I think Ed knew this was the way the show was going, presumably to pander to the American market and quite rightly in my view decided to leave.
I really miss his expertise, the more detailed explanations, the ingenuity and the top tips he gave. Although the banter between Ed and Mike could be quite corny at times I think they had a more natural chemistry together and the relation between them was more relaxed whereas between Ant and Mike it seems quite forced to the point of being over deferential (although it is still early days).
There are some negative comments about the show above but sadly there are so few shows demonstrating the process of car mechanics so unless something better comes along I will continue to support it.
I watched a new car show last night, the Salvage Hunters classic car one on Quest channel.
One car he bought was a Lotus Elan +2, it was red when he bought it then during the restore he had it reprayed a light blue. The idea of the show is obviously to buy retore or add value to a car for profit then resell. Trouble is he goes around looking at cars as if he’s looking at a piece of furniture or picture, it’s a piece of artwork he says. He doesn’t do any work himself, nor does his car expert mate, he farms it out to specialists.
He was showing a picture of a finished Lotus in the colour of his choosing and said that what I want, the car was resprayed. I went on the DVLA website bearing in mind this restoration was done last year and the car still shows as being red. He sold the car to a private buyer wonder if they’re aware of the error on the V5?
Precisely. Furthermore, many insurance companies will walk off in the event of a claim if the car has been altered or modified ( to include paint) if they can.
We all know here, or mostly do, how vital it is to inform your insurance of fitting a hardtop, different alloys, or any deviation from OEM to keep ourselves erring on the right side.
I was advised it was good practice to inform my insurance & DVLA of a straight Mk1 engine swap, which I did and they noted it without penalty.
I did the same with the new Rota rims for the the Mk2.5…again without penalty even although I went a tyre size up.
As far as I was concerned, that Elan was ruined.
It begs the question of how many potentially “uninsured” upon post accident inspections (but legally assumed to be insured) 5s are running around…starting with a simple K&N induction mod to a full BBR power hike)
Not seen the new Wheeler Dealers yet but caught up with a few of the old ones on Quest.
Ed China has a very English way of dealing with a subject close to my heart which I find far more palatable than the ego driven self important American style of presentation.
Just watched them restore a 1958 Citroen 2CV - 425cc. Anyone that has ever owned or driven one of these as I have would have particularly enjoyed the program. My favourite bit was the in depth explanation of the suspension.
I did not realise than Ant Anstead was the replacement co-presenter - excellent choice that in my opinion would be difficult to better, provided he can work with Mike Brewer. Another guy with an excellent attitude and undoubted skills combined with great presentation style. Lets hope there is no clash of personality.
Much like the Grand Tour is a pale imitation of the former Top Gear, so the new Wheeler Dealers is a dumbed down and lightweight version of it’s predecessor. I think Edd China was right to get out and salvage his dignity.