1985 Swiss Tour

The highlight of the Tour was a visit to the Graber garage at Wichtrach, then a Ferrari dealer

 

This article was first published in 1985 but without the colour photos now included. Many of the participants are no longer with us including our scribe, Margaret Fairburn who died in 2015. 23522 TB14 of Rudhe Kroon – where are you now?

The late Alf Harvey, ex-Alvis with 1 ALV the works TE21, with the Molle “lorry”.

The late Mike Cummins with CCG 92
Rest stop to convene the Swedish, Dutch and Belgians with the British contingent
Hostellerie Reeb, Marlenheim
11174 Speed 20SB Vanden Plas AYF 91 – where are you now?
27142 – TE21 Graber 776 – still with Bert Kramer for fifty years – at Mulhouse with the Van der Velde Fourteen 23085
Mulhouse – 25706 TC21/100 saloon of the late Rowland Simmons – where is the car now? AOC Bulletin 348, September 1986, Letter from etc John H. Carlton., Marston House, Church Lane, Oxted, Surrey. 15/7/86
Dear Editor, Sunshine, as well as the absence of rain, made a welcome return to International Alvis Day this year, as my wife Liz and I headed up the M11 in the Granada ‘company hack’ to Duxford Airfield. Whilst still about half an hour away from our destination, I found myself slowing down instinctively to investigate a stationary TC21/100 saloon on the hard shoulder, the occupants of which appeared to be trying desperately to appeal to the good nature of other passing motorists. Having pulled up on the hard shoulder behind the unfortunate Alvis, KJB 800, imagine my surprise when the driver turned out to be none other than Rowland Simmons from Red Triangle, who, owing to a miscalculation, admitted to nothing more than having run out of petrol! My spare 2 gallon can of petrol was dispensed into the Alvis and Rowland, and friend, shot off up the M11 with us in pursuit. To say that the Granada had difficulty in keeping up with, let alone catching up with the Alvis, is one thing, but imagine the surprise of the drivers of much more modem machinery, when this 30-year-old saloon hurtled past them, hotly pursued by a white unmarked Granada. Rowland was judging the Concours, and there was no way he was going to be late! Inspection of the Paris to Peking racer later revealed the fitment of an oil cooler and non-standard twin exhaust system. Rowland denied there was any truth in the rumour that the compression ratio was 10:1! Yours etc John H. Carlton

At the Graber Garage showroom, Wichtrach

The view from the roof of the Graber garage, Wichtrach
27371 TF21 Graber coupe 793 – then owned by Ralph Schwarz until 1990 when acquired by Alan Stote

25858 Graber 686 – atop the Col du Pillon with a temperature
25930 TC108G Graber 720 then with the late Hans Dietrich, with Robin Willmott since 2006
A visitor to Interlaken – 10098 Speed 20 SA Cross & Ellis LV 2200, then with Joseph Trenkle, where are you now?

26858 Graber coupe 762 – where are you now? Chateau de Coppet
Yves Honneger still has his 4.3 Offord 14840

Photos by John Fox

margaret 0314

Maragaret Fairburn