissor doors stopped working.
Speaker A:I mean, I mean, I'll probably get sued for this.
Speaker A:Personally speaking, allegedly, I find them very, very badly built.
Speaker A:They don't do a single thing for me.
Speaker A:They leave me ice cold.
Speaker A:They've no soul.
Speaker B:I have to sort of say the same.
Speaker B:We look after a few.
Speaker B:And although, I mean, they're very, very good at what they do.
Speaker B:And I say the same about a lot of brands.
Speaker B:Porsche, for example, they're very, very good at getting you from A to B quickly.
Speaker B:But that fast and fun are Two separate things.
Speaker B:People confuse them for being the same.
Speaker B:And that to me is where, where the classic stuff rules.
Speaker B:I would much rather take a frog eye Sprite with 41 horsepower around the B roads than a McLaren.
Speaker B:A lot of people can't understand that, but there's a lot more joy in driving when you're just doing it.
Speaker B:You know, you're not relying on your eight speed gearbox, doing it itself and your adaptive dampers and your adaptive headlights and it's just a bit boring, isn't it?
Speaker B:I mean, you never really get to do 200 mile an hour on a British B road.
Speaker A:No.
Speaker B:So it's a bit.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I mean, unless you're doing track days every day, then fair enough.
Speaker B:If you're going to push it to its limit on a track day and you've got everything turned off, hats off to you, you're a good pilot.
Speaker B:But for actual general driving and on a Sunday, going to the pub, I mean, the best car I've ever driven is an AC8.
Speaker B:Unbelievable.
Speaker B:Just phenomenal in every way.
Speaker B:You will not stop smiling if you drive one.
Speaker B:Gorgeous things.
Speaker B:So, yeah, fast and fun are completely separate as far as I'm concerned.
Speaker B:Quite cool when you get something like a Sagaris or a Cerbera, that is, and it's loads of fun.
Speaker B:So you're just grinning like a Cheshire cat and moving along.
Speaker B:That's excellent.
Speaker B:But again, there aren't many things that got that recipe right.
Speaker A:No, I mean, I mean it's, it's.
Speaker A:Somebody said to me about.
Speaker A:I mean, I was gnome, I spent years with Porsches with 911s and I look at the modern 911 and they don't do anything for me.
Speaker A:And somebody said, well, if you're having a 911, what would you have?
Speaker A:I said, I would have an early pre 68, pre 69, 911T or something.
Speaker A:Or a 911S.
Speaker A:I said, the basic.
Speaker A:I said, rubber MA.
Speaker A:I said, because that's what the 911 was meant to be.
Speaker A:You've got to be able to drive to make it do what you want.
Speaker A:I said, otherwise it's the old thing.
Speaker A:You'll go around a right hand bend and the first thing you'll do is reverse through a hedge.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Get the pendulum effect.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:But there's something about the early 911s that to my mind were the true.
Speaker A:That was the true portion.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Properly.
Speaker B:I mean, I saw on the way back from where I was earlier on today, I saw quite a few 356s on their way to obviously revival, I should think later on the week and, or next week.
Speaker B:And I mean, they're glorious looking things, they really are beautiful.
Speaker B:That's a Porsche.
Speaker B:The modern stuff.
Speaker B:I mean, I get why people like them, I do, but they're no cheaper to maintain than anything else and they're no more reliable.
Speaker B:The law of averages states the more things you have, the more there is to go wrong.
Speaker B:So inevitably it does.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:And a lot of the cars we see, they can be looked after by, you know, Porsche main dealers or whatever.
Speaker B:And the turbos, hardly any of them ever change all six spark plugs because you got to take the turbos off to do it.
Speaker B:The dealers don't allow the time for it, so they just don't do them.
Speaker B:So everyone's banging on about how their Porsche is the best and it's the most reliable.
Speaker B:Get it a few years later and it hasn't really been looked after the way you think it has.
Speaker B:Yeah, take your color.
Speaker B:For specialist people, this isn't me that's giving a shout out.
Speaker B:They actually care.
Speaker B:So there's lots of, you know, specialists for every brand that will actually care about your car.
Speaker B:Main dealers, I shouldn't like them, but I've had bad experiences in the past thinking, oh, my car's got all main dealer service history, I will keep that.
Speaker B:And I've decided against it.
