Join us at 9.30am for morning coffee and a chat at The Coffee Den, Stockwood Farm Buildings,Pylle,Shepton Mallet, BA4 6TA before we set off on the short hop to the 34th Bristol Classic Car Show. Celebrating National Drive It day this is reported to be the longest running car show in the country and also claims to be the “friendliest” ! With up to 200 cars on show indoors,a further 1000 parked outside,trade exhibitors,an autojumble,a sales area and an auction there is plenty for everyone to see on the day. New for 2013 is the auto-test slalom competition against the clock which is open to allcomers.We will have our own CPUK designated parking space which will have to be pre-booked by anyone attending. Each person will need their own ticket which can be bought at the reduced price of £6 (£12 normal price) in advance at www.bccsl.co.uk . Enter the code “CLUB13” when prompted and remember to select “Classic Car Pass” during the booking process,
One of the main south-west Drive It! day meetings tied in with the Bristol Classic Car show at Shepton Mallet showground. This is a large gathering of an eclectic mix of cars, admittedly largely focusing on British marques. Unlike last year, when the rain started as soon as CPUK members left the warmth of the coffee shop, this year the weather held although we were lacking spring warmth. After a convivial cuppa in a local farm shop cafe, we convoyed our way into the showground and were directed to the Club's reserved parking area. Although I had taken the precaution of printing out the emails from the organiser which clearly said that, because we cater for all ages of Peugeots, all our cars could park together, we still had a 'moment'! Our 104 was waved through by the marshals, Rob's 306 cab was also waved through but Roger's 406 (which is actually older than Rob's cab) was questioned. We were able to stay together but I'm sure Roger could have done without that early on a Sunday morning! Doug's 205 and Norma and Keith in a 504 and 604 respectively had no such problems. It obviously depended who was on marshalling duty as Peter had no problems getting in in his 607 a little later. French cars were definitely in the minority and the Citroen GS owners soon made a beeline for our flag and have kindly invited CPUK to their rally in Farnham later in the year (see Events Calendar for further details). Charterhouse Auctioneers also attend the show and Sunday is when the lots go under the hammer. Amongst the collectibles this year was a 1961 Peugeot 403B estate. Apparently owned from new by one person, this right hand drive car had been kept in dry storage recently and was sold without MOT or tax. However, to help with the necessary recommissioning work, there was a 'huge amount of spares' sold with it. Quite how much a 'huge amount' actually is in auctioneers' parlance I don't know, but whatever the quantity and quality, everything helps! It sold for just over £3000. Another car which was sold was a 1986 Talbot Samba cab. It was described as 'clean underneath as it [is] on top' and fetched £1800 including a spare engine, gearbox and set of alloys. If we'd bought a catalogue and had known about that, I might have had difficulties in persuading a certain someone not to bid!! A 1999 306 cab was also sold and made £1020. All in all, there's plenty to see including some indoor areas which keep the draughts at bay. Why not come along next year when the show is being held in June? 
