The main issue I have with the CIGs is how conservatively and meanly specified they were, lumbering the Southern with badly aged and increasingly unsafe stock for decades.
For a start, the Mark 1 bodyshell was a serious safety issue, and they were built over a decade after the Mark 2 was available. Even the Mark 3s appeared before the CIGs and VEPs were all built. I know people say accidents are rare, but they were much more common in the past, and we know in the aftermath of disasters like Clapham that the method of construction was a significant factor in the number of deaths and injuries. They crumbled like Coke cans in accidents.
Next, continued use of sliding vents, no pressure ventilation or aircon, no ergonomic seats like the Mark 2s, tungsten lights and no PA until they were refurbished, poor accessibility, draughty interiors that were like saunas in the summer, no tables, no airline seats, no disabled access...the list goes on.
While I agree that a lot of modern features were rare or unavailable when they were new, by the 21st century these things were horrifically obsolete and unsuitable for the job, long after other regions got much better stock.
The idea that these were the pinnacle of perfection really annoys me. It's blinkered, rose-tinted enthusiast nostalgia that shows no understanding of the needs of ordinary passengers.
