“IT WAS NOT just an ordinary car to me. This was a much loved gift, one of a special production and restoring it was a labour of love.”

Pascal Maeter’s classic car was stolen from his garage in Chelsea, London on Christmas Eve.

It was given to him by his wife as a present for his 50th birthday two years ago.

“When I was given this car it had not been used for 40 years. It looked good from 20 metres, but when you got up close you saw that it needed a great deal of work.

It took me many months to get it back to being a beautiful and working machine. I really hope the public can help.

The classic blue convertible Austin Healey was built in 1955 and is estimated to be worth in the region of £100,000

Detective Constable Joe de Vere of Kensington & Chelsea police said:

The car is very distinctive and extremely rare. This is the sort of car that people would notice and for that reason it has probably been stored off-road, but it will need to be moved eventually.

“I would ask the public to remember what it looks like and call police if they see it.”

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