The A70 Hereford Pickup was built at Longbridge on the 22nd November 1951. It was exported to Australia, the body type was called BK3 and was number 2292. Chassis number was quite high at 105963 with Engine number 1B/134544. The history on the vehicle is unknown, other than in 1994 it was restored.

Various classic were purchased it Australia and imported into Ireland 2004 via a sea container. I bought the A70 from the importer, although because of the sea trip there were some bumps and minor damage, its general condition was good. In 2005 it was stripped down and the body had a re-spray.

The upholstering and the timber trim on top of the loading area and the timber lid on the spare wheel compartment have been redone, everything else is in its original state


The car is my DAILY drive, and has not let me down until (ironically) last Saturday, when it suddenly was impossible to get the car moving...clutch worked, gear could be changed, but nothing happened. Luckily the AA transported me and the car home, where I still need to find the cause of the breakdown...(clutch, gearbox, or differential)

Reginald van Acker

This vehicle was originally built as a “cargo” version in May 1954 and taken into army service on 15 June 1954 at Ashchurch vehicle depot in Gloucestershire, registered as 67 BE 99. No details of subsequent military service have as yet come to light as the records for this class of vehicle were destroyed by the MOD. It was withdrawn from army service on 20 November 1965 and sold by auction at RSDD Ruddington, Notts, on 19 April 1966 as Lot 384. We would like to know how much for, and any details of its previous owners, units etc.


It was purchased in 1973 by the current owner, Michael Buckley, after being badly crashed in a collision with an apple tree stump and subsequently converted to “Fitted For Wireless(FFW)” specification. All this series of vehicles were 24v so this presented no great difficulty using the designed 2 speed generator to give some 60Amp charging current. Some modernisation with the 90 Amp alternator charging system, an official modification to the Ferret and other vehicles of the same period and power source configuration, and thus continued in a sort of military service as a signals training vehicle with the Army Cadet Force, from which it finally recently retired in 2004.

67 BE 99 is shown here equipped as a Company level Signals truck of the late 1960’s fitted with “Larkspur” family radios.

Transmitter/Receiver C42 38 - 60 Mhz FM speech only, 50 kHz channels. Manufactured by Plessey. Used for forward area Company level communications. Range about 15 miles between vehicles dependent on terrain, more using elevated antenna on 27 foot mast. The antenna tuner for this set is mounted on the left wing.

Transmitter/Receiver B47 38 - 60 Mhz FM speech only, 50 kHz channels. Manufactured by Plessey.
Used for forward area co-operation duties. Range about 7 miles between vehicles dependent on terrain, the antenna tuner for this set is mounted on the right wing.

Transmitter C11 (SSB) with Receiver R210 (M).
2-16 MHz, AM/CW/USB/FSK. RF output 50W AM/CW, 120W pep SSB.

Used for rear link HF communications with higher formatiions. Range up to 200 miles or more dependent on frequency, antennas, transmission mode and time of day. This was the British army’s first practical field SSB set and dates from 1965. It was a development of the earlier valved C11 and is deliberately similar to it in appearance and operation. All-transistor except for a single QVO8-100B Power Amplifer valve.

The radio stations are powered from additional batteries mounted underneath the Radio Table and the fixed radio sets, being charged from the 24v vehicle system. The normal seat assembly is removed in this installation because it obstructs operation of the radios and a plain wooden seatback is fitted.
The radio table may be moved to a forward or rear position, the former giving better roadholding capability, although without room for a radio operator!

Michael Buckley

I bought this van in 1996, which I called Mabel, the first owner lived in Walsall and used it for his business of Painter & Decorator, so it had sign-writing on the side. I am the third owner, and as I run a Signs company. decided to have it sign-writing to publicze my trade. With Signs Plus Livery on the side this little van generated great interest in Rotherham. In 2006 I decided to sell it having given me good service over the ten years.

Gary Oxley

Ute Rescue Centre.

