European road trip

[thewhitesheep]

Thanks for the input guys, the budget is tight at around £1000-1500 as the rest will be going on the trip!
For those who've asked what's different, ive considered Lexus ls, fiat 126, Volvo 740, triumph herald, 2cv, scimitar the list goes on and gets odder!

I know the budget is extremely tight, but if I don't ask I'll never know, and will kick myself accordingly!

And I really want to avoid a van, had many vans since 17, drive an Astra van now every day!

Appreciate the input!

[rich.]

if you can find one, sd1 rover diesel? or if you can afford petrol the lovely v8, loads of space & extemely comfy to drive....

[JPB]

Thanks for the input guys, the budget is tight at around £1000-1500 as the rest will be going on the trip!
For those who've asked what's different, ive considered Lexus ls, fiat 126, Volvo 740, triumph herald, 2cv, scimitar the list goes on and gets odder!

I know the budget is extremely tight, but if I don't ask I'll never know, and will kick myself accordingly!

And I really want to avoid a van, had many vans since 17, drive an Astra van now every day!

Appreciate the input!

From that selection, the most suitable for the job would have to be, without a shadow of a doubt, the Deuche, but you'd need around £2,500-£3k for something that isn't on the verge of some form of major episode these days. Fiat 126 is a surprisingly logical choice, IMHO, but avoid the hatchback ones which are water cooled and lack the engine strength of the air cooled cars that both preceded and outlived production of the water cooled ones. I'd use one of those purely so that I could say to people; yes, I am taking the BIS on this occasion.
740s are fabulous and there's a really good Diesel option that predates all of today's complex DPF nonsense but you should realise that for your selection to be considered odd around here, they'd need to be considerably odder than anything on that list.

I know someone who commutes every spring and autumn from Central Scotland to Portugal in their Reliant kitten estate but even that isn't sufficiently eccentric to make a real impact. To be noticed and maybe even to become the next British motoring legend, you need something far less sensible, far less common (bearing in mind that there are a massive 400ish kittens known to be running in the UK and in Chile, Australia, Holland and Norway) and far less reliable in nature, which is what made me think that you might like to use one of these:



Not your thing? Too rare? OK, the ultimate comfy old cruiser, complete with rough as a baboon's backside but tough and willing O-series engines, lovely Hydrasag suspension that always gives you a good few minutes warning when it's about to drop a bottle, by going all hard and, best of all; more internal space than anything else in this thread. I refer of course to the utterly gorgeous Austin Ambassador, of which a fine example (on a Y reg of course) should be appearing down there: vvvv

[Classic Microcars]

Well the Practical Classics this month suggests that a decent Scimitar ticks all the bexes!

[kstrutt1]

I always found our triumph 2000 a comfortable car for long journeys, pretty simple and robust too, most garages should be able to fix one.

[JPB]

Well the Practical Classics this month suggests that a decent Scimitar ticks all the bexes!

That's awful, as if they didn't get enough grief from the gutter press, now they have this to worry about too.

I always found our triumph 2000 a comfortable car for long journeys, pretty simple and robust too, most garages should be able to fix one.

Cheap too! There are four in this Month's Gazette at under £700 apiece, three of these with MOT for easily long enough to give the cars a good shakedown and establish just how much trouble has been inherited, the fourth is a local car whose owner of three years recently passed away in the driver's seat, hence the price. Oh, and Club Triumph is a good owners' organisation that seems to lack the in-fighting and snobbery found in the ranks of some outfits. Hmm, if they have any exorcists on their books I may buy that and join for myself.

[arceye]

Why should someone expiring in the drivers seat put anyone off......

that'd just be like not buying an old house just because someone once popped their clogs there, never bothered me.........

Mind, I always wanted a hearse as a luxury estate car but the missus would never go for it and someone even refused to get on the back of my motorbike just cos its "cherished" number plate is Y666 BMW I didn't put it on there, I'm far too tight for such frivolities

if anyone wanted such a number plate it could be available to adorn your modern BMW box at a very sensible price

[kevin]

What about this

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1989-FORD-GRA ... 27f6e32bb9

Kev

[kevin]

Why should someone expiring in the drivers seat put anyone off......

that'd just be like not buying an old house just because someone once popped their clogs there, never bothered me.........

Mind, I always wanted a hearse as a luxury estate car but the missus would never go for it and someone even refused to get on the back of my motorbike just cos its "cherished" number plate is Y666 BMW I didn't put it on there, I'm far too tight for such frivolities

if anyone wanted such a number plate it could be available to adorn your modern BMW box at a very sensible price

That would suit my boxer m/bike nicely!

Kev

[thewhitesheep]

Kevin, I grew up on a 90's car dealership so have seen far too many of them! Plus they are not odd enough, bit too safe of a choice! Notice how no diesel mercs are on the list either.

I'd love an sd1 or 2 door Range Rover but the budget and time won't allow for the jobs they would need at my budget! There is a green sd1 2600 on eBay, but Im not brave enough to go look!

A rot free scimitar would be good, again just not within my budget!