The XR3i modelled was supplied by Evans Halshaw, Chester, Cheshire in May 1986 and spent its early life in that area. By 2004 it was sitting, unused, on a driveway in Chester, because the owner had passed away. Enthusiast Derrick Oare worked in a building adjacent to where it was parked and approached the owner’s widow to buy it as his son, David, was then restoring an RS1600i. 

When, almost two years later, she was ready to part with the car, she offered it to David for free as long as he restored it. David then started the restoration process on the drive and was amazed that it jump-started easily on six-year-old petrol.

Although covered in moss, and damp inside, David realised it was fundamentally sound and he returned it to the road after carrying out some welding, paintwork and other recommissioning work. He kept it for three years but, by 2022, it was with a new owner who spent £5,000 on further restoration work. 

The current and ninth owner, South Gloucestershire-based XR Owners Club member Andre Britton, had initially looked for a red example like the one he’d enjoyed as a company car in 1989. The excellent overall condition of this black 67,000-mile example impressed him, however, and he purchased it from classic car auctioneers Manor Park, Cheshire, in September 2023. He drove it home without any problems and continues to enjoy driving it.