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Ex-rally cars in Gambia,
March 05
March 05
Bangers entered in the Plymouth-Dakar
rally are auctioned off for charity, if they
make it.At the end of this year's event, we
tracked down four cars from the original
rally and met their new owners.
Lada Riva
Tembe Bah, a tourist taxi driver, owns a Lada
Riva estate bought from the first rally
(2002/3). The car was driven from the UK by
Team X - Cathy Towers and Richard Thomas
from Devon.
Donated originally by rally organiser and
Lada fanatic Julian Nowill: “Richard had
bought a beauty – a round-headlamp Lada
estate which I asked him not to drive, it was
too beautiful. I had this that someone had
donated to me, so I gave it to him instead.”
Tembe
“I had a Lada before, so I wanted another
one. I met the owner Richard and said I
wanted the Lada, he said the Lada was not
for sale unless I went to the auction. I asked
when the auction day was, he said Saturday,
so Saturday I went there and looked
everywhere in the engine bay. He said if you
get this car, you have a good car.
I paid 15,000 delasis (£280), and many
people were saying I’ve paid too much.
When I got to the customs they say I have to
pay 20,000 delasis for import duty (£375) but
I had been working as a driver for the director
general so I got a discount. How much? That
it is between me and the customs!
It was white when I first got it. To change the
colour [all tourist taxis must be green] it was
3000 delasis (£55). Before we had a white
diamond on the side, but now we have the
palm tree to show it’s a tourist taxi. I had to
pay 500 delasis (£9.50) for the logo.
The Lada is good for being a taxi, lots of
room. I had to change the timing chain and
that’s it. There’s one shop where you can get
parts for Ladas in the Gambia, but they are
very expensive now. It was right-hand-drive
and the police gave me hassle, so I had to
change it. It took me a long time - I had to
change the dashboard and the steering
column, and also move the fusebox. I did the
conversion myself.
It’s not been a good season this year. Since
the season started in October (to mid-
January) I have only made 5000 delasis (£94)
– the tourists have buses to take them around
and they don’t need us. There’s a lot of
competition – there’s now around 115 cars.
I went back to the auction this year, but it was
very expensive. I was looking at a Mercedes
but it went for 58,000 delasis (£1095). Now
the cars are left-hand-drive, it’s not the same
bargain.”
Ford Capri
Bob Badjan, a refrigeration expert, bought
the 1981 Ford Capri 3.0S entered in the
2003/4 rally by Stuart Dann and Luke Undy,
aka the Stuke Intruders, from Cornwall.
“We were looking for a Capri, and found this
absolute wreck on a council in Newton
Abbott [Devon]. Seller was a Scouser called
Tony, nice but dodgy, who said he was
storing it for a mate. We bought it for £200,
and had to put 60 welding patches on it”
Stuart Dann
Bob
“I didn’t need a car and did not plan to buy
one. But I came to the auction last year and
all of a sudden I was attracted to the Capri
like a magnet. I paid 28,000 delasis (£528).
I like the stickers, but I plan to change the
colour to gold. I will also change it to left
hand drive one day because the police don’t
like it.
I drive a Renault 25 every day, so the Capri I
only really drive to fill up with fuel on
weekends and take it to be serviced. It uses
quite a lot of fuel.
It’s not that difficult to fix – Ford is a common
marque in the Gambia and the mechanics
service it according to the Haynes manual.
The rest of the time it sits in my compound. I
cover it in newspaper to protect it from the
sun.
Everybody likes it. I’ve heard the original
owners are missing it and that they’ve
contacted Geri [the challenger organiser in
Gambia] to ask about buying it off me and
driving it back to Britain. I’ll probably sell it to
them.”
Triumph Herald
Omah Sallah, chairman of the National
Sports Council, former energy director and ex-
goalie for the Gambian national team,
bought the 1970 Triumph Herald 13/60
saloon put up for auction by Team Michelotti
in the 2003/4 rally.
“My teammate is member of the Herald group
on Yahoo and asked if anyone had a car for
£100, a chap in Basingstoke replied and
offered it to us completely gratis. Apparently
his missus had said either I go or it does. It
was in immaculate condition.” Derek Giles,
Team Michelotti
Omah
The reason I paid so much [18,000 delasis,
£339] is because someone else was bidding
to buy it for their son. But me I had to have it
to remind me of my college days. Everybody
knows I use to have a car just like this when I
was in college in Massachusetts.
