I-Spy Classic Cars/Bikes-What have you spotted?

[addo]

Speaking of Kombis, I saw a split window crew cab bakky yesterday. That's fairly rare. It was a roughie.

[NewcastleFalcon]

I saw a split window crew cab bakky yesterday...... It was a roughie.

This one is a "smoothie" right?



and I imagine this is a "roughie"



Regards Neil

[Zelandeth]

Rolls for me will be a Silver Spirit - probably as late as I can get before they mucked the dash up (89 I think) as the fuel injection makes a big difference to economy and torque - and I have a poor history with SU carbs!

The Spirit hasn't got quite the same status as the Shadow yet, so is a cheaper car to buy (£10K should get you a really nice one) and is a bit easier to live with. The only things which kill either of them though really are rust, neglect and disuse. Parts are silly expensive, but you shouldn't need many as the cars are so over-engineered - just get one that's already had the hydraulic overhaul as that will lighten your wallet by about five grand!

I blame a friend for letting me borrow his for a weekend...was instantly hooked. Words like "handling" aren't in their vocabulary, but that's not what they are about...nothing else wafts along in such total comfort and feels so special. (Okay...never driven a CX, but would love to compare, and my Renault 25 Monaco came damn close for total comfort). Grace, space and pace are the words usually associated with Jag, but a Spirit has those all well covered...plant the foot and while there is nothing so crude as a kick in the back you will suddenly become distantly aware of being hurled down the road at quite an alarming rate of knots. Something that weighs over two tonnes has no right to accelerate anything like that rapidly. One of the few cars I would probably use the cruise control in on the motorway! It's so quiet and so smooth it is incredibly easy to find yourself wandering into triple digits without even trying. The owner tells me that the sweet spot on the Autobahn is about 115mph where it's happiest.

I've borrowed a lot of very exotic cars off Craig over the years, but that was one of the very few I was genuinely sad to have to give back. It just fits my preferred driving style so well.

[DickieG]

If you're ever looking to buy a pre BMW Rolls then make sure it's had the head gaskets replaced as they generally fail at 60k+, replacing them is a £5,000 bill.

[addo]

Why so much for a head service? Are they $1200 just for the gaskets or something?

Neil, the Kombi's condition was in-between those two. It had the Von Douche style rear pinstriping motif, and dented panels with slightly satined amateur paint, but no fake business logos or Porsche wheels. And your 400i tailend is marvellous! I passed on a very tidy one of them for $23K the other year, just couldn't swing it.

[CitroJim]

Saw an unusual one this morning. A really tidy MKIII Chavalier in red. How often do you see one of those now?

Also spotted a Blue XM in Hastings on the way to Malcolm's funeral...

[NewcastleFalcon]

A nice pair?



Regards Neil

[Stickyfinger]

I had one of those for a few months.....the early one, bloody slide fest of a car, just a little snip better than the Morris Marina

[CitroJim]

I had a MKIII Cavalier when the girls were little... Towed a big caravan with it and I have to be honest, it was a very competent family car. Did exactly what was expected of it but a bit dull and unexciting in cooking 1.8 form...

[NewcastleFalcon]

Vauxhall make 4 appearances in the selection of 120 cars in I-Spy Classic Cars. Thus we have the ancient Vauxhall Prince Henry, the Cresta PA spotted by MikeT, and these two:-

Vauxhall Calibra for a rather mean 10 points (even rarer than a MKIII Cavalier!)

Beneath the wind-cheating styling, the Cailbra shared its mechanical parts with the humble Vauxhall Cavalier. Despite the low roofline, the calibra's still a two-door full four seater, with a hatchback leading onto a roomy luggage compartment. Besides the standard 2.0 litre engine, there's a turbo edition, plus a 2.5 litre V6

Vauxhall Lotus Carlton 40 Points

The basic Carlton was a straightforward executive saloon, but once sports car specialist Lotus had been let loose on it, it had a 3.6 litre twin-turbo engine, a massive 377bhp on tap, and potential to reach 180mph; there's a six-speed gearbox too. The wide-wheels, side skirts and substantial spoilers identify it as a wolf in sheep's clothing!

regards Neil

[addo]

Spotted a fairly original Hillman Imp in black, today. Unlike Malcolm's Imp, it had not suffered a fire.

[CitroJim]

Spotted a fairly original Hillman Imp in black, today. Unlike Malcolm's Imp, it had not suffered a fire.

I always wanted an Imp... Still hanker for one now...

Malcolm's Imp featured in his eulogy at his funeral That car is now famous!

[NewcastleFalcon]

Only three of these were made so a bit unfair to put it up as a whatsthisthen? but and interesting variation on the Imp theme...



Those of you acquainted with the dark arts of whatsthisthen?ing will quite easily discover its identity from autotrader vehicle check and the sourceinfo for the image

regards Neil

[Stickyfinger]

Its a

IwanABEE a Lan-C-A
the Mk1 998cc one

some plastic on a Stiletto

[NewcastleFalcon]

.....and a rear-end view



regards Neil