Triumph Spitfire Mk2 1966 - This was my first car - drove my dads car for a couple of years after passing my test. Did a full renovation on the spitfire when I was 20, drove it for two years then dad asked to borrow it and wrote it off pissed off his tits.
Nice one! I didn’t Make it to a Spitfire until my 3rd car. It was signal red, but when you opened the bonnet or boot you could see that the original colour was canary yellow! My first car was a Datsun Cherry 120A FII Coupé in met. grey:
Triumph Spitfire Mk2 1966 - This was my first car - drove my dads car for a couple of years after passing my test. Did a full renovation on the spitfire when I was 20, drove it for two years then dad asked to borrow it and wrote it off pissed off his tits.
Mark 3 Escort, which was orange, but listed as brown. Constantly had roadside disputes when I got pulled over by ob above the true colour of it. Bit like Rodney Trotter's "Rodney" / "Rooney" ID braclet -
My brother had an interesting policy regarding cars back in the day. He would buy more or less any old banger with a reasonable length of tax and mot left on it for around £150-£300. He would only have third party insurance. He would be a member of the AA.
The advantages as he saw it were:
Didn't care about scratches and dents on it or happening. Nobody ever stole it. Was roadworthy (some even got through another mot or two) The AA would more or less be the servicing department. Or relay would kick in. You could usually get £50-£100 scrap on it when knackered, then go again with another old banger. Essentials such as legal tyres would be re treads.
Some of his vehicles only lasted months, some a couple or three years. The price of petrol would be what he fretted over the most.
1970 Morris 1100 bought for £325 in 1977. For a car only seven years old it had already been resprayed.
All the pre-90's cars except Volvo seemed to be the same. Had a Montego that needed both rear arches welding / replacing at only 5 years old. My guilty pleasure is my 87 MG Maestro sat in my garage.
I worked in a garage and MOT station in late 70s, a bloke brought in a Lancia Beta for one of its first MOT's. The car was completely rotten underneath and rusted right through all the major structural areas. The man cried when we told him his car was effectively a write off. Lancia eventually had to set up a buy back scheme in order to scrap the effected cars. Made with poor quality Russian steel apparently
Triumph Spitfire Mk2 1966 - This was my first car - drove my dads car for a couple of years after passing my test. Did a full renovation on the spitfire when I was 20, drove it for two years then dad asked to borrow it and wrote it off pissed off his tits.
1970 Morris 1100 bought for £325 in 1977. For a car only seven years old it had already been resprayed.
All the pre-90's cars except Volvo seemed to be the same. Had a Montego that needed both rear arches welding / replacing at only 5 years old. My guilty pleasure is my 87 MG Maestro sat in my garage.
I worked in a garage and MOT station in late 70s, a bloke brought in a Lancia Beta for one of its first MOT's. The car was completely rotten underneath and rusted right through all the major structural areas. The man cried when we told him his car was effectively a write off. Lancia eventually had to set up a buy back scheme in order to scrap the effected cars. Made with poor quality Russian steel apparently
My Dad had a Lancia Beta. Looked the business I thought. But the rust killed it.
An Anglia 105E van. (Well its actual model designation was 307E but never mind) A 1963 bought in 1969 for 50 quid.
I had a Ford Thames 100E van, bought in 1962, not sure how old, but £40, lasted two years until someone smashed into me on a crossroad when I had the right of way. Write off
Put away your Mercedes and BMWs there’s a new kid on the block.
Interesting by the way the Austin Allegro features in the worst category for at least two Addicks. Ours shaped up pretty well for a number of years from new and we even got masses for trips in the supposed small boot. One small setback was the hubcaps which protruded out and ours was continually scraped (by a certain someone else) when parking. Every other Allegro we saw had similarly scraped hubcaps.
Comments
My first car was a Datsun Cherry 120A FII Coupé in met. grey:
My first car was a Rover Coupe.
It remains the only automatic car i've driven that would get confused and stall.
He would buy more or less any old banger with a reasonable length of tax and mot left on it for around £150-£300.
He would only have third party insurance.
He would be a member of the AA.
The advantages as he saw it were:
Didn't care about scratches and dents on it or happening.
Nobody ever stole it.
Was roadworthy (some even got through another mot or two)
The AA would more or less be the servicing department. Or relay would kick in.
You could usually get £50-£100 scrap on it when knackered, then go again with another old banger.
Essentials such as legal tyres would be re treads.
Some of his vehicles only lasted months, some a couple or three years.
The price of petrol would be what he fretted over the most.
Interesting by the way the Austin Allegro features in the worst category for at least two Addicks. Ours shaped up pretty well for a number of years from new and we even got masses for trips in the supposed small boot. One small setback was the hubcaps which protruded out and ours was continually scraped (by a certain someone else) when parking. Every other Allegro we saw had similarly scraped hubcaps.