1963/4 Ford Corsair 1500 deluxe . Family car which my parents gave to me upon purchase of new Datsun 120Y estate in French Blue. Corsair was a great intro into fixing bodywork and mechanical issues. Was driving that until the bodywork dissolved. Mechanically ran like a top. Rusted away. Now it seemed quick at the time but it was heavy and only had I guess 70bhp? In every respect modern cars miles better. But I still miss that car.

Viva HB in peacock blue, passed my test in whilst in the Army in Blandford. Went all over in it and it was a nice car for £400. Eventually blew the engine and traded it in, the garage gave it to an apprentice to fix....must have done a good job as I saw it 20 odd years later when visiting Blandford again.

I bought a Viva estate 1981 car kept stalling and run rough, bloke I bought it from kept throwing money at it but couldn`t cure it, I bought new fuel pump which was a common problem on those and kept me going for 2 years, its still going which surprised me

but first car was A40, learnt to drive in, but was a wreck and was given to me by my dad as he got it through MOT, but rusted so quick I couldn`t keep up so scrapped it, then bought Austin 1300 which I wrote off because off mixed tyres in the wet

It was an original Nissan Micra bought at 54k miles and ran until just shy of 100k. It was used every single day for 4 years until it developed a smoking habit.

Highlights included driving 7 miles from home with no clutch to have a new one fitted.

Contrary to earlier Japanese stuff it only had a bit of rust around the aerial on the wing.

Red with a tan interior including dashboard, yeuch!

If I could go back knowing what I know now I would’ve found a bit more money and bought an SR Nova or Peugeot 205 XS. I’d love a clean example of either today. That Rover 213S my uncle had from new was immaculate and ran for years after but I stupidly fell for the go faster graphics and Rev counter on the MG.

I've had a few heart over head moments for sure..blinded by a mix of stupidity and inexperience.

Initially I got lucky when I bought a Lancia Fulvia which I adored and SO wish I'd got it today (and in the same condition)..brilliant car to drive and had no trouble with it at all in the couple of years I had it...fast forward and a few cars later my "need" for something different led me to another Fulvia...bought it..and it was a dog..tin worm and oil leaks..the lot.!

Took me a while to recover from that and the financial loss it brought, and it took me a few cars on before I got back on track with a little more knowledge and experience to a decent car...lesson learnt.

Edited by nellyjak on 30/05/2021 at 09:03

Ford Classic 1340 de luxe . Grossly underpowered for the heavy body and bought from the main Ford dealer under their A1 approved scheme.

Almost everything went wrong and the engine started knocking. My work colleague typed a letter to Ford at Dagenham complaining, which was unheard of in 1963 and the car was recovered for an engine rebuild and courtesy car provided.

ideal car for teenage romances as it had two front seats which joined in the middle. First production car with four headlights and disc brakes. But when the wiper motor went the rack had to be taken down from under the dash.

Managed to seize up the oil ways with gasket paste so the engine top end rattled until I swapped the rocker gear for a broken down Classic we had at the M1 service area where I worked.

Sold for £100 and scrapped shortly after.

A ten year old Ford Anglia 100E. Fifty pounds - ripped off! Earned its keep being thrashed 30miles a day return trip to Leeds Uni with four-up; a feasible commute in the late 60s with free student parking, no speed cameras, few safety markings and central traffic islands to preclude hairy overtaking on those wide Yorkshire main roads (why are they so ridiculously narrow down south?). Eventually written off after an icy collision with a Volvo - a Chaplinesque disintegration into a pile of rust leaving me sitting on a seat holding a steering wheel. The Volvo had a slight dent.

First car was a VW Beetle 1302S, though it was a project with which my enthusiasm greatly exceeded my ability and resources, so it never made it to the road!.

First car I both owned and drove on the road, was a 1977 Fiesta 1100. An awful car which I grew to hate, it sounded like a bucket of nails and as I found out later, had a rather high filler content!.

Second car though, that, I wish I still had. A 1985 Lada 1600 with twin headlights, alloy wheels, red velour upholstery, and opening quarter lights!. Paid £30 for it.

My first car was a 1969 mini complete with non locking sliding drivers window I remember the first night I’d got it fearing it was going to be nicked at any moment, it did a sixteen, yes sixteen hour overnight journey to Cornwall in convoy with my gf ,her family ,and their friends,who got us lost, it did teach me about car maintenance though,and it was the start to my love of fixing cars, a bit of fun though when I decided to upgrade the stereo only to find out it was positive earth, traded it in for ….an Austin allegro

Bronze 1977 Cortina 2.0S

See my username! Two A35s in succession - Countryman followed by van converted with rear windows. Both died of rust. The jacking system consisted of a hole in the sill where the jack was inserted. Raising the jack merely raised the hole, leaving the sill and the car at the original height.

Amazing what (how many) you could pack into them. Brakes more imagination that real, especially in reverse, highly entertaining in steep hills where the handbrake was of next to no value.