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TV's Fuzz Townshend needs your help!

Published 30 March 2016

Whether it’s the whiff of oily rags or the scent of hot vinyl seats in summer, there’s nothing quite like our sense of smell to trigger our favourite classic car memories.

But if it was possible to combine the scents of the nation’s fondest motoring memories into a single fragrance, just what would it smell like? Well that’s exactly what TV's Fuzz Townshend and insurer Carole Nash are trying to find out.

Working with fragrance experts AromaCo, Fuzz and Carole Nash are looking to the nation’s drivers to tell them the scents which they’ll use to create 'Old Car Smell' - the ultimate sensory reminder of Britain’s motoring history.

To start the search, Car SOS host Fuzz has provided the first two scents that will be included in the final aroma.

Fuzz said, 'When I was growing up my uncle used to drive a Rover P4 and the interior smelt like a pungent mix of his pipe smoke and the rich leather seats.

'Ever since then, those scents always take me back to the family drives that used to accompany his visits – I have so many fond memories connected to the heady atmosphere of that car.'

Dawn Holmes from Carole Nash said, 'Whether your idea of a classic car smell is lukewarm tea poured from a thermos or the odd scent of a slightly broken electric heater, we want to hear from you.

'Using Fuzz’s experience we’ve started the journey and now we want to hear what car owners have to say so we can create the ultimate ‘Old Car Smell’ which encompasses the nation’s favourite memories with their cars into one nostalgic fragrance.'

To help Fuzz and Carole Nash get it right, click here to tell them about your favourite old car smells.

Comments

Tenchman7 on 30 March 2016

My introduction to the smell of my fathers 1974 Cortina 2.0 GXL MK3 [Daytona yellow, black vinyl roof] was indeed the plastic smell of the interior on a hot summers day!Beige vinyl !!That and the fact my father polished everything with Mer!

Caravan/ Car/ Motorbikes all had the aroma of Mer!

I just remember that everything under the bonnet was blue!

Cam cover/ Air filter housing and spout! Lovely old car

3 in 1 oil on the hinges/ in the door locks/ boot locks and everywhere else my dad thought it was needed. Quite a pungent smell for oil!.

NNG 566M as i recall. Hi Fuzz, hope this helps.............Steve Hood. Norwich in little olde Norfolk.

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Lord Brasic on 31 March 2016

I think the best smell would be leather, there is nothing to beat the smell of a well worn leather interior. If you open the door on an old XJ6 that has been sat in the sun for a few hours then thats the smell.

Memories of damp and mouldy carpet smell, mainly from Rover SD's but really do we want that smell back, I dont think so.

Another 2 great smells that takes me back in time is Castrol R, and two stroke oil.

I know there is already an aftershave called Diesel, but how about Castol R and 2 stroke.

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CaptainT on 2 April 2016

I agree that the smell of real leather is the most enduring. I bought my BMW 2002 tii Lux in 1980 when she was five years old. The original corded/plastic driver seat soon gave up. I eventually, 23 years ago, got around to replacing the fabric. The replacement was three Connelly hides in cream piped blue with matching carpets (blue edged in cream). This included the side and door panels. To this day the smell of the leather meets you as soon as you open the door. Over the years we have had several up market cars from the likes of Audi and Jaguar (not Mk. IIs!) with supposedly full leather interiors. It might well be leather but where has the smell gone?

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