On July 12, 2009, thousands of onlookers witnessed as a 1925 Bugatti Type 22 Brescia Roadster was plucked from Lake Maggiore on the border of Italy and Switzerland. The car had been submerged for three-quarters of a century and when it sold at Bonhams’ Retromobile auction in Paris in January of 2010, the collector car world celebrated.
Fast forward to January 29, 2017; on this day collector Alex Vazeos of Athens, Greece, contacted me to discuss his most recent adventure. By any measure Vazeos has an extraordinary collection of small-displacement sports and racing cars. He is passionate about the hobby and is always on the hunt for something old and exciting. It seems that Vazeos now had his own story of “the car in the lake” and “hidden treasure” barely begins to describe his find, a 1950s Convair Mk I.
Convair Cars was started by brothers Terry and Clive Wren of Cathall Road, East London, in the 1950s. Like many young men of the day, the brothers’ business plan involved designing and manufacturing lightweight fiberglass shells to allow motorsports hobbyists to build their own racing machines.
Vazeos first became aware of the cars of Convair from an article in the December 2016 issue of Automobilismo D’Epoca. The article was about a beautifully restored Convair Roadster (361 EYA) living in Italy. Vazeos said, “When I read the article I was instantly fascinated. I was struck by the thought that the Convair was one of the prettiest barchettas of the ’50s I’d ever seen. I quickly swung into action and tried to find the owner of the green car featured in the article. I soon learned that this one was not for sale at any price. At that point I reached out by email to Angus Dudley, the Convair Register registrar and son-in-law of Clive Wren. Angus informed me that Convair had produced three styles in the 1950s, convertible, coupe and roadster. He further explained that only two roadsters existed, including 361 EYA, and that neither car could possibly be acquired. This seemed like the end of my Convair dream and I got that hopeless feeling that only a failed car quest can produce.”
When I read the article I was instantly fascinated. I was struck by the thought that the Convair was one of the prettiest barchettas of the ’50s I’d ever seen.
Vazeos continued, “I took a moment to compose myself and continued reading Angus’ email. Much to my surprise, and delight, his email described a third roadster (EKU 16) that was submerged in a pond just off a public footpath near Staunton and Corse in Gloucestershire, England. Based on the license plate and information gathered from the United Kingdom’s Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), this Convair had been withdrawn from circulation in 1964, and for good reason. The car’s owner lived on an estate near a pond and had been racing it on country roads. Apparently, he lost control of the Convair Roadster, which slid into the pond. And, as fate would have it, since 1964 that’s where it has been, waiting for someone to care enough to retrieve it.”
Vazeos cared enough and began to construct a plan. Vazeos said, “My trusted restorer in Greece, Christos Skriapas, recommended I contact Ally Stuart (www.stuartclassics.com), a very active and enthusiastic woman in the classic car business. Her reputation was that she enjoyed a great challenge and I certainly had one here. On January 21 (2017), Ally and a team travelled to the pond and verified the Convair was still there, submerged even deeper than originally thought. Because the road leading to the pond was extremely narrow, sending a truck in was not an option. So, Ally organized a team of 12 strong men armed with chainsaws. The plan was for them to walk into the pond and drag the car out by hand. On January 28 the team spent five hours extracting the car. This involved cutting tree limbs and negotiating treacherous footing through mud. The entire operation was performed by hand and the Convair was carried out piece by piece, including the engine, a distance of 100 yards to a flatbed truck.”
Vazeos’ Convair Mk I is currently en route to Athens where a comprehensive restoration is planned for the body, Morris 8 chassis and Ford side-valve engine. While the car collector world may not celebrate this event with the same zest as the Lake Maggiore Bugatti, Vazeos’ Convair story is every bit as astonishing. Motivated by an article he spotted in a magazine, Vazeos’ dream went from vision-quest to adventure to automotive rescue.
