Blair & Laura Mowchenko

1969 Spitfire

 

The history of this car, from what I was told,  is that it was registered and driven in Ontario.  In the early part of the turn of the century ( 2000 ) it was sold to an enthusiast in Saskatchewan. The vehicle body was dismantled and parts were ordered. The owner soon lost interest, and the dismantled body and frame/drive train was sold at an auction.  The next owner bought it as an opportunity to own a British car. He then dismantled the engine to determine the damage, and engine parts were purchased.  He eventually lost interest and put it up for sale.

In 2007, I purchased the car.  I got it as a  dismantled body, frame, and 24 beer boxes of parts.  Over the next five years I slowly worked on it until I retired in 2012.  After retirement I put some serious time into it.  Every bearing and joint was to be renewed.  Floor pans and other normal rusty bits were to be replaced.  The only items I didn’t dismantle was a used engine I had purchased, the gearbox, and the steering rack.  In June 2016 the body/frame and drive-train was back together and ready for paint.  When it returned from the paint shop, I installed the interior, electrics, and trim.  Its first maiden voyage was in June of 2016.

On July 31 2021 I was returning from the Thomson Lake Car Show when the used engine I had in the car failed.  It cracked the top rings in cylinder #1 and #4.  The engine was destroyed.  In the fall of 2021 I started a rebuild of a standby engine that I had in the shed.

 

In January 2023 I rebuilt the gearbox and at the same time installed a D Type overdrive.  During my ownership of this car, every nut, bolt, bearing and U-joint has been dismantled, inspected and rebuilt.