RUMCars Forum
General Category => Unusual Microcar Discussion => Topic started by: richard on July 29, 2014, 02:38:30 PM
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just a quicky how many are still in circulation ? i have never seen one on the road , was the blue one at jeans roadworthy ? the green one belonging to the stephenson family thats on loan to the collection came with a few bits extra . George Stephenson , who built his Unicar ,once travelled over to north wales to salvage some parts from one wrecked in a crash . the spare unicar wheels now at jeans tell us why the car might have crashed ........
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I know Ken Weger in the USA has one.
The red/creme one that was in the BW collection was apparently sold to Russia.
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One was auctioned at the 2006 Ramgate motor museum auction, not sure if it's the same car that ended up in Bruce's collection though.
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Ramsgate_Motor_Museum
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One was auctioned at the 2006 Ramgate motor museum auction, not sure if it's the same car that ended up in Bruce's collection though.
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Ramsgate_Motor_Museum
The auction was actually June 30-July 1 2005 and I have a record of taking a photo of the one in the BW collection December 2005 so it may very well be the same vehicle. Neither have any serial number listed or license plate.
http://www.christies.com/lotfinder/lot/c1959-opperman-unicar-two-door-coupe-4532776-details.aspx
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George Stephenson , who built his Unicar ,once travelled over to north wales to salvage some parts from one wrecked in a crash . the spare unicar wheels now at jeans tell us why the car might have crashed ........
Sorry, am I being thick. What is wrong with the wheel?
Two reasons the Opperman Punicar had handling issues, as I understand it.
One was that it featured no diff on the rear axle, about 3 foot long. So on cornering one wheel would be forced to break grip. If the inside then one handling characteristic, if the outside, a differing characteristic. This in a vehicle that on form could actually go quite fast. I drove one, eer, can a car be schizophrenic? For worst handling possible in a fourwheeler place that rear end with a Nobel front end, You will have a car that refuses to change direction!
Two was that the hubs used to fail. Really handy seeing as they needed to be good and strong to counter the effects of the odd handling. They didn't.
Add into the pot some were sold for home build and thus had the potential to be put together badly and you have a classic ditch finder.
Certainly one went to Ken Wager and one into Canada via Mario Palma. Not sure if the two dead ones locally, both with broken hubs, still reside where I located them or the 'going to do them up's' have sold or croaked first. There comes a point its not worth following up and you leave the letters to do the talking to the executors.
Cannot recall where one of mine came from but the other was bought after the Leek Auction with most of the stock as Mr Wall got a bit carried away bidding against an underwhelmed lot of punters, oh dear, how sad, never mind! (not that any auction house does such a thing of course.......). The Groomfondle car was stolen from me, back in the day, last seen heading toward Essex, home of the dodgy deal.
Oh dear! Will we ever know the number of Opperman as the dodgy boys have been involved. Que double numberplates, split cars, clones and ID sales. All for an extra fiver but schtum. Its all a bit like the Groomfondle Bonds. All sold in Britain but disappeared in the main and apparently I sold them abroad according to the Bond MI5 department, so that say a lot about enthusiasts I think.
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And there was me thinking the home of the dodgy deal was in Oxfordshire! ;)
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I can think of seven, being;
1, the Green Brian Stephenson car currently in Hammond Collection
2, the blue one from the Opperman famly.
3, the one in Automuseum Story, ex Mike Shepherd.
4, YFG 843, currently owned by Ken Weger. (seen below and Weston Park 1996) This is the Leek Auctiion car hoovered up by Alan Hitchcock.
5, XWT 532, the ex SMCC/Tony Marshall car which is the car currently in Canada after passing through Alan Hitchcock, who bought it from Leo Weager. (seen below in one of the Hitchcock sheds in 2002)
6, the maroon one, VYJ 669 (An age-related number) formerly of the Bubblecar Museum (seen below)
7, the Bruce Weiner red/white car, possibly now in Russia.which possibly was the Ramsgate/Sharpe Collection car
Black Groombridge car still to be ran to ground...
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Nice looking cars, shame the were so bad to drive.
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But can we be sure that they were?
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sorry al perhaps it's not that clear on the photo - the only one jamie took - there is scarcely ANY tread left on either front tyre , what you see is of a minimal depth .
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To me it looks like the tyre has also been unevenly worn, so it has become conical, not good!