Every Sunday, I wash it, polish it, take it out,
cruise around and park it. I have many cars,
including a Dodge Inteprid – the windscreen
is coming – a Land Rover and a Benz 190,
but I love this one.
She drives very nicely. When I bought it I
paid 16,000 delasis (£300) for customs duty,
insurance and licence. But I have problems
driving it in the Gambia because it is right
hand drive.
When I drive it sometimes I get harassed by
the police and I have to talk my way out of it.
I manage it. I used to be a senior government
officer [former energy director] so I give them
all kinds of excuses. But they always want me
to change it.
When can do it, I will do it myself, I just need
the left-hand-drive steering column and the
dashboard. Then I’d drive it every day.
It’s been very reliable. It’s been well taken
care of by its former owners and they should
be pleased to hear I’m taking care of it. I’ve
never had any problems whatsoever. I left the
Schumacher and the Ferrari stickers on, but I
took the rest of the stickers off, including the
one that said Banjul or Bust.
It shakes over the bumps, but all the roads are
being fixed. Now they have speed bumps, so
when I get to a speed bump I go very slow.
When I got it everything was shaking, so I had
to take it to a garage and reinforce
everything.
My wife likes it, but my kids don’t like it. When
I pick them up from school they don’t want
their friends to see them in it. When they’re in
the car they duck down. It’s not classy
enough for them. They liked to be picked up
in the Benz 190. One will lie down, the other
stoops down. I tell them it’s a fine car and
they don’t know what they’re missing.
Those of us who were brought up on these
appreciate the old style, but here you see the
flashy cars – they think I am crazy buying an
old car like this. They don’t know much a car
like this is worth – personal worth. It’s a
classic car.
I learned how to drive in a Mini Cooper.
There are many British cars here in Gambia
– the Triumph is here, the Mini was here. We
used to have the Rover, the Hillman Hunter –
we used to have all those cars. But now of
course the Japanese cars dominate the
market. That is why if you have a British car
you should cherish it, because they are hard
to come by now.
For someone in Britain to take the trouble to
buy a car, do it up, drive it over here and sell
it raise money for charity, it takes someone
with a very kind heart to do that.
I plan to give it a new paint job and buy a
new cover. Drive it, cover it, drive it, cover it.
Volvo 244
“Uncle” George Gomez, Executive Secretary
of the National Olympic Committee, runs a
1978 Volvo 244 2.1 DL in original Cimarron
brown that was donated to the OC by Team
Ralph, consisting solely of Rob Thomas, a
retired bank manager from Portsmouth, from
the first rally (2002/3).
“It was originally purchased from a Mr
MacQuirter of Chichester for £50, who burst
into tears filling in the transfer form. He’d
owned it all its life.”
Uncle George
“It had to be changed to right hand drive, but
it is a beautiful conversion. It cost with the
workmanship and materials required around
13,000 delasis (£245). The biggest problem
was converting the dashboard, we had to go
to Senegal to get a new one. The
workmanship was not a problem - the
mechanics here are very good.
This is car is very strong, running perfectly
well. With the roads we have here it is the
ideal car. The only problem with it it’s that it’s
not power steering - it’s very heavy. The shock
absorbers now have a problem. Right now if
you change the front and rear shock
absorbers it’ll run for another 4-5 years.
The car may be considered old in England,
out here it is very useful.
I’d never driven a Volvo before. I’ve been in it
to Senegal as far as Dakar and further –
about 400km from here. It copes with
potholes very well. Compared to my other
cars such as the Benz, it is very good.
It was given by Julian [challenge founder
and organiser], who spoke to the team, who
asked if it can be given to the National
Olympic Committee. Our activities take us all
over the country – we are building a lot of
mini stadia. At the time we were looking for a
car that we could use to go to the provinces
and back.
We do a lot of athletics, sprinting - short and
middle distance - and a lot of football.
Of the cars that came in the first challenge,
this was the best there was. Subsequently
more and more suitable cars are arriving and
last year we bought one from the auction, a
Lada Niva for 25,000 dalasis (£470) . It’s a bit
more suitable. The Volvo we now use more
for office work and Lada we use to go to the
provinces.
