oldest vehicle around !!

TigerTim

I sold my "modern" Peugeot 20 months ago, paid off the carloan & a bit of the mortgage. Have driven a '91 Corolla since, jap import, with 310,000KMs on the clock which cost me €500.Starts every morning with no bother. In 20 months of ownership, I have serviced it myself once & had to put on 4 tyres & 1 rear droplink for the NCT which it sailed thru' with no problem. That has been my entire spend on the car where as the Peugeot needed to be "plugged in" on average every three months with some different issue. Granted, it hasn't the toys or the comfort of the Peugeot but it costs me virtually nothing to run.

T.

IrishRover

Ah I wasn't trying to be disparaging about the OP, Gerry. I think he was just asking the question because he noticed there are so few older cars on the roads these days in Ireland. I get the impression he is not from Ireland so is looking at it from an outsider's perspective too.

I think the reason for the lack of older cars, as already mentioned, is down to the "scrappage schemes" where people were encouraged to get rid of their perfectly usable cars just so they could buy new ones and "appear" to be given loads of money for their "worthless trade-in". If ever I drive a car to a scrapyard I'm going to feel like I've become one of them - a "car killer"

It is a terrible shame that so many original Irish cars that would be considered near-classics now are gone forever. The only consolation for me is that at least Irish people were generally too stingy to buy anything other than the base models of any particular range. It's amazing to me though how rare it is to see even the cars that were the most common of all cars on Irish roads only in the last decade, like Sierras, Granadas, Escorts, Carinas, Corollas, Galants, Asconas, Kadetts, Tipos, Tempras, Renault 19s and 21s, Citroen AXs and BXes, Peugeot 405s and 309s, Mazda 332s, and lots more that used to pretty much comprise the entire traffic here and now they are all gone, never to be seen again. Didn't appreciate them at the time though. There's pretty much no chance of seeing things like Hillman Hunters and Talbot Avengers, Peugeot 504s, Austin Princesses and Morris Marinas, Ford Cortinas, Datsun Cherrys and Bluebirds, Fiat 128s and Mirafioris... ah - I'd beter stop with the lists!

It does seem odd to be mournful for the loss of such mundane cars. I suppose it's because it demonstrates for me how quickly time moves by and the modern present so quickly becomes the old fashioned past (I'm only 33 myself by the way! )

Max_Damage

I'm only 20, and I feel old myself! I don't know about you lot, but I find seeing an old (and now rare) everyday-car from the 70's/80's far more of a head-turner than a Porsche or Ferrari. Only recently I saw an '85 Renault 18 Estate for the first time since the late 90's, and I nearly hit another car on my bike by gawking at it!

Back in the early 90's, my family had an '81 Ford Escort Mk3 (the model that are now pretty much extinct in this country), and ever since we got rid of it (the engine went on fire), I've always wanted one again, and I still do. The only place you'd nearly find them now are in England.

These are the cars we all grew up with, the shít heaps that never started in the morning and always needed a push (our Escort and even our '86 Starlet we had after it always needed a bit of 'encouragement' to start on a cold winter morning!). It is only now when they are gone is when we look back and miss them.

JamesM

Dish wrote: »

Older cars were built to last! Cars are too plastic and fibre glassy (if thats a word) lol! these days!

Older cars just rusted away
Jim.

zilog_jones

IrishRover wrote: »

It's amazing to me though how rare it is to see even the cars that were the most common of all cars on Irish roads only in the last decade, like Sierras...

Is it me or is there some disturbing comeback of sorts of Sierras? I've seen more around in recent months than in many years - from a very rusty '90 estate (with Renault-esque disco lights whenever it indicated) to some shammed up atrocities (I guess they realised they were RWD).

Max_Damage

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

...or the ecletic mixes of the 1970s - a brown Hillman Hunter with a blue door and a yellow bonnet, baler twine holding the boot lid down and the obligitory oily rag for a petrol cap!

