At the 63rd Curdridge Country Show, Silverlake hosted a competition to see who could dismantle a part from a 2004 Vauxhall Corsa the fastest.  Competitors were asked to remove a coil pack and two spark plugs from the salvage car on the Silverlake Stand at the show, with the top 10 times featuring on the leader board.

The winner will get to crush a car at Silverlake Automotive Recycling, Shedfield in August.

Luke Beirne, a carpenter and joiner from Botley, took three attempts to come out on top.  Luke, 32, who owns LB Shepherd Huts said: "I was really up for trying my hand at removing the coil pack and spark plugs against the clock when I saw the competition on the Silverlake stand. I had a few goes to secure my place at the top of the leader board and the £1 I paid to take part each time went straight to their charity scheme, UDonateacar.com.

Established for 75 years, Silverlake is a large employer in the area and committed to giving back to the local community that has supported its growth over the decades.  In November last year the company relaunched its charity initiative UDondateacar.com, making it easy for people who sell a car to Silverlake to make a donation to community charities. 

Allen Prebble, managing director at Silverlake said: “The Curdrige Country Show is a fantastic community event and we have supported it for many years.  Coming back after the pandemic, 2022 was great fun for everyone and we loved being part of it with the activities on our stand. We have committed to raising £20,000 in twelve months through UDonateacar.com and we are determined to hit that target.  Community charities play a vital role and never more so since the pandemic and with the impact of the latest cost of living rises.  Sadly they can sometimes get overlooked in favour of the bigger charities, so we are delighted to be able to generate some attention and fundraise for them through our partnership with Global.”