Boy racers 'ruin car scene' for others - organiser

Organiser of the meet, Joe Knell, has been modifying cars like these two Beetles for years

Organisers of a car meet in south Essex say boy racers "will not be tolerated" at the event.

The Classic and Custom Car Meet will take place in Rayleigh on Wednesday evening and is expected to attract dozens of enthusiasts.

Joe Knell, event organiser, told the BBC boy racers "ruin the car scene" for others.

"We don't want the 'pop-and-bang' brigade coming down and disturbing the peace," he said.

'Causing havoc'

Mr Knell said previous events in the south Essex area, particularly in Southend-on-Sea, had been "hijacked" by boy racers, a lot of whom he said came from London.

"They start sabotaging the meet - wheel-spinning and causing havoc - the police then have to get involved and shut the meet down," Mr Knell said.

"We're going to have marshals so any anti-social behaviour will not be tolerated."

The organiser said local authorities had been made aware of the event.

Previous car meets in Southend-on-Sea have been "hijacked" by boy racers, Mr Knell said

Mr Knell said there was a clear difference between car enthusiasts and boy racers, adding that the latter "like to create havoc".

"They ruin the car scene because it puts out a stereotype that all car people are hooligans essentially," he said.

"We want to prove to people that is not the case."

After a change of venue, the meet in Rayleigh will take place at The Travellers Joy pub, with organisers hoping to turn it into a regular event in the future.