Alloy wheel theft was a problem years ago, when a smart set of wheels made your mundane car stand out from the crowd.

As a young teenager in the 1970s I ached for a motorbike and the object of my desire was the Triumph Bonneville. It was not until later that I discovered the bike had been named in honour of Triumph’s 1956 speed record set at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, USA.

For most of my life I always drove a car and didn’t dare think of riding a motorcycle. I’d spoken to a lot of riders and motorcycle groups during my career as a road safety officer with Staffordshire and Derbyshire County Councils, but motorcycle casualties were always a concern to me.

It seemed a good idea at the time; a road trip to Disneyland Paris, and why not offer to take the 12-year-old nephew with me? A boys’ road trip, what could be more fun!

I was visiting a classic car show recently and chanced across The Motor Repair Manual, a book for the home mechanic dating from the 1930s. The term DIY wasn’t invented back then, but the sub title A Practical Handbook for Owner Drivers And Amateur Mechanics makes the intended readership clear.