A CAR enthusiast from Catshill, who sold his classic Audi 30 years ago when he couldn't afford the insurance, has bought it back after stumbling across it on eBay and recognising a dent in the bonnet.

Keith Harris, 49, bought the 1983 Audi GT Coupe Fuel Injection for £4,900 in the summer of 1987 but crashed into another car just six months later and reluctantly decided to sell.

Mr Harris, a self-employed carpenter, said: "When I sold it I was heartbroken. I had a bump and it was insured in my mum's name.

"I went into the back of someone when I was driving a bit too fast. I had the damage repaired but the insurance went up and I couldn't afford it.

"I sold it for £4,200 with 63,000 miles on the clock."

But he has been reunited with his beloved motor 29 years later after he spotted it by chance while browsing eBay for classic cars.

Incredibly, he recognised the car by the 12inch-long dent still visible in the bodywork.

He called the seller, who lived 300 miles away in Dunfermline, Scotland, to confirm it was his and bought it back for £1,100.

Mr Harris said: "I saw it still had the old kink near the bonnet catch and I could see the marks where the dent had been pulled out and resprayed.

"They normally blank out the car registration plates when they sell online. But amazingly you could still read the number plate on this one.

"I zoomed in and I could not believe it. There it was, my old number plate - A100 GRW - the car of my dreams for sale on eBay. It was surreal.

"I rang the seller and said 'I'll pay whatever you want' but fortunately the guy let me have it for £1,100, which was only a little more than the starting price.”

He has stripped down the Audi - named 'Dignity' after a song by 80s pop band Deacon Blue - and is preparing for it to be resprayed.

He is now planning to drive his daughter Heidi to her wedding in the car this summer.

"I'm absolutely chuffed to have my pride and joy back. Every time I walk past it I think, 'how the hell have I got that car back on my drive?'

"The neighbours probably it's a heap of junk but I can just see it as it was.

"It is such an easy car to work on and I am definitely aiming to have it ready for Heidi's big day."

Daughter Heidi, 21 - a deputy manager at a nursery - will marry builder Alex Bleby, 23, at St John's Church in Henley-in-Arden on October 8.

She said: "I am confident dad will have the car ready for the wedding. It will be great arriving at the church in such a classic vehicle."

The car has a top speed of 122mph and is one of just 11 Audis of its kind still registered to drive in the UK.