Uxbridge Auto Show 2015

A bit late but better than never in July brings us to the next show in the calendar and is arguably the best one just for the amount of cars and variety on display ranging from old classics that are kept dryed stored under wraps to be let out and be admired to modern classics, right through to modified. There is no particular marque that is not welcome and only here will you see cars you probably have never seen or heard of.

The Uxbridge Auto Show is run by the Rotary Club and has been around since 1984 This show is non profit and has raised money for numerous charities over the years.

Taking place at the Middlesex Showground, the huge field is perfect to hold an event such as this.

The days leading up did seem a little dismal and on the morning of the show it wasn't looking promising. Luckily the rain which was meant to be forecast for the morning had not materialised and the sun had cracked open.

The Custom Cars stand was in full flow with a display of cars many known in the BM scene.

Dips bagged M3 with its flawless ruby red paintwork on custom copper OEM style 67 wheels.

Performance BMW magazine editor Liz's bagged E39 540 on Oz superleggera splits

Bentley Continental owned by Spike on custom Trafficstar DTX split wheels.

Chris's E46 Clubsport has gone through a revamp this year with a respray to freshen up the body and a CSL style bumper with a full length carbon splitter and sits pretty on its iForged splits finished in bronze.

Adil's E46 M3 in carbon black has gone through a full makeover courtesy of Dips at Custom Cars with various custom touches including a full carbon fibre GTR bonnet, CSL style carbon fibre boot lid colour coded with a carbon fade out, lowered on coilover and rolling on AC Schnitzer type 2 split wheels.

Three old school classic E30 M3's rolling on rare old school BBS RS, AC Schnitzer Type 1 and Hartge design C.

Rash brought along what is a rare sight on the roads nowadays with this mint E34 M5.

Total M Cars had a good stand with various M3's on display.

Louis E46 M3 with Hartge Design E split wheels:

David's E46 M3 rocking a rare set of Work VS-XX bromachers, AP racing calipers and bucket seats.

Tates stunning E92 was rocking his bronze track wheel setup which looks so much nicer than the AC schnitzer wheels. Please keep them on :-)

Bruno has upgraded in a major way from his "Big Black" E60 M5 to the new M4 coupe which has been released this year. Bruno will no doubt put his own stamp on this car and will be one to look out for.

On to other cars at the show:

Andy's E36 touring looks bang on with M Parallels.

Stunning wide body golf.

AC Cobra replica caught many admirers and enthusiasts alike.

Old school Jaguar.

Unique custom car on display by the London Motor Museum.

Although looking like it has come from the 1930's this car is actually a kit car and features all the classic vintage styling cues from that period.

Classic 60's Mustang.

This custom Ford Anglia is one such example of quirky and something you won't see at any show. Looking like something out of Mad Max with a redesigned body it even featured a BMW 318is engine on display.

With impressive cars on show there is a wide range of trade stands ranging from old classic parts, car cleaning products and plenty of food stalls to keep you watered and fed.

This show is a worthy day out for the family and plenty to keep everyone entertained. Whether your a classic car fan to a Ford nut or just appreciate cars as a whole, mark this one in your calendar for next year.

Details can be found at http://www.uxbridgeautoshow.com/

Picture coverage from the show can be found on our forum, www.pbmwforum.com and our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/pbmwforum

Also check out our Instagram and follow us @pbmwforum

Words and photos by Richard Ansari.

The Car Collective Show of Shows 2015

With summer now in full flow we are now into the busy period of shows and meets taking place these coming months. Some new ones have even appeared on the radar promising to be a great day out for all. This brings us on to the Car Collective Show of Shows taking place at the Penhurst Place and Gardens in Kent. This is a new one to us and had a good amount of coverage on social media to get noticed.

As with new shows you never quite know what to expect with the type of cars that will turn up, will it have a good atmosphere and vibe and importantly the numbers to make it a success. We got directed to our spot upon arrival with plenty of room to set up the Custom Cars stand and get the cars ready for the 10am start.

Starting with the Custom Cars stand we had Nadeem’s stunning E46 M3 on display which not long ago had its photoshoot for a feature in Performance BMW magazine and will be coming out soon.

Saty who had a little flirtation with the Porsche 911 has now come back to the E46 fold with a fairly recently acquired silver grey M3 which is now sporting a set of genuine CSL wheels, storm goodies and a rare Clubsport spoiler.

Steve Smith E46 has gone through quite a change for this year and the first noticeable change is the new wheels he has acquired in the form of a rare set of RH XD 3 piece split wheels measuring 11x18 and 8.5x18 respectivly. He has also got Dips from Custom Cars to custom make a CSL-esque boot which has been fully smoothed and flushed with a shorter recess for the license plate and has redesigned his audio boot build.

Dips from The Custom Cars bagged M3 was looking as stunning as ever and is now rocking a set of squared OEM Style 67 polished up with custom copper inserts which looked amazing in the sunlight. There is a rumour he might be using a classic set of wheels later on down the line this year so watch this space.

The M3 has aquired more carbon fibre parts for the engine bay as well as a few small mods and sits nicely on the recently rebuilt Oz Mito rears measuring 11.25x18.

