Fond memories of cars gone by...
- Thread starter gbb
- Start date
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colly said:They had a habit of breaking the steering king pins didn't they?
I remember seeing several Heralds on roundabouts with the front wheels flopped over.
Thank God they don't make them like that anymore.
I haven't looked but you have got to be talking about the Moggy minor .
Had that happen to me in a garage as I pulled up at a pump 
peanut said:I haven't looked but you have got to be talking about the Moggy minor .
Yes they did that too.
I had an old Morris Traveller which had a torsion bar suspension.
Late one night the anchor end of it put so much pressure on the rusty bodywork that it crunched up through the floor and smacked into the underside of the drivers seat.
Oh boy, was I surprised
Even more surprised was I to find that the following morning someone had stolen the car.
Black Sheep
Guru
- Location
- Rammy
peanut said:I know
yup, they corner on their door handles
I was chasing a friend through some country lanes in cornwall doing a good job of keeping the new M3 from getting a proper look at the back end of my friend's MK1 escort which was fully rally prepped
i was struggling to keep up with her in her half 'race' prepped 2CV (race prepped being slightly stripped out and tuned)
swee'pea99
Legendary Member
Is that what it was? All I knew was, the wheel fell off. Other stuff had been going wrong before that, but when the wheel fell off even I knew her time was up.colly said:They had a habit of breaking the steering king pins didn't they?
I remember seeing several Heralds on roundabouts with the front wheels flopped over.
Thank God they don't make them like that anymore.
Don't think I've ever felt quite the same affection for a car since.
- Location
- The TerrorVortex
Marinas did that too. I had a kit car based on Marina running gear and the trunnions would give up after about 30000 miles or so.
I suspect the main reason we no longer have a car industry is that mostly, the cars were sh1t...
I suspect the main reason we no longer have a car industry is that mostly, the cars were sh1t...
Piemaster
Guru
- Location
- UK City of Culture
Probably less likely to lose a wheel now but one of those warning lights in the dash coming on can get quite pricey. Or for that matter changing a headlight bulb on some cars.
I had a Nissan Bluebird for a while. Utterly reliable but in one way like the Marina. A mass market vehicle and as interesting as a potato. Built to sell in numbers to the vast majority who actually aren't too bothered about what they drive as long as it fulfills their travel needs.
My memories of the Marina stem from trips to the seaside in my Grandads car, and all those implications for a 7/8 year old. The overriding smell was not of the fresh sea air but of vomit as the thing made my sister very travel sick. My parents eventually bought their first ever new car. A Skoda 120Y (I think). Sister was hardly ever sick in that.
Anyone confirm the model of the skoda? Pre-Estelle and the saloon with the twin headlights the same as the coupe. Can't find any pictures so assume I've got the model wrong.
I had a Nissan Bluebird for a while. Utterly reliable but in one way like the Marina. A mass market vehicle and as interesting as a potato. Built to sell in numbers to the vast majority who actually aren't too bothered about what they drive as long as it fulfills their travel needs.
My memories of the Marina stem from trips to the seaside in my Grandads car, and all those implications for a 7/8 year old. The overriding smell was not of the fresh sea air but of vomit as the thing made my sister very travel sick. My parents eventually bought their first ever new car. A Skoda 120Y (I think). Sister was hardly ever sick in that.
Anyone confirm the model of the skoda? Pre-Estelle and the saloon with the twin headlights the same as the coupe. Can't find any pictures so assume I've got the model wrong.
Piemaster
Guru
- Location
- UK City of Culture
Something like this but twin lights. This is even the same colour!
OP
OP
gbb
Squire
- Location
- Peterborough
Ah, the Austin Ambassador ...dad brought one second hand. It broke down on the way back from picking it up. Didnt even get 5 miles.....says it all really 
...dad brought one second hand. It broke down on the way back from picking it up. Didnt even get 5 miles.....says it all really 
Panter
Just call me Chris...
- Location
- Sittingbourne, Kent
1) Fiat Strada 65Cl (First car) broke down constantly
2) Talbot Horizon (2)
3) Austin Maestro 1600l
4) Skoda (the long one) in Canary yellow with Blacked out windows (rattle can,) fake twin exhausts and Kent cams stickers all over!
5) VW Scirroco 1800GT
6) Escort Mk II
7) Vauxhall Cavalier Diesel 1600 (caught fire)
8) Daihatsu Charade GTti (Blew 2 Turbo's then the Big ends went....)
