News
Fuelling the D Day 75th anniversary
With the help of family and friends, customer Ben Kaye restored a 1940 AEC Matador medium artillery tractor and a 1940 Scammell Pioneer R100 heavy artillery tractor in time for the 75th anniversary of the D Day landings on 6th June.
Making the 300-mile journey to the Normandy beaches at Arromanches for this historic anniversary, the Scammell Pioneer R100 was transported on a low loader. Having arrived in France, the Kaye family took part in a series of parades and events and also laid a wreath at sea on behalf of Ben’s wife Emma’s grandfather, Charles Owen, a former Royal British Legion parade marshal. A rare and valuable white ensign, which was displayed on a gunboat captained by the father of Ben’s former primary school teacher on D Day 1944, also made the trip.
Ben, who runs a Range Rover and Land Rover repair and diagnostics business, was just 19 when he began collecting military vehicles to restore. Using a student loan, he bought his first Scammell Pioneer SV25 recovery vehicle for £2,000. Ben and his father, who shares his passion, now have 15 vehicles, including two tanks and five Scammells. His latest restoration project – a Scorpion tank – is nearing completion after 14 years.
Thanking Morris Lubricants for donating the oils, Ben said:
“I buy all the oil for my hobby and business from Morris Lubricants because it’s good quality and the back-up service is excellent. You can ring their technical department with a query and speak to a human being which means a lot when you are working on cars that can be worth up to £100,000.”
“Recommended for use in veteran, classic and vintage vehicles, where engine design and tolerances prohibit the use of modern multigrade, high additive level oils, these engine and gear oils are perfect for Ben’s vehicles,” added Andrew Goddard, Morris Lubricants’ chairman.