We were hoping to get a car this year, but the
prices on offer are too much. It’s good in a
way, because the charities we support get
additional funding, maybe twice as much.”
rally are auctioned off for charity, if they
make it.At the end of this year's event, we
tracked down four cars from the original
rally and met their new owners.
Lada Riva
Tembe Bah, a tourist taxi driver, owns a Lada
Riva estate bought from the first rally
(2002/3). The car was driven from the UK by
Team X - Cathy Towers and Richard Thomas
from Devon.
Donated originally by rally organiser and
Lada fanatic Julian Nowill: “Richard had
bought a beauty – a round-headlamp Lada
estate which I asked him not to drive, it was
too beautiful. I had this that someone had
donated to me, so I gave it to him instead.”
Tembe
“I had a Lada before, so I wanted another
one. I met the owner Richard and said I
wanted the Lada, he said the Lada was not
for sale unless I went to the auction. I asked
when the auction day was, he said Saturday,
so Saturday I went there and looked
everywhere in the engine bay. He said if you
get this car, you have a good car.
I paid 15,000 delasis (£280), and many
people were saying I’ve paid too much.
When I got to the customs they say I have to
pay 20,000 delasis for import duty (£375) but
I had been working as a driver for the director
general so I got a discount. How much? That
it is between me and the customs!
It was white when I first got it. To change the
colour [all tourist taxis must be green] it was
3000 delasis (£55). Before we had a white
diamond on the side, but now we have the
palm tree to show it’s a tourist taxi. I had to
pay 500 delasis (£9.50) for the logo.
The Lada is good for being a taxi, lots of
room. I had to change the timing chain and
that’s it. There’s one shop where you can get
parts for Ladas in the Gambia, but they are
very expensive now. It was right-hand-drive
and the police gave me hassle, so I had to
change it. It took me a long time - I had to
change the dashboard and the steering
column, and also move the fusebox. I did the
conversion myself.
It’s not been a good season this year. Since
the season started in October (to mid-
January) I have only made 5000 delasis (£94)
– the tourists have buses to take them around
and they don’t need us. There’s a lot of
competition – there’s now around 115 cars.
I went back to the auction this year, but it was
very expensive. I was looking at a Mercedes
but it went for 58,000 delasis (£1095). Now
the cars are left-hand-drive, it’s not the same
bargain.”
Ford Capri
Bob Badjan, a refrigeration expert, bought
the 1981 Ford Capri 3.0S entered in the
2003/4 rally by Stuart Dann and Luke Undy,
aka the Stuke Intruders, from Cornwall.
“We were looking for a Capri, and found this
absolute wreck on a council in Newton
Abbott [Devon]. Seller was a Scouser called
Tony, nice but dodgy, who said he was
storing it for a mate. We bought it for £200,
and had to put 60 welding patches on it”
Stuart Dann
Bob
“I didn’t need a car and did not plan to buy
one. But I came to the auction last year and
all of a sudden I was attracted to the Capri
like a magnet. I paid 28,000 delasis (£528).
I like the stickers, but I plan to change the
colour to gold. I will also change it to left
hand drive one day because the police don’t
like it.
I drive a Renault 25 every day, so the Capri I
only really drive to fill up with fuel on
weekends and take it to be serviced. It uses
quite a lot of fuel.
It’s not that difficult to fix – Ford is a common
marque in the Gambia and the mechanics
service it according to the Haynes manual.
The rest of the time it sits in my compound. I
cover it in newspaper to protect it from the
sun.
Everybody likes it. I’ve heard the original
owners are missing it and that they’ve
contacted Geri [the challenger organiser in
Gambia] to ask about buying it off me and
driving it back to Britain. I’ll probably sell it to
them.”
Triumph Herald
Omah Sallah, chairman of the National
Sports Council, former energy director and ex-
goalie for the Gambian national team,
bought the 1970 Triumph Herald 13/60
saloon put up for auction by Team Michelotti
in the 2003/4 rally.
“My teammate is member of the Herald group
on Yahoo and asked if anyone had a car for
£100, a chap in Basingstoke replied and
offered it to us completely gratis. Apparently
his missus had said either I go or it does. It
was in immaculate condition.” Derek Giles,
Team Michelotti
Omah
The reason I paid so much [18,000 delasis,
£339] is because someone else was bidding
to buy it for their son. But me I had to have it
to remind me of my college days. Everybody
knows I use to have a car just like this when I
was in college in Massachusetts.
