Car Nostalgia

The mention of a floor mounted dip switch reminds me of a terrifying journey back from Pendine Sands to Swansea being driven by a mate,s aged aunt. She was a small lady and it was getting dark. She was, shall we say idiosyncratic and a terrible driver at the best of times. As it grew darker she turned on the headlights, on main beam. Every time a vehicle went past in the opposite direction she slowed, almost to a stop and didn't dip the lights. When we asked why, she replied that their headlights were blinding her, so she slowed right down and she couldn't reach the dip pedal so she stayed on main beam. We were very happy to reach Swansea in one piece.

Silver Tourist wrote:First car was an Austin A35 

So was mine. Passed my driving test 10 days before my 18th birthday and bought it privately without getting advice from a sensible adult   It looked good (thanks to copious use of cataloy) and ran well (thanks to the porridge oats in the radiator and over inflated tyres). I got a couple of months out of it and the gearbox went first, then the brakes, then the exhaust, then.........well, you get the picture. Next stop was the local scrap yard, at least I didn't have to pay to get it taken away 

2nd car was A35 van (after Imp mentioned earlier) belonged to local grocer, immaculate condition but it was a van and seeing as it was only car in family it wasn't right for days out despite bench seat in back so changed to Morris 1000, then Triumph Herald before jumping some years newer with Cortina MK3, then Maxi, Hunter, Beetle, Marina, Citroen GS, another Marina, Princess wedge, Cortina Mk5. Etc etc, over 30.

Slightly off topic this but as it does involve an old car.
I've been watching the wonderful show "Frasier" on Channel 4 these last few mornings and at each advert break some guy in a old blue Mercedes comes on the screen and grins at me.
I'm a bit confused. Am I supposed to know who he is?

Not sure NB, is it the 'Go the confused meerkat.com' ad?

No, you've confusedthemarket.com 

nuevoboy wrote:some guy in a old blue Mercedes comes on the screen and grins at me.
I'm a bit confused. Am I supposed to know who he is?

It's Timothy Murphy, who has appeared in shows including Sons of Anarchy and True Detective, which means absolutely nothing to me as I've not seen either show.

My early motoring years were mostly a complete disaster, but they all turned out to be worth a fortune today,  First after motorbikes & at age 17 there was a Trojan bubble car, then a BMW bubble car ,then a Messerschmidt K200,
 First ACTUAL car, in 1964 &  like Daisy, was a 59 Vauxhall FB estate, then a REAL SS jag, which I sold for £25.00!!  Rover 90, 105, 110, 2 x 3 litres, 2 x 3.5 v8s, mini clubmans, imps, cortinas, Capri, corsair GT, Maxi,  audis, BMWs 3 x jags, 3 x Range rovers, 3 x transits, oh yeh, Morris & Austin 1800s  3 x Smarts, Golf, Polo, etc, etc.

I'm sure I've posted these cars years ago, so hold on to your hands boys.
A40, box Viva,Ford Classic, Morris minor, Mk1 Mini, A60? Red post office van, mk1Cortina estate. Mk2 Viva, singer chamy, Fiat 128 estate, various clunkers from Kinross auctions, Fiat 126, 2 Beetles, Fiat 131, 3 minis, mini metro etc etc.
2 Ford Fiestas, FSO salon, Diahatsu sporty, 4 track, Berlington, Honda Jazz , Suzi wagon r, Agulia A, Aguila B.
May have missed the odd auction purchase , the only real bucket was the Fiat 128 estate, it lasted 3 years before rust claimed the fron t wings,outriggers, 
Boaby

I had my heart set on one of these when I was 16 in 1963. I worked right through the school Summer holiday at an engineering works from 7.00am to 5.00 pm and saved every penny. Eventually my Dad and I went by train to Croydon to a company called Johnson and Brown who were Heinkel suppliers. My Dad must have pre arranged with them, but I was shown a 1957 grey LH drive Heinkel that was like a dream come true for me. I had taken all my treasured things with me to Croydon, including my beloved Reg Harris racing bike that Dad had bought me for passing my 11+, my new transistor radio, a camera and my hard earned cash. The salesman gave my Dad a knowing look and agreed to take them all in part exchange for a deposit on the Heinkel. Dad acted as guarantor on my first ever HP agreement and soon him and I were in the Heinkel preparing to drive back to Gravesend in Kent. Dad had only passed his test the year before, and struggled to master the crash gearbox with a notched, in line select lever. With a a noisy rumble from the 178cc scooter engine and a grinding of gears, he finally got it under way and we trundled our way home. 

