the Witney factory. At the time of our visit they were making a batch of MGB GT body-shells.
The company has expanded the business by various acquisitions, including the TEX range of mirrors, wiper arms and blades and Powerstop racing brake discs and pads. It also has licensing or similar agreements with other companies. In addition it has a retail arm, Motoring Classics, which markets starter power packs, ethanol-free fuels, leather upholstery and carpet renovation products, together with a range of motoring luggage and clothing.
BMH produces a quarterly magazine, Motoring
Classics, which can be downloaded free in digital form from
motoringclassics.co.uk
We split into two groups and were taken round by Martin and his colleague Chris. The tour started in their on-site archive, which contains many workshop manuals for BL cars, build in- structions and factory drawings, including a full- size drawing of an MG Midget! More material is held elsewhere off-site. Later in the tour we were shown the reference ‘library’ of original panels, grouped by model.
In the assembly shop we watched the building of MGB GT shells using the original hand- operated spot-welding units, which are suspended from overhead tracks and pulled manually into position for use. The original jigs and fixtures hold the panels, which can require a certain amount of hand-fettling and fitting. It is a long and labour-intensive process. An MGB wing, for example, is made up from 15 separate pressings. To a certain extent production of shells is demand-driven, to minimise stock
15
You have to keep looking up at the Cotswold Motor Museum to see the full scope of the displays (Nigel Brecknell).
holding, but this is still of the order of £2m. The annual turnover is about £4.5m and there
are currently about 45 employees, with a detectable strong company spirit. From time to time BMH takes on specific contract work for other vehicle manufacturers. It currently has such a contract from Jaguar, details of which are classified so no photographs could be taken except for private use. BMH has also contributed panels for London black cabs.
After moving on to Bourton-on-the-Water for lunch, we went to the Cotswold Motor Museum and Toy Collection in the village. Collections Manager Graham Binns gave us an introductory talk telling us about the founding of the museum in 1978 by car collector Mike Cavanagh. The theme of the displays is social history as much as being a collection of cars. Mike Cavanagh was a British expatriate living in South Africa and gradually acquiring vehicles and memorabilia, particularly enamel advertising plates of which we were to see many.
The collection was shipped back to the UK and set out in the present premises and has subsequently expanded over the years. In 1999 Cavanagh sold it to the members of ‘Boundless by CSMA’. [Formerly the Civil Service Motoring Association – A club for civil service and public sector workers.]
The Museum is set up as a series of rooms, each with a particular theme, ranging from motoring artefacts, via a village garage, agriculture, touring
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