Every Sunday, I wash it, polish it, take it out,
cruise around and park it. I have many cars,
including a Dodge Inteprid – the windscreen
is coming – a Land Rover and a Benz 190,
but I love this one.
She drives very nicely. When I bought it I
paid 16,000 delasis (£300) for customs duty,
insurance and licence. But I have problems
driving it in the Gambia because it is right
hand drive.
When I drive it sometimes I get harassed by
the police and I have to talk my way out of it.
I manage it. I used to be a senior government
officer [former energy director] so I give them
all kinds of excuses. But they always want me
to change it.
When can do it, I will do it myself, I just need
the left-hand-drive steering column and the
dashboard. Then I’d drive it every day.
It’s been very reliable. It’s been well taken
care of by its former owners and they should
be pleased to hear I’m taking care of it. I’ve
never had any problems whatsoever. I left the
Schumacher and the Ferrari stickers on, but I
took the rest of the stickers off, including the
one that said Banjul or Bust.
It shakes over the bumps, but all the roads are
being fixed. Now they have speed bumps, so
when I get to a speed bump I go very slow.
When I got it everything was shaking, so I had
to take it to a garage and reinforce
everything.
My wife likes it, but my kids don’t like it. When
I pick them up from school they don’t want
their friends to see them in it. When they’re in
the car they duck down. It’s not classy
enough for them. They liked to be picked up
in the Benz 190. One will lie down, the other
stoops down. I tell them it’s a fine car and
they don’t know what they’re missing.
Those of us who were brought up on these
appreciate the old style, but here you see the
flashy cars – they think I am crazy buying an
old car like this. They don’t know much a car
like this is worth – personal worth. It’s a
classic car.
I learned how to drive in a Mini Cooper.
There are many British cars here in Gambia
– the Triumph is here, the Mini was here. We
used to have the Rover, the Hillman Hunter –
we used to have all those cars. But now of
course the Japanese cars dominate the
market. That is why if you have a British car
you should cherish it, because they are hard
to come by now.
For someone in Britain to take the trouble to
buy a car, do it up, drive it over here and sell
it raise money for charity, it takes someone
with a very kind heart to do that.
I plan to give it a new paint job and buy a
new cover. Drive it, cover it, drive it, cover it.
Volvo 244
“Uncle” George Gomez, Executive Secretary
of the National Olympic Committee, runs a
1978 Volvo 244 2.1 DL in original Cimarron
brown that was donated to the OC by Team
Ralph, consisting solely of Rob Thomas, a
retired bank manager from Portsmouth, from
the first rally (2002/3).
“It was originally purchased from a Mr
MacQuirter of Chichester for £50, who burst
into tears filling in the transfer form. He’d
owned it all its life.”
Uncle George
“It had to be changed to right hand drive, but
it is a beautiful conversion. It cost with the
workmanship and materials required around
13,000 delasis (£245). The biggest problem
was converting the dashboard, we had to go
to Senegal to get a new one. The
workmanship was not a problem - the
mechanics here are very good.
This is car is very strong, running perfectly
well. With the roads we have here it is the
ideal car. The only problem with it it’s that it’s
not power steering - it’s very heavy. The shock
absorbers now have a problem. Right now if
you change the front and rear shock
absorbers it’ll run for another 4-5 years.
The car may be considered old in England,
out here it is very useful.
I’d never driven a Volvo before. I’ve been in it
to Senegal as far as Dakar and further –
about 400km from here. It copes with
potholes very well. Compared to my other
cars such as the Benz, it is very good.
It was given by Julian [challenge founder
and organiser], who spoke to the team, who
asked if it can be given to the National
Olympic Committee. Our activities take us all
over the country – we are building a lot of
mini stadia. At the time we were looking for a
car that we could use to go to the provinces
and back.
We do a lot of athletics, sprinting - short and
middle distance - and a lot of football.
Of the cars that came in the first challenge,
this was the best there was. Subsequently
more and more suitable cars are arriving and
last year we bought one from the auction, a
Lada Niva for 25,000 dalasis (£470) . It’s a bit
more suitable. The Volvo we now use more
for office work and Lada we use to go to the
provinces.
We were hoping to get a car this year, but the
prices on offer are too much. It’s good in a
way, because the charities we support get
additional funding, maybe twice as much.”
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