Where And When Did You Grow Up And What Sort Of Wob Lived On Your Street?

Talk about your cars etc here. Keep it sort of sensible and on topic please.
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Re: Where And When Did You Grow Up And What Sort Of Wob Lived On Your Street?

Post by bub2006 »

1500 cortina towing sounds worse than my dads 1750 maximum. We always went touring with my dads parents. (Really his grandparents but he was raised with them so seen them as parents) my grandfather died in 1999 but I can remember a few of his cars. He first had a granny mk2 2.8 ghia which he swapped for a comma camper. He couldnt stand the camper so that was sold for a nearly new A plate sierra 2.0 GL auto. We were in our way to vauxhall holiday park when we pulled up in a greasy spoon yarmouth side of Norfolk,I forget where as I was so young but my dad had a white 2200 princess and he'd lost my grandad somewhere. He pulled up and unhitched our van to go look for him. Just as he was pulling out onto the road my grandad pulled in in a cloud of smoke. The head gasket had gave out on the sierra. My dad first towed our van with my mum,mums mum,his mum and me and our sister to yarmouth to return back and pick grandads van up. On the third trip he towed in my grandads stricken sierra. Him and my grandad swapped the Sierras engine on the campsite and that was the last time my grandad went in his own van as he was in his 70s now and he was told in 1960 he had 6 months to live. This was around 1992 and his health wasnt great. When we got home he sold his sierra and caravan and bought a 1990 G plate volvo 340 variomatic.
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Re: Where And When Did You Grow Up And What Sort Of Wob Lived On Your Street?

Post by paulplom »

I grew up on a pretty deprived council estate in Blyth Northumberland. From about '76 till '86 then my mother bought a house in a better area.
Cars were rare in our street back then and few people had them. One that stuck out was a b reg nova in that blue colour they did. My best mate's dad bought it new and he still had it into the 2000's and may still have it as far as I know.
My step dad always ran end of life cars and vans as he bred and raced greyhounds and whippets. I spent most of my travelling with my stepsister in the back of mk1 and mk2 escort vans. I can remember a purple marina and a turquoise 120y. That was my favourite and I thought it looked very sporty at the time. I remember when he financed his first decent car which was a three year old beige x reg metro hle. He kept that for years and replaced it with a c reg gold metro vandan plas. First car I'd ever seen with central locking. I can remember driving that one so he must have kept that one quite a while as well.
The first time I was arrested was in the beige metro. I used to push it off the drive and down the street and go for joyrides at 3am. I got pulled eventually and locked up. He had to say I'd nicked it or he would've been done for letting me. 8 points and a fine before I'd even passed my test.
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Re: Where And When Did You Grow Up And What Sort Of Wob Lived On Your Street?

Post by AMCrebel »

Plenty of power and torque available for towing with a 2 speed 'glide. Not a lot of high speed motoring - not necessarily a bad thing given older braking systems.
My Chevy has the 2 speed glide - I did drive it briefly and (and illegally) after I bought it - was very surprised how good it went considering only two speeds.

It is fitted with a towbar :)
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Re: Where And When Did You Grow Up And What Sort Of Wob Lived On Your Street?

Post by Hooli »

I recall reading about the Pontiac GTO with a two speed auto. The original road test in Car said it was interesting when driven as cornering quickly & accelerating out resulted in it shifting down & going sideways every time.
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Re: Where And When Did You Grow Up And What Sort Of Wob Lived On Your Street?

Post by hennabm »

I grew up in a cul de sac on a council estate during the late sixties/early seventies.
Cars in the street were very few but those I remember are,
pre Arrows Singer Vogue - looking sorry for itself.
Original type Skoda Felicia - looking even sadder.
Saab 93(IIRC) - definitely the two stroke version.
Occasionally one occupant at the top of the close brought home a RR Shadow. He was the chauffeur for a textile company boss.
Morris Minor 1966 vintage.

My own family could not afford a car for many years and the only form of transport my dad had was a Raleigh Wisp. This was bought new in 1967. It lasted until 1973 when he bought a new Honda 90.

In 1976 he graduated to a 1971 Reliant Supervan III and paid purchase tax to have the side windows installed.

Soon after I started buying my own vehicles and started with a 1968 Triumph Herald estate.
1982 323i
1989 ovlov 240
1990 320i - no more
02 X5 3.0i - sold
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11 X3 3.0d
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Re: Where And When Did You Grow Up And What Sort Of Wob Lived On Your Street?

