What is your car history?

[richw]

Isn't a Leyland Titan a 1980s double decker bus?!

As are at least 2 others on his list!

 

[EM2]

VW Dormobile D4/8

Any idea what the differences were between this and the D4/6, which I had?

 

[Cowley]

Any idea what the differences were between this and the D4/6, which I had?

That's the same as the one I had, mine looked like the one in the picture below. It's still on the road somewhere near Taunton. I have a dream every few months or so when I decide I'm not going to sell it after all, then I wake up and say "oh boll*cks".
A friend of mine restores them down near Woodbury and I've worked for him at times when he's been too busy and needs a hand. The prices some of the stuff (especially split screen vans) fetch now is incredible.

 

[EM2]

^^^
Yep, mine was like that (same age, even) but red. It's also 'alive' but SORNed.
There's no way I could afford a decent T2 these days, hence why I recently bought a Citroen Romahome.

 

[Cowley]

^^^
Yep, mine was like that (same age, even) but red. It's also 'alive' but SORNed.
There's no way I could afford a decent T2 these days, hence why I recently bought a Citroen Romahome.

There is something to be said for having heating, power steering, brakes etc

 

[CapriSpeed]

2012 - 2013 2004 Kia Rio 1.3 L Bought before I passed my test, had a blown head gasket but luckily was located literally just around the corner from where I live. My mother ended up using this and then even my sister.

2013 - 2014 1999 VW polo 1.4 match First car I actually drove, bought off a guy in Shipley and on the way home found an envelope with some unmarked pills in which was promptly thrown out of the window whilst on the M62.

2015 - 2015 1986 VW T25 1.6 TD Camper-van Bought this unseen off ebay, BIG mistake. Sold 1 month later after I found a huge puddle of water in the drivers foot well, I do miss it but I didn't have the time to fix the problems that it had.

2014 - 2017 2003 Vauxhall Astra 1.8 coupe This has to be my favourite that I have driven so far, when I got it it was bog standard and then I fitted newer alloy wheels and a full genuine leather interior with heated front seats. Sold earlier this year to my Father who plans on using it as a European tourer.

2016 - present 1996 Mazda Bongo 2.5 TD Bought with the intention of converting into a camper but I am thinking of selling it as its expensive to run (25 mpg).

I also have a 1981 Ford Capri mk3 2.0 S that my father bought in 1990, he gave me the car as a present for getting my apprenticeship back in 2012. The car has been off the road since 1993 so is in need of a full restoration which is planned for the near future.

Not a bad list bearing in mind I've only been driving for 4 years, though not as long of a list as my fathers in his first years of driving.

Here's his list:

Ford cortina mk 3
Ford cortina mk 4
Ford escort mk 1 2 door
Ford escort mk 2 van
Ford escort mk 2 4 door
Chrysler sunbeam
Ford capri mk 2
Ford escort xr3 Carb
Ford capri mk 3 2.0 s ( this is the one I now have)

This was all from 1985 - 1990 (He also worked at a ford dealer as you can tell )

After my sister was born ( who was also brought back from the hospital in the mk 3 capri) my dad had to start getting more "sensible" cars.

from 1991:

Volvo 340 in Blue
Volvo 340 in Red (me and my brother came home from the hospital in this)
Ford granada mk 3 2.0 ( first gear all the time when towing our 2 tonne caravan)
Austin montego in Beige ( The newest car he had ever bought but also the most rotten, spent a whole weekend welding this.)
Mg montego in Red ( parts car for the austin, Even more rotten)
Mini City E (repainted in ford signal yellow with a white roof, on the road for a total on 13 days until someone drove into the back whilst my dad was parked. Still suffers with his back to this day because of this accident)
Peugeot 405 sri in silver (my childhood car)
Volvo 440 si ( was given and then sold on)
A couple of Toyota company cars for a few years
Ford escort mk 4 van (owned as a second car whilst he had the Toyota cars)
Peugeot 405 sri in white ( was bought after he left Toyota as a spares car to put the silver one back on the road but ended up being a much nicer condition so this was used instead. Ended up being 2 foot shorter at one end when someone ran up the back of it whilst my mum was driving, the force of the crash even kinked the roof)
Subaru legacy estate 4x4 (one of his favourites)
Mitsubishi shogun 2.5 TD
Peugeot 406 estate
2011 - present Volkswagen T4 self converted camper van ( the longest he owned a vehicle)

