Cars I have owned

[Hawkey01]

This is not a boast but just that I have always been a bit of a petrol head and liked changing my transport. Not always for the better I may add as some of them were not much fun. My father also changed his cars fairly often.
I think that the list is fairly accurate in were they came in order.

First car a 1953 Ford Anglia - not too much fun but my first car!
Morris Van converted to estate car as was fairly common back in the 60's.
1725 Hillman Minx.
Cortina Mk2 not strictly mine as it was a company vehicle when I tried being a rep. Not a good idea as it happened.
Austin 1800.
Rover 2000. both these when I tried my hand at private hire. Again too early for this idea.
3 x MGB's - the first was a three bearing crank engine so an early model. Loved all of them.
MGB GT.
Ford Capri 3000 - a flyer.
Ford Cortina MK2 GT. Fun until I blow the engine up coming off M5 after long run at high speed.
Riley Kestrel - Not quite an old mans car as had twin carbs and was fairly quick. Beautiful interior - leather and wood.
Minx Estate - the MGB at the time had to go as son had arrived! Terrible car in all ways.
Grenada MK1 - Grenada MK2 and a Grenada MK3 Ghia.
Sierra S - Full Cosworth body kit and de badged. Just like the real thing and was quick but not quite up to the Cosworth!
Nissan Sunny - My biggest error - it did not last very long.
Ford XR2i - Really a fun car.
Escort MK3 Ghia.
Nissan Primera GT - Wonderful car.
Citroen Picasso - Another big error - brand new and it spent a lot of time in local agents having new front seat - radiator and something to do with drive joints. It did not last too long.
Nissan Primera 2004 - Another good car. When I came to change for another one they had discontinued it.
Nissan Xtrail.
Skoda Superb - it really was Superb. Many long runs to France and Spain. A great pleasure to drive.
Skoda Yeti 4x4 - Excellent.
Skoda Yeti Laurin and Klement. Talked into changing buy dealer with an offer I could not refuse for the first of our Karoq's
Skoda Karoq SEL Dsg. Excellent.
Skoda Karoq Sportline Dsg- the current vehicle and I love it. All the Skodas have been excellent without any trouble.

So having bored you with this I will finish to say I did consider an electric car but so glad I did fall into the trap of battery anxiety and expense. Long live petrol/diesel.

Neville

[OLDGIT77]

Originally Posted by Hawkey01

This is not a boast but just that I have always been a bit of a petrol head and liked changing my transport. Not always for the better I may add as some of them were not much fun. My father also changed his cars fairly often.
I think that the list is fairly accurate in were they came in order.

First car a 1953 Ford Anglia - not too much fun but my first car!
Morris Van converted to estate car as was fairly common back in the 60's.
1725 Hillman Minx.
Cortina Mk2 not strictly mine as it was a company vehicle when I tried being a rep. Not a good idea as it happened.
Austin 1800.
Rover 2000. both these when I tried my hand at private hire. Again too early for this idea.
3 x MGB's - the first was a three bearing crank engine so an early model. Loved all of them.
MGB GT.
Ford Capri 3000 - a flyer.
Ford Cortina MK2 GT. Fun until I blow the engine up coming off M5 after long run at high speed.
Riley Kestrel - Not quite an old mans car as had twin carbs and was fairly quick. Beautiful interior - leather and wood.
Minx Estate - the MGB at the time had to go as son had arrived! Terrible car in all ways.
Grenada MK1 - Grenada MK2 and a Grenada MK3 Ghia.
Sierra S - Full Cosworth body kit and de badged. Just like the real thing and was quick but not quite up to the Cosworth!
Nissan Sunny - My biggest error - it did not last very long.
Ford XR2i - Really a fun car.
Escort MK3 Ghia.
Nissan Primera GT - Wonderful car.
Citroen Picasso - Another big error - brand new and it spent a lot of time in local agents having new front seat - radiator and something to do with drive joints. It did not last too long.
Nissan Primera 2004 - Another good car. When I came to change for another one they had discontinued it.
Nissan Xtrail.
Skoda Superb - it really was Superb. Many long runs to France and Spain. A great pleasure to drive.
Skoda Yeti 4x4 - Excellent.
Skoda Yeti Laurin and Klement. Talked into changing buy dealer with an offer I could not refuse for the first of our Karoq's
Skoda Karoq SEL Dsg. Excellent.
Skoda Karoq Sportline Dsg- the current vehicle and I love it. All the Skodas have been excellent without any trouble.

