Flick through any book of old photographs and it’s nigh-on almost impossible not to get lost in the background, picking out cars and wondering where they are now and what life they led.
That is particularly true of any book about Sir Malcolm Campbell, the speed record hero, talented racer and all round automotive extraordinaire.
He developed close ties with Ford during his life to the point where he was the British representative of Mercury, a subsidiary of the Blue Oval. He also had a particular requirement for a type of car Ford made its own Stateside, and which is also the focus of the Scramble’s central display: the wagon.
The extra space afforded by a wagon or shooting brake was the perfect vehicle for his Bluebird exploits, which took him regularly faster than anyone had ever been before on land and water. And usually he needed a lot of stuff, and his mechanics such as Leo Villa usually needed somewhere to lay their head after a late night’s fettling.
He also needed a V8, because, well, he’s the fastest man on earth – producing 85bhp, a healthy number for 1938.
Ford certainly could provide that magic formula, and one his very woodies will be part of the Winter Wagons display thanks to Robin Batchelor.
The car in question is a Ford Model 81A Deluxe Station Wagon, better known simply as the Ford Woodie, and it wears its years charmingly.
You’ll find the Woodie on Winter Wagons by Building 123 at the Scramble.