Autofest 2009

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The photos that were once here are being transitioned to an archive site to make room for the 2009 Autofest photos. Here is a link to that site. Photos from other years are still available as well. Links to them are on our Home page.

I do have full size versions of the photos from the 2009 Autofest. If you are interested in the full size version, please contact me at qcbac(at)mchsi.com,, substituting @ for at and I can e-mail it to you. You could probably print it as large as 8 x 10.

Thanks go out to all of the merchants in the Village of East Davenport for again sharing their neighborhood with us all, as well as thanks to all of our sponsors. You can see a list (with addresses, and website links) below.
Visit, patronize, and thank them for their support of our event.

Sponsor:
Lujack Luxury Motor Cars
3700 Harrison Street
Daveport, Iowa

Village of East Davenport
East 11th Street from Mound to Jersey Ridge Road
Davenport, Iowa

Some goodies donated by:

Meguiars

Motorbooks,
The worlds leading
publisher and distributor of books
for the Automotive enthusiast.

Cash door prizes:

The Quad City British Auto Club

This year (2009), the weather was darn warm with temperatures in the low to mid 90's. Luckily, there was a nice breeze and lots of shade. We had a nice turn-out, with some excellent cars, my guess being somewhere around 85 cars. I base this guess on the number of pictures I took. The weather also made for more people stopping by to check out our cars.

Our drive began at Northpark Mall, but we learned a valuable lesson. It's just too difficult for a group of cars to leave together from.

Any future drives will leave from somewhere else, PLUS route maps WILL be handed out.

Quite the nice variety of cars joined with us for the drive.

I did a short little movie as everybody left the lot. It is available on YouTube here.

Tim and Helen joined with their Jaguar, while Jim and Pegg joined in their Spitfire.

Bob and Barb joined us in their MGA

Our dinner this year was at the Davenport location of the Iowa Machine Shed. A menu of reasonably priced items made sure everybody could find something they liked.

We had 38 who joined us for the dinner. Always funny how a large room full of people tends to get quiet when the food comes out.

The Quad City Times ran a nice article on one of our members and a project car he just finished. The actual article appears here.

Moline couple will unveil restored MGB at car show

Carol Jamison was captivated by the 1974 MGB convertible that she and her husband, Carl, spotted languishing in a Moline driveway.

"I wanted to rescue it," she says.

Even though the couple eventually acquired another MGB roadster, she kept thinking about that rust bucket they had seen partially hidden under a tarp being held in place by a bag of fertilizer. A doll collector, she felt the same way about the car as she does about the damaged dolls she saves.

With the owner anxious to sell, she encouraged her husband of 44 years, a lifelong British car enthusiast, to buy and restore it. She even agreed to finance the project with income generated by her business, Carol's Dance Studio.

Carl took the right steps himself in returning the car to showroom condition.

After a three-year restoration, that harvest gold MGB will make its debut Sunday, Aug. 9, at the 22nd annual Heartland British Autofest, sponsored by the Quad-Cities British Auto Club, in the Village of East Davenport. More than 80 British vehicles and motorcycles from throughout the Midwest will line the streets of the historic neighborhood overlooking the Mississippi River.

The Jamisons' MGB should turn heads.

Once pocked with rust a good foot up along the lower edge of its body, the MGB has made a remarkable comeback. Carl, who retired after 39 years as a journeyman sheet metal worker, dissembled it, restoring or replacing many components. The work included installing new floor pans, new rocker panels, and replacing the master cylinder, clutch and brakes. A new bonnet, or hood, replaces the old one, which was eaten away by rust.

Tackling the passenger compartment, he added new seat cushions but preserved the original vinyl upholstery. The car was repainted harvest gold, its original factory color. A grille with vertical bars used in many MGBs replaces the honeycomb style used in the 1974 model. The grille complements the chrome bumpers, which were discontinued after 1974 in favor of polyurethane. The "rubber" bumpers were adapted because of U.S. safety requirements.

Carl has owned a number of British sports cars over the years, and his collection now includes a 1978 MGB, a 1964 Triumph TR4 and a 1971 Triumph TR6. He rates the MGB among his favorites for one simple reason. "It's a fun little car to drive," he says.

Dawn Neuses of Quad City Online ran a nice article on our event and spotlighted several of our members.

British-car enthusiasts gather for show and tell

DAVENPORT -- Charles Tague called it his "baby" -- the 1976 MG Midget he's owned for 20 years. The experience of driving it, a car only 6 inches from the road, reminds him of driving a go-cart.

Driving down the road at sunrise or sunset is as close to heaven as you can get, he said.

"British cars are something your father showed you or something someone turned you onto. But once the bug bites you, it is hard to get it out of your blood," Mr. Tague said.

It is that "bug" he, and other British car enthusiasts, wanted to share Sunday at the Heartland British Auto Fest in the Village of East Davenport.

The 19th annual event was held by the Quad City British Auto Club.

There were more than 80 cars and trucks in the show, which featured everything from new Mini Coopers to an Austin Mini Moke, from Jaguars to Mr. Tague's MG Midget.

"This gives us a chance to show off our cars and foster interest in British cars. Most haven't been built in 30 years and several here do not exist anymore. They are orphans," said Dave Bishop, president of the club.

Cars at the show ranged in price from $2,000 to more than $100,000. He said anyone can join in the hobby, as the cars are easily found, reasonably priced and all they need is an owner who is somewhat mechanically inclined.

Many of the spectators were there due to their interest in the British vehicles. "They like them because they are loud, and they are fast," Mr. Bishop said.

Mark Doubet had four British automobiles at the show -- a 1965 Lotus Elan S2, a 1972 Lotus Elan +2, a 1966 Austin mini panel van and a 1957 Morris Minor pickup that took him two years to restore for his wife, a pickup sporting a color called "Wild Berry."

He fell in love with British automobiles when he was 14, not yet old enough to drive, and over the years he has owned between 40 and 50.

"It truly is a hobby. On evenings and weekends, I can go out my shop and work if I want to, and if I don't want to, I don't," he said. "You get the final reward when you see the finished product. Then you take them to shows and talk to people."

He drives his British autos in parades, and on nice afternoons, up an down country roads. "They aren't meant to sit in the garage. You have to use them," he said.

Wayne Wagner, of Bettendorf, had a crowd around his willow-green 1970 Jaguar E Type at the show. He said work on the car will never be complete. "It's an old car," he said with a laugh.

Many things piqued his interest about British automobiles.

"You buy for the appearance, the look, the design, the uniqueness. I think that is why everyone likes British cars, it is the uniqueness," Mr. Wagner said.

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