So having bored you with this I will finish to say I did consider an electric car but so glad I did fall into the trap of battery anxiety and expense. Long live petrol/diesel.

Neville

Hi . Neville .

Same as you . over the years had a lot of different make cars .
Only SKODA i had was a early one with engine in the rear .

My brother has always had SKODA,s he loves them . so reliable.

Take care .

Tony

[Dartskipper]

You may have started something here Neville, and I don't mean a car! By coincidence I was recently thinking of all the vehicles I have owned (or driven) over the years. Growing up on the borders of Essex and the London suburbs, I could get anywhere fairly conveniently by public transport and so never felt the need to get a driving licence. When the family moved to Devon in 1970, the Devon General Omnibus Company and Western National got me anywhere I needed to be, and so I didn't learn to drive until I arrived in the USA in 1975. The procedure to secure a driving licence where I settled consisted of a full ("Bend over, cough!") medical examination and eyesight test, followed by questions on the State Highway Code, and negotiating an obstacle course in the State Police barracks. So what follows are what I owned or drove over the next 8 years.

1968 Chevrolet walk-in van, body by Grumman. Petrol engine, two speed automatic transmission.

1969 Pontiac GTO convertible. V8 400 Cu.Ins. petrol, automatic transmission. Great fun, very quick, hated corners.

1972 GMC Walk-in van. V8 350 Cu. Ins. petrol, 3 speed automatic.

1965 Buick Riviera. 401 Cu.Ins petrol, 3 speed automatic. Remarkably quiet and smooth. I actually had two, one with a very good body but misfiring engine, the other had an excellent engine but rotted out body. Swapped engines, scrapped the bad one and enjoyed the other until an enthusiast made me a nice offer.

1975 Chrysler Cordoba. V8 400 Cu.Ins. 3 speed automatic. A one owner car from new. It had a slightly noisy differential, but many Chryslers of this era had the same trouble. Very good car on the Interstate, but mpg figures didn't really help the fuel crisis at that time.

1982 Grumman/ Olsen bodied Chevrolet walk - in van.V8 350 cu ins., 3 speed auto. Built to order, excellent workhorse.

During my years in the States I also drove the following. Various station wagons (estates); Ford LTD, Ford Torino, Oldsmobile 98, plus cars such as Buick Skylark, Oldsmobile Cutlass, '73 Chevrolet Corvette (not a very good one), '72 Pontiac Firebird ( a bit short on headroom, I'm over 6ft tall.) Honda Civic, VW Scirocco, an MG Midget, as well as various farm tractors on my friend's farm.

I returned home in 1983 after selling up my business and everything else to start all over again. Settling back home in Torquay I bought a licensed fishing and passenger boat and needed something to carry the gear in. My brother in Lincolnshire told me that his employer was selling some vehicles including a Renault 12 estate. This proved to be an interesting vehicle, being typically French having a soft suspension but great carrying capacity. Sadly the rear suspension mountings had corroded beyond repair so it was scrapped after about 9 months use and replaced with a very nice Triumph 1300 front wheel drive. I sold this after moving to Seaton having sold the boat and house in Torquay. Then I drove the following, the first two related to my Off-Licence business.

VW Passat 1800 petrol estate. 4 speed manual. Excellent vehicle.
Ford Cortina MkIV Estate, 2.0 Litre Pinto engine, automatic. Great workhorse.

After selling the business following the Black Wednesday stock market crash, I found employment selling industrial chemicals with the use of a company car.

Ford Escort Mk IV, diesel, manual. Absolutely horrible car. Noisy, dreadful understeer, and on cold mornings if the engine didn't fire (even after deploying the glow plugs) the battery wasn't strong enough for a second attempt at starting. I got my manager to exchange it for something else.
Vauxhall Astra, 1.8 petrol, manual. Very good and a joy after the Escort. On the road it felt like a larger car than it actually was.

The job didn't work out as I expected so resigned and went to work in food production. My next car was a Mini Clubman Automatic. Interesting. I shall leave it at that!
Vauxhall Cavalier MKII 1.8 petrol. Very easy car to drive, and easy to see why it was such a popular car for sales reps.

1984 Jaguar Series III XJ6 4.2 Sovereign. A keeper. In fact I kept it for 27 years, selling it when I retired. I believe a gentleman in Scotland is enjoying it now.

In 1995 I saw a job advertised that looked interesting so applied for an interview that was successful, and found myself back in the world of selling industrial chemicals, this time for a really good employer. What follows are the company cars that went with the job.