 

[Liam]

2005 - 2006 Daewoo Matiz 1997, on an NI plate
2006 - 2007 Renault Clio Extreme 1.2 (02 plate)
2007 - 2007 Renault Clio Extreme 1.2 (53) crashed into a ditch!
2007 - 2009 Renault Clio RXE 1.6 (T)
2009 - 2012 Citroen C2 VTS 1.6 (55)
2012 - 2014 No car
2014 - Present Renault Clio Campus 1.2 (06)

Since 2011 I have usually had a work vehicle for use too. Two Mitsubishi L300's (08 and 12 plates) and more recently a Isuzu DMax (2010, but on an NI plate)

Best car was definately the C2, although the RXE was a monster too, but it gave up after about 140k.

 

[EM2]

There is something to be said for having heating,

Only in the cab...

power steering,

Nope...

brakes etc

Well, it does stop. Eventually...

 

[Cowley]

Only in the cab...

Nope...

Well, it does stop. Eventually...

Haha. I remember trying to stop mine going down Countesbury Hill in north Devon. I was pushing the brake pedal so hard (unservoed) that I was using the roof to push down on for more pressure.
Here's a picture of it in Scotland in about 1993 (that was a long cold journey) before I had it resprayed into its original blue.

 

[DarloRich]

it is a mugs game by a VW transporter especially a splitty.

( we had a 1970's transporter as kids and went all over europe. It had a massive high top on it and a unique layout. Caught fire on the M1 but was repaired with a new engine.)

 

[lyndhurst25]

1979 Austin Mini Special 1100.
1996 Rover Mini Cooper 35 - still got it SORN, but quite rusty and needs restoring.
2001 Lotus Elise 1.8 - damaged in crash earlier this year after 170000+ miles.
2017 Lotus Evora 400.

Common theme is that all of them handle like they're on rails!

 

[Ploughman]

Any idea what the differences were between this and the D4/6, which I had?

The main difference was from the Title D4/8 as against D4/6
8 seater rather than 6 seater.

Which made for an altered layout of the sink and cooker units.

 

[t_star2001uk]

Here's mine as far as i can remember, the have been so many

1968 Mk 1 Escort
1971 Mk 3 Cortina
Triumph Dolomite Sprint
Hillman Avenger Estate
Morris Ital
Talbot Sunbeam
Mk2 Cavalier
Mk1 Astra
Peugeot 205
Mk5 Escort
1998 Vauxhall Omega a
Citroen Xantia Estate
Daewoo Lanos
Vauxhall Omega b
2005 Renault Grand Scenic
2007 Kia Sorento + 2001 Vauxhall Corsa c

 

[deltic1989]

I'm actually quite proud of my car history, though there are a couple I'm not so proud of, as you will see.

1991 (H) BMW 316i Lux Coupe (one of the last E30 Coupes)
1989 (G) BMW 318i Touring (This one was white)
1987 (E) BMW M3 (Bought as a bit of a wreck and lovingly re-built)
1989 (G) BMW 318i Touring (This one was red)
1997 (P) BMW 316ise Saloon
1996 (N) Audi A4 (My first non-bimmer hated it)
2004 (54) Ford KA (Stop gap because the Audi broke)
2002 (02) Ford Fiesta (Stop gap because the KA broke)
1997 (R) Volvo V70 (Went like a stabbed rat)
2001 (51) BMW 318ise Coupe (I was tempted back to bimmers, and discovered that the N42 B20 engine is a shockingly poor piece of design.)
Current- 2002 (02) Volvo S40 D (My first diesel, bought as more of a stop gap until a nice P80 V70 comes up)

 

[Bromley boy]

I'm actually quite proud of my car history, though there are a couple I'm not so proud of, as you will see.