My farm is starting to look like an 1800 reunion site as I now have 2 Utes and 3 Sedans littering up the place. I have certainly been bitten by the Landcrab bug. This is the story of my latest (two) acquisitions. Two Mk 1 Utes. These two were being sold as a lot on EBay and had appeared three times with no apparent interest, so when the starting price came down to $400.00 I put in a bid. I was the only bidder and having won the auction, wasn’t at all sure what I had actually bought. Still, I figured at that price there would be something on them I could use.

I hooked the trailer up to the trusty Landcruiser and off I went. I traveled 530km, including a trip over the Black Spur, to Eildon. When I finally found the property and examined the utes, I was pleasantly surprised at the condition of the better of the two. It is far too good to break up for parts. The other ute was minus its front end but otherwise intact and the panels were surprisingly straight.

I winched the complete ute on to the trailer and tied it down then, after a cuppa, I headed for home. As I left the gate to the property it started to rain and the closer to the Black Spur I got, the worse the rain became. Towing a load over the Black Spur is “interesting” enough without sheets of opaque rain and a myriad of impatient motorists.

When I finally reached Lilydale I though the worst was over but boy was I wrong. The rain came in even heavier and there were sheets of water across the highway all but washing out the 4.5 million cars I was sharing the road with. All the traffic lights were out down the Maroondah Highway and it took 2.5 hours to travel the 15 km to Springvale Road. At one intersection there were two very wet policemen trying in vain to bring some order to the chaos. They had my deepest sympathy.

It was now obvious that I wasn’t going to be home that night so I headed for my mothers’ home in Brighton. The trip that would normally take 20 mins took nearly 3 hours. All the time I was conscious of the load on the back and the unwillingness of people to give me stopping room. As soon as I left enough space in front of me for safe stopping room, someone would duck in in front of me and hit the skids. You have got to love em!

I arrived at my mum’s after 13 hours in the saddle, so we ordered a pizza and cracked a bottle of Yellowtail. Tomorrow is another day.

Next morning dawned bright and clear and I waited for the peak to die down before heading off homeward. By the time I passed Ballarat the rain had returned and by Ararat I was down to 20 kph in places because of the constant rain and water over the road. It didn’t, however, deter the trucks from thundering along at 100kph with 20 feet of visibility. Every time one went past I was blinded for a piece making for an anxious drive.

Six hours after starting off I turned into the gate of my farm. All my concerns about the rain had vanished because it had been just as heavy at home and boy do we need it. We had more rain in one day than the last 9 months combined. Not a drought breaker but at least the tanks are full. (I love hot showers!)

This morning I rolled the ute off the trailer, placing it under cover, and had a decent look at it. The motor turns over and appears to have good compression. The seat is in the back but everything else is there. Amazingly, having been in the weather for over 5 years, there is no rust that I can find and the panels are dead straight. Good old rotadip!.

I have, of course committed the cardinal sin of acquiring another project before that last one is finished. It is a double sin in my case because I am still restoring my A40 Devon Tourer and have my Mk 2 Ute to do after that. The Mk 1 will have to sit there and watch me work on the other two. Maybe it will learn something and make it an easier restoration.

I will head back to Eildon in January and pick up the other ute. It is worth the drive but I will definitely look at the weather forecast first this time.

Welcome Home

Lachian Story

The first owners of the car were the Department of Health in Birmingham, where it was only driven by a chauffeur. It was registered in 1970 and was black with red interior, with a 4 speed manual gearbox but no overdrive.

In 1979 the Government sold it to the chauffeur, no doubt at a good price. He kept it till 1988, with 40,000 miles on the clock and a new MOT, it was then sold to a couple in the Midlands. They put it in their garage and that’s where it stayed until February 2007 when I purchased it. As I live in Bournemouth it was necessary to take a flat bed, and because it had not turned a wheel for so long, it had to be dragged out of the garage.

On returning to home and several months work, nothing major, but it was worth every minute, it was soon back on the road and drives like a dream. I think it is the best colour combination and with its history a very rare car, I am very lucky to own her!. Where ever I go with the car, it arouses a lot of interest from young and old alike.

Tom Ward