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What's your favourite classic car...?


Wendy
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My OH had a red/white 2CV Dolly for 17 years. I fitted the racing conversion to the door handles. It's a set of castors so that the door handles don't scrape on the road when cornering hard. That slows you down with the friction, plus it makes it very to open the doors when the handles have worn out, so a really worthwhile modification!![8-|][8-|]

Fantastic fun!!!

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A 2CV may be fun but these are what I call classics.  The Bentley is now a genuine recognised rare classic, though it was considered a mere eccentricity when I had it.  This picture was taken the day after I bought it for £100

[IMG]http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z307/potus_bucket/mybentley.jpg[/IMG]

After that I always wanted fast big-engined luxury coupes.  I tried a couple of sports cars and a tiny lightweight Japanese turboed rotary flier, but they were always too uncomfortable for big mileages, and either too scary or too "hairdresser-ish"

I liked these two - the BMW best.  Both photos taken when I reluctantly sold them

[IMG]http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z307/potus_bucket/mybm5.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z307/potus_bucket/Mb300-1.jpg[/IMG]

Patrick

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[IMG]http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff295/jr7man/Houses/Cars/CIMG0452.jpg[/IMG]

This is my beloved Lotus Elan during a short pitstop at my house in France before being moved to storage.

She has waited patiently and faithfully for me to fulfill my promise to restore her for over 10 years now and will have to wait a few more yet, she is in good company being stored with some very rare racing Panhards

She is original and unmolested and still has an 8 track stereo and some really funky 80's tapes. Pretty or what?

I have not forgotten you my darling I promise [kiss]

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[quote user="steve"]Classic ? Well 'modern' classic MX-5 - we used to run the local area owners club and were on t' committee

Steve
[/quote]

Which area ? ........I used to be in the North West ...........we went on some great runs .......what a sight 25 or so zoom zooming down country lanes ...happy days

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I am sorry but I cannot buy into MX5s. They are as heavy as Austin Cambridge coupes and as a consequence they do  not do anything a sports car should do. NB this is not a loathing of all things Japenesse - I owned a Datsun 1600 SSS which would eat Lotus Cortinas for breakfast. Apart from the two minutes of not being able to see the road when you went over a yump I thought a Datsun 1.5 pound was a great sports cart.  
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[quote user="Jonzjob"]Good grief! That must have look like a kamikazi attack? Were you all wearing the classic Jap headbands [:-))][blink][;-)]???[/quote]

I cant find my photos just now , but this one gives you an idea of it ........Banzai [:D]

http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk73/sajmx5/Tamborine%20Run%20April%2008%20-%20MX5%20Club/march08-april08035.jpg

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[quote user="Anton Redman"]I am sorry but I cannot buy into MX5s. They are as heavy as Austin Cambridge coupes and as a consequence they do  not do anything a sports car should do. NB this is not a loathing of all things Japenesse - I owned a Datsun 1600 SSS which would eat Lotus Cortinas for breakfast. Apart from the two minutes of not being able to see the road when you went over a yump I thought a Datsun 1.5 pound was a great sports cart.  [/quote]

Hmm.

Austin Cambridge Coupe 2352kgs.  MX-5 1106kgs.  Feel free to fall on a Samurai........

I owned a MX-5 for nearly three years (my first car.....).  Did everything a sports car should for me.

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An Austin Cambridge Coupe is an MGB = 971 kgs even in fairly lardy 1974 form.  

 http://www.carfolio.com/specifications/models/car/?car=32373

 

Used to be a whole terms of vague abuse for cars in the days before Top Gear :

 

Cortina in Drag = Ford Capri

Poor man's Cadillac = Cheverolet

Rich man's Ford = Lincoln

Prince or Darkness = Anything made by Lucas

Flintstone = anything with the floor rusted through but mainly minis 

Datsun 1.5 pound = 24 ounces = 24 OZ = 240 Z 

 

 

 

 

 

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We set up the Northampton area in 97 I think - spent lots of time in europe including a run to the Dordogne with 10 cars where we met up with the French MX-5 club and spent a couple of days thrashing around, it was great! We had a lamb roast in the garden here a few years ago -  got the village involved, a massive hit with loads of MX-5's in the hamlet! They keep asking when the next one is :)

Steve

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[quote user="krusty"]

[quote user="Jonzjob"]Good grief! That must have look like a kamikazi attack? Were you all wearing the classic Jap headbands [:-))][blink][;-)]???[/quote]

I cant find my photos just now , but this one gives you an idea of it ........Banzai [:D]

http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk73/sajmx5/Tamborine%20Run%20April%2008%20-%20MX5%20Club/march08-april08035.jpg

[/quote]

Sorry Krusty, but it looks a bit like a TR7 with curves to me?

I'll stick with my MGTC ta!!

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For fear of ruffling feathers. The design team for the Miata (for which read MX5/Eunos) was headed by an American, who based the whole thing on, and I qoute, "what the Elan should have been, but with a smiley face". I concede, not a light car, but not that lardy! I had no end of fun chucking mine around, but it was no Caterham.....

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Take one Austin Cambridge add twin carbs and turn it into an MG Magnette or Riley 4/72.  Keep the engine and gear box and a fair chunk of the switchgear. Design independant rear suspension but have an attack of cold feet and revert to tried and tested set up from Austin Cambridge ( leave the evidence in place of the production body). Decide stress calculations are too complicated so keep adding things, including a third sill pressing so that you are positive the shell will be tough enough. and some how they produced a reasonable sports car.

Possibly I am being unkind as when, BLMC as it had become, tried stress calculations they produced the TR7 which went banana, as opposed to pear, shaped the first time it was any where near a yump. The Morris Marina a car to which they had to retro fit sun roofs after a spate of cracked of windscreen cracking on the long press term roadtest cars.

There is a great deal to be said for being too young wish I was. Worst case scenario you grow out of it.   

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I concur with Anton! Having done my apprenticeship with Caffyns Ltd (British Leyland/Austin Rover, Jaguar Rover Triumph, Leyland Red and Blueline and Rolls-Royce), I was staggered how many part numbers went right across the various ranges, especially Cambridge/Oxford, Marina, Morris 1000, MG front suspension parts, and many many elsewhere too! Although I know which one I'd rather race!

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[quote user="f1steveuk"]I concur with Anton! Having done my apprenticeship with Caffyns Ltd (British Leyland/Austin Rover, Jaguar Rover Triumph, Leyland Red and Blueline and Rolls-Royce), I was staggered how many part numbers went right across the various ranges, especially Cambridge/Oxford, Marina, Morris 1000, MG front suspension parts, and many many elsewhere too! Although I know which one I'd rather race!
[/quote]

Marina???

Anton it's only ther body that gets old. Keep yer mind at the age of about 16 to 18 and you can have a better time than any of the youngsters because being an awdbugger you can get away with it!!!

Try it, the worst that can happen is they lock you up!

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Marina?? No way would I race one of those! But a well prepared MG, maybe!

Lower suspension trunion from memory at least, I believe a lot of people who upgrade Morris 1000s, uprate the brakes by doing a near straight swap, "plod" for Marina suspension and brakes, although as I recall if you braked hard from speed in a Marina it would change lanes automatically, so I cannot see why!

It was more years ago than I care to remember, but BL Austin Rover, moved stuff around their range quite a lot.
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My favourite classic car - as someone who used to hate Yank tanks it is a:

1958 Buick Limited Rag Top.

Absolutely dripping with chrome and well over the top.

But there again as someone who is in to Rovers it could be Gladys (if you know Rovers then you will know what this is) for its uniqueness.

Paul

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