1991 (H) BMW 316i Lux Coupe (one of the last E30 Coupes)
1989 (G) BMW 318i Touring (This one was white)
1987 (E) BMW M3 (Bought as a bit of a wreck and lovingly re-built)
1989 (G) BMW 318i Touring (This one was red)
1997 (P) BMW 316ise Saloon
1996 (N) Audi A4 (My first non-bimmer hated it)
2004 (54) Ford KA (Stop gap because the Audi broke)
2002 (02) Ford Fiesta (Stop gap because the KA broke)
1997 (R) Volvo V70 (Went like a stabbed rat)
2001 (51) BMW 318ise Coupe (I was tempted back to bimmers, and discovered that the N42 B20 engine is a shockingly poor piece of design.)
Current- 2002 (02) Volvo S40 D (My first diesel, bought as more of a stop gap until a nice P80 V70 comes up)

An interesting list indeed.

I bet you wish you'd hung onto that M3! Those are silly money now. Then again, I'm sure it was a great experience owning it at the time you did.

 

[Drsatan]

My first car, which I bought in November 2016, is a 1.25l 09 plate Ford Fiesta with 65,000 miles on the clock. I bought it as a new job necessitated it. On average, it reaches 35-40mpg, has few issues with overtaking on motorways and can accelerate fairly quickly up to 40mph. As regards handling, it can tackle bends at up to 60mph without excessively braking and boasts light steering at low speeds.

Only drawbacks are intrusive wind noise at speeds above 60mph, which is a nuisance as I do a lot of motorway driving, and one of the speakers is emitting an odd noise at certain frequencies when listening to music.

I passed my test in 2010 but didn't need a car as I was away at University at the time. Prior to buying my Fiesta, I drove my Grandma's Y-plate Rover 25, which cornered like a tank in comparison to my current car and had a ZF auto box which developed a nasty habit of changing randomly on corners. It had superior ride quality compared to my current car. When that was scrapped, I occasionally drove my mother's 58-plate Fiesta which has much heavier steering than mine.

 

[Wallsendmag]

First car a 1976 Ford Escort 1.3GL NOY 869P
Second car 1989 Ford Orion 1.6 GL G456TJR
Third car 1992 Citroen ZX Aura 1.6 J400HDL
Fourth Car VW Golf 1.8GL K456PTN
Fifth Car Rover 214SI N331TJR
Sixth car Golf GTI 1.8 Turbo T18 AWA
Seventh Car Audi TT 180 quattro MkI
Eighth car Audi TT 3.2 V6 quattro MkII
Ninth Car Audi TTS 2.0 quattro MkII


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro

 

[deltic1989]

An interesting list indeed.

I bet you wish you'd hung onto that M3! Those are silly money now. Then again, I'm sure it was a great experience owning it at the time you did.

To this day I regret getting rid. Not really for the money, even though they go for double (or triple for a very good one) what I got for mine.
My regret is more centred around how much fun the car was to drive, I've not had a car that could consistently make me smile since.

 

[Zamracene749]

Hmmm...being a bit of a car fan, I've been through a fair few motors....

1st car, 1978 Datsun B310 Sunny 120y. Great motor, fun, easy to work on, best heating system on any car ever, quicker than similar engined competition, incredibly reliable- it brought me home 330 miles from Worthing once on 3 cylinders after I bust a valve thrashing it - but rotted like a fallen peach in a heatwave.

From then onwards- 1986 Mk4 Escort XR3i- not the quickest but just a lovely motor- ate wheel bearings like scooby snacks, had to do the Valve stem oil seals twice, but kept it for 12 years cos I just enjoyed driving it!