9) VW Golf Mk II
10) Escort Mk III
11) Landrover Series III (rusted away)
12) Audi 80 Sport (2)
13) Audi 80 TDI
14) Audi Coupe Quattro
15) ABT built Audi 90 Quattro Turbo (sweeeeet
,) still miss that car....
16) Audi A4 1.8T
Currently) Toyota Hilux
Think thats all of 'em, that's 19 cars in 18 Years
2) Talbot Horizon (2)
3) Austin Maestro 1600l
4) Skoda (the long one) in Canary yellow with Blacked out windows (rattle can,) fake twin exhausts and Kent cams stickers all over!
5) VW Scirroco 1800GT
6) Escort Mk II
7) Vauxhall Cavalier Diesel 1600 (caught fire)
8) Daihatsu Charade GTti (Blew 2 Turbo's then the Big ends went....)
9) VW Golf Mk II
10) Escort Mk III
11) Landrover Series III (rusted away)
12) Audi 80 Sport (2)
13) Audi 80 TDI
14) Audi Coupe Quattro
15) ABT built Audi 90 Quattro Turbo (sweeeeet
,) still miss that car....16) Audi A4 1.8T
Currently) Toyota Hilux
Think thats all of 'em, that's 19 cars in 18 Years
swee'pea99
Legendary Member
Morris Ital. Everything you ever needed to know about British Leyland in a nutshell.
'How can we get a year or two more out of this heap of crap car that everyone knows is a heap of crap? I know, let's smooth off the edges a bit and give it a new name, then no-one will twig that's it's still the same heap of crap car, just with the edges slightly smoothed off. Any suggestions for a name, gentlemen? 'Morris Ital'. Excellent, yes, suggests a sort of Italian je ne sais quoi, if you get my meaning. That'll fool, them. Good day's work everyone, let's knock off early and go for a pint.'
Morris Ital. Jesus.
'How can we get a year or two more out of this heap of crap car that everyone knows is a heap of crap? I know, let's smooth off the edges a bit and give it a new name, then no-one will twig that's it's still the same heap of crap car, just with the edges slightly smoothed off. Any suggestions for a name, gentlemen? 'Morris Ital'. Excellent, yes, suggests a sort of Italian je ne sais quoi, if you get my meaning. That'll fool, them. Good day's work everyone, let's knock off early and go for a pint.'
Morris Ital. Jesus.
Crankarm
Guru
- Location
- Nr Cambridge
While the British car industry in the shape of BL was producing such crap as the Morris Marina, Ital, Austin Princess, the Allegro, the Maxi, the Ambassador, Morris 1100, and.........the Austin Metro, the French were producing icons such as the Citroen DS and Peugeot cars that you still see in everyday use in France, North Africa and the Middle East. The Peugeot 205 was to burst onto the scene in the early eighties. The Germans were doing ok with the Beetle the Golf was just coming into production. In the 1960s going into the '70s Ford were producing the likes of the Cortina Mk 1 enter the Lotus Cortina.......and the Escort cue the long line of successful RSs and Mexicos. The only jewel in BLs crown was the Mini but the management successfuly succeeded in destroying this icon to be resurrected later by the Germans.
The Brtish car industry was symptomatic of a very poorly managed industry producing lots of cars that people were reluctant to buy as they new they were crap. It didn't help that the workforce was much like the cars they produced. Poor designs, costly to manufacture, poor value for money, terrible performance and handling, unreliable and that frequently stopped working and would not last 5 mintues in the real world which proved to be case when the Japanese manufacturers flooded the UK market with cars offering far better value.
In 1970's Britain it was a lottery whether a British car would start in the deep mid winter and not have rusted into the ground by the Spring.
Fuel injection coupled with ECUs became widespread for car engine management systems in the mid late 1990s making cars so much more reliable and efficient. Prior to this cars were dependent on carb techology which is pretty crude in comparison.
The Brtish car industry was symptomatic of a very poorly managed industry producing lots of cars that people were reluctant to buy as they new they were crap. It didn't help that the workforce was much like the cars they produced. Poor designs, costly to manufacture, poor value for money, terrible performance and handling, unreliable and that frequently stopped working and would not last 5 mintues in the real world which proved to be case when the Japanese manufacturers flooded the UK market with cars offering far better value.
In 1970's Britain it was a lottery whether a British car would start in the deep mid winter and not have rusted into the ground by the Spring.
Fuel injection coupled with ECUs became widespread for car engine management systems in the mid late 1990s making cars so much more reliable and efficient. Prior to this cars were dependent on carb techology which is pretty crude in comparison.
