Wood rimmed steering wheels
Overdrive
Driving gloves
No syncromesh on first gear
Foot operated headlight main beam/dip switch
Indicator stalk with illuminated winker on the end.
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Cars ravaged by corrosion. (1998-2001 mercedes rot like....................)
Politicians that tell the truth. (never seen them!)
Prudent Bankers. (never seen them either....)
People smoking in the pub. (all standing outside now!)
Tobacco advertising. (ummm its about if you look for it)
Motorists performing basic car maintenance. (I do.. and loads of people i know do)
People living within their means.
Any real innovation in car design.
Breakdowns. (really? more like less cars repaired on the roadside - most breakdowns are now dragged in to workshops, as they need new sensors and/or control units (which is why you see less 10+ year old cars - not viable to fix @ £1000 for an ECU))
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My car is approaching 13 years old, yet with a bit of t-cut it would look like a brand new car. This is a none galvijised Ford well knwon for Rust. 20 years ago a good care would be rusted through after 10 years.
I also agree that miss mathcing wings is a lot less common, 13 years ago all I ever used to see if Escort MK2 after Escort MK2 with miss matching wings and so much blue smoke the entire slreet stank, you could not get away with running a car like that anymoire.
I see so many N reg Firstas/Corsa/Polos but I have not seen an N reg BMW for ages, so it seems the suimple and cheaper cars actually last longer than more expensive ones. I assume this s becaus rthese cars wrre and still are so easy to fix.
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I see so many N reg Fiestas/Corsa/Polos but I have not seen an N reg BMW for ages
If you can afford to run an 'N' reg exec, chances are you can afford to buy a much newer one. A big, old car can consume its value in basic running costs within a year and that's before you consider the inevitable big bill.
An 'Autocar' journalist recently wrote a blog extolling the virtues of buying a 7 year old BMW M5 for £9k. Plenty of bangs for your buck I'm sure but it wont be cheap to run. £1k for tyres, group 20 insurance, sub 20mpg, £000's for suspension components etc. Nice car though..........
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Nice spelling by me after a few pints last night [not driving day].
But yep you are right, it is a shame at these cars end up scrapped when there is plenty of life left just because people can't afford to run them.
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There are, however, some great bargains to be had with second hand, larger cars. Even at nearly new, a Vauxhall Vectra is cheaper than the equivalent Astra which in turn is cheaper than a Corsa, It's all in reverse! If you buy at 5yrs old+, values are so low that you can afford to scrap it when you are hit with a big bill.
It is a shame that so many otherwise healthy cars must be scrapped, but it is this very expectation that makes for some terrific bargains.
P.S. What's a 'galvijised' Ford when it's at home!!!
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Couple more thoughts on this,
Agree that it's unusual to see DIY servicing or repairs on driveways and the side of the road.
People willing to stop and help other motorists seems rare now, I remember my step dad's seirra breaking down in the early nineties and many other motorists stopping to offer help, whereas a couple of years ago I had a flat battery and even with my 5 year old daughter with me hardly anyone would stop.
Must say that despite the bashing white van drivers get, they do seem to be the only people willing to stop and help.
Personaly I make a point of helping anyone who appears to be having car trouble. Mostly it's a flat battery or an alloy wheel they can't remove because of the locking wheel nut.
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Punters in new car showrooms
Car salesmen/women cashing large cheques at month end
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Free glasses with petrol.
College car parks with only a few cars and those owned by the teachers.
People actually wearing "night driving" specs.
"Play streets" where cars were prohibited.
British cars designed to look as though they were made in Detroit.
Column gear changes.
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Bald tyres, let alone tyres so bald that they are showing canvas or the alarming gleam of unravelling woven steel bracing under the tread.
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Good point Lud......that reminds me....I really must get around to.......
:-(
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Suede nodding dogs on the back sill. Come to think of it, back sills.
Citroen 2CVs.
Petrol pump attendants.
Petrol pump attendants offering you Ralgex.
AA Men saltuting you.
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Petrol pump attendants offering you Ralgex.
PMSL, don't you mean REDEX?