1980 Mk1 Polo 1.2 - used as a second car- fast, light but deadly brakes and rotted like the Datsun. The mkii Polos were galvanised- a good move by VW IMO...

Cortina Mk4 and mk5. The mk4 was a white 2.0S, drank like George Best, as easy to start on a morning as a student with a hangover. The Mk5 was a red 1.6l- an utterly hateful car. Unreliable, rotten, slow, thirsty, deadly handling, terrible roadholding, terrible brakes.....

1981 Skoda Estelle 105E. Yep, as if the 120 Estelle wasn't slow enough, they did an 'economy' 1050cc version. Engine in the back, cast iron so weighed about the same as a Valenta, incredibly mushy 4 wire gear change, wire throttle, steel roughly the same guage as a PC tower case. I actually quite liked it!

Sierra 1.6L , 1984. Basically the Mk5 Cortina in a different dress. Utter pile of dross. Deathtrap......

1978 Fiat 900T Caravette! Tiny, crazy, mental, forward control, narrow wheelbase, short engined piano pedalled insanity. Huge fun though.....

Nissan Cherry 1.3 L 1986. 50000 miles and let me down 3 times on the way to work, on a night grrr. Long gone. Drove well when it worked...

And so on to the collection of scrap-I mean future classics that I still own.....

1984FFR 109 2.25 Land Rover Series 3. Retrofitted hard top, 12mpg, batteries between the seats, twin fuel tanks under them. 5 bearing engine, weber carb, chassis made out of steel that Datsun would have rejected 10 years earlier . Absolute beast to drive, noisy, bouncy, dirty, damp. I loved it!!! Still on my drive, with stuff growing through it.......waiting for a lottery win.....

1996 Ford Probe 2.5 16V. Without doubt the worst car I ever paid decent money for-10 grand back in 1998 aaaargh! Gorgeous looks imo, pop up lights, but- cramped, far too slow for what it should have been , terrible roadholding, I had to pay to upgrade to drilled grooved brakes cos it was lethally prone to fade, 22mpg and utterly unreliable. No doubt it'll reach classic status, Marina style.....Still in me garage, waiting for it's day to come....

Volvo T5 Estate, 1997. 5 cylinder LPT. Was given this one by a mate that needed storage (long story). Very low miles, spent it's life on Bovington Camp whilst it's original tank crew owner was away on tour. Turbo brick, lovely to drive, will throw it's bottom around if driven fast - ie how it's meant to be driven! 24MPG so sorned at the mo. Far too good to scrap.....

VW Passat- 1998 1.9TDiSE. Far and away the best car I've ever owned. Unquestionably reliable, 60mpg even if thrashed, confident roadholding and handling, comfortable, solid, quick enough, thrives on neglect. Finally ripped a drive shaft after 14 years and 280000 miles, I parked her up and don't have the heart to send her to the crusher!

On the road collection!

Mercedes W124 230E 1989- How cars should all have been built. Rock solid, reliable, comfortable, handsome car. Superb handling, roadholding great unless you are on snow (the Germans legally have to use snow tyres anyway, so maybe that wasn't designed in), an absolute pleasure to drive. Bought when the Passat expired. Only downside- 30+MPG. However, for a 1989 car of that weight and build quality, that is actually pretty damned good!

Daily driver--- E46 BMW325iSE Touring, 2002. I've had this a couple of years now and I'm still on the fence. When it runs well, it's great. It's certainly quick for a 15 year old motor, but it has needed more work that it's countrymen Merc and VW ever did. Always starts though. At the moment it's a swine to drive because the 'VANOS' seals need replacing- BMW using oil seal material that needs to be replaced every 40k is not a good advert. 30mpg, and a gallon of oil every 10k. Mind, it handles and grips superbly, and it raises a driver grin whenever you floor it so I'm gonna hang on for a bit Oh and has the best factory fit stereo of any car I've ever had!

Hope the petrolheads out there found this interesting!

