Anyone remember Pullicino Classics?

[crostonian]

My old man bought a Mondial 3.2 from these guys in the early 90s and then a Lambo Jalpa in swap for an early TVR Griffith. They used to advertise in all the classic mags and had a superb range of cars for sale at Kimber Road in Wandsworth. My memory tells me they were Maltese trying to be Italian, I can remember going to the showroom as a kid and seeing Countachs, Isleros, Espadas, a Bug Eb110, Jag XJ220s plus numerous current Ferraris and Lambos. What happened to these guys, only asking out of curiosity as they are a name from the past but their ads were always worth reading.

[Justices]

crostonian said:

My old man bought a Mondial 3.2 from these guys in the early 90s and then a Lambo Jalpa in swap for an early TVR Griffith. They used to advertise in all the classic mags and had a superb range of cars for sale at Kimber Road in Wandsworth. My memory tells me they were Maltese trying to be Italian, I can remember going to the showroom as a kid and seeing Countachs, Isleros, Espadas, a Bug Eb110, Jag XJ220s plus numerous current Ferraris and Lambos. What happened to these guys, only asking out of curiosity as they are a name from the past but their ads were always worth reading.

I remember this place very vividly. They always had something sensational in there, poking out of the doors or out on the street. Long before I was old enough to get behind a wheel if we'd drive by I'd always beg to be dropped off so I could stand and stare for a while. I remember an being amazed at the size of the XJ220, hearing a Countach being reversed out of the garage and seeing a few classic ferrari examples, which I didn't know at the time, sitting there begging to be driven. Good memories.

[AndrewW-G]

didnt the Kimber road address become Joe Macari?

[rubystone]

Yep, I remember John. Always had some interesting metal, not all of it of the highest quality. I once looked at a maritime blue 964RS there that had a fibreglass bonnet, C2 clip and 3 magnesium wheels and one cup copy.

[rubystone]

AndrewW-G said:

didnt the Kimber road address become Joe Macari?

Yes it did

[crostonian]

Yes, John and Mark, they must be in their 50s now. All the cars had a bit of a story but they always seemed competitively priced, I'm going back to pre-internet times here, and bear in mind my old man used to drive down from Lancashire to have a deal as it was the only place with such a wide selection.

[F355GTS]

I met John last week, he's running London LHD centre on the North Circular. Seems an open, nice guy. I was looking at a 612 for a friend,it wasn't for him

Is the Mark referred to his brother? if so I think I read somewhere on here that he had sadly died some Years ago

[XXVIII]

Mark Pullicino was well known in the Lamborghini 'village' - here are some words written by his friend Simon Marlowe which were printed in the Summer 2005 edition of the LCUK magazine:


MARK PULLICINO

Mark died tragically on Monday 30 May 2005, aged only 37

Our group of friends learned the news on Tuesday morning. Needless to say, this shock came as a massive blow.
As do many others, I have very positive memories of Mark; memories of times spent on a combination of skiing holidays and trips to Le Mans in his company over eight years.
He was a tremendous source of amuse­ment to all of us, with his hilarious anecdotes and relaxed attitude to certain aspects of life and its formalities.
He was one of the most enthusiastic people I have met in our mutual interest in exotic cars and Mark was lucky enough to enjoy all types and varieties of these cars as part of his livelihood.
Mark lived life to the full – almost a life of extremes and he was a very significant character and personality, one which you would be aware of, even if you didn’t know him and were in the same company.
Our thoughts and prayers go to his parents, his brother John with whom he was very close, and to his wife Charlotte and two year old son Phillip.
You will be sorely missed Mark – your memory will never be extinguished from our minds.
Simon Marlow

[JMC1]

Fabulous place with amazing cars crammed into every inch of that Wandsworth showroom. I remember when I was 19 that I used to finish work on Friday afternoon then pick my best mate up in Southampton and we would drive up in my 2.8 Capri just so we could peer through the window for an hour. Then we would go for a drink in the West End try and pull the girls with the biggest shoulder pads (yes i said shoulder pads this was the 80's) get back to Southampton at about 3am empty handed as we weren't cool enough for London girls. Occasionally we would go up on a Saturday morning and sheepishly sneak inside for a look round.