Speaker B:So they're worlds apart.
Speaker B:They, they don't do what they used to do.
Speaker B:And I always say things like, you say, we got 100 grand budget for someone, what are you going to choose?
Speaker B:And this might offend few people out there, but they go, oh, I would like an Audi RS6, probably in primer.
Speaker B:And as far as I'm concerned, that's the car for.
Speaker B:They designed that so they could get, I don't know, a chimpanzee to sit in the seat, tell it which ones go, which ones stop and then put it around a track.
Speaker B:It will do everything else for you.
Speaker B:So it's not a car for somebody who enjoys driving in any way, shape or form.
Speaker B:And all of the modern cars like that are going down exactly the same route.
Speaker B:So they're just all for me, they're not for me.
Speaker B:Hence why I'd rather be in a 55 Austin Hemig.
Speaker B:That makes me smile more.
Speaker A:Now, one topic and one card that's cropped up a few occasions while we've been chatting.
Speaker A:Tvr, you more or less sold your soul to tvr, don't you?
Speaker A:You.
Speaker B:Oh, I love them.
Speaker B:Value for money.
Speaker B:Wise, there's nothing that comes close.
Speaker A:Hold on a sec.
Speaker A:Why, why TVRs.
Speaker B:Again?
Speaker B:It's, it's not just speed.
Speaker B:I mean when you look at them versus what else you could buy at the time.
Speaker B:Yeah, normally they are always the fastest thing you could buy.
Speaker B:Bang for buck.
Speaker B:Unless you're buying a Ferrari Bugatti or like.
Speaker B:Yeah, an extra 220.
Speaker B:Everyone's like Halo cars.
Speaker B:So unless you buy those, which are millions predominantly.
Speaker B:Yeah, you buy a TVR for under a tenth of that and it's just as quick but it's more usable as well.
Speaker B:You know, the server has just walked away with everything when they were new.
Speaker B:They look cool, they sound absolutely amazing.
Speaker A:Well, they're not for the.
Speaker A:They're not exactly a subtle car for approach or departure, are they?
Speaker B:No, I mean with cats in and normal exhausts, some of them are quite quiet.
Speaker B:Yeah, but, but if you're really into cars, you don't want it too quiet anyway, do you?
Speaker B:You want to hear what the engine's up to.
Speaker B:Yes, but yeah, they're really pound for pound they are the most sports car you can buy for your money.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:The Humble Tomorrow.
Speaker B:Is that.
Speaker B:That for me if I had a limited budget you go by, you've got say 30 grand to spend on a car.
Speaker B:Yeah, that's what I go and buy.
Speaker B:Wouldn't have anything else.
Speaker B:You've got 350 horsepower, TVR zone straight six.
Speaker B: fiberglass body, weighs like: Speaker B:Mega.
Speaker B:What else can you buy that's got a spec like that, that and has a decent sized boot?
Speaker B:Yeah, and it's 20 years old.
Speaker B:They're fabulous, fabulous cars.
Speaker A:Yeah, they're really rare.
Speaker B:There's only about 100 odd on the road still.
Speaker B:All right, they're stupidly rare.
Speaker B:I think they made like 275 or something like that.
Speaker B:So, yeah, brilliant things.
Speaker A:Now, as I said at the beginning, you're due to take up, you're due to be a racing driver.
Speaker A:I mean, what has brought on this urge to spend your entire bank balance?
Speaker B:I don't know about being a racing driver.
Speaker B:Me and my business partner just applied for our race license so we're going to go down the ARDS route.
Speaker A:I'm going to say you'll be doing the ARDS test.
Speaker B:Indeed we will.
Speaker B:We'd expected to do it this summer, but we've just been so busy, we actually haven't had the time.
Speaker B:So we've been hiring out our race car.
Speaker B:We were looking at, obviously from our background, we've been looking after race cars for people.
Speaker B:Chris and I thought it was high time we got our own.
Speaker B:Why is everybody else having the fun go ourselves.
Speaker B:And so we went out and bought a BMW 325 Ti compact.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:Which had been raced in the Compact Cup.
Speaker B:Chris went through it and probably has spent as much as it cost to buy it developing it because obviously he wants to make things good enough that they can go out and win.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:And so now we have a very well sorted 325ti and we've done quite a few track days in it, but we've not gone.