Post by The Reverend Bluejeans »

My road from 1970 to 1979 in Zummserzet had near enough every variant of Escort Mark 1 including our Mexico from 73-77. Down the road an early F reg 1100 Deluxe, a 1300 Sport in the same Monza blue as our Mexico, a couple of the 7CWT vans, an estate and a 1300E in that metallic purple velvet.
Friends across the road had all kinds of bangers - Austin 1800 Mark 1, an Audi 100 and then a 1970 200D Merc. Loads of Maxis, 1100, Minis (we had two or three).

There were very few expensive cars then despite being a quaint middle class area. Only three BMW's, a silver 3.0S saloon a farmer owned, a 2002 Targa cabriolet and a red 520 E12 on a V plate that was new. That's when they were something a bit special as opposed to the mass produced stuff made now. Mercedes were very rare and prized. Such a pity how they have ruined it all, selling cheap hatchbacks on finance.

An XJ6 such as the damson red Daimler Series 2 the local garage owner drove was an object of lust.
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Re: Where And When Did You Grow Up And What Sort Of Wob Lived On Your Street?

Post by The Reverend Bluejeans »

The first house I recall from 1970 to 1979 - it's the left hand one with the Veccy outside. My Dad made the '77' house number sign which is still there.

Dad's first car was a 1965 Austin Mini in Maroon B, replaced as we moved here by a 1966 Morris Mini Cooper in OEW over Island blue. That was replaced in 1972 by a 1970 1275GT in Glacier white. He wanted a Cooper S but Mum wanted 'the new shape'. :roll:
After that came a 6 month old 1973 Mexico. He drove various cars and thought most of them were shit. Marina TC, Dolomite 1850HL and an Escort 1300GT. The Avenger Tiger was just too showy even then. The Mexico was the only car in that price bracket that drove like a proper car with go kart steering and handling.
The Escort was replaced in 1977 by a 1976 Capri 2000S which was okay.
Mum's cars were a 1962 Cooper bought for £60 in 1972 with a fucked engine. They were good friends with an American mechanic called Bill Mather who worked at the local BLMC dealer, Vincents in Yeovil. he bought and sold cars and bought the rotten 1100/1300 trade ins and write offs to do Mini engine swaps. The Cooper received the engine from a 1966 MG1100 and it was painted red from the roof down. That was replaced in 1974 by the 1275GT and she ran that until 1978 when it was replaced by a new Polo.

So, the house of the right was one by a lovely old dear called Miss Conn. When she passed away in 1976, who should move in but Jock Henderson.

Who?

Jock was the sales director for AC Cars from 1932 to 1967 and the Cobra era. He was a good source of stories but I was too young to appreciate them though.
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Re: Where And When Did You Grow Up And What Sort Of Wob Lived On Your Street?

Post by The Reverend Bluejeans »

In 1979, we moved here - same small town, bigger house. The Capri and Polo were still here but in 1980 the Capri was replaced by a proper one, the 3000S. One of Dad's favourite cars. Black, Recaro seats, the X Pack suspension (similar to that fitted to the later 2.8i) and 6x13 RS alloys. A serious car at the time. That was sold in 1981 when his first company car arrived, a two year old 1700HL Princess that already had 80,000 on the clock. That was the first comfortable car I rode in. The Polo was replaced in 1982 by a new Golf GTi and shortly after, Dad changed jobs to BMW in Bracknell. This was the first company car, a basic spec 520i manual in metallic burgundy red.
This is where the BMW thing comes from. This is when they were quite expensive, superbly constructed and made Ford, GM and BL stuff look like junk. To think BL were trying to compete with the SD1 Rover 2000 with that wheezing carburettor O Series donk, approximate panel fit and a live rear axle. Good luck with that.

Where the 1 Series is in the recent pic, you can just see the corner of my 1967 Mini.
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Re: Where And When Did You Grow Up And What Sort Of Wob Lived On Your Street?

Post by mercrocker »

The Reverend Bluejeans wrote: Mon Oct 26, 2020 8:17 pm

Jock was the sales director for AC Cars from 1932 to 1967 and the Cobra era. He was a good source of stories but I was too young to appreciate them though.

Blimey, right through the Hurlock era. Bet he certainly could tell some tales.....
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Re: Where And When Did You Grow Up And What Sort Of Wob Lived On Your Street?

Post by The Reverend Bluejeans »

Sadly he missed the 3000ME, one of my favourites. I never cared much for Cobras but understand the following.
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