 

[EssexGonzo]

Hmmm...being a bit of a car fan, I've been through a fair few motors....

1st car, 1978 Datsun B310 Sunny 120y. Great motor, fun, easy to work on, best heating system on any car ever, quicker than similar engined competition, incredibly reliable- it brought me home 330 miles from Worthing once on 3 cylinders after I bust a valve thrashing it - but rotted like a fallen peach in a heatwave.

From then onwards- 1986 Mk4 Escort XR3i- not the quickest but just a lovely motor- ate wheel bearings like scooby snacks, had to do the Valve stem oil seals twice, but kept it for 12 years cos I just enjoyed driving it!

1980 Mk1 Polo 1.2 - used as a second car- fast, light but deadly brakes and rotted like the Datsun. The mkii Polos were galvanised- a good move by VW IMO...

Cortina Mk4 and mk5. The mk4 was a white 2.0S, drank like George Best, as easy to start on a morning as a student with a hangover. The Mk5 was a red 1.6l- an utterly hateful car. Unreliable, rotten, slow, thirsty, deadly handling, terrible roadholding, terrible brakes.....

1981 Skoda Estelle 105E. Yep, as if the 120 Estelle wasn't slow enough, they did an 'economy' 1050cc version. Engine in the back, cast iron so weighed about the same as a Valenta, incredibly mushy 4 wire gear change, wire throttle, steel roughly the same guage as a PC tower case. I actually quite liked it!

Sierra 1.6L , 1984. Basically the Mk5 Cortina in a different dress. Utter pile of dross. Deathtrap......

1978 Fiat 900T Caravette! Tiny, crazy, mental, forward control, narrow wheelbase, short engined piano pedalled insanity. Huge fun though.....

Nissan Cherry 1.3 L 1986. 50000 miles and let me down 3 times on the way to work, on a night grrr. Long gone. Drove well when it worked...

And so on to the collection of scrap-I mean future classics that I still own.....

1984FFR 109 2.25 Land Rover Series 3. Retrofitted hard top, 12mpg, batteries between the seats, twin fuel tanks under them. 5 bearing engine, weber carb, chassis made out of steel that Datsun would have rejected 10 years earlier . Absolute beast to drive, noisy, bouncy, dirty, damp. I loved it!!! Still on my drive, with stuff growing through it.......waiting for a lottery win.....

1996 Ford Probe 2.5 16V. Without doubt the worst car I ever paid decent money for-10 grand back in 1998 aaaargh! Gorgeous looks imo, pop up lights, but- cramped, far too slow for what it should have been , terrible roadholding, I had to pay to upgrade to drilled grooved brakes cos it was lethally prone to fade, 22mpg and utterly unreliable. No doubt it'll reach classic status, Marina style.....Still in me garage, waiting for it's day to come....

Volvo T5 Estate, 1997. 5 cylinder LPT. Was given this one by a mate that needed storage (long story). Very low miles, spent it's life on Bovington Camp whilst it's original tank crew owner was away on tour. Turbo brick, lovely to drive, will throw it's bottom around if driven fast - ie how it's meant to be driven! 24MPG so sorned at the mo. Far too good to scrap.....

VW Passat- 1998 1.9TDiSE. Far and away the best car I've ever owned. Unquestionably reliable, 60mpg even if thrashed, confident roadholding and handling, comfortable, solid, quick enough, thrives on neglect. Finally ripped a drive shaft after 14 years and 280000 miles, I parked her up and don't have the heart to send her to the crusher!

On the road collection!

Mercedes W124 230E 1989- How cars should all have been built. Rock solid, reliable, comfortable, handsome car. Superb handling, roadholding great unless you are on snow (the Germans legally have to use snow tyres anyway, so maybe that wasn't designed in), an absolute pleasure to drive. Bought when the Passat expired. Only downside- 30+MPG. However, for a 1989 car of that weight and build quality, that is actually pretty damned good!