Speaker B:We've not gone racing yet.
Speaker B:So time will come, but we need a little bit more spare time to make it happen.
Speaker B:It's an exciting prospect, I won't lie.
Speaker A:So apart from track days, have you ever raced anything?
Speaker A:Apart from.
Speaker A:No doubt an evening karting or something like that?
Speaker B:Mountain bikes are the only other thing I've raced.
Speaker A:Oh, right.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I'm not built for running, that's for sure.
Speaker B:But yeah, I used to race downhill mountain biking again, I wasn't that fast at it, to be fair, but it was always good fun doing it with your friends and the identical twin brother.
Speaker B:That was the challenge, beating each other.
Speaker B:But yeah, that's the only thing I've raced.
Speaker B:Otherwise I race after the sandwich van.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:That's when that comes past away.
Speaker B:That's the only thing I get excited for.
Speaker B:But no, no, bikes are the only thing I've raced.
Speaker B:But I think it's kind of a natural progression.
Speaker B:A lot of our customers are mountain bikers or road bikers.
Speaker B:If it's got tyres and cogs, it's that sort of stuff.
Speaker A:So what series will you be racing?
Speaker A:Him?
Speaker B:It's most likely msv, track day stuff.
Speaker B:Yeah, there's that and I think there's.
Speaker B:I'm trying to think of the other one that Chris has said he's got us prepped for, but he's got the car ready for it anyway.
Speaker B:I'm not.
Speaker B:I think that's the problem.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:I need more training.
Speaker A:It's.
Speaker A:Somebody once said, what's it like?
Speaker A:They wanted to race and they'd stood and watched racing for many years and they said to me, what's it like?
Speaker A:I said, it's different.
Speaker A:I said, stood at the public side of the barriers, all well and good, I said, because at certain Circuits, you're reasonably close.
Speaker A:I said, when you're in the car and you roll out the pit lane, it's a different world.
Speaker A:It's a different view.
Speaker A:I said, and when you arrive on the grid, I said, providing, of course, you've qualified, I said, qualified reasonably well, I said, it's a whole different world.
Speaker A:I said, you try and work out what the guys up front might be doing or will do.
Speaker A:You have to work out who's at the side of who's going to try and clatter you off at the first bend.
Speaker A:I said, it's a whole different world.
Speaker A:I said, you're happy when the first lap's over and they've sorted themselves out.
Speaker A:With any luck, I said, then you can get onto the job of racing.
Speaker A:But it is a different world.
Speaker A:Are you ready for this?
Speaker B:It's making my palms sweat.
Speaker A:I once said to somebody, I said, sat in a racing car on a grid, I said, it can be one of the loneliest places in the world.
Speaker A:You suddenly started to think at times should be doing this, what am I doing here?
Speaker B:I can imagine there's every.
Speaker B:Every question under the sun, but not, have I left the iron on?
Speaker B:Or to the leafy oven on things like that.
Speaker B:No.
Speaker B:Every other question under the sun is going through your head whilst trying to pay attention and concentrate on the lights.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Having raced, I do know what it feels like.
Speaker B:It's.
Speaker B:It's weird, exciting and then one.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Like you say, once you've got your first couple of corners in and you start to just mojo your hands, relax, you know, you go a bit light, it's like, this is it.
Speaker B:You're now into it.
Speaker B:So I kind of know what to expect.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:I should imagine the first time in a car is going to be way scarier because it's a lot faster than on the mountain bike.
Speaker A:I mean, the other thing I used to find was I had friends who, even just before the lights went out, would chat away happily to as many people who could go and talk to them.
Speaker A:Once I was in the car, I didn't want anybody talking to me.
Speaker A:I used to like to sit in my own little world.
Speaker A:I've always said racing drivers, when they're in their cars, are very, very individual as to what they want to do and how they want to go about.
Speaker A:As I said, I didn't.
Speaker A:I hated being interrupted and anybody wanting to talk to me.
Speaker A:They used to get rude signs off me to encourage them to go away.
Speaker A:I mean, what do you do?
Speaker A:What do you like?
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Do you Do.
Speaker A:Will you enjoy chatting to people?
Speaker A:Will you want them to leave you alone?
Speaker B:No, I think naturally I'm good at.
Speaker B:I like chatting and it also takes your mind off things.
Speaker B:They probably do me good.