This MK2 golf is certainly a nice example and there is no hint that this car packs a punch till you see under the bonnet where an R32 engine rests nicely in the compact bay making a formidable sleeper car.

Rash has added some nice changes to his E90 M3 with a new front splitter along with orange accents on the wing vents, rear spoiler and orange calipers. It’s a nice subtle touch and suits the car really well giving a little individuality.

Taking a walk through the venue there was a wide variety of cars on show and it wasn’t just limited to just a few marques, there was a mix of classics, modified, super cars etc. so there was something out there that anyone could relate to and appreciate.

This Astra ticked all the right boxes for looks and performance.

The Mercedes W114 seem to be attracting a cult following with a few at the show. With a classic body and lines you really don’t need to do much to these cars to make them stand out.

You don’t see many classic Ford Escorts on the road and this lovely example was instantly noticeable with its fine yellow paintwork.

It was good to see the E30 Zone on display with some fine examples from coupes to verts and M3’s as well as this widebody monster below!

Performance BMW magazine Editor Elizabeth de Latour E39 540 had her car on display. The boot build housing the compressor and tanks for the air ride is well thought out and finely executed.

Shaun Grazette 335i E92 coupe has gone through some changes since we last saw it and is now on air suspension, a new front end with an M3 powerdome, 1M style bumper and most notably the centres on his Blitz wheels are finished in a special 4 layer light pearl effect and works so much better now.

Not often you see a super car like the Ford GT40.

As well as the classic Dodge Charger.

Tallis Godfrey has bought a new set of shoes for his stunning E36 M3 with a set of fully polished Oz Route wheels.

Matt Cliffords E31 8 series which was recently featured in the May 2015 Performance BMW magazine has changed the look of his with a new set of Rotiform LHR 3 piece wheels. The classic centre mesh design suits the body shape of the car and the gold centres contrast well against the velvet blue exterior.

This Subaru Impreza was one of my favourites from the show sitting pretty on some wide Works wheels.

As the day drew to a close I felt it was worth the trip and enjoyed what was on offer. Being open to all types of cars it had something for everyone which was a great idea by the organiser Jack Williams to open it to all as it had brought in a wide variety of metal on display.

Considering there was the Supercar Siege, another show on the same day not far from venue it had a pretty decent turnout. Had Supercar Siege not been on at the same time I think this could have had even more numbers, no question of it. There were decent food stalls on offer and the location was pretty good too.

The Show of Shows certainly lived up to its expectation and this one will definitely be on my calendar for next year.

Picture coverage from the show can be found on our forum, www.pbmwforum.com and our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/pbmwforum

Also check out our Instagram and follow us @pbmwforum

Words and photos by Richard Ansari.

Bimmers and Burgers Part 2

A year ago the Bimmerboys team organised a meet which for a something new done extremely well with the turnout and various BM’s on display. Because of the success of last year another one was organised which was hosted again at M-Style/Autoenhance’s premises in Essex.

With turnout expected to be high it there was strict instructions to ensure no one had turned up too early before the 1pm kick off. Arriving at 5 minutes past it was already starting to steadily fill up and with good weather on par with last year this was going to be a nice chilled day out.

There was a vast range of BM’s on display from OEM+ cars to modified and a number on air ride which is proving to be quite popular these days.

James Barrett's well known E46 M3 in Lambo Grigio Telesto had some nice new additions since I last saw it. Now its sporting a roll cage and something you don't see often with the flocked dash. 

 Dee's 1 series coupe in Austin yellow is perfectly executed with nice styling cues and wheels.

Ben Young’s E92 coupe looked on form as always slammed on 3SDM wheels.

Not often you see a Dimma kitted E46 M3 in laguna seca blue which pulled in a lot of attention.

Marcel stunning E28 turbo which won best show and shine at the BMW Show Gaydon and best of show at Ultimate BMW at Santa Pod last year was on display and is probably one of the best modified E28's out there in the BM scene now and features one of the best detailed engine bays and is a work of art in itself.

Some will recognise Bruno’s (brunberg) old M5 which is now owned by Phil Robinson who will be putting his own stamp on the car in the future.

Performance BMW magazine editor Elizabeth de Latour was in attendance and owns this E39 and has been given the air ride treatment and sits on a very rare set of three piece Oz superleggra wheels. Not many E39’s are modified in the BM scene so its always refreshing to see cars like this having a bit of treatment to stand out a little from the crowd.

A nice E46 Clubsport rocking a set of quite rare AC Schnitzer type 3 non racing wheels.

This carbon black M3 sporting huge monster brakes, the owner is looking to up the power with forced induction which will make it a savage weapon in the future.

Throughout the day the numbers had kept coming and even though additional space was made to cope with the extra cars it had gotten full. Talking with Stewart the count was over 200 cars a few hours into meet which is a brilliant achievement and with the success of this and potentially getting bigger next year we could very well see this being hosted at a different location.

A big congrats and thanks to the Bimmerboys and the guys at M-Style for hosting a great event and I’m sure you will agree that its one to look forward to for next year’s diary.

Picture coverage from the show can be found on our forum, www.pbmwforum.com and our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/pbmwforum

Also check out our Instagram and follow us @pbmwforum

Words and photos by Richard Ansari.