Heh, don't forget the clothes hanger antenna!

Ah, they were the days!

Silvera

zilog_jones wrote: »

Is it me or is there some disturbing comeback of sorts of Sierras? I've seen more around in recent months than in many years - from a very rusty '90 estate (with Renault-esque disco lights whenever it indicated) to some shammed up atrocities (I guess they realised they were RWD).

Interestingly I spotted an 87-G reg Sierra Cosworth 3 dr near Carlow (and again on Friday in Borris-In-Ossory) ...which seems to be in everyday use! It was a real novelty to see an '87 reg 'on the car in front' again!


I grew up in a small town in Wicklow and there was an Opel garage up the road from me. I often recall seeing new Opels on the forecourt (e.g. usually Corsas, Kadetts (80-84 models), Asconas, etc. And occassionally I spotted a nearly new Kadett Coupe or Manta!:))

......these were back in the days when reg plates were red on the rear of cars and white on the front, or black plates front and rear.

God I must seem so old to some posters here:D ....and I'm only 35!

old boy

i still trundle along on my 89 spacewagon, 272,000 + on the speedo, people see it and smile, owes me nothing, nothing goes wrong, and no repayments, after all it takes me from a to b in comfort, another year it will be vintage (almost)

zilog_jones

Do you go to or work in UL? I often see one of them in one of the car parks. It's one of the only '80s cars I ever see there besides the odd EP70 Starlet (maybe there's an AE86 around too - I forget).

Wishbone Ash

IrishRover wrote: »

.... Renault 19s and 21s

And what ever happened the Renault 25 - they seem to have disappeared off the face of the earth.:eek:

*looks around for Junkyard*

IrishRover wrote: »

when I was a kid I was always looking out at what was going on on the roads any time I was a passenger in a car. I used to look out for any unusual models of cars, and even got pretty good at telling what a car was from the shape of its headlights at night

I was the same. I remember torturing myself as a child, trying to understand the concept of "overdrive" in an auto.

There are still a fair few pre 1987 'ordinary' cars going around Dublin but it's very rarely that you'll see one 'down the country'. I not referring to classics by the way. In saying that, there are thousands of tractors in the country on pre '87 plates.

Here's a few pics of pre '87 regs in everyday use.

Volvoboy

Ah, The 'oul Laurel! One day,,, one day!!!!!!!



-VB-

Max_Damage

And what ever happened the Renault 25 - they seem to have disappeared off the face of the earth.

I actually saw one of those just the other day in Terenure, first one I saw in years (possibly).

IrishRover

Cheers for the pics Wishbone, it's nice to see some of those again. Funny that it is nostalgic to see them alright. Perhaps there should be a "here's what once-common-but-now-rare-yet-not-classic car I saw today" thread

I remember like it was yesterday watching the news in Christmas '86 about how the new reg plate system was going to start in the new year, and thinking how good the new system was and how much nicer the new plates looked. Now for me it is really rare to see an old style reg plate, unless it is one of the pseudo old style ZV plates.

BTW, I also love the notion of driving early nineties cars that are just as good as modern cars and definitely more fun to drive (pretty much all modern cars seem bland and dull to drive to me) and not having car loan payments to worry about.

For an example of how satisfying cheap motoring can be with older cars, I bought one car for only £350 and had a drag race with a Porsche Cayenne S (the 4.5 litre 340 hp V8 luxury SUV). I'm sure the driver of it was pretty disgusted that his yolk which probably cost him more than a house did when my car was new could only start nosing ahead of me in my piece-of-**** motor after 60mph (this was at santa pod btw )

Max_Damage

Here's a few more, taken at car shows during the summer (with the exception of the last photo):

vektarman

I'm happy enough trundling along on my 1954 vespa, a bit nerve-wracking on our dual carraigeways though, it's top speed is only 42mph.