Speaker B:And I. I should imagine it'll be Chris reminding me things that are dead simple.
Speaker B:I've probably forgotten anyway, so he's very good at that.
Speaker B:He's got like a mental black and white checklist, whereas I'm, I suppose, adhd.
Speaker B:So I'm thinking, oh, squirrel.
Speaker B:The next minute, something else going on.
Speaker B:So, yeah, he's good.
Speaker B:Keeping me on track.
Speaker B:What was it you used to race out?
Speaker A:911S.
Speaker B:Oh, right, okay, fair enough.
Speaker A:And a variety, a variety of stuff then.
Speaker A:I mean it's.
Speaker A:I mean in my day you didn't have a radio to the pits, etc you to make sure that somebody dangled the pitboard out for you so you knew what was going on and to be.
Speaker A:And to be reminded.
Speaker A:Do come in.
Speaker A:You want some fuel and you want some tires.
Speaker A:Stop stopping out there, will you?
Speaker A:Because I ended up driving in a lot of the long events which I used to like.
Speaker A:You could settle into them and you used to drive percentages.
Speaker A:I mean, you don't do it now.
Speaker A:You can't do it now because of the modern cars.
Speaker A:But used to work on the theory.
Speaker A:Well, I'm fourth.
Speaker A:I won't catch him in third.
Speaker A:Him in fifth is too far away to really hassle me.
Speaker A:So you can then like knock 500rpm off before you change gear.
Speaker A:You can reduce the stress on the car.
Speaker A:It makes your mechanics very happy.
Speaker B:Happy, as they say, to finish first.
Speaker A:Because you've got to finish.
Speaker A:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker A:And then there's the other one.
Speaker A:You start listening for rattles and thinking, what's that?
Speaker B:That's where the Clarkson thing of my genius knows no bounds of just red line it.
Speaker B:Yeah, little girl.
Speaker A:So for you and HPC Classic, what lies in store?
Speaker A:What are you intending doing in the future?
Speaker B:Future?
Speaker B:I mean our future.
Speaker B:I mean, essentially we just want to keep building upon what we've created so far.
Speaker B:So we want to continue to build our reputation.
Speaker B:We've got an amazing group of clients which are.
Speaker B:They're just like friends.
Speaker B:They'll turn up, have coffee, chat, talk about what they get next, what they want to do next on their car.
Speaker B:It's.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's really relaxed.
Speaker B:We just want to carry on building that, doing our own little shows.
Speaker B:Obviously go down the racing route.
Speaker B:The more car racing the better because everyone likes being at the racetrack.
Speaker B:Everyone knows Race cars are cool.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:So a bit more of that and keep working on the higher end sales cars mainly because you can sell more and more, sell less cars and make more, which frees up more time for things like going racing.
Speaker B:So that.
Speaker B:And it is ticking things off the bucket list that you never thought you'd be able to drive.
Speaker B:So every day is a win when you're in cars like that.
Speaker B:Say today was another one of those days, a pinch me moment.
Speaker B:Which is great.
Speaker B:Great.
Speaker B:Reminds you why you're doing it.
Speaker B:After you see the government taking more money than you do for a living, you're like, cool, who am I working for here?
Speaker A:I mean, the other thing is, with the pending banning, unless it changes, of the sale of combustion engines, are you finding it's driving more people towards you who want to make sure they own the cars that they want now rather than wait because to a degree.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Secondhand or pre owned.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:But they won't be able to buy them new in a few years time.
Speaker A:Are people buying.
Speaker A:Buying cars for their collection now in readiness for it all?
Speaker B:I don't think that's the main driver.
Speaker B:I think in the UK at least, there are a lot of people thinking, well, the government are going to strip me of anything that I've got anyway, so I might just as well spend it and enjoy it before I, you know, pump my clogs.
Speaker B:Don't shout too loud.
Speaker B:But obviously you can pass a car on without capital gains.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:Like many other things.
Speaker B:So they're good for that.
Speaker B:So you could just buy it, put in your child's name or friend or family or whoever it is.
Speaker B:If you want to give them a gift, you can still use it because you know, you've got relationship with them.
Speaker B:But the.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Whose name the V5C is, it doesn't really matter.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:So they're good for that.
Speaker B: e saying, anything from about: Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:You have to turn everything off, even just to be able to drive it to the shops, because it just is an irritation.
