Nicholas Kravchenko's tank has been sitting in a lay-by since he drove it there last week
The huge green tanklike crane, designed to carry out battlefield repairs, has been sitting in a lay-by since new owner Nicholas Kravchenko drove it there last week.Residents living in the normally tranquil area of Wolvercote, near Oxford, Oxon, have branded the machine an ''eyesore''.
Police have now been called in to settle the "neighbourhood dispute" amid claims the £10,000 tank was intimidating locals.
The enthusiast bought the former Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) armoured vehicle second-hand to drive it for his own pleasure to display it at shows and charity events.
Mr Kravchenko, a retired army engineer, is now refusing to move the four-tonne camouflaged vehicle, which came complete with caterpillar tracks and take up three-and-a-half normal parking spaces.
''I can go out and drive it any time I like. There's no law to stop anyone having 10 tanks," he said.
''The council have not said it's anti-social and the police would have been straight on to me if it was parked illegally.
''It's not intimidating, because it's a square box with a Rolls-Royce engine in it and it doesn't stick out in the road.''
Mr Kravchenko, who calls himself "Tank Man", claimed he was the victim.
"I'm fed up with it," he said.
"I can go out and drive it any time I like. There's no law to stop anyone having 10 tanks.
"The council have not said it's anti-social and the police would have been straight on to me if it was parked illegally.
"It's not intimidating, because it's a square box with a Rolls-Royce engine in it and it doesn't stick out in the road."
He has told neighbours he spent more than £10,000 on the ex-Cold War armoured military crane.
He said that the tank-tracked vehicle was used by the British Army during the 1960s and was "very rare".
Mr Kravchenko, who lives with his wife and son on St Peter's Road, claims the vehicle has a top speed of 20mph.
Neighbours said he was ruining their street.
They appealed to Oxford City Council to take action but the authority said it was powerless to act.
Paul Harvey, who lives three doors away from Mr Kravchenko, said: ''The whole situation is unbelievable.
''There's a limited number of spaces on the street and this tank is taking up a number of them.
''It's so incredibly anti-social.''
Another neighbour Debbie Tyson, who lives opposite the tank, added: ''I have to look at that thing every morning.
''It's a disgrace. I can't believe there's nothing that the authorities can do.''
Another woman, who did not want to be named, feared her neighbour would leave it there permanently.
''It's an eyesore and is upsetting and scares the little kids," she said.
"One toddler asked her mum if we were in a war. It's not right."
Mr Kravchenko bought the decommissioned military vehicle from the MoD and told neighbours he planned to display it at military shows.
Town hall chiefs said there were no parking restrictions on the road and the vehicle is roadworthy and taxed.
Council officers have promised to meet with Mr Kravchencko this week in an attempt to persuade him to move the vehicle.
''We're now working with the local community and police as well as our Crime and Nuisance Action Team to see if we can help with this dispute," a spokeswoman said.
It is not the first time Mr Kravchenko has been criticised for his vehicle collecting passion.
Last September, the council was forced to remove a convoy of Mr Kravchenko's vehicles including five trailers, a Ford Sierra, a Land Rover and some scrap metal after declaring them abandoned.
But Mr Kravchenko successfully appealed the ruling and earlier this month, Oxford County Court ordered the council return the vehicles to him.
Neighbour Alan Cotmore said: ''It's a lovely area but it's becoming a personal scrapyard.''
War veteran David Bedford, 85, added: ''It's heartbreaking living where I do.
'I have to look at his cars every time I leave my house and it's really getting me down.
''I don't know what to do any more.''
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