Daily driver--- E46 BMW325iSE Touring, 2002. I've had this a couple of years now and I'm still on the fence. When it runs well, it's great. It's certainly quick for a 15 year old motor, but it has needed more work that it's countrymen Merc and VW ever did. Always starts though. At the moment it's a swine to drive because the 'VANOS' seals need replacing- BMW using oil seal material that needs to be replaced every 40k is not a good advert. 30mpg, and a gallon of oil every 10k. Mind, it handles and grips superbly, and it raises a driver grin whenever you floor it so I'm gonna hang on for a bit Oh and has the best factory fit stereo of any car I've ever had!

Hope the petrolheads out there found this interesting!

Great list!

A handful of years ago I test drove a W124 auto as I needed and auto for a few months as I'd done my left ankle in. It was at least 20 years old and drove beautifully. So solid after all of those years. I regret not buying it because it didn't have aircon (a must in any car nowadays, for me). Good choice indeed. It's a shame that modern buying habits and preferences don't appreciate this depth of engineering. It's all about bling and frilly bits nowadays.

 

[Zamracene749]

Aye, she's a beauty for her age!

Great list!

A handful of years ago I test drove a W124 auto as I needed and auto for a few months as I'd done my left ankle in. It was at least 20 years old and drove beautifully. So solid after all of those years. I regret not buying it because it didn't have aircon (a must in any car nowadays, for me). Good choice indeed. It's a shame that modern buying habits and preferences don't appreciate this depth of engineering. It's all about bling and frilly bits nowadays.

 

[cjmillsnun]

1983 (Y) Austin Metro 1.3
1983 (A) Austin Maestro 1.3
1985 (C) Austin Maestro 1.3
1986 (D) MG Maestro 2.0
1990 (H) Fiat Uno 1.0
1985 (C) Austin Maestro 1.6
1989 (G) Rover 414
1993 (K) Rover Metro 1.4
1994 (L) Rover 820
1990 (H) Rover 414
1996 (P) Rover 416
1999 (V) Rover 416
2000 (W) MG MGF 1.8
2005 (05) Rover 75 2.0
2000 (Y) MG MGF 1.8
2003 (03) Saab 9-5 2.2
2015 (15) Ford Fiesta

 

[JoeGJ1984]

(After passing driving test, first drove my parents' P reg Rover Metro/100 (?)).

1997 (R) Renault Clio (my first car!)

2004 (04) Renault Clio (different design to the above) (found it to be a bit of a trouble-causer, with a few instances of fault lights and being unable to accelerate beyond a certain point. An MOT failure was the death knell.)

2008 (57) Hyundai Matrix (only had for a few months before writing off in accident)

2005 (55) Renault Modus (current car)

The last two are diesel mini-MPVs. I like the higher driving position given by the MPVs and the latter only costs £30 a year tax!

 

[ash39]

1996 Ford Probe 2.5 16V. Without doubt the worst car I ever paid decent money for-10 grand back in 1998 aaaargh! Gorgeous looks imo, pop up lights, but- cramped, far too slow for what it should have been , terrible roadholding, I had to pay to upgrade to drilled grooved brakes cos it was lethally prone to fade, 22mpg and utterly unreliable. No doubt it'll reach classic status, Marina style.....Still in me garage, waiting for it's day to come....

Being a child of the 80's, when the Probe came out in the early 90's with its futuristic (for the time!) looks and pop-up-headlights I instantly fell in love with it! I remember pestering my dad who'd recently passed his test to chop in his 1.3 Escort for one - unfortunately they were around £26,000 if I remember correctly - or 'the same price as our house!' as my old man put it.

Unfortunately your experience of driving it sounds similar to how I found the Mustang when I hired one on a trip to the states, they really don't live up to the looks do they? Not designed to go round corners, and big, lazy uneconomical engines that would probably struggle to keep up with todays 1.6 litre hatchbacks. Apparently the Cougar suffered similar traits. If only they could have made a car like the Probe or Cougar that handled like a mk1 Focus, I think they'd have sold boatloads. Just look at the Puma, being based on the Fiesta it drove fantastically but was I suspect too small and feminine for some buyers.