The L plates were stuck on immediately we got back and I started to learn the basics of driving the thing. The next three months were spent driving every evening with Dad, and I quickly mastered the requirements for the test. In those days, a three wheeler with reverse could be driven by a 16 year old, so the test was the same as the full four wheeled car test. I had driven maybe 2000 miles by the time I took the test, which I passed first time. I remember being given an instruction by the examiner to stop as if in an emergency when he tapped on the screen. The instructor was a late middle aged gentlemen with a flat cap, glasses and a clipboard, who was slightly disconcerted about being seated in the right hand seat of a left hand drive bubble car. I warned him that the car stopped very quickly when required and advise him to hold on. He gave me an experienced, 'seen it all before' look and we carried on up to about 30mph on a clear piece of road. Suddenly he tapped on the windscreen and I stamped on the brakes. With a squeal of tyres and very little weight, the Heinkel stopped in a remarkably short distance during which the examiner, having no seat belts back then, slid off the bench seat, into the space on the floor between the seat and the opening front door. His cap covered his eyes at a crazy angle, his glasses slid crookedly down his nose, his clipboard ended up on the floor and he was jammed with his knees under him and his head resting on the edge of the front seat base. He managed to get free, dusted himself down, put his cap back on and commented "it stops very well! Carry on". I passed the test and had a couple of very happy years enjoying the freedom it gave me and the exhilarating 55mph downhill top speed.

At the risk of boring everyone, I'll recount one other incident from when I used to drive 8 miles to my youth club every Friday with two friends, Sid, in the front and Ken on the padded cover over the engine in the back, that you could just sit on with your upper body leaning forward and your back against the rear window bubble. We stopped at some traffic lights on a slight upward slope, chatting over the very noisy engine sound. The lights changed and I revved up and pulled away at the fastest speed I could, and Sid made a comment to Ken in the back. There was no reply and we both suddenly realised that Ken had disappeared along with the bubble window. As we pulled away, his weight had been pushed against the window, popping it out and he had rolled backwards down the sloping back bodywork into the road. We stopped to find him running up the road afterwards, shaken but unhurt. 

There are many other memories from my happy time with the Heinkel, and I have never had so much fun from any other car. I also passed my four wheel test a year later in Dad's mini van, and love to say that I took my test twice and passed it first time both times.

Roger

I also had  3 Hillman Imps, not together I may add, an Austin Cambridge,   then another Imp and a 7.5 ton horse box, which had a  double declutch system, not many younger ones would know what that was, , then an Escort, then 3 Volvo Estates, then a Topaz, an AS Anniversary Clubman, then the Amethyst all which were used as my car, now the Topaz.

Great post Roger G. Thanks for the smile it gave me.

What is it with Imps? My first car was a singer chamois (the upmarket version) cost £100 and £110 insurance. My mate had had several, so he taught me how to work at cars, especially on becoming slick at engine removal for head changes. Any repairs we did on any car seemed to finish with a few nuts, bolts and washers left over but with no adverse effect. Also had a Toyota 1000 when I spent a year or so as a driving instructor.
I had a spitfire for a few years, the only car to make a profit bought £185 traded at £300 for a Fiat 127 when family came along. Great easily worked at wee cars. Had a couple of those before moving to a Lada Riva estate to tow the 1st caravan, then a Lada Samara, always bought cheap ‘well run in’ cars as we had little money. Usually replaced at short notice with what ever we could afford when the car in use lay down and died.
First good car was my fathers Volvo 343 at a knockdown price, followed by a Mondeo for towing and then onto X trails, also great tow cars.
My favourite has to be our back up car, a mark 2 grey (not the more common silver) Mazda MX5 with matching hard top which I kept for 14 years. Great fun and only traded a couple of years back for a Hyundai i10 which is the current back up car.

