Look underneath the bonnet of councillor Bob Clare's civic life and you'll find a burning passion for MG sports cars.

While his party was out of power, he spent up to four hours a day tinkering under the bonnet of his beloved cars, restoring them to their former glory.

Thousands of pounds and a few years later, his fleet of cars is complete and his party has taken control of Worthing Borough Council.

Lib Dem Bob said: "I would spend two to four hours a day, five days a week, restoring the cars. But I am running out of space to keep them now.

"My wife Amanda thinks I am a barmy old bat. She thinks I'm completely insane for spending so much time under old cars."

There are five MGs in Bob's family, with names such as Molly, Chirpy and Ernest.

All have been rescued from the gutter and lavished with love. All his cars have their own individual characters.

Molly had to be rebuilt from scratch but is now a performance sports car.

Meanwhile, Ernest is one of only three of its kind in existence. It has 40,000 parts and took nearly three years to rebuild.

Chirpy's engine makes a bird noise, hence the name.

Bob, chairman of the development control committee, said: "I remember driving Molly home and I had the most terrifying drive of my life. Only one brake worked and the rev counter fell off in my lap."

While his long-suffering wife puts up with his hobby, it was actually Bob's first MG which brought the pair closer more than 40 years ago.

Bob was an 18-year-old student at university and saw an "old heap" advertised for £5. By chance, it was an F-type 1932 MG.

It must have impressed the girls, because soon after he met 18-year-old Amanda, who helped him reconstruct the car. This was the spark which ignited Bob's love affair with MG cars and with his sweetheart Amanda.

Both relationships are still flourishing, although his passion for cars was put on hold for nearly 30 years when he became a parent.

Bob, 61, who lives in Worthing, said: "It was very sad but my MGs had to go.

"We couldn't fit a carry cot and a Labrador inside so we got a Morris Minor instead.

"But I always promised myself I would get an MG again when the kids were grown up."

Today, Bob has even passed on his enthusiasm for MGs to Worthing Mayor Eric Mardell, who is insured on Bob's cars.

The duo plan to go to a meeting at Silverstone in September.

Mr Mardell said: "I love the feeling of being in an open-top car which has been nurtured. It gives you such a buzz.

"I am tempted to get one of my own but we need a car to tow our caravan - an MG wouldn't be much good for that."