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According to a road test in Motor Sport, the rear wheels were supposed to be fitted "inside out" but dealers were apt to turn the wheels the other way to improve appearance. They described driving the car as "impressive", at least for short periods.
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well the late Brian Stephenson built his car from a kit and "modified " the steering and rear axle quite a bit i gather . For many years it was the main , only ? , family car and at least one of his sons learned to drive in it . In all Brian covered over 50,000 miles in it , many of them towing the racing go-kart , on a towbar and trailer , that was also his hobby
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Here's photos of the two from the open day.
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Back in those days Road Test Reports useddescriptive language very carefully. Criticism was only ever implied or hinted at in rather polite terms. Words like "impressive" might imply that the muttering rotter* was "impressed" in comparison to a far worse vehicle, or "impressive in a straight line" or even that it made an impression which was noticeably bad!
I have not driven one so cannot comment on it beyond what I have heard from those who have driven them; also without seeing the full article I cannot judge exactly what the scribe meant by "impressive". Words like "Superb, good, indifferent, poor and dire" are clearer!
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we seem oddly to have Weiner , Weger and now Weager , we have to be careful of spelling on this item . The blue one at Jeans , is that the Opperman family car then ? i wonder why they are usually painted such awful colours . The pale blue one seems the most attractive but i could imagine the cars looking an awful lot better in pale metallic blue just for example .
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We have seven on the Register.
With regard to names Ken Weger is in America and Leo Weager is British.
XWT 532 thought to be in Canada is in Great Britain according to the Register..
YFG 843 in America
548 FKE is the Opperman family car.
109 BUO (Blue/Grey)was in Holland
959 GMA (Cream/Green) on loan to Hammond Collection
B254VLJ (Blue) at Open Day from SWLondon
NHM338 (Maroon) Owner unknown
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okay so two Wegers but no Weager then .
oh and by the way how did the open day car end up with modern number plates and that AWFUL modern number !!
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Dear Richard
I asked the owner of the blue Unicar why the B reg number plate, he says previous owner sold the number plate as it was worth more than the car. When it was re registered they did not apply for an age related plate, hence the later plate.
Chris Thomas
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Do not follow the age related bit as they have made the car newer by registration than it is, Swansea normally allocate a non transferable age related number
You normally cannot put a number on a vehicle which would make the vehicle seem newer very odd
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Just what I was about to say Gary. Up to the introduction of Prefix reg numbers in August 1983, a car COULD be given a current-year plate if an "appropriate year" number wasn't specifically asked for. (They weren't called age-related yet at this point). But after August 1983 and the introduction of prefix numbers, and up to 1990 it should have been automatically given an A-suffix plate reading XXX 999A (I call these the Age-Related-A plate), or if very unlucky, a Q-plate! I've certainly never came across another case of an old vehicle being given a current-year number after August 1983. Very odd indeed, but of course the odd abnormality does sometimes turn up in British motor vehicle registrations throughout history, which is why I do love the whole world of British number plates and vehicle registrations. :)
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So there would seem to be a few more out there still.
Somewhere I will have the registration of the Groomfondle car recorded. I am pretty certain I know where it went. However it was Groomfondle that accepted the deal and that was mainly at fault having accepted and invoiced payment for it and the missing Bond. It was he the suffered the consequences of trying to rip me off. The poaching of cars from other peoples deals has long been an activity of niche markets. Indeed my buying out Groomfondle itself is classed as poaching by some who claim right by prior knowledge, so it depends who you talk too. As it happens Groomfondle approached us for the major clear out. I am not sure anyone else would have made as much effort to get it all away baring in mind the early visitors had nicked all the good bits, either.
Are the dead local cars still there? Might follow them up, a drive by will probably tell, though I put new mate, Ian, onto one of them, as the Gordon for sale earlier in the year wasn't in the end, even for £5k (Burks?). Anyway Ian has a car now so is probably no longer interested.
Seem to recall word of another in Herefordshire and I think Morris Rose had one through his registrations business. At the time he was not selling to me. Further suggestion is up Tyneside where I recall talk, again possible involving number plate trading, Brian Hindle? If so Allan Forster had an in to that scene. There were a load of mouldering Isettas too. Then again it maybe the same car.
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- have you been on the sherry jean
Sadly not Richard and you will see I have now amended my post to make myself a little clearer. Jean
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me too jean we can now delete these last two messages