Davy

Mine in order of ownership:

mini van, ford contina mk1, sunbeam stilletto, hillman avanger, mini clubman, mini 1000, vw danbury, vw devon, mg midget, escort rs200, granada, suzuki sj13, shogun, shogun again, porshe 924, mercedes 190E 2.6, jaguar sj, mercedes E class, mitsubishi mr2, mitsubishi supra, lotus elan, mercedes slk, mercedes slk again, caterham 7, subaru forester turbo, kangoo, kangoo new model, shogun sport, suzuki jimny, mitsubish L200, yeti (still got it), jimny again, mercedes slk again and finally a Kia Soul EV that is in stock but I can not get it because of the dreaded virus.

Some good and bad cars in this thread, and interesting tales.
My second car after the MG saloon, sit up and beg Ford Anglia, this was my drive till I was 17 years old. 

Al, my older brother had the Ford Prefect version in that style. He bought one when he was serving in the forces at a base in England. It had three forward gears and no synchro on first gear (as was the norm then). He picked up my parents, myself and my other brother at the local train station. All was going well until we got to a hill, no way was it going to get to the top with 5 passengers   My brother joined me to walk up the hill and we got back in on the other side 

When I was just a nipper, our neighbour had a Ford Popular like the Anglia/Prefect. It had a petrol leak from the tank. My dad helped him remove the tank. Embossed on the tank walls were the words "Rowntrees Cocoa" presumably after the war, metal was used from wherever they could obtain it.

Owned and restored too many to list, a few nostalgic thoughts though. The 100E Anglia with the vacuum wipers, put your foot down and they stopped the Rover SD1 vitesse I drove from Newcastle to Brighton in the snow with the window stuck open. I had a bad neck for ages after that. My XJS convertible that some toerag in Swansea slashed the hood to ribbons and I drove up the M4 to Sussex held together with duct tape, never seen so many people laughing. A Buick in BC the engine just fell out. Hours of fun rallying various Lancia Delta's. Recently trialed a Rickman Ranger but sadly it is no more. Driving my cooper S in the snow when all about me were floundering

Two thing I always wanted to own, a douglas dakota DC3 aeroplane and an MGTC but never managed either of them.

Surprising cars I have really liked and driven fairly recently, Skoda Octavia, Volvo V90, Chevrolet Impala and the best "mummy wagon" by far the Toyota Sienna ( not sure you get the last two in UK)

Cars I hated, Audi A3 sport (like driving a brick), MG6 ( dreadful thing) and Vauxhall Crossland basic model (horrid)

Most reliable and abused apart from the Defender was a Volvo V40, owned for 11 years, was effectively the tip car and impossible to break.

What would I buy today? At the moment nothing different to the now old Mercedes Brabus I have though I have always wanted a Maserati for some reason.

My first and second car after I passed my test. 
I ran the Fiat 500 for a year, and loved it to bits, a little small for courting though... 
I then bought the MG 1100 off my dad, which happened to be the car I passed my test in.

First car for me was a sit up and beg 1954 Ford Pop £20 then to the dizzy heights of A35 Van with the window conversion for £50 which I had on HP 

Preset car a Hybrid Toyota Auris Tourer a great car.

Like the motorhome going nowhere at present.

Terry

After various motor bikes the first four wheels I owned was a completely clapped-out VW split screen camper. I brush painted it bright egg yellow. But it was more rust than metal. Then came a two door Morris Minor. Four of us used to pile into it and head off to north Wales for the weekend. We could go there and back on a tank of petrol.  A second, less knackered VW splitty followed, which eventually suffered terminal engine failure on the M40 going into London. I was skint and couldn't afford to get it fixed so just left it at the garage and walked away.  Most of the 1970s were spent driving old Morris Minor vans. I used to pick them up for under fifty quid - usually MOT failures - fix them up and run them until the rust took over and it was time to move on. We used to kip in the back of the Minor vans - just fold the front seats forward. Somewhere along the line we owned a Series IIA LWB safari Land Rover, which we used as a camping car (we took a tent for kipping in) and went all over France and Spain in it on a couple of occasions, but it had the six cylinder petrol engine and we used to joke that it used so much petrol it would be cheaper to fly south! Driving old bangers held together with string was the norm then - I remember the SU fuel pump on one minor van packed up on the M6 so my wife used the starting handle, poked through the passenger's glove box, to whack the inside of the bulkhead just behind the pump to kick it into life. We made it to Sheffield where I fitted a new one. Happy days! Now I hardly open the bonnet on our dull Skoda estate, fortunately our sixteen year old Pollensa has ample scope for tinkering.

