A BOX OF WONDERFUL VELOX BITS

I was a little shocked when researching this feature to find that this model of Vauxhall Velox has a survival rate of just 0.4%. Whilst I can’t quantify the survival rate for every 1950s model, this might well be amongst the lowest. Were they such a poor car? I don’t think so, but in common with many cars of the era, rustproofing was in its infancy and salt on the roads was prevalent, so I am afraid that rust was their greatest enemy. In that respect, earlier pre-war cars had substantial open chassis and often fared somewhat better, aided by the fact that the engines had less than perfect oil seals which more or less guaranteed that the underside of a car had a liberal coating of protective oil.

So it’s a brave man who takes on the restoration of a nearly 70-year-old Vauxhall Velox, especially one like Mick Johnson's fine example here which he got as a kit of parts. Indeed the 'kit' had stood around in the previous owner’s garage for around 30 years. The bodyshell had been stripped bare, the glass, every mechanical component, every nut and every bolt having been taken off and stored separately. All the parts were