One For Classic Car Fans.....

Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.

tyred

Legendary Member
Location
Ireland
Sorry, but that’s horrible.
If it was painted normally I personally think they look well. It was a Bertone design if I remember correctly.

They were very space efficient. Interior plastics look cheap and tacky but that's true of many cars of the era.
 

Profpointy

Legendary Member
I think that in Ireland it was motivated by road tax more than anything else. Pre 2008 a 2.5L Discovery or Merc Estate would cost something like €1400 per year for road tax as it was based on engine capacity whereas if you got it classified as a commercial it was about €320. Technically it is illegal to use a commercially taxed vehicle for non work purposes but it has never been enforced.

Also going back a bit further, buying a new van attracted less tax and if you had a business you could claim the VAT back. When I was young, small car derived commercials like Fiestas, 205s, Unos, Starlets, Corsas were everywhere as people just put back seats in them and used them as cars. There were even strange things like Yugo 45 vans. Seat belt rules and more stringent regulations put an end to carrying passengers in vans.

Perhaps I should have said "a" rather than
"the" tax fiddle. I think the van-ized Discos were imported from Ireland to the UK, to exploit the UK "company van" loophole
 
I saw this,on Manchester Road, between Millhouse Green & Penistone, last Wednesday
Those tyres are almost as loud as the 'implement' tyres on a Uni-Mog


Indeed!!!:notworthy:
The colour in the picture looks a bit dark as to how I remember it. It was similar to Ford's Daytona yellow. I can remember repairing one back in 1973.
I have a very rusty M reg one in French blue . My brother had a later T reg one with overdrive an waxstat carburettors. It wasn't as fast as mine but ended up hitting an escort van in the side at 70 mph. The van pulled out in front of him on a crossroads . I have a picture of it somewhere . Neither vehicle survived .
 

figbat

Slippery scientist
On my walk the other day:
5C245DCB-0024-4FCC-B189-462023B99482.jpeg
 

biggs682

Itching to get back on my bike's
Location
Northamptonshire
A local Humber Snipe which I don't think has moved for a number of years.

609917
 

gbb

Squire
Location
Peterborough
No photos but talking with my SIL today, he has a Subaru Imprezza WRX STI Prodrive, 4wd, 2002. Top of the road range complete with certificate from Subaru regarding factory (or dealer) fit Prodrive, completely unmolested or modified from the factory. Its been off the road for about 5 years but he refuses to sell it. he brought it maybe 12 years ago for £10k, its mental, absolutely mental. He reckons its worth that as it stands, running cars costing IRO £20k now.
He reckons its nearly got all the cache of the Cosworth Sierras, quite rare, incredibly powerful and sought after.
 
Last edited:

Bonefish Blues

Banging donk
Location
52 Festive Road
I used to run an RB320, putting nearly 90k miles on it in 2.5 years. I wouldn't do it again, but it was nice for a while, especially as I had a fuel card. Way too competent and inert until ridiculous speeds. More enjoyable drives are to be had from more modest machinery.
 

raleighnut

Legendary Member
No photos but talking with my SIL today, he has a Subaru Imprezza WRX STI Prodrive, 4wd, 2002. Top of the road range complete with certificate from Subaru regarding factory (or dealer) fit Prodrive, completely unmolested or modified from the factory. Its been off the road for about 5 years but he refuses to sell it. he brought it maybe 12 years ago for £10k, its mental, absolutely mental. He reckons its worth that as it stands, running cars costing IRO £20k now.
He reckons its nearly got all the cache of the Cosworth Sierras, quite rare, incredibly powerful and sought after.
Yep, Scott (next door neighbour) has got one he's had the motor done, over 400 BHP on pump fuel (more on E85) snag is if you 'boot' it then you're looking at 3-4 MPG and as for 'road tax' :ohmy:
 
Top Bottom