Speaker B:So I don't think real petrol heads are going to continue to lust over the.
Speaker B:I mean they will be the odd anomaly, obviously.
Speaker B:Paganis, you know, P1GTRS again, a car that I think will do very well in the future.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:Even, I mean, Chris, Having worked at McLaren, he's always said, you know, they're, they're solid money, they're a good thing to buy.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:So there are a few cars that will be good news and they always will be in the future.
Speaker B:Yeah, but they're few and far between the newer stuff, real petrol heads.
Speaker B:They like them now because they've got them and they see them as hassle free but you wait until 10 years time and you can't buy a newer, newer version and your 911 or Lotus Amir or.
Speaker B:Whereas just an absolute pain in the ass to try and fix because it's full of whatever the cheapest technology was at the time because everybody wants to appease the accountant.
Speaker B:So you're not buying a Samsung, you're buying whatever is cheap down the road.
Speaker B:So whatever the components are that going in them they're going to give up.
Speaker B:Nobody's going to make them and nobody's going to want to fix them either.
Speaker B:They're all just going to go in the bin.
Speaker B:So they're depreciated like stones already.
Speaker B:Yeah, they're not the cars that people are going to want and I mean I drove in a mirror for the first time the other day and have to say so under wells.
Speaker B:They wish me rubbish.
Speaker B:I mean I keep saying on piston heads, you know, if you're like oh well which one would you buy a 911 or this on like Sagaris.
Speaker B:Yeah, they're the same money and yet the Sagaris is going to appreciate in value.
Speaker B:It's faster than both and the bog standard 911, it has more space in it.
Speaker B:Yeah, it gets better in pg.
Speaker B:Hey, I was like let's think of any bad points.
Speaker B:There aren't any, they just aren't.
Speaker B:And it doesn't go B all the time.
Speaker B:Yes, you haven't got traction control and you haven't got a sat nav.
Speaker B:But I mean A head up look at the road signs.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:B plan your journey.
Speaker B:C drive properly.
Speaker B:You've got a massive throttle pedal on it, it moves forever.
Speaker B:So if you manage to crash it, it A, you probably haven't the geometry or you haven't got fresh enough tires.
Speaker B:B you need to go and learn how to drive the car seat time.
Speaker B:Seat time is what makes you fast.
Speaker B:Spend time in the seat of the car more often and then you'll get quicker.
Speaker B:But no, to me you look at those things, you're like oh I could buy that and lose 20 grand on it in a couple of years and again it'll go bong continually and it'll be a bit miserable to Drive the whole time you've got it.
Speaker B:Or you buy something that's going up in value and is more fast.
Speaker B:I just can't see.
Speaker B:I mean, obviously everyone.
Speaker B:Oh, no, no, I want one of those.
Speaker B:And it's like.
Speaker B:Well, yeah, because you're looking at spreadsheets.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:How you actually had any fun if you went out and drove these three.
Speaker B:I know which one you'd come home with, you know.
Speaker B:But mostly he's just looking at spreadsheets and most of the people buying them, they go to the pub to talk about how many horsepower they have.
Speaker B:They don't do very many Nurburgring laps.
Speaker A:No.
Speaker B:Or do many track days or cane Mini B roads.
Speaker B:So the people buying them aren't actual car enthusiasts?
Speaker A:No.
Speaker A:It's like I said earlier on, a lot of people now will buy a car because they're buying a badge and a perceived lifestyle.
Speaker B:Oh, yeah, you've got to hold your Starbucks mug up against your steering wheel with your Rolex and whatnot, just to prove who you are.
Speaker B:I'm not that person.
Speaker B:It doesn't do it for me.
Speaker B:I like stone chips as well.
Speaker B:So many other people.
Speaker B:Oh, I've got to have my front end respond sprays.
Speaker A:But why?
Speaker B:Your car is honest.
Speaker B:It's original.
Speaker B:That, to me, shows the front end hasn't been ripped off.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:I'd much rather buy a car like that.
Speaker B:That's cool.
Speaker B:It's got stories to tell.
Speaker B:That's cool.
Speaker B:Do not get rid of your stone chips.
Speaker B:Don't ppf your car either.
Speaker B:It's a waste of time and money.
Speaker B:It adds weight.
