Practically Classics Forum

Right I know this is a bit of an impossible question as everybody always has there own favourite Marques etc

I'm considering buying a classic car as basically a summer daily, I'll be keeping the trusty Skoda diesel and basically just want something that I can use occasionally for work and shows etc.

Has to be tax exempt really, ideally it'd have to be a Mk1 escort but the prices are just ridiculous to justify it.

So I've been looking outside the box and trying to come up with something a little different but still reliable with a good parts source etc.

Would like to spend £3-4k but preferable cheaper.

Trying to stay away from the obvious choices like MGB's, beetles etc

My mate has a Volvo Amazon which might tick the boxes but I've also been looking at old Merc's and mk1 cortina's

Just a bit of fun really but what would you have?

Buy a mog, simples!

What about a Mk2 Cortina or an Avenger. There are always the Vauxhalls, the Magnum or Firenza?

Hmm..

Never even gave Vauxhall a thought,

I can't tell you my opinion of mogs terry it would probably offend you , it all stems from a childhood mishap

I'd love a merc like this,

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VERY-RARE-197 ... 9798290%26

Its a little too big and all I see is a money pit

And loving the shape of this but I don't know anything about them,





Too new really though as it's not tax exempt.

Tax exemption isn't the be all and end all of the classic world. £200 a year for a car you enjoy driving is peanuts compared to the grin factor.
I don't think I have ever seen that exact model before. If you like how it looks, see if you can have a test drive.

How about an Austin A40? Much the same mechanically as a Minor, but has the look of an early 1100 (at a glance) and nowhere near as common as either! I was tempted when I was looking for something "old" two or three months ago, but the ones I fancied were too far away for me to see before bidding.

Fortunately - or not - there were few Japanese cars in the country in the early 70's, though moving the "Historic Vehicle" cut off date will bring early ones into the "Free tax" bracket. Unfortunately, those early cars have just about disappeared now (or within five or six years of being built - they were rust buckets back then), so finding one will be difficult.

Of course, there's the Rootes ranges - Minx/Hunter and, IMHO, the nicest: Rapiers! Finding a decent one is the trick - anything I saw was £5K or more. Mind you, a nice H120 Rapier was on for about your price range not so long ago. I was very tempted to bid blind on that one!

I can't justify the extra £200 to tax a second vehicle - that's the main reason I'm looking at spending a fortune to get the Land Rover sorted! However, I don't do many miles these days, so can't really justify buying a second vehicle either!

Yeah, I probably wouldn't even tax it for twelve months either as we have a storage unit to store it away over the winter months.

Still don't want the extra expense, with work a 40 mile round trip anything I have would get used very sparingly anyway.

Oh and that colt is apparently only one of two in the uk, 2.0ltr rwd

Austin Cambridge or MG Magnette