1994 Rover 420 diesel. Rebadged Honda, nice car to drive but a noisier engine than I would have liked. It was a "hand me down" from another rep. so probably not what I would have chosen for myself.

1996 Rover 418 petrol. From the era when Rover cars were in deep trouble financially. The car was another rebadged Honda Civic, but with the Rover developed 4 cylinder petrol motor. When everything was in good order, it was great. But there always seemed to be something breaking or leaking (cylinder head seals, air conditioning hose) electrical gremlins, and a large appetite for headlamp bulbs. In fact, on the journey home from collecting it at the office in Bridgwater I had to stop at the first sevices at Sedgmoor on the M5 to tighten up the battery connections.This car also chewed through front tyres like no other car I ever drove, despite regularly checking the alignment..

1999 Peugeot 406 1.8 petrol. Manual 5 speed. A really excellent workhorse, comfortable, reliable and enjoyable to drive. Doing over 30,000 miles per year, the only thing that needed fixing was a component in the fuel system that developed a fault which made the engine stall when approaching a roundabout or junction.

2002 Peugeot 406 2.0 TDI diesel. A run out model with most of the top gizmos. If anything it was livelier than my previous petrol 406.
The company was being prepared for selling off and downsizing the workforce and so I was offered a very nice redundancy package. My car was assigned to a colleague who needed a newer car. He had also driven a 406 so was quite happy.
(I met him at a reunion gathering a couple of years later and he told me that the 406 was no more but it had saved his life. He had been heading North on the M6 early one morning and got side swiped by a lorry he was overtaking. His 406 was punted right across the centre barrier and opposite carriageway, ending up down a bank in the brambles. The only damage to himself were some scratches on his hands and wrists when he tried getting out of the wreck!)

After redundancy I bought a 1983 Mercedes 180 SL petrol automatic to tide me over until my next job. Here follows a list of company supplied cars over the next 17 years.

VW 1.8 Corrado. Ugghhhh. No headroom, no legroom, just "no."

Toyota 2.0 Avensis. Really nice comfortable car, but had a noisy issue in the transmission, especially in first gear.

Mazda 6 petrol Automatic. Enjoyable to drive, comfortable and quiet, but not terribly economical.

Renault Laguna Extreme. (I think.) Anyway, it was extremely horrible. Suspension so hard it might just as well not had any. I was driving to a customer in High Wycombe and hit a small pothole and the CD player jumped a track. The only time that it has ever happened to me. I'm not a fan of Renault cars or engineering I'm afraid.

After complaining continuously about the Laguna, my Manager offered me the car of a rep who was leaving the company, and so I got to enjoy for two years an......

Alfa Romeo 156 1.8 Lusso Twin Spark. Yaaayyyyy!!!! Loved it!

Then the company took the government's advice and went diesel.

Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 TDI. Run out model before the Insignia. The Vectra was reliable, not even a couple of bad snow storms could stop it. Very comfortable and roomy, it was really an SRI in all but name.

Vauxhall Insignia 1.9 TD A little more basic than the Vectra, but still a very good car. Racked up 100,000 miles without any fuss.

2016 Vauxhall Insignia Elite TDI Nav. The best of the bunch. When I retired my boss offered it to me at a very attractive price and it's sitting on my driveway.

Thinking about my retirement about 18 months before it happened, I found a 2001 Jaguar X Type SE, the 2.5 V6 model developed when Jaguar was owned by Ford. Built on the Mondeo platform, it had 4 wheel drive and the sporty automatic 5 speed transmission. It needed the usual repair to both sills, but with very low mileage it drove extremely well. I sold it after I bought my former company Insignia.

My favourite cars? The Jaguar XJ6 Sovereign, Alfa Romeo 156, Peugeot 406, the Insignia on my driveway, and that Pontiac GTO convertible.

[Makko]

Oh dear! Here I go.......