My car history, not particularly exotic, but some misjudged/interesting choices along the way. I would say I'm a car enthusiast but I don't have an interest in motorsport or track days and don't drive like a nutter on the public road, just like a car that feels good to drive and be in.

2005 - 1998 Ford Fiesta 1.25 Zetec first car - think the insurance cost more than the car...
2006 - 2003 Ford Focus 1.6 'Elle' - special edition - basically a Zetec with leather seats. Loved this thing, should have kept it longer
2007 - 2005 Ford Fiesta 1.6 Zetec S - bought with 115k on the clock, seemed a bargain. Steering was knackered, bad decision.
2008 - 2006 Citroen C4 VTS Diesel - this was actually a very nice car, great spec. Unfortunately French reliability issues started to crop up - the best one being the Xenon headlight sensors failing and the headlights defaulting to pointing straight down 4 feet in front of the car rendering them useless.

I then briefly had another Focus, which was slightly older than the C4 but with lower mileage. Thought it was a sensible decision, but this too had plenty of reliability issues. I ended up running my mother-in-law's Honda Civic for a while, which was faultlessly reliable and robust but just so dull, I can't get excited about Japanese cars at all.

2011 - 2007 BMW 325d M-Sport - finally after moving to a nicer area and getting a few years no claims bonus I could afford to run something like this. Superb car in every way. I suppose it's only downfall was it lacked a bit of design flair, and other peoples perceptions of the brand can be a bit tiresome ('oh, does it have the optional indicators?' :roll: ) Longest I've kept a car which says a lot about it. Engine was a peach.
2014 - 2012 Alfa Romeo Giulietta 2.0 JDTM - great looking car, decent engine and actually very reliable for the 3 years and 60,000 miles that I ran it. Just grew a bit bored of the driving experience.
2017 - 2017 Ford Focus ST TDCi - first new car I've ever had - loving it so far. Handling is on another level. Engine is adequate but would love the petrol version if I didn't do so many miles. For me it ticks just about every box.

 

[Zamracene749]

My car history, not particularly exotic, but some misjudged/interesting choices along the way. I would say I'm a car enthusiast but I don't have an interest in motorsport or track days and don't drive like a nutter on the public road, just like a car that feels good to drive and be in.

2005 - 1998 Ford Fiesta 1.25 Zetec first car - think the insurance cost more than the car...
2006 - 2003 Ford Focus 1.6 'Elle' - special edition - basically a Zetec with leather seats. Loved this thing, should have kept it longer
2007 - 2005 Ford Fiesta 1.6 Zetec S - bought with 115k on the clock, seemed a bargain. Steering was knackered, bad decision.
2008 - 2006 Citroen C4 VTS Diesel - this was actually a very nice car, great spec. Unfortunately French reliability issues started to crop up - the best one being the Xenon headlight sensors failing and the headlights defaulting to pointing straight down 4 feet in front of the car rendering them useless.

I then briefly had another Focus, which was slightly older than the C4 but with lower mileage. Thought it was a sensible decision, but this too had plenty of reliability issues. I ended up running my mother-in-law's Honda Civic for a while, which was faultlessly reliable and robust but just so dull, I can't get excited about Japanese cars at all.

2011 - 2007 BMW 325d M-Sport - finally after moving to a nicer area and getting a few years no claims bonus I could afford to run something like this. Superb car in every way. I suppose it's only downfall was it lacked a bit of design flair, and other peoples perceptions of the brand can be a bit tiresome ('oh, does it have the optional indicators?' :roll: ) Longest I've kept a car which says a lot about it. Engine was a peach.
2014 - 2012 Alfa Romeo Giulietta 2.0 JDTM - great looking car, decent engine and actually very reliable for the 3 years and 60,000 miles that I ran it. Just grew a bit bored of the driving experience.
2017 - 2017 Ford Focus ST TDCi - first new car I've ever had - loving it so far. Handling is on another level. Engine is adequate but would love the petrol version if I didn't do so many miles. For me it ticks just about every box.

