Central Garage, the Gulf filling station in London Road, Newport, Essex, provided fuel for a wide range of vehicles competing for the Layer Marney Cup.

On hand to assist with the fuelling were Central Garage owner Jon McGee and his father Tony, who managed the requirements of participants on and off the forecourt.

“It was a wonderful morning for ourselves and our many regular customers who came along to watch.

“Some of the cars were over 80 years old with fuel caps where you’d least expect them,” explained Jon.

“We were very pleased to support the event and bring something different to the village.”

The Layer Marney Cup is a fuel conservation trial based on the original 1914 event, which took place just two months after the start of World War 1, and is now open to latest petrol hybrids as well as the earliest road cars.

The organisers try to include cars from every era and each category is judged on a fuel consumption to weight ratio. At one point during the day, there was a queue of around 20 cars along the London Road waiting to top up with fuel.

Organiser Sheila Charrington, who resurrected the event in 2014, confirmed: “Seventy cars took part, and Gulf once again kindly supported the event with fuels and goodie bags and the participants were blessed with sunshine and a 60-mile route that showcased the beautiful Essex countryside in all its glory.”

The event is run over a carefully selected course, starting from the Gulf forecourt and taking in lunch at the Colne Valley Railway near Halstead, before arriving for afternoon tea and the awards presentation at Layer Marney Tower.

This year’s winner was a 2017 Citroen DS3, with a gallons to tonne ratio of 67.80. Vintage cars such as the 1920 Bugatti T13 and 1931 Rolls Royce Maythorne 20/25 also took part, completing the course at a ratio of 13.43 and 25.74 respectively.