Renault 16 - Great fun and good workhorse. Manual
VW Brasilia - A piece of crud that I bought cheap. Boy, was it bad! Manual.
Chevrolet Malibu straight six, three speed manual. Swapped the TX for a Hurst box. A bit of a handful at times.
Dodge Dart E - Excellent car, loads of space. After a botched service at the agency, they blueprinted the engine at the Chrysler factory in Toluca. Good car. Manual, 5 sp, 2.2 litre. At the same time, Renault 21 LTD, lovely car, crashed into when parked by a drunk. 2 litre 5 sp. manual. Replacement was a Volare, a Dodge K rebadged. 2.2 litre five sp manual. We replaced the bench front seat with Recaro seats. Great car until a legally blind old lady pulled out 10 metres in front of me on a main road - Rhinoplasty to put my nose back together. Replacement was a Chrysler Shadow 2.5 litre automatic. Absolutely great car, very flexible re PAX and cargo, a joy to drive.
Swapped the Dart E for a Chrysler Phantom, 2.5 litre turbocharged engine (ex Lotus) automatic, "Personal Luxury Car" (badged as Le Baron in USA). Crap tyres but large alloy rims, fast, handled a bit "long" and really chugged gas at high speed. I once outran the Federal Police when speeding from Mexico City to Queretaro (198 Kms.), making it in one hour.
During this time, I also leased two Alfa Romeo 164's in Italy. The first was a straight six, manual. Great fun. I then got a 164 single turbo. Both were twin sparks and I put some serious clicks on them, eeveen doing once Paris to Liverpool on one tank of gas.
After that, I took work in the UK from 2001 to 2006.
I had a company Vectra, I think 3 litre, estate. A nice roomy vehicle but it had it's foibles. It was auto.
I then bought a Vauxhall Carlton - The Blue Monster! Manual. Absolutely loved it! I took it Spain and Portugal when I was working down there 2002-2003. Came back to scrap the car.
Then a Ford Fiesta. Ok runabout. Manual.
I then got an Escort. That lasted about two weeks until the engine seized and I dumped it. Manual. Dreadful car!
I then got an Alfa Romeo 156 Twin Spark. 5 sp manual. Great car. I put 127,000 miles on it in three years. I sold it for scrap on the day that I was returning to Mexico.
On my return, I had an Astra 1800, auto, then two Jeep Patriots 2.4 litre, auto. At this time, we also had a Nissan Tiida - A stunning car with its sporty engine and CRV transmission.
I have had since 2017 a Dodge Journey Lujo SXT SUV (Freemont in Europe). Probably the best car that I have ever had. In fact, I returned from visiting my Daughter and Grandson in Monterrey yesterday, 910 kilometres, two tanks of gas, in eight hours 25 minutes. I got out the car at home without any aches and feeling remarkably refreshed and relaxed.
In 2015, I leased an Alfa Romeo Giulia, twin turbo diesel, eight speed auto gearbox. An absolutely thrilling car, a joy to drive, especially in Sport mode with its active suspension. Unfortunatelly, a little beyond my wallet at the time with daughters in Uni (Law) and High school. One day........!

Rgds.
Dave

[Hawkey01]

Thanks for replies.
So please to know I am not the only petrolhead or some would say crazy. Just an add on to mine there were also a couple of my wife's cars.
A brown series one Mini. Oh I hated that car especially when I had to change the radiator.
MG Metro - white with red belts and stripes. A good car in lots of ways but we could never get the
heater to work - even after several garage visits.
Nissan Micra 1L. my wife loved this car and had it for 14 years. Would have it back if she could!

One of my fathers buys was a Daimler Majestic - ex chairman of Nabisco biscuits. I loved it and for a very heavy motor with an engine that looked like it was from a lorry. Hit over 100 happily on the A1 but the down side was watching the fuel gauge go down. One time I took it to pick up someone at
Heathrow. At that time no parking in front of the arrival exit all yellow lines. A Policeman seeing the Daimler waved me onto the yellow lines to park! How times have changed.

My fantasy car at present - told unaffordable - is a Bentley GTC with the W12 engine of course. It is possible to buy an early one around 20-30K but it eats fuel and imagine the costs of maintenance.

Neville

[OLDGIT77]

Originally Posted by Hawkey01

Thanks for replies.
So please to know I am not the only petrolhead or some would say crazy. Just an add on to mine there were also a couple of my wife's cars.
A brown series one Mini. Oh I hated that car especially when I had to change the radiator.
MG Metro - white with red belts and stripes. A good car in lots of ways but we could never get the
heater to work - even after several garage visits.
Nissan Micra 1L. my wife loved this car and had it for 14 years. Would have it back if she could!

One of my fathers buys was a Daimler Majestic - ex chairman of Nabisco biscuits. I loved it and for a very heavy motor with an engine that looked like it was from a lorry. Hit over 100 happily on the A1 but the down side was watching the fuel gauge go down. One time I took it to pick up someone at
Heathrow. At that time no parking in front of the arrival exit all yellow lines. A Policeman seeing the Daimler waved me onto the yellow lines to park! How times have changed.