Oh, the BMW jokes soon wear very thin- as do the tailgating insecure kids that think every Beemer is a challenge! Must say, I've always had a fancy for an Alfa Romeo, was just too scared of the rust/reliability issues- the same thing put me off buying a Fiat Coupe way back when, and my biggest regret- not buying a Sunny GTiR when I had chance!

 

[R4_GRN]

1956 morris cowley 1200cc same body as Hindustan ran main bearings
1959 standard vanguard rubbish car drank fuel and scrapped as rusty
1963 rover 100 great car but not to be hurried, bought from a farmer resolved never to buy another farmers car sold because it had not been looked after and expensive to repair
1959 Riley 2.6 floor change between door and seat, great car sold for something economical as getting married
1965 singer chamois despite reputation this was a great car, reliable too shame routes did not sort problems before selling to public, better than a mini taught wife to drive in it and burnt out the clutch changed it in the road in 3 hours
1968 Ford escort mk1 good car but underpowered resolved never to buy the small engined version of a car ever again
1969Volvo 121 built like a tank super car comfy reliable never needed repairs, sold to a friend
1972 Volvo 144 bought because experience of the 121, very reliable auto comfy too first car with fuel injection
1978 Ford Fiesta 1.1 pop plus great car towed glider around airfield cheap to run can't remember why I got rid of it
1982 sierra 2.0 Ghia comfy car with extras eventually got rid of it because of a electronics fault in the engine management system
1989 Merc c class 2.2 great car with auto box a classy car at last sold because of rusty body
2003 Merc c class elegance diesel estate one of my better buys comfy with all the toys only problem it took ages to warm up engine in winter sold because body rusted by this time I retired so car was not used and lay outside in all weathers
2002 Honda jazz bought for wife great car reliable until gearbox bearings started to rumble sold then found out Honda repaired even if out of warranty doh
2012 Honda Civic boring boring boring 6 speed box got fed up changing gear!

So, I bought Merc cl500 coupe, 5litre V8, 300bhp, auto, cruise, climate control, telephone, double glazed windows, memory seats, tv! Cd, radio, cassette player, heated seats, air cooled seats, soft closing doors, auto wipers, heated windscreen wash. Only thing missing is fridge between rear seats (a 6k option)

Just driven 1200 miles, getting 29mpg I only do about 3000 miles a year so fuel consumption not an issue. Cheap insurance cos I am 70 and full NBC. I do all repairs and servicing myself so relatively cheap to run.

Great driver on motorway sitting in leather armchair at 70mph with air con at suitable temp and appropriate music playing.

Half the price of the Honda and twice the fun.


Forgot about cars I restored
1972 Austin healey sprite 1275 bought for wife, welded bodywork, rebuilt engine, repainted and retrimmed new hood great runabout for wife sold to buy Tvr
1968 Tvr 2500s bought in bits rebuilt engine new bearings crank reground etc not fast discovered it had an American spec engine so fly cut about 2mm of the head to make it British spec fitted fast road cam it went well after that.
1968 Merc 280s great car except it had a drinking problem allegedly built to same standard as a RR sold it to another Merc enthusiast. Twin carbs were a nightmare to keep in tune, electric chokes not Merc finest hour, manual too, doh
Merc G wagon, superb motor great for pulling farmers tractors out of ditches! Bought on e bay for bad winters several years ago, never let me down in snow sold privately and made a small profit

 

[the sniper]

Here's a picture of it in Scotland in about 1993 (that was a long cold journey) before I had it resprayed into its original blue.

That's here isn't it? https://goo.gl/maps/VGQefinBL7t

Fantastic road it is that passes there, if that's where you were!