Mine was a 1956 Austin A40 Cambridge that I bought from a dodgy dealer in Wendover in 1971,1200cc of pulsating power…£35 to you sir !!:D (I was being paid £3 a week as a ‘Brat’ at the time ! )
Completely worn out column change (you had to scrape the steering wheel with the gear lever to get 1st or 2nd :D),Front brakes were hydraulic – rears were mechanical.
The starting handle was used every cold start ,obligatory clothes peg to keep the choke out of course…but to be fair she never let me down !!
Didnt have a camera then but here is a pic from a classic car site…
edit…forgot to say…crossply tyres were fun :rolleyes:
By: Papa Lima - 17th January 2010 at 16:06
1938 Morris 8 convertible, non-runner, cost me a pint of beer (1/9 in old money). I managed to get it going, although it consumed more oil than petrol! The passenger door had to have a sliding bolt fitted to keep it closed after a friend fell out while the car was cornering! It finally gave up the ghost after transporting a Gipsy Major engine in the rear seats during a terrible winter with much snow, I think it was in 1962, from White Waltham to somewhere near Cottesmore. I then abandoned it in the RAF Cottesmore car park, where it may still be to this day!
By: Wyvernfan - 17th January 2010 at 15:26
Nothing wrong with Avengers! First car, guess what – a maroon Singer Chamois! TBL 414G! Heater very sluggish and throttle cables kept breaking, Head Gaskets seemed to be a failing. Road handling in snowy conditions, well had to put a paving slab in the bonnet compartment for ballast!
Happy Days!
Ah yes.. that sounds familiar. I had a toolbox and trolley jack in the front of mine to try and hold the front to the road.
By: KabirT - 17th January 2010 at 15:06
my current one…. Suzuki Swift ’07.
By: FLYING SAUCER - 17th January 2010 at 14:22
Nothing wrong with Avengers! First car, guess what – a maroon Singer Chamois! TBL 414G! Heater very sluggish and throttle cables kept breaking, Head Gaskets seemed to be a failing. Road handling in snowy conditions, well had to put a paving slab in the bonnet compartment for ballast!
Happy Days!
By: Bruggen 130 - 17th January 2010 at 13:33
A 1975 Chysler Avenger in Beige, how sads that:o
By: kev35 - 17th January 2010 at 13:05
A 1977 maroon Chrysler Avenger with rust trim. I remember driving down Shire Oak Hill to see how fast it would go. The attempt was cut short as the nearside wing partially tore itself away and folded itself onto the bonnet. Six months later I sold it for £50 more than I’d paid for it, and in far worse condition. I moved on to Vauxhall Shuvvitt.
Regards,
kev35
By: Flygirl - 17th January 2010 at 11:08
A mini 850 :o:D
By: Stony - 17th January 2010 at 11:07
Mine was a 1972 Opel Kadett. Still have it…. But is in long term storage.
By: davecurnock - 17th January 2010 at 10:30
Mine was a 1934 Austin 7 – bought by my step-father from an apprentice at Bristol Aeroplane Company. When purchased it had a garish yellow lightning flash across each door – with the legend ‘Lightning II’. (Never saw Lightning I).
Doors quickly painted over with Japlac black and metal-moth damage to the rear skirt was repaired (using metal from the aforesaid aircraft works scrap bin).
Used petrol,oil and water in the ratio 1:1:2 – great first car though.
Not mine in the picture – this one is a beauty!
By: Wyvernfan - 17th January 2010 at 09:51
Good thread baz. I passed my driving test in June 1985, and my first car was a 1965 Singer Chamois (pronounced sham-ee) GGX 277C in dark green with white pin stripe. I bought the car of my sister for £120, although six months before when she bought it for herself i couldn’t stop laughing at it, and promptly put a set of eight spoke white sports wheels and a louder exhaust on it :o. During my brief 6 month ownership of her i changed the engine after holing a piston, and constantly had to keep topping up the cooling fluid. But she was almost immaculate and recieved lots of polish and TLC… happy days.
After upgrading to a Marina 1.8 Deluxe (whoopee) i sold the Chamois back to my sister, and after her husband blew the engine up one night on the M11 i think she was scrapped, and i never got a pic of her :(. (here’s a pic of one from the tinternet).
By: Newforest - 17th January 2010 at 09:36
I see Dormobiles are jogging the old grey cells on a Sunday morning Bazv! My first was an Austin 8 of 1947 vintage, yours for 40 quid on a salary of 3.50. The good old days!:)
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January 17, 2010 at 9:25 am