Nothing dull about a reliable Skoda estate . You could drive a so called premier brand and have never ending fun sitting at the side of the road waiting for the breakdown  company and the next enormous repair bill!

When we left Ripon in 74/75 , we headed up the A1 and over the A66 in a hand painted Mini (purple, black roof ) anyway the rain started. Put the wipers on ,nothing, changed the fuse ,nothing, ended up with two lengths of bailing string tied to each wiper arm, the wife pulled on her side and I returned the wipers to my side , didn't really clear much rain of the screen, local traffic cops stopped us and had a laugh at our old Mini and string wipers , fortunately a wee garage/ workshop by the side of the road had opened and I was able to root about the owners second hand spares for a fuse holder.
(Garage is now long gone I think) set of again for Glasgow via the A74.
Boaby

burlingtonboaby wrote:When we left Ripon in 74/75 , we headed up the A1 and over the A66 in a hand painted Mini (purple, black roof ) anyway the rain started. Put the wipers on ,nothing, changed the fuse ,nothing, ended up with two lengths of bailing string tied to each wiper arm, the wife pulled on her side and I returned the wipers to my side , didn't really clear much rain of the screen, local traffic cops stopped us and had a laugh at our old Mini and string wipers , fortunately a wee garage/ workshop by the side of the road had opened and I was able to root about the owners second hand spares for a fuse holder.
(Garage is now long gone I think) set of again for Glasgow via the A74.
Boaby

You've reminded me about my wife's old Morris Minor, it had the "clap hands" wipers and occasionally, when the blades came down they would meet in the middle and jam together (probably our fault, I expect the wiper blades were too long). Our solution was to tie a length of string to the driver's side wiper arm and lead the string inside through the quarter light. If the wipers jammed while she was driving she pulled the string, which freed the wiper blades and - hey presto - she could see where she was going. Yep, this was another of our £50 cars, but it went all over the place. She spent a year in Wales as a post-grad student and, parked on a steep hill, the car used to fill with water when it rained. Our solution? make a hole in the rear footwell to allow the water to drain out - it worked a treat.

Picture the scene, 1964, baking hot day, i'm 18, in flip-flops, shorts & tee-shirt, i'd just bought a Rover 90 from a guy at work, but I still had my FB Victor estate & wanted to be rid of it quick.
An hour earlier, i'd popped into an  'Arfer- Daley' type car dealer on my motorbike & he'd agreed to buy the car, so, on the hot day above, i'm pootilng along the High St, (the A1 )
approaching a zebra-crossing when an old lady suddenly stepped out in front of me, panic- braked, & for an instant the car slowed followed by a bang, the pressure on the pedal assy, made the entire footwell to disappear, & I sort of 'followed through', my foot hit the tarmac, & since the car was still moving at a couple mph, my foot & leg was pulled UNDER the floor, I was dragged under the dash but still holding the wheel!!
I was in agony & looked 'up' to see all sorts of people looking in & down at me as my back was now in front of the seat base, & to make it worse, the old lady said, 'wot you doin down there' !
Luckily for me I was outside the Fire Station & the guys came out & lifted the car so I could get out, top of R/foot, shin & knee completely skinned, back of knee area all lacerated from 'scabby' metalwork!!
Somehow  I managed to get the car back home, strapped myself up ( I looked like something from an old horror movie ) 
Had some fibreglass & resin in the garage, so quickly cobbled-up a patch top & bottom after shoving it all back together, & being a hot day, it a cured as I was doing it, painted underseal everywhere, then covered with  rubber mat!
So, a couple of hours later, I GINGERLY drove round to 'Arfer', 
'You took your time, & whats happened to you then? I fell off my bike says I.
He walked around the car, opened up & stuck his head in & said that it 'smelled-funny'  to which I replied, 'its the mats, hot day'.
He actually BOUGHT the car, ( £30 I think ) & I was off like a shot, & I never had a guts to drive past that car lot again!