“Dripfeed” NEWSLETTER OF THE BANKS PENINSULA BRANCH OF THE VINTAGE CAR CLUB OF New Zealand (INC) VOLUME 43, No 9 october 2020. Editor: Michael Williams 10 Selwyn Parade Lyttelton Ph 328 8043, email mimiandmichael@yahoo.co.nz
Chairman: Secretary:
Club Officers: Craig Keenan 322 1006 Ron Hasell 942 1105
Branch Address: 27 Showgate Ave, ChCh 8042 E-mail: bankspeninsula@vcc.org.nz Noggin & Natter: 2nd Thursday of the Month • • •
Noggin 7.30 pm at the Papanui RSA. Upham Room – enter either from 55 Bellvue Ave or the first entrance on the left on Harewood Road (Papanui / Main North Road) Thursday 8th of October We look forward to seeing you there. Supper is provided.
From the Editor: In a 1998 edition of Dripfeed, Dave Richardson, who was editor at the time, wrote a self deprecating piece about being stopped by a police car while on his way home from a Noggin. Dave asked, with some indignation, why he had been stopped. “Because your rear fog light is on sir, and it’s too bright”. Dave was blissfully unaware that his1997 Ford Focus had such a thing, but the nice policeman helped him to turn it off and he made his way home. Dave told a friend what had happened and mentioned that a rear fog light seemed unnecessary, given that his car didn’t even have air conditioning. His friend pointed out the little button with A/C on it. Dave then decided that modern cars were too complicated compared to Chug, his 1928 Austin 12/4. I was reminded of this when Craig Keenan, our beloved leader, told a group of us about the perils of owning a very electronic car. Craig recently bought a 5 year old Volvo station wagon with every electronic aid invented. The handbook is 400 pages long, as Craig discovered recently. While waiting at a traffic light, a new warning light flashed on the Volvo’s display. Unable to diagnose it, Craig decided to do what he does when his computer goes wrong, and turned off the engine. But because he’d turned it off in neutral, not park, it wouldn’t start again. After some kind people pushed it to the side of the road, Craig discovered the handbook was 400 pages long. Somehow, he managed to start it again without needing to call Sweden, but is thinking wistfully of his old Toyota.