NEC Pride of Ownership finalists revealed

The first five finalists in the Autumn Final of the Lancaster Insurance Pride of Ownership have been revealed, with organisers facing tough decisions after receiving more entries than ever before.

Held at the NEC Classic Motor Show, nearly 100 classic car owners have applied for one of the 20 spots available at Birmingham’s NEC from Friday 9 to Sunday 11 November.

The first five finalists include Richard Pinkett and his 1939 MG TB, Michael Jones’ 1960 Jaguar MkII, Andy Nash’s 1966 Morris Mini Traveller, Mark Stewart’s 1988 Ford Escort XR3i Cabriolet, and Mandeep Sandhar and his 2000 Nissan Skyline.

Andrew Evanson, Senior Operations Manager of Lancaster Insurance, sponsors of the Pride of Ownership, said, 'With each final, we see the bar raised in terms of the quantity and quality of the entries. The diversity of the display along with the fantastic stories and stunning cars makes it a real highlight of the show.'

Richard Pinkett’s stunning MG TB has a glorious racing pedigree having raced in club events since the 1960s, when it had been converted from the Tickford four-seater body to the standard two-seater. Still used for motorsport now, Richard prefers Hill Climbs although the car still graces many well-known circuits.

There’s a family connection between Michael Jones and his 1960 Jaguar MkII as his uncle was a test driver for the famous manufacturer and used to take him to see the cars as a boy. Michael said, 'I’ve got fond memories of those days spent in MkIIs and E-Types, so it was always in my blood to own a classic Jaguar. The styling of the MkII won it for me in the end, so I set out looking for a car I could restore.'

Finalists Andy Nash and Mark Stewart are both previous Meguiar’s Club Showcase finalists – with Andy winning in 2016. However, that’s not why their cars have been chosen.

Andy’s desire for a Mini Traveller came from his childhood memories of going out with his parent’s in their model. Named after his mother Betty, Andy did a 650mile round trip to buy the car even though it needed every nut and bolt replacing. Such was his investment of time and money, he set about making it the best model in the UK today.

The same has been said about Mark’s Escort XR3i Cabriolet, which has not only been praised by his peers in the motoring world but most recently also won the coveted Waxstock trophy.

Mandeep Sandhar’s Nissan Skyline is definitely a modern classic showcasing Japanese engineering. As the car’s sole owner, there is believed to be just two of these models in this specification and colour in the UK. With 29,000 miles on the clock, the model boasts a rare V-Spec 2 in 100 percent stock form which is another rarity.

The winner and two runners up all receive trophies, with the overall winner offered the chance to display their car at the next event held by the organisers – as well as the obvious bragging rights.

All finalists receive two tickets for each of the show days, free parking throughout and a commemorative certificate.

Previous winners include Steve Mills’ skiff bodied 1926 Packard 420, followed by Stuart Turp’s 1969 Ford Capri Mk1, James Cribb’s 1989 Austin Metro City, Keith Edmund’s 1972 Triumph Spitfire, Simon McNamara’s 1983 VW Golf GTi Mk1, and most recently Paul Clappison’s 1972 MGB GT.