Honest John Dixon | Ford Capris, Fraud Squad Rolls-Royces & 40 Years in the Motor Trade

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The Old Car Lady is joined by John Dixon, known as Honest John. He started cleaning cars at ten, bought his first banger at fourteen with no licence, and spent 40 years dealing from pitches and showrooms across South London and Kent. This is a time capsule of the 70s and 80s motor trade: the tricks, the characters, James Hunt’s car on the forecourt, Sid James’ Rolls-Royce, the traffic warden and the bucket of water, and the fraud squad who watched him for months over a mis-typed chassis number. FEATURED STORIES Cleaning Cars at Ten, Dealing at Fourteen: Too small to see over a bonnet when he turned up asking for work. By fourteen he was buying bangers from Exchange & Mart with no licence and selling them outside his house. The Bug Under the Seat: John wired a listening device under the seats of his showroom cars. He heard exactly what customers said about price and part exchange, then used it against them before they even got to the office. The Traffic Warden and the Bucket: A traffic warden outside the Dante Motor Company in Plumstead pushed John too far. He borrowed his car cleaner’s bucket and threw the whole lot over her. The street had a whip-round to pay his fine. He sold 50 cars that week. James Hunt, Sid James and the Forecourt: John put James Hunt’s personal car on his forecourt to draw the crowds. He also bought and sold Sid James’ Rolls-Royce. Both photos are pinned on Sam’s Instagram. The Fraud Squad and the Rolls-Royce: A mis-typed chassis number on a Rolls-Royce logbook had Scotland Yard convinced John was ringing cars. They watched him for months. The chief inspector eventually came down, shook his hand WHAT YOU’LL LEARN Why you should always let an Exchange & Mart seller stew for two weeks before you call. How to clear a cheque in the same day and why that kills the buyer’s get-out. Why hiding the car after the deal stops the buyer’s mates talking them out of it. Why selling yourself before the car is the only philosophy that lasts 40 years. And why John was the poorest honest dealer in Kent and slept better for it. A NOD TO John’s son Chris, who now runs the family business, for getting in touch with Sam. Peter Jarvis of Peter Jarvis Cars in Dartford, who John educated in the motor trade early on. And the Giles Book of Cartoons, which apparently featured a motor dealer on a wall waiting for a tractor after the traffic warden incident. Vintage and Classic Car Competitions: use code SAM15 for 15% off. Dodo Juice: use code SAM10 for 10% off. 📧 grangebaileys@gmail.com 💬 WhatsApp: 07405 813554 📸 Instagram: @the_old_car_lady 🎦 TikTok, Facebook and YouTube: The Old Car Lady 👍 The Old Car Lady Classic Car Community on Facebook 🔔 Subscribe to our YouTube channel @Theoldcarlady This has been a Worth A Listen Production.

Honest John Dixon | Jaguars, Gangsters & the Shotgun Behind the Desk (Part 2)

The Old Car Lady is back with Honest John Dixon for Part 2, going deeper into the South London motor trade of the 60s and 70s: the characters, the criminal crossover and the stories that didn’t make it into Part 1. John bought an XJ6 in decorating overalls with a suitcase of cash, kept a shotgun behind his desk and knew the fraud squad detective who investigated him personally. This is what the motor trade actually looked like. FEATURED STORIES Never Judge a Book by Its Cover: John walked into a Hendon showroom in his decorating overalls with a suitcase containing 50 grand. The salesman told him he couldn’t afford the XJ6 in the window. John counted out three grand in tenners and fives on the desk. He drove it home that afternoon and slept with his bed by the window to keep an eye on it. The Shotgun Behind the Desk: Four men turned up at John’s Bury Road pitch looking to rob him. He put the shotgun on the desk and told them he only had one cartridge but one of them was staying. He has never seen three men run so fast. The gun was empty. Going Straight in the Motor Trade: John did his stints inside, used the time to read and learn chess, then went straight into the trade. His view: you could earn more as a straight motor dealer than doing anything else. The Fraud Squad, the Rolls-Royce and the Apology: A mis-typed chassis number brought the fraud squad down convinced John was ringing cars. When they realised it was a DVLA error the detective sergeant bought his wife flowers to apologise. He is now a chief inspector. Rating Girls on Cars and Reading the Room: In the pub John and his mates rated women by which car they reminded them of. On the forecourt he switched accents and approaches mid-conversation depending on who he was talking to. WHAT YOU’LL LEARN Why the man in the Rolls is probably less wealthy than the man in the Cortina. Why zeroing a clock is less dishonest than knocking miles off it. Why the motor trade was the cleanest route from a shady past to a legitimate fortune. And why the Long Good Friday is about 80% accurate. KEY QUESTIONS * Was the motor trade genuinely intertwined with London’s criminal world? John says yes, but frames it as history. The motor trade offered a clean route to legitimate earnings for people who’d been operating in the grey. Most of them took it. * Could you really tell who someone was by what they drove? John’s answer is no and yes. Never judge a book by its cover, but you could read the room. The man who owned his Cortina outright was often worth more than the man sweating over the Roller payments. * What made South London’s motor trade different from Manchester’s? The characters were different but the mechanics were the same. Cash, trust, the ability to sell a teacup without a handle. John and Sam both agree the camaraderie that existed between dealers across the country is gone. A NOD TO Part 1 of Sam’s conversation with Honest John Dixon, S1E35, which covers how John got into the trade, the Sid James Rolls-Royce and James Hunt’s car on the forecourt. R. Clarke Motors, still trading today with John’s son Chris. And Dave Ackrinian, now a chief inspector, who John says is one of the good ones. Watch on YouTube: Part 2 Video 1 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-BmgHfZb3Q4] and Part 2 Video 2 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQtJ0sCfS-4] 📧 grangebaileys@gmail.com [grangebaileys@gmail.com] 💬 WhatsApp: 07405 813554 📸 Instagram: @the_old_car_lady [https://www.instagram.com/the_old_car_lady] 🎦 TikTok, Facebook and YouTube: The Old Car Lady [https://www.youtube.com/@Theoldcarlady] 👍 The Old Car Lady Classic Car Community on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/groups/theoldcarladyclassiccarcommunity] 🔔 Subscribe: @Theoldcarlady on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@Theoldcarlady] This has been a Worth A Listen Production.

8 de jun de 202631 min

Honest John Dixon | Ford Capris, Fraud Squad Rolls-Royces & 40 Years in the Motor Trade

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