Did you catch Sandwell College’s Automotive lecturer Tom Davies on Channel 5’s Christmas in the Cotswolds?
Tom was featured on the show alongside his vintage 1982 Piaggio Ape, which together with his paint refinishing students, he lovingly restored and transformed into a bespoke barista business.
Rosco’s Coffee Company mobile coffee vending tuktuk, which now proudly takes centre stage at college open days, was filmed for the Cotswolds programme at the Christmas Shopping Market in Broadway.
Tom painted the Piaggio Ape Fiat yellow (Giallo Ginestra) after applying five primer coats and enough body filler to repair 35 years’ worth of dents and scrapes. He used gloss black for most of the trim to contrast with the bright yellow.
The Paint Refinishing lecturer fabricated the rear box from aluminium and fitted a curved roof to keep the retro feel and mirror the shape of the cab.
Tom has even served coffee to former Top Gear host Richard Hammond at the NEC’s Classic Car Show from the Ape!
Automotive students help with ongoing maintenance of the vehicle and they will also be serving drinks for visitors at next week’s open days on Thursday and Saturday.