Speaker B:Yeah, only a little bit, but that makes cars slower.
Speaker B:It means you can't polish your paintwork nicely.
Speaker B:So don't do it.
Speaker B:And also, if it's there for 10 years or more, the light is.
Speaker B:It'll wreck the paint anyway.
Speaker B:So you'll have to repaint it anyhow.
Speaker A:Out.
Speaker B:Even if you sold it by then to just stop doing ppf.
Speaker B:I don't know why people bother.
Speaker B:Pointless.
Speaker B:Just drive it.
Speaker B:Spend the money on tires and fuel and track days.
Speaker A:And to give you an idea, I'm a man.
Speaker A:It's a habit I picked up from my father.
Speaker A:I like watches.
Speaker A:I own a Rolex and I own it because I thought I need to own one.
Speaker A:My father owned them and it sits in my safe because ultimately I won't wear it.
Speaker A:I think it's horrible and it weighs a ton.
Speaker A:Tongue.
Speaker A:So I'm the only man who wears a.
Speaker A:Who has a great big Rolex and won't wear it.
Speaker A:But the only thing I can say in its favorites going up in value.
Speaker B:Well, that is.
Speaker B:Yeah, that is one thing.
Speaker B:I mean, I, I like watches too.
Speaker B:I. I would have a Mont Blanc if I could.
Speaker B:Again, it's a little bit different, classic, absolutely timeless.
Speaker B:But I spend all my money on bikes and cars anyway, so I'm not going to be buying one anytime soon.
Speaker B:If anyone wants to pay my commission in one, then that's fine, absolutely fine.
Speaker B:But yeah, I do like watches.
Speaker B:Again, they're mechanical.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker B:There's something that.
Speaker B:They've got a bit of soul to them and everything's handmade.
Speaker B:So I understand the Rolex thing.
Speaker B:They are, they're cool.
Speaker B:But again, I'd still choose left field because I'm a bit weird and niche.
Speaker A:I suppose if somebody wants to get hold of your good self and HPC Classics, what's the website?
Speaker B:So just www.hpcclassics.co.uk is ours.
Speaker B:Yeah, all of our details are on there, all the cars are on there.
Speaker B:Obviously there's a continual turnover, stuff that we've got going on, not only in the workshop but sales wise.
Speaker B:And if you're looking for something in particular, just drop us a message.
Speaker A:I'm just going to say, if what they're after doesn't appear on your stock list, give you a call and you will be able to find what they want.
Speaker A:Once you know what it.
Speaker A:Roughly how much they want to spend.
Speaker B:Exactly.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:A budget, a spec and you know, how quickly you need it are things that are always useful because people.
Speaker B:I want to buy one tomorrow and it's like, well, doesn't give me quite enough time to go and find one I haven't got.
Speaker B:But there are a lot of cars that I sort of know where they are.
Speaker B:Things that people are after.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:If it doesn't take you long, you make lots of friends in the industry.
Speaker B:It's actually a really friendly place to be I think because most of the dealers realize it's.
Speaker B:It's hard work doing a really good job, I'm being honest.
Speaker B:And so when you meet the good one, they're really great people.
Speaker B:So, yeah, there's a nice little network for us to find all the cool stuff.
Speaker A:Malz Audi, it's been a pleasure chatting to you.
Speaker A:Thank you very much for joining us.
Speaker A:Thanks very much for joining me on the backseat driver.
Speaker A:And of course we can blame past guest Mike Smith for this, who.
Speaker B:Cheers.
Speaker A:Mike, who is a man that no matter what question you ask him about rare cars or interesting cars as an immediate answer will tell you what where it is.
Speaker B:He is absolutely astounding at that.
Speaker B:I don't think I've ever met anybody that's quite, quite as encyclopedic about every single car that's ever existed.
Speaker A:If mad, the thing that surprises you is he'll quote you the registration number, the chassis number and every other mortal thing about the damn thing.
Speaker A:And he just need a piece of.
Speaker B:Paper every person that's owned it where he is now, how much it sold for nuts.
Speaker B:I mean, I wish my brain was that good, it just isn't.
Speaker B:Maybe too many mountain bike accidents, but.
Speaker A:Once again, Malzardi, thanks very much for joining me on the backseat driver.
Speaker B:Cheers, Mark, thanks for having us.