IrishRover

Ah yes, the Triumph Acclaim! - another British-Japanese car. It was a good car, but as far as I remember was the car that finally killed the once great Triumph brand!

Nice to see that Audi 100. They're still what I think of when I think of an Audi. The modern ones just seem like badge-engineered VWs, devoid of personality.

Also nice to see the Renault 18 - they used to be very common on Irish roads, but haven't seen one in I don't know how long.

Funny how that Carina II is now a really rare sight too and it was the car that pretty much defined the word ubiquitous when it came to Irish roads. I think HIV was a galway reg? - such an unfortunate set of letters!

Thanks again for the pics - this is gathering a bit of momentum now. I'll have to see if I can get some myself of these no longer seen but not yet quite classics. BTW, I know of a lovely Saffrane still in everyday use, but haven't seen a 25 at all lately.

zilog_jones

IrishRover wrote: »

Funny how that Carina II is now a really rare sight too and it was the car that pretty much defined the word ubiquitous when it came to Irish roads.

Those were awesome cars - my uncle had one just like that, back in the days when it was acceptable to have the same car for 10 years and be happy with such fancy equipment as a push-button FM radio and a heated rear window! Seems like they've gone the same way as the boxy E80 Corolla - it was as if there was one of them on every street back in the day.

I've been a relentless "car-spotter" too for as long as I remember - one of the earliest things I remember is my dad's crappy Mk. I Cavalier getting towed away when I was 3 - I wanted to keep it I always used to draw cars as a child, and collect magazines and brochures and stuff (I must get out that Ford Mondeo video that came with some 1993 What Car and put it on YouTube some time!). When I think about where I've been and people I knew over the years (I used to live in Saudi and England before moving here), it seems to be the cars I remember better than anything else! I think I have a problem...

sc4rf4ce

theres an 82 bmw 316i hanging around near adelaigh road in town. you'll see it parked on the street with the garda station beside the canal there.
thats in great nick for its age.

Wishbone Ash

I came across a two-car accident yesterday and one of the vehicles was a 'ZG ***' registered Micra. A few minutes later I saw another Micra with an 'SI' plate and later again an Audi 80? also on 'SI' plates

Here's a pic of a VW Golf on 'SI' plates.

IrishRover wrote: »

I think HIV was a galway reg? - such an unfortunate set of letters!

Limerick!

Max_Damage

There was an early-80's Mazda 323 sitting in a driveway in Templeogue for years with 'OSI' plates. It finally got shifted only about a month or two ago, weather it went to a scrapyard or went for restoration, I don't know.

Around the same area, there was also a Nissan Cherry sitting in a driveway, again for years until one day it also disappeared only a few months back. There is also a Volvo 300 Series around too, I think it is still there.

vector

the formatting of pre 87 registraions is confusing (to me)

it is possible to have;

123 HIV (the numbers first, this is what I've seen most in real-life)
HIV 123 (the numbers last)
and
SI 12345 (only two letters, and more numbers)

gurramok

The other significant factor of having one of those older cars for regular use is that they are a magnet for joyriders unless hidden away!
It explains why joyriding is not as bad as it once was in 80's/90's.

I wouldn't drive one myself as a regular car, the worry of if it will still be in driveway the next morning is too much!
Thats unless of course i fitted enhanced security to it like a modern car has, but would the cost be worth it
After saying that, fair play to those who still maintain them, i have a '01 car and hope to keep it for next 15 years at least and maybe turn a few heads in the future

Wishbone Ash

vector wrote: »

the formatting of pre 87 registraions is confusing (to me)

it is possible to have;

123 HIV (the numbers first, this is what I've seen most in real-life)
HIV 123 (the numbers last)
and
SI 12345 (only two letters, and more numbers)

Yes they were issued in the above three ways and also in the 1234 ZP format.

When the resistrations were issued initially in 1903, each county was assigned a two letter reg , e.g. ZP 1 to ZP 9999. Some counties exhausted the list quicker than others and then a prefix letter was added, e.g. AZP 1 but only to AZP 999, then BZP etc.

