Classic & Sports Car UK – September 2019

Theknowledge

I

t’sa familiarstory:somethingthat

startedoutas a hobbyorsidelineslowly

becomesanaltogethermoreconsum-

ingenterpriseuntil,oneday,you’re

suddenlydoingit fora living.Thetrick,

presumably,iskeepingholdofthe

enjoymentandnotallowingitto

becomea nine-to-fivedrag.Buthow?

“Wetryandworkonthingsthatwewantto

workon,”smilesIanCox,whoprovideshalfof

thefirm’snameonthedoor:Cox& Turner.

Ianandhisfather,John,hadslowlyamassed

a numberof vehiclesandsparesovertheyears,so

tookthedecisiontostartsellinga fewpartsat

autojumblesin ordertogeneratesomefundsto

thenputbackintotheirownclassics.Typically,

thatledtothepairbeingofferedvariousother

partsandvehicles,andin turnbeingaskedif they

couldsupplyspecificspares.

Conversationsinevitablystartedtoturnto

buyersseekingadviceas to wheretheycouldget

machiningcarriedout.Theincreasedinterest

coincidedwithIan,anengineerbytrade,becom-

ingratherdisenchantedwithhisowncareerpath

andthesolutionseemedobvious:heandhis

retiredfathershouldestablishtheirownfull-

timeengineeringoutfit.Inthelate1980s,along

withlong-standingfriendMartinTurner,the

decisiongaveriseto Cox& TurnerEngineering

basedintheWestCountry

in Yeovil,Somerset.

Theservicesthefirm

offersdifferverylittlefrom

thoseearlydays,as Turner

explains: “We only do

engines– machiningand

parts– andweonlydoold

stuff.I guessthecut-off

point is around 1960

becauseafterthata lotof

factorschange,suchasthe

materialsandtheapproach

tobuilding.Everything

startedtobecomea little

moremass-produced,and

fromourpoint ofview

thereis verylittlemoney

init becausemostofthe

partsarestillavailablerelativelycheaply.”

Insteadofthisbeinga statementonpotential

profit,though,theemphasisis onenjoying

a challenge.WitnessingCoxhandoversome

recentlyrefurbishedandre-engineeredpartsto

a customerfurtherprovesthis;theglintinhis

eyeis obviousas hetalksaboutjusthowbadthey

werewhentheyarrived,andhowthefirmhas

managedtoturnthemintosomethingthatwill

begoodforanother 70 years.Thereareexcep-

tions,ofcourse,but:“Ifit’sinteresting,”he

counters,“thenwemightstilltakeit on!”

Outthroughthebackdoorof themainwork-

shopis the piston-ringstore,whichwas

originallythedomainofJohn(now 88 yearsold)

butis nowheadedupbyKitWhite.Boxesand

boxesof pistonringslinetheshelvesof thislarge

room,and,justlikeinthemainworkshop,you

wouldbehardpushedtofinda modernpieceof

equipment.Whiteevenusesa pairof Hepworth

&GrandageHepolitepiston-ring‘measurers’

tocheckthecompressedsizeof theseparts.

Likesomanyengineeringfirms,thekeyword

is quality– notjustabouttheendproductand

theworkcarriedout,butalsowhattheychoose

toworkon.“I liketogetmyhandsona quality

pieceofengineering,”saysCox.“Itis always

muchnicertoworkonsomethingthathasbeen

puttogetherandcraftedwellinthefirstplace.

Someoftheolderstuffcan

beunneccesarilyfiddly,

butvehiclessuchasearly

Lagondasarejustlovely.”

Ashescrollsthrough

examplesofcompleted

work,thereis everything

froma Fowlercombustion

enginetoa crankfora

steamengine.“Theaero

units are probably the

oddest,”heexplains.“We

havedoneseveralPobJoy

seven-cylindersoverthe

years– they’recertainly

veryinterestingtowork

on.Butaslongasit’sold

andhasanengine,then

we’llconsiderit.”

INTEREST

ONLY

THE SPECIALIST

Engine builders can be choosy, it turns out, as proved

by this West Country pre-1960 specialist

WORD & PHOTOGRAPHY MARTIN PORT

Name Cox & Turner Engineering

Address Huish Farm, Yeovil

Road, Tintinhull, Yeovil,

Somerset BA22 8QL

Staff Eight

Specialism Engine parts,

machining, mechanical

restoration and problem-solving

for all classic and vintage

vehicles, including tractors,

motorcycles and buses

Prices £78 per hour

Tel 01935 826816

Web http://www.coxandturner.co.uk

September 2019 Classic & Sports Car 205