A MAN whose beloved classic car was stolen from his driveway and torched is warning other motorists to be on their guard.

Stuart James, 28, woke up on Tuesday, June 12, to find his cherished C-reg 1983 Green Vauxhall Nova Merit had been stolen from his drive in Herbert Road, New Milton.

Stuart, who had owned the vehicle for just under four years, quickly contacted Hampshire Police and received a call from Dorset Police half an hour later to inform him his car had been discovered.

He said: “I had a phone call from Dorset Police to say that there was good news and bad news, the good news being that the car was found, the bad news is that it was found set on fire on Iford Bridge Christchurch in the bowls club car park in the tunnel.”

It was only when he arrived at Iford Bridge, he realised the car had been completely destroyed.

Stuart said: “I thought at the time there had been a small fire and I could still get my possessions from it. I saw people looking over the bridge and I thought ‘oh no, it’s in the water.’”

He added: “I’ve had a couple of classic cars before but it had sentimental value. It was registered to Taunton, which is the place of my birth, and I’d resprayed it, replaced the panels and taken it to a few classic car events like other enthusiasts do.”

Dorset Police said they were called to Iford Bridge at 1.15am on Tuesday, June 12 to reports of a vehicle fire at Iford Bridge in Christchurch.

Stuart said: “I just can’t believe it, the biggest thing is to raise awareness, not just to people with classic cars but all cars that this is happening.”

The day after Stuart’s car was stolen, a white Ford Escort was taken from an address in the Burton area and was discovered burnt-out under Iford Bridge

Police were called to the scene by firefighters at 4.09am on Wednesday, June 13.

Dorset Police said it is investigating both incidents and no one has been arrested.