My fantasy car at present - told unaffordable - is a Bentley GTC with the W12 engine of course. It is possible to buy an early one around 20-30K but it eats fuel and imagine the costs of maintenance.

Neville

Neville .

Like me over the years the money spent on your cars if you
add up the cost would be a rich man now . ha.ha

Lot of the old cars also fetching a lot of money now .

I bought a BSA GOLDSTAR 500cc with a SQUIRE single seat sports sidecar
at age 18 , took my bike test on it .
Still own it [ sentimental ] a dealer 2 years ago offered me £10.000
for it . makes you wonder how much he would sell it for .

Always been a bike man have 2 at a time , but when married with 2 kids
always had to have cars . later when wife past her test made life easier
could go back to my bikes most of the time .

All the best .

Tony

[Engine Serang]

Perhaps all the cars could be parked in Cornwall thereby killing two birds with one stone.
Only kidding, perhaps.

[Dartskipper]

You would need many more cars than what we have here ES, don't forget Cornish miles are at least twice as long as ordinary miles. Cornish kilometres are also much longer than standard ones.

[Makko]

Tony,

I have always been into Motocross (Scramblers as they were known way back!). I have never ridden a bike on the road as I consider it far too dangerous!

My favourite was a Gilera 50cc ISDE. about 13HP. It weighed nothing and was wonderfully reliable. When I came to live in Mexico, my brother cannibalized it for his scooters. Looking around, the are worth up to 5,000 now, in original condition.

We also modified a Kawasaki Z-200 as a sand-racer. We weighed the components, such as the starter motor, battery and mudguards, as we took them off and replaced/scrapped them. When the project was finishing, I sent my brother on his bike to get a back tyre and inner tube, along with a signed blank check. He came back, 70 pounds later, with a Metzler Enduro Cross 6.50 tyre! An absolute beast! We had left the street gearing/sprockets as original and boy, could that bike rip! We never raced it though.

I have a Yamaha MX400 1975, monoshock, which I bought in 1984. Over the summer, I rebuilt the engine and installed a SmartCarb 2 flat slide carb (If you don't know this brand, check it out - recommended!). You can start the engine by hand, it is now so "tight". However, when I started it for the first time after the rebuild, I found that the kill switch was inoperative. I had to crank up the gears and stall it on the tiled garage floor, no mean feat! I shall have to post a photo........ I am now looking to get a transverse trailer ramp fitted so that I can take it up to my daughter's house in Monterrey - She lives, literally, at the entrance to the Huasteca National Park, so no need to transport it or traverse official roadways. Take a look at the magnificence of the Huasteca, you will be surprised!

Rgds.
Dave

[OLDGIT77]

Originally Posted by Makko

Tony,

I have always been into Motocross (Scramblers as they were known way back!). I have never ridden a bike on the road as I consider it far too dangerous!

My favourite was a Gilera 50cc ISDE. about 13HP. It weighed nothing and was wonderfully reliable. When I came to live in Mexico, my brother cannibalized it for his scooters. Looking around, the are worth up to 5,000 now, in original condition.

We also modified a Kawasaki Z-200 as a sand-racer. We weighed the components, such as the starter motor, battery and mudguards, as we took them off and replaced/scrapped them. When the project was finishing, I sent my brother on his bike to get a back tyre and inner tube, along with a signed blank check. He came back, 70 pounds later, with a Metzler Enduro Cross 6.50 tyre! An absolute beast! We had left the street gearing/sprockets as original and boy, could that bike rip! We never raced it though.

I have a Yamaha MX400 1975, monoshock, which I bought in 1984. Over the summer, I rebuilt the engine and installed a SmartCarb 2 flat slide carb (If you don't know this brand, check it out - recommended!). You can start the engine by hand, it is now so "tight". However, when I started it for the first time after the rebuild, I found that the kill switch was inoperative. I had to crank up the gears and stall it on the tiled garage floor, no mean feat! I shall have to post a photo........ I am now looking to get a transverse trailer ramp fitted so that I can take it up to my daughter's house in Monterrey - She lives, literally, at the entrance to the Huasteca National Park, so no need to transport it or traverse official roadways. Take a look at the magnificence of the Huasteca, you will be surprised!

Rgds.
Dave

Hi Dave .

Ive done Grasstrack racing solo / sidecar .also built a sprint / hillclimb car
from a kit , had a choice of what engine / gearbox / suspension layout
you fitted .

