A cherished classic car valued at up to £15,000 has been stolen from its owner’s driveway.

Andy Hills says thieves disconnected its battery, which had been on charge, and then believes it was taken away on a low-loader truck in the middle of the night.

He said: “It’s a mystery. No one seems to have heard it go. It could not have been driven or towed because it had a steering lock.”

Some believe the car, a dark bronze two-door 1968 Ford Escort Mk 1, may have been stolen to order after a man in hi-vis orange overalls was seen looking underneath it and taking photos the day before.

Mr Hills, 67, said: “I can’t believe it has gone. This was the first time I had put it on the drive.”

The theft happened on Thursday (May 16) night outside Mr Hills’ home on The Leas in Minster on Sheppey.

The former sub-postmaster said: “I’d had the car since 1995. I bought it from its original owner.

“He and his wife would come into my post office in Wainscott every Thursday to collect their pensions. They had had the car from new.

“I said if they ever wanted to get rid of it, to give me first refusal.

“When the gentleman was no longer fit to drive, his wife offered it to me, knowing it would go to a good home.

“It only had 50,000 miles on the clock.”

When Mr Hills and his wife Terri moved to Sheppey in 2016, the car went, too.

Mr Hills said: “I wanted something a bit of fun to drive around in. Ironically, I was just getting it ready for the summer.

“Fred, our mechanic, had been working on it and it was running nicely.

“I’d taken it out of the garage so I could move things around to make more room to tinker with it.

“Our 10-year-old granddaughter Ellie will miss it terribly. She loved sitting in the driving seat, holding the steering wheel and playing with the quarter-light windows, which you don’t get on modern cars.

“The car reminded me of my youth. We all had Fords like these when we were teenagers…”

“I was going to use it to show her around the Island.”

He added: “The car reminded me of my youth. We all had Fords like these when we were teenagers.

“I am very sad to see it go. It even had a classic push-button Motorola radio and two obligatory fluffy dice hanging from the mirror!”

Its registration is NKM 151F.

A police spokesman said: “We are investigating the reported theft of a bronze Ford Escort Mk 1 from the driveway of a house in The Leas, Minster-on-Sea.

“The incident happened between 9pm on Thursday, May 16, and 7am on Friday, May 17.

“Officers are appealing for witnesses or anyone with information to contact them on 01795 419119, quoting reference number 46/81734/24.

“Drivers with dashcam and residents with CCTV are also asked to check for relevant footage of the Ford being towed or carried by another vehicle.”