Van remains the same in bubble

An avid fan in Rowley Regis is now the owner of the four-wheeled piece of rock music history once owned by drummer John Bonham, and he preserveds in an air conditioned bubble.

The striking car is a cult piece amongst the band's most avid fans.

Bruce Screen, who runs Cypress Nursery in Blackheath, now keeps the distinctive motor in his garage, but is more than happy to show it off to other fans who travel far and wide to get a glimpse.

"It's like a beautiful woman," said Bruce. "It stays inside the cocoon, but when the garage doors are open I could just stare at it all day.

"Everyone who comes here has been having a good look at it – it's such a beautiful piece of work and a little bit of history."

The car, based on the model T Ford and featuring colourful inscriptions, was built in 1971 by Californian hot rod creator Andy Brizio and was bought by Bonham two years later, after he saw an advert in Hot Rod magazine.

It had a starring role in the video for The Song Remains The Same, but was later sold on and put on display in a glass showroom at the Meteor Ford garage in Moseley, Birmingham.

An exchange deal with a friend led to Bruce, a 62-year-old father of two who lives in Yew Tree Lane, Rowley Regis, becoming the owner.

"It's not got very many miles on the clock at all, but I just appreciate the brilliant engineering," he said.

"A few years ago it went to Worcester to be restored and it even looked lovely on the back of the transporter.

"The driver said he was hoping for a traffic jam so everyone around him could admire it.

Bruce added: "I've had a man phone from London to ask if he can come and look at it. He had somehow managed to track me down."

The car has been with Bruce since 2000 and he says it has inspired a love of the Midlands band.