Done Banger racing . used a Ford pilot V8 one time [ fool ].
My two Grandsons do Banger Racing now

As they say . been there / done that .

all the best .

Tony

[Hawkey01]

Makko,

Not a bike man I am afraid. Always wanted to get a scooter then a bike but being of the age when you did as your father told you it never happened. No scooter/bike you can have a car when you pass your test! Hence my 1953 Ford Anglia.
One of my friends passed his bike test but soon stopped riding on the road. He became British 250 champion some years later.

Neville

[OLDGIT77]

Originally Posted by Hawkey01

Makko,

Not a bike man I am afraid. Always wanted to get a scooter then a bike but being of the age when you did as your father told you it never happened. No scooter/bike you can have a car when you pass your test! Hence my 1953 Ford Anglia.
One of my friends passed his bike test but soon stopped riding on the road. He became British 250 champion some years later.

Neville

.
Hi , Neville

Regards motorbikes its my Grandfathers fault , he had a farm on Goss Moor
with cars and motorbikes in one barn , let us kids ride them around the fields , so preffered bikes .

As regards BSA , when i bought it my DAD was not happy , said i would be better putting it in a bank saving .
Had to explain to him the logic , i payed cash while my mates on lower wages had
to get theirs on Hire Purchase paying a lot of interest , plus paying years .

Take care .

Tony

[Makko]

Yes, my Dad was furious when I got my first bike! Then I explained that we wouldn't ride on the road, use full safety gear and that we would maintain meticulously the bike. He calmed down. Several years later, he accompanied us to a friend's farm in Wales for a day on the bikes. After a while, he asked if he could have a go! He enjoyed it immensely!

Rgds.
Dave

[Dartskipper]

Bikes and Scooters:- (Thread drift strikes again!)

When at school in the 1960's I saw a great variety ot two wheeled transportation. The only kids who had cars were from prosperous families who could afford them. There were many bicycles, one mate owning a Claud Butler with dropped "racing" handles. There were a few Falcons too, but mostly they were middle of the road "sensible" bikes. Motor bikes were few, some Royal Enfields, Matchless, AJS and the like, plus on Ariel Arrow Sports and a Grieves scrambler. The majority however were scooters, Lambretta or Vespa.One Lambretta was owned by a lad who happened to be our star athlete and sportsman. He played rugby for Essex, London and England schoolboys, was Essex and local borough cross-country champion, and at cricket was our best wicket keeper, medium fast bowler and middle order batsman. He also took part voluntarily in the Duke of Edinburgh Awards / Outward Bound Scheme"Just for fun." Anyway, one Wednesday afternoon he arrived for rugby practice on our sports field which was a few miles from the school grounds. Our schoolmaster in charge that afternoon was also a keen amateur player, turning out for the Ilford Wanderers Club. He asked our star athlete if he could "have a go" on the scooter. The master settled himself onto the seat (which disappered under the master's rather broad beam), kick started it, revved it up, let out the clutch, released the brake, zoomed off about 50 feet onto the rugby pitch and promptly fell off into a large muddy puddle. He picked himself up to much mirth and derision with one half of his tracksuit completely muddy, the other still spotless. He looked like Tommy Cooper doing his famous sketch portraying two different characters in different outfits.
As I posted earlier in this thread, public transport where I lived was so good in those days, you didn't really need a bike or other transport, so I never owned or rode a bike. Dad was also fairly strict and didn't allow my older brother or me to have a bicycle or motorised two wheeler, declaring them all to be "death traps." Our rugby master's escapade on the Lambretta didn't give me much confidence either!

[OLDGIT77]

Dartskipper .

As a schoolkid first bycycle i had my Dad bought secondhand without me knowing
done it up and he gave me it one xmas .

As regards motobikes like i said in my teens bought the BSA GOLSTAR 500cc which i still
own , but at times always had another make of motorbike as well .

Most of the motorbikes you mention i have owned at one time , even had
the Ariel Arrow Sports / two-stroke and when you opened the throttle swirls
of exhaust smoke behind . petrol tank in the frame / dummy petrol tank
on frame held a tool kit .

What we did in our teens would take a year in Church to repent our sins
and me as a kid was a choir boy . HA,HA

All the best . Take care . shipmates

Tony

[Dartskipper]

Tony,

One of my mates dreams of the Gold Star he used to own and would love to have another one for old times sake. He's 82!

Cheers mate.

Roy.