Hire One Classic Car Hire - An Unforgettable Day

As well as our main hire fleet we also have a number of classic cars that have all been restored in our own workshops.

Treat yourself to an unforgettable day out, a weekend or a week break driving in one of our classic cars. Enjoy a slower pace of life and time to take in the beauty and delights of the countryside of Britain.

Hire a classic car to mark that special occasion, attend a festival in style or create a holiday to remember forever.

All our cars are available for hire from one day to a full week. We are based in Kent, the Garden of England, with hire prices starting from £40.00 per day including insurance.

A car from Classic Car Hire takes you away on a nostalgia trip to an earlier and unhurried motoring era. Whether reliving your early years or a new experience, we have a car to suit you.

Prices are available upon request.

Please do not hesitate to contact us on:

Classic Car Hire,

Unit 17, Joseph Wilson Industrial Estate

Whitstable, Kent

CT5 3PS

Tel: 0800 8600 165

When booking we advise you to provide details prior to the hire day so that most of the paperwork can be completed before you turn up ensuring you don’t have to wait around for too long.

We would also advise you to book early as you can to ensure the vehicle you are after is available - particularly during the Summer months, vehicles can be booked many weekends ahead. It is still worth contacting us at short notice as we sometimes have cancellations.

Some of our Classics

VW Camper

This is a 1972 Type 2 Camper van – this can carry 5 people, has a bed for two and two bunks for 2 children or small adults(!), comes with cooking and general camping equipment.

The Volkswagen Type 2 Camper (the Type 1 was the Beetle) was launched at the 1949 Geneva Motor Show; inspired by motorised trolleys based on the Beetle chassis, production began on 8th March 1950. This VW filled a gap in the market for flexible, simple and cost-effective vehicle and remained in production for 40 years with a total of more than five million of them rolling off the line.

In 1949 the First Type II was introduced called the Bulli (meaning 'Workhorse') and came in Kombi and Panel van models. The Microbus was introduced in 1950. This had nicer upholstery, two-tone paint, engine adjustments and the shape of front bumper changed. The big cast aluminium 'VW' logo appeared on the front and back.

1951 saw the introduction of the Westfalia camper model. Westfalia is a coach building company located in a German town of the same name (a separate company from VW). However, the words 'VW', 'Camper' and 'Westfalia' are mutually exclusive. The camper van took off due to its characteristic tiny fittings and furnishings to epitomise the home from home. Its popularity continued as the van was adopted by 1960s counter-culture. Features such as a longer dashboard with radio and clock were added about this time along with chrome trim on the body.

The bay made the Type II a big triumph and by 1975 the Hanover factory had built four million of these vehicles. A range of larger engine sizes became available (1600cc, 1700cc, 1800cc and 2000cc) and the buses became far more reliable.

Our camper is a 1972 Bay-window model and has been completely stripped and re-built and re-painted. Loved all over the world for their distinctive character and vast carrying capacity, it can carry up to five people and has a vertical pop top roof so plenty of headroom is available. We decided to retain the original character of the vehicle. It is less practical than a newer one but a lot more fun. Height restrictions may apply!

Ford Cortina Mark 1

This classic Ford is a 1963 1500 Automatic 4 door Saloon.

Introduced in 1962 and the first of five generations , the Mark 1 Cortina came in Standard and Deluxe versions and proved to one of their most popular models - the Cortina was the best selling car of its class in the early sixties selling over 1 million cars. Aimed firmly at the affordable family market it nevertheless had clean, angular, modern lines and was priced very competitively.

In January 1963 Ford released the Super Deluxe in both two and four-door versions. They also released the 1500 cc (1498 cc) engine as an option, although it was standard fitment to the Super Deluxe.

December 1963 brought the introduction of the Borg-Warner supplied automatic gearbox. A price of £82 was added to the 1500 for this optional extra. Our Mark 1 is badged as a Consul – the model was originally called the Consul Cortina but this was later dropped.

Triumph GT6

This is a 1972 6-cylinder two-seater sports coupe.