The letters in Dublin would have been exhausted fairly quickly. Towards the mid-1980s, even though vehicle registrations were probably a third of what they are today, the letters in Dublin were changing every few months. SI, ZG and ZS were the last sequences issued in 1986 prior to the new system on 1st Jan 1987. (I think ZS 8709 was the last old style registration issued in Dublin).

Incredibly, Leitrim's initial IT sequence (IT 1 to IT 9999) lasted until 1972!!:)


EDIT: just to add that all old Irish registrations had to have either a 'Z' or an 'I' in them to distinguish them from the British ones.

MercMad

prospect wrote: »

This is going to sound really old, (I swear I am only 30)...

I remember when we were in school, if you saw a new (new meant less than 12 months old) BMW or Merc it was worth talking about. Engine or spec was irrelevant, just the fact that you saw a new Merc was a big deal.


Also, does anyone remember (since 1987) having competitions in school in January to see who could be first to spot a new car, some times it would take weeks to spot one.

...........yeah I know exactly what you mean. I used to know every "flash" motor for miles around !

To be honest I think it was the "87D" plates that ruined everything !

People just started to think about buying brand new, instead of getting value for money. Then over the next few years special finanace deals, scrappage schemes, low interest rates and then the Celtic Tiger just ensured that folk became addicted to having the latest thing !

Whn I was growing up in the 70's and 80's there were fewer company cars and only occasionaly would somebody actually arrive home with a "new" car. My father was 46 before he bought his first "brand new" car. He had company cars that were new or newish before but that was the first one he collected directly from the dealer.

If cars were well kept then we would all admisre them even more and it was only at the age of 10 or 11 that we could spot the latest Dublin reg.

Nice to see some of those old ones, I've seen the Carina and the "NZG" Granada myself recently !

Wishbone Ash

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

Yes they were issued in the above three ways and also in the 1234 ZP format.

When the resistrations were issued initially in 1903, each county was assigned a two letter reg , e.g. ZP 1 to ZP 9999. Some counties exhausted the list quicker than others and then a prefix letter was added, e.g. AZP 1 but only to AZP 999, then BZP etc.

The letters in Dublin would have been exhausted fairly quickly. Towards the mid-1980s, even though vehicle registrations were probably a third of what they are today, the letters in Dublin were changing every few months. SI, ZG and ZS were the last sequences issued in 1986 prior to the new system on 1st Jan 1987. (I think ZS 8709 was the last old style registration issued in Dublin).

Incredibly, Leitrim's initial IT sequence (IT 1 to IT 9999) lasted until 1972!!:)


EDIT: just to add that all old Irish registrations had to have either a 'Z' or an 'I' in them to distinguish them from the British ones.

Here's a few examples of the different formats (all are Dublin plates).

Two prefix letters with four digits.



Four prefix digits with two letters.



Three prefix letters with three digits.



Three prefix digits with three letters.

vector

so I understand that when a country two letter code such as Limerick TI became full another letter was added to the start a new series was started, viz ATI, BTI, CTI

This is just an example, I'm not sure if Limerick was Ti, never mind,
my question is what about the ordering of the plates, how come some had
the letters at the start;

ATI 123

and others had the letters at the end

123 ATI

zilog_jones

Limerick was TI. AFAIK they would have started with TI 1, then after they were all used (up to 9999?) ATI 1 etc., then they swapped around to 1 TI (my uncle had a '79 or '80 Fiesta which was nnnn TI), then 1 ATI and so on. I'm pretty sure the last used in Limerick was FTI, and they went up to three digits.

Go Harvey Go

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

That Nissan Laurel would have been one of the last vehicles to be registered in Wicklow before the changeover, since the last mark issued there was 426 TNI.

Alanstrainor

Thread closed, please don't drag up 2 year old threads!