A postcard of the Big Gumboot at Taihape with a Hillman Imp in the foreground.
Its been a little while since I have written a post that involves a personal story. Regular readers of my blog will know that the main reason for the existence of this blog is to share stories of my 1:1 life and how they relate to my model car collection. So dear reader, I present a very steamy story concerning an early 1960’s Hillman Imp. The reference to Taihape in New Zealand will become clear as this brief story unfolds. But first, to the car in question, the Hillman Imp.
The story of the Hillman Imp and its rise and demise is as interesting as any other vehicle. Originally a product of the Rootes Group and manufactured in a purpose-built plant in Scotland, the Imp and indeed all Rootes products were eventually bought by Chrysler. The basics of the story can be found here: Imp on Wikipedia And since the cars 50th anniversary was celebrated this past May, this page here is appropriate with some great pictures and you tube videos: Hillman fans go back to their Rootes
The model I have is a 1/43 Diecast by Vanguards. Its quite a good rendition of the real thing for an economy type model.
Now to my story. A couple of friends of mine were moving from somewhere in the south of the North Island of New Zealand to Taupo and I was going along for the ride. Now as anyone who has ever been in an Imp will know, there is not much room in them. They were a rear-engined 850cc machine and there was not much room in the front under the bonnet. Now my friend had bought his Imp with the intention of making the big move and it was the same as my Vanguard model here, including the colour.From memory we set off late in the afternoon with intention of some night driving before arriving at our destination. This was the big moment for the new (it was a very well used 11-year-old Imp with quite a few miles on the clock). Now, at that time in New Zealand, Imps were getting a bit long in the tooth and, being air-cooled rear-engined, they had a bit of a reputation for over-heating. You know where this is going dont you? We made it safely to Taihape, stopped for a bottle of Lemon and Paeroa (or some other soft drink) and headed out of town, in the dark, on a lonely road… Yeah, you guessed it, the little Imp spat the dummy. I was sitting in the back seat with my knees tucked up around my ears (not much room in the back) when the little motor made an odd sound, lost power and that was it. We pulled over, and the smoke was pouring out of the back of the little beast. That was the end of the ‘you beaut’ new (old) Imp. She died there and then on the side of a lonely road on the outskirts of Taihape and ended up in a local motor wreckers the next day.Taihape is a great little spot and nowadys is known for its gumboot throwing competion and hence the big gumboot on our postcard. I wonder what became of the little Imp? Perhaps it endup up being recycled into cans of L&P?
Enjoy the pictures, please leave a comment and check out my other entries. Thanks for stopping by. Doogie.
The Hillman Imp in Taihape, New Zealand
Doogies Diecast Models 