The GT6 6 cylinder two-seater sports coupe was produced from 1966 to 1973 and was based on the Triumph Spitfire. Using the 2 litre engine form the Vitesse, Triumph finally had a car that could be marketed as a true GT. This large, torque engine delivered its power quietly and smoothly and gave the GT6 unparalleled levels of performance with a 0-60mph of 10.4 seconds. Styled by Michelotti and often referred to as the “poor man’s E-type”, it developed 95 bhp and underwent a number of changes to improve handling culminating in the Mk 3; it represented the successful conclusion of a continuous process of improvement and refinement.

The Mk 3 was introduced at the 1970 Turin Motor Show; a very attractive and well-engineered car, it has an elegant interior with wooden dash and comprehensive instrumentation and came with carpets and heating – a luxury that not all cars had at this time!

Our GT6 is the Mk 3 and with this model the whole bodyshell was revised to match the changes made to the Spitfire; these included a cut-off rear end, recessed door handles and a smoother front end. The engine had been up-rated to develop 104bhp with a new cylinder head, camshaft, and manifolds and a top speed of 117mph – we do not suggest that you test this now as these vehicles deserve a quieter more sedate life respecting their age! Our car has been fully restored and comes with a picnic hamper and blanket and optional sunglasses.

MGB GT

This is a 1971 1800cc two-seater sports coupe.

The MG B was produced between 1962 & 1980 totalling 386,789 cars. The GT version was introduced in 1965 and totalled 125,323 units giving a grand total of 512,112 vehicles sold, most of which went to America, making it the world’s top selling car of its era.

The B was styled by Don Hayter, a former chief designer for Aston Martin, to replace the MG A. The GT version was styled in house at the Abingdon factory but was sent to Pininfarina in Italy where some minor detail changes were made.

The B was the first “Unitary construction” MG model made and when the roof was added for the GT version it became exceptionally strong. The car’s general toughness and reliability made it successful in racing. When it was introduced buyers could expect 103mph and 28mpg both good specifications for the period.

Our model is a 1972 version with the benefit of overdrive on 3rd and 4th gear. This was used to give the benefit of improved fuel consumption without the need to redesign the gearbox. It has the added advantage that the driver can change ratios for climbing hills or overtaking without using the gearbox. Although technically a 4-seater it is best used with the rear seat folded down giving good space for luggage whilst touring. The load space is accessed by the tailgate which was most up to date when the car first came out.

Mini Clubman

The Mini is widely considered to be the 2nd most influential car of the Twentieth century second only to the Model T Ford; first produced in 1959 there are a bewildering number of variants.

In 1969, under the ownership of British Leyland, the Mini was given a facelift by stylist Roy Haynes, who had previously worked for Ford. The restyled version was called the Mini Clubman, and has a squarer frontal look. Production of the Clubman and 1275GT got off to a slow start because the cars incorporated "lots of production changes" including the relocation of tooling from the manufacturer's Cowley plant to the Longbridge plant: very few cars were handed over to customers before the early months of 1970.

The 1275GT is often incorrectly described as the "Mini Clubman 1275GT". The official name was always just the "Mini 1275GT", and it was a separate, distinct model from the Clubman (albeit, it shared the same frontal treatment as the Mini Clubman, and was launched at the same time).

The Mini Clubman was responsible for a motoring "first": they were the first vehicles to use a flexi printed-circuit board behind the dash instruments (universal nowadays, but technically advanced for 1969). Throughout the 1970s, British Leyland continued to produce the classic 1959 "round-front" design, alongside the newer Clubman and 1275GT models. The long-nose Clubman offered better crash safety, was better equipped, and had vastly better under-bonnet access, but they were more expensive and aerodynamically inferior to the original 1959 design.

The Mini Clubman and 1275GT were replaced in 1980 by the new hatchback Austin Metro, while production of the original "round-front" mini design continued for another 20 years. At the end of Clubman production, 275,583 Clubman saloons, 197,606 Clubman Estates had been made. Ours is a 1980 Clubman being one of the last to be produced; it has the 1098cc engine but still retains the 10” wheels which give the car its taut “go-cart” handling.