Great times not a care in the world other than how to pay for the next set Goodyear NCT's for the Capri as we used to get through the rear ones rather rapidly.

I never knew what had happened to them so it was sad to hear that one of the brothers had died before his time.

[rubystone]

JMC1 said:

?...and we would drive up in my 2.8 Capri.... we would go for a drink in the West End try and pull the girls with the biggest shoulder pads (yes i said shoulder pads this was the 80's) ..... as we weren't cool enough for London girls.

Your mistake was not driving sufficiently East. hit Raquels in Basildon in that 2.8 and you'd have been beating then off with a copy of the Exchange & Mart...

[JMC1]

Thanks Rubystone, If only we could turn back the clock, as they say youth is wasted on the young.

[Chipchap]

I was engaged by my boss to find him an XJ220 just after his divorce and located a used XJ220 there in around 1999 R129 VOO in silver, LHD with 3000km on it. Very nearly went for the French Blue EB110 but my boss wanted the Jag in the end.

Mark took him for a test drive out the A3 past Tolworth at about 170 or so, it was an easy sale after that.

It was a fun place, always look a bit dubious.

A

Edited by Chipchap on Sunday 17th April 14:48

[crostonian]

Sorry to hear about the death of Mark, they were always very welcoming and full of enthusiasm. I remember going there when they had the blue EB110 and XJ220, sure they also had a silver EB110 SS as well.

[Martian O]

I met John Pullicino about ten years ago when I was looking for an F355. I must admit that I got messed around but John did try and put things right. Yes, Joe Macari now has his old premises in Kimber Road. I believe John was taken to the cleaners by a guy who believed he bought a EB110 SS from him but it turned out to be a non-SS.

[JADF]

rubystone said:

Yes it did

I remember Pullicino Classics.

I went for a test drive here a few years back. At the time there was a lovely Zonda having a service. I was told it was owned by one of the guys from the Prodigy.

Edited by JADF on Sunday 17th April 18:03

[yellowtr]

I got to know Mark and John many years ago through a mutual friend. I always found them throughly welcoming and charming. I spent many a weekend helping Mark out with different cars long after Pullicino Classic closed down-it was a passing of era when it closed down as I remember as a school kid looking through their window and seeing XJ220's, EB110's, Venturi LM's and also the mad yellow drop top twin turbo Koenig Testarossa.

I was with Mark and friend a week before he passed away. We had a great trip out to Auto Italia in Brooklands. I was gutted when he passed away.

Saw John a few months ago and he is well.

[andyh68]

[quote=yellowtr] I remember as a school kid looking through their window and seeing XJ220's, EB110's, Venturi LM's and also the mad yellow drop top twin turbo Koenig Testarossa.[quote]

As a uni student in London I used to catch the bus to Wandsworth to visit Pullicino Classics and wander around the showroom. There was always a fantastic selection of supercars in stock, but I especially remember the EB110, 500 Superfast and, of course, the Koenig Testarossa:



Unfortunately, this is the only photo I can find at the moment...

Cheers,

Andy

[POORCARDEALER]

I am going to throw another Supercar dealing in here, does anyone remember Heathmans?

I went down there as an 18 year old for a look around and sat in a Miura SV, red with gold wheels, it was £55K IIRC.....the place was small but nose to tail with exotica.

[crostonian]

Is that an EB110 alloy casually lying around behind the yellow TR?

[SpeedYellow]

I used to know them very well and bought a selection of cars from them over the years, great people to deal with, true petrolheads.

Most interesting car I bought from them and still hanker after again was a Venturi 400 Thorphy that had been then converted at the factory to a 600LM and raced, best think was it was UK road registered :-) Made my F40 of the time seem like a heavy underpowered slug although the turbo lag took some mastering!