My first car was a 1963 red Austin Countryman version, bought for £70 in 1977. Due to it’s half timbered nature it’s the only car I’ve ever had that had woodworm.
It’s mighty 850cc engine took me on many adventures, including being snowed in on the edge of Dartmoor for over a week, having only gone there for an overnight stay. This was in the big snowfall of early 1978. I didn’t even see the car for many days as the tin “garage” it was parked in was covered by a snow drift, as was the tiny generator shed, the generator being the only source of power for the ex-army wriggly tin bungalow that was my accommodation.
Looking back I can’t quite believe that I used to tour a small theatre lighting rig in it.
P.S. Top of the silly modern car names for me is the Renault Kadjar…
Oh yes. With a mate I ran a small part time 2nd hand car business and, in order to make more money we offered space on our site to anyone who had a decent vehicle to sell but not the time to cope with buyers.
Thus I used to go home every night in a variety of desirable vehicles, and a Rapier was one of them. Another was a Jag but the most memorable, because I had migrated from my one and only motorbike as soon as I passed the car test, was a Triumph Bonneville. I climbed onto it for my first night home after it arrived expecting it to be little different to my old 250 Beezer.
I nearly ended up sitting in the road as I opened the throttle and slid rapidly backwards on to the pillion seat.
My first car. 1500cc MK1 Cortina bought for £240 in 1972. Note the modifications to front bumper achieved with a hacksaw, bullet shaped wing mirrors and fake wire wheels. Was pulled by police on 2 occasions for the front number plate on the bonnet as it seems it had to be vertical to the road.
Never raced with it but the number on the door and the mounted spots on the front made me feel like a racing driver.
My dad’s first car too, same colour but no spotlights etc. I remember it being very roomy for us all but unfortunately mr.rusty paid a visit and it was changed for our first ever brand new family transport.
My life on wheels started with a pram, then a tandem sidecar, (enthusiastic cyclist parents), then brother came along and Dad got a second-hand Ariel Square Four motorbike + sidecar, then later our first family car, a second-hand Morris saloon.
It’s not so much that but the fact that the swept area would leave a fairly unswept triangle top right of the driver’s vision, instead of flattening against the right hand border of the screen. Just wondered, never drove them much.
A quick peruse online suggests anything form just over a grand to north of £20k for “3-digits 3-letters” plates - though quite how they figure out that “574 LEY” is supposedly worth £26k and “574 ETR” is worth a miserly £1500 I have no idea.
Surely the value to an individual depends on the personal connection?
FWIW the new car does have a personalised plate - we were trying to think of something that “'t missus” could buy me for my birthday and it seemed like a good idea.
No, we did not blow four or five figures on it
Edit - of course 574 would be number plate speak for “STA” so I suppose “574LEY” could be bought by a “STA(N)LEY”. I’m with Jeremy Clarkson on that particular game with number plates.
Completely impossible in France, of course. I’m sure the system is designed so you can’t get anything which could remotely spell a word, even by accident.
Hah, that’s bringing back memories and I seem to recall some had a foot pump for the screen wash.
We had a Humber Sceptre which was very flash with little sliding shades to dim some of the warning lights.
Thank you, I think the point has been made, possibly on the grounds of cheapitty the holes for the wiper shafts are equi-distant from the centre, presumably so that nothing extra needs to be done for LHD models.
An example of what is needed, but is dearer, is right alongside on the RHD Fiat with wipers located advantageously.
@billybutcher my 2 cars bear French plates VT (video-tape) and CH (lots of possibilities). Neither very inspiring though I must admit. Or valuable.
Yers, same for the Spitfire, which was really a Herald in wolf’s clothing. One of my uncle’s had Herald. It had vicious swing axel rear suspension as.of course, did the Spitfire.
And so did Porsches.
Dennis Jenkinson (Jenks) the late great Motorsport journalist and Porsche enthusiast describes sawing at the steering wheel to wobble his 365 around bends as he travelled from GP to GP around Europe.
Edit… I was referring to the model mini’s opening door and bonnet. Highly prized features for Corgies and Dinkys back in the day
Or valuable. 
Porsches.