Cars that I thought would not be shit but were

[Drum]

In defence of series Land Rovers, anyone who expects one to drive like a car is going to be disappointed. The were built as working vehicles for mainly off road use. Nothing could look at them until the hilux came along in 1968.

Even then, there was and still is nothing with the adaptability of the series. Any body style could be requested and with the power take off to front, back and bottom of the gear box, the applications were endless.








As for modern LRs I'll stick to td5 and earlier versions. They're still fixable for the amateur and not too expensive. Jap pick-ups are better at being cars but the L200 I had rotted for fun, chassis and body.

Anymore anti-series guff and I'll start 'invacar-ing' every thread with series Land Rover trivia.

[John F]

Nicely put, Drum.

[MRustbucket]

I drove a new Bentley Continental GT V8 back in 2014.

Priced at £125,000 or thereabouts, it was discernibly worse in almost all respects than my 1994 Vauxhall Calibra V6.

There was such a lot wrong with it IMO that I'm not going to list it all here, but the one thing I really disliked about it is that the steering did not become firmer at higher speeds. If I'd sneezed during a brief 3-figure blat down a local motorway I suspect I'd have ended up in the Armco.

I can quite believe this. The ability to register real qualities seems to have deserted car buyers. I drove an M sport BMW briefly yesterday- it was nicely made and had many attributes but seemed to fall down in the one area that I would expect to be a given on such a car- the engine felt and even sounded like a fucking diesel. I'm guessing it might be a direct injection, but whatever boxes it ticks on paper it didn't give me the slightest horn.

I have never driven it, but my sister-in-law has a Continental GT V8S on something like a '17 'plate. It's a deeply impressive thing as a passenger with incredible performance and comfort - and it sounds superb.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

I can't imagine an old Calibra being better than a Bentley somehow. They're not my thing, but anything hand built with a 550 bhp 12 cylinder motor is going to be reasonably good.

[John F]

I can't imagine an old Calibra being better than a Bentley somehow. They're not my thing, but anything hand built with a 550 bhp 12 cylinder motor is going to be reasonably good.

Yep, that's what I expected too (NB it was the V8, not the V12). But it was all about driving experience vs cost, and the Bentley just wasn't anywhere near as exciting as it should have been for the price. It didn't feel particularly fast or nimble from the driving seat, or indeed special in any other way except maybe in terms of opulence, but I found that a bit vulgar tbh.

On the other hand, the Calibra exceeded all of my expectations of a fast car that was £124,600 cheaper

[Junkman]

One buys a Bentley BECAUSE it is expensive.
It should not feel exciting, particularly fast or nimble, or indeed special in any way.
What it should do is provide the most relaxing way of travelling imaginable in total opulence.

Hence I think it was doing exactly what it was designed to do.

[John F]

One buys a Bentley BECAUSE it is expensive.
It should not feel exciting, particularly fast or nimble, or indeed special in any way.
What it should do is provide the most relaxing way of travelling imaginable in total opulence.

Hence I think it was doing exactly what it was designed to do.

I'd say that was a Rolls Royce, but even if you're right they shouldn't have added Fisher Price flappy paddles to the Bentley. It makes it look & feel like an early learning toy

[Hooli]

One buys a Bentley BECAUSE it is expensive.
It should not feel exciting, particularly fast or nimble, or indeed special in any way.
What it should do is provide the most relaxing way of travelling imaginable in total opulence.

Hence I think it was doing exactly what it was designed to do.

It just needs at high speed adding to that description to ensure people don't think you mean RR.

[Pandamonium]

Vw Golf Mk3.
I swapped a Rover 416si for one, and hated every minute.

I'm sure our resident AubergineRaftPerson would disagree, but it just felt wrong to me. Maybe that's why I broke it and ended up with a Mini on finance.

[Junkman]

Am I the only one who doesn't understand what you are trying to say?