Six friends from Tamworth have gone the extra mile for Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity – 2,000 miles to be exact – after taking to the wheel to drive five scrapped Ford KAs across Europe and raising £6,000.

Harry Taroni, a metal recycler from Harlaston, and his four friends Harry, Harry, Tom, Will and Regan who are all in their mid-20s, salvaged the bangers from his dad’s scrap yard and put the pedal to the metal as they drove them on a grand tour to Rome in a challenge they called ‘Bangers and Cash’.

The adventurous pals had dreamed of taking on a ‘Top Gear’ style challenge ever since meeting at Repton Boarding School, where one of the hit motor show’s ex-presenters, Jeremy Clarkson had also once been a pupil.

The intrepid travellers planned their route to Italy, via France, with a detour to Paris, and then through the Alps. They couldn’t let the opportunity to raise money pass them by, so Harry and his friends unanimously chose to support Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity and fundraise to help do more for the 90,000 sick kids that are treated there every year.

After five days of careful driving, all five of the old cars made it to their final destination in Rome and while that was the end of the road for four of the KAs, amazingly, one banger managed to make it home. Unfortunately though, the epic 4,000 mile round trip was the last journey it would ever make and it was scrapped on its return.

Harry Taroni said: “We know countless people who have had a personal experience with the hospital and we’ve heard nothing but praise for the amazing work that goes on there. 

“We set out to raise £2,000, which would have been £1 for every mile of the journey to Rome, but we actually managed to raise three times that, which is just awesome.  We had such a laugh on our adventure, and we hope it’ll inspire young people realise that anyone can fundraise and help a good cause while having fun – it doesn’t need to be a task!”

Miranda Williams, Public Fundraising Manager at Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “It never fails to amaze us how many imaginative and different ways our supporters can find to raise funds for us.

“Harry and his friends raised an incredible amount on their ’Bangers and Cash’ tour and it’s great that they had such a good time along the way. The money will make such a difference to our brave young patients and their families and help us ensure they have the best possible hospital experience.”