Jaunty Austin 7 Wasp a real eye-catcher on City Cruise

The still-active sexagenarian, who turns 70 in March, was the most prominent tag-along driver at the tail end of the City Cruise.

Now recognised as the opening ceremony for the event, which dates back to 1988, the cruise drew about 30,000 spectators as it wove its way down Northbourne Avenue and then back to EPIC.

Mr Scarlett, who still manages his family charter bus business, thought it an excellent opportunity to take his 1928 Austin 7 Wasp, a rare boat-tailed roadster that was a pretty hot little machine back in the day, out for a spin.

''The car is 86,'' he said.

''It is one of the few things in Canberra that is older than I am. Austin made two boat-tailed sports cars, this and the Meteor. It has a 737cc engine and puts out the same power as two lawnmowers.''

Mr Scarlett, who said his vehicle attracted as much, and sometimes more, attention from the crowds lining the route than the more modern vehicles, told Gang-gang his participation had been very much a spur-of-the-moment thing.

''I take the car out at least once a week to keep the oil circulating,'' he said.

''Sometimes my daughter and I will just take a run down to McDonald's. I thought, 'I'll give them a drag'.''

There were no takers to this offer and Mr Scarlett said he was disappointed the owner of a hot rod that had failed to proceed in rather spectacular fashion did not accept his offer of a tow either.

''The first thing we saw was a cloud of smoke or steam; it wasn't clear which. When we got closer there was a lot of coolant on the road and a tilt truck had arrived. He didn't take me up on it when I offered a tow. It's a pity, it would have made a great photograph.''

Mr Scarlett's partner for last week's jaunt was his 18-year-old son, Aaron.

''Don't overindulge in red wine when you are on a cruise ship; that's my advice,'' he said.

He and Aaron wore red hats in a bid to make the car go faster.

Asked how the run went, Mr Scarlett said he was glad he had taken part, albeit unofficially.

''There were a lot of people waving and cheering and we had as many photos taken of us as any of the more modern ones.''

The veteran bus driver, who deserves a job with Capital Tourism, is totally for Summernats.

''I'm 110 per cent for it,'' he said.

''It is good for Canberra. I am planning to go out for a look at the cars if I get a chance. Obviously some people on the northside don't like it but, as far as I'm concerned, they are a pack of whingers. It only goes for a few days and plenty of the people who are here for this will stay on to visit the War Memorial, Parliament House and so forth.''

Asked how it was that he had come to own an Austin 7, Mr Scarlett said it was a long story that dated back to his youth in the 1950s.

''I had an older sister and when she became interested in boys my dad was concerned that she might come home pregnant,'' he said.

''As a result when she went out with a boy I had to go along as her chaperone.''

One enterprising lad, the owner of an Austin 7, was smarter than the rest.

''We would all squeeze into his car and then they would drop me off at the pictures with money for a ticket and some lollies while they went off and did the boy-girl thing,'' he said.

''When they picked me up we all had to get our stories straight on where we'd been and what we'd done.''

While the love affair between Mr Scarlett's sister and the boy did not go the distance the love affair between him and Austin 7s did.

''It's hard to believe you can be in love with a car but I am,'' he said.

''The opportunity arose to buy this about five years ago and I grabbed it. My wife didn't know about it until it ended up in the driveway.''

Despite this the car has become an official member of the family and used for many outings.

Trips down the highway are kept to a minimum however.

''The top speed is about 85km/h,'' Mr Scarlett said.

''If a B-double ran over you your head wouldn't even touch the diff.''