Ralgex is the stuff you rub on muscle sprains!
One thing you rarely see.... hitch-hikers.
Edited by Harleyman on 22/11/2008 at 15:44
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Come to think of it I can't remember the the last time I saw Radox either, but that of course is nothing to do with motoring. Or Cremola Foam but neither is that..........
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Crowds of people standing on the footbridge of a motorway service station, clamouring to get a good view of this new-fangled 'Motor-Highway'.
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Cremola Foam.
Funny you should mention that. It just so happens . . .
Perhaps not. As you say, we'd better to motoring.
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Are you Scottish perchance Tyro ?
Cortina
Sierra
Mondeo
( motoring connection )
;-)
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Are you Scottish perchance Tyro ?
What would put that notion into your head? :-)
The following link has a reference at the top to Scottish Motors Today - tinyurl.com/6hoqjv
Actually, I have no knowledge of the stuff. It's my wife who talks about it. Not that she was that enthusiastic.
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To be fair, it was disgusting. Parents used to try to pass it off as proper pop but it never fooled any kids. Complaining resulted in pain however and discreet disposal was an art learned at an early age.......
They made Imps in Scotland.
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They made Imps in Scotland.
Aye, there's something you definitely don't see any more. I couldn't tell you when I last saw one.
Yes, my wife definitely prefered proper pop. Cremola Custard, on the other hand, was rather good - or so she tells me.
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Attendant hand pumped two stroke pumps. I remember a Shell version with a long glass gallery across the top - where you could see the darkish oil mixing with the petrol as it was pumped out.
Old retired Bert on the pump - going puce in the face pumping the lever and getting too much oil in the mix as it needed refilling with petrol. Yes, a mobile pump, wheeled out.
I got a free tank of fuel for the old Bond mini car when the garage owner found what he had done. Being 16 of course I enjoyed blanketing the village with the resulting blue smoke of about an 8 to 1 mix..
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When I was driving the Wartburg and had the misfortune to pull into a filling station with a hand-pump for two-stroke mixture it was usually made clear to me that I could have a gallon to keep me going or pump it myself if I wanted any more. Happy days.
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Did you really have a Bond Minicar oilrag? A cyclecar well after its time, and quite alarming with it... no reverse gear I seem to remember, but could 'turn on a sixpence' with its driven front wheel on full lock, which may have been more than 90 degrees from straight ahead... A friend had one and drove it with brio on London's roads which in those days had lots of patches of woodblocks, cobbles and the odd tramline showing through...
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Any of Laurie Bond's creations.
Apart from Oilrags Minicar, there was the Berkely, and the Bond 875 - I really fancied one of them, effectively an 8cwt Imp.
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Had my first crash in a (four-wheel) Berkeley. My fault, result of total inexperience. Responsive, zippy motorbike engine and gearbox, front wheel drive and a sort of swing-axle rear suspension could lead to throttle-off sudden oversteer, Yarooh! Kerwhump!
Very, very embarrassing. I am trying not to remember it all as I write.
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PMSL don't you mean REDEX?
snipquote
LMAO - yep, I meant Redex.
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 22/11/2008 at 20:44
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Classic Coca Cola machines with glass bottles of Coke inside. I saw one a few years back in a garage near Carmel in California. It made me smile.
I still swear that ice cold Coke out of a glass bottle tastes superior to anything out of a can or a plastic bottle.
Surely, glass bottles are more recyable?.
When I was a kid my Grandad used to send me off to the newsagents with old Coke bottles and old Corona bottles. I would get some pennies in exchange and then return with bottles of dandelion & burdock, lemonade, limeade and occasionally cherryade. Sometimes I made a mistake and picked up cream soda instead of lemonade - sour yuck!
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One thing you rarely see.... hitch-hikers.
Indeed.
I picked up one at lunchtime today. First one I've seen in ages.
He was on his way to town, and looked a decent sort, and no problems.
Is people's mistrust so great, or have the yoff generation decided to stay at home/have cars/can afford a rail or bus ticket?
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Empty roads.
Plenty in Lincolnshire.
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