When did you last see a....

BrianD3

I was just thinking about ordinary, everyday cars from the 70's and early 80's and how they have all but disappeared from Irish roads.

Even cars which were really common such as Fords, Toyotas, Datsuns, Renaults and Fiats seem to be extinct now. When was the last time anyone saw a seventies Escort or Cortina or even an eighties "jelly mould" Sierra? Or a Fiat 131 or a Renault 18? How about the seventies "round headlight" Toyota Corollas? Certain cars seem to have survived quite well e.g Mercs, VWs but even these are a rare sight nowadays.

Older cars (sixties and older) are relatively common in comparison - because they are regarded as classics and have been preserved by enthusiasts. But the later cars are almost all gone. A lot of this is due to poor rustproofing by the manufacturers and neglect by owners who drove them into the ground.

The government scrappage scheme a few years ago won't have helped either. But I don't blame the NCT, in fact I reckon had the NCT been introduced 20 years ago, far more cars would have survived because people would have been encouraged to look after their vehicles better.

I think it's a shame that these cars have disappeared. I have many happy memories of an old Corolla that my parents had when I was a kid. Some of the younger readers here may find this hard to understand I mean why would anyone be sentimental about something like a boring old Corolla? I can understand this but surely I'm not the only one out there who thinks its a shame that you never see normal family cars from this era anymore.

Brian

Mercury_Tilt

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DivX

Well i remember the poor quality of one of the family's Datsun cherry, there was rust bubbling out on the lip of the bonnet to the point that if you picked at the rust, there would be holes in it! and this was at less than 2 years old, this was back around 1985...

Was over in Crete last year and there were a few Fiat Panda's driving around that looked okay with no rust. Those cars hardly lasted 12 months over here when they were popular in the 80's.

The Beetle seems to have stood the test of time, even though they rotted as much as the others, parts were easily got, cause there were so many of them out there. Long product life cycle + never went totally out of fashion at any stage.

azezil

Funny just last week i seen a surprising amout of old cars... an old serria, some datsun's and a morris minor!

mike65

Old cars are'nt that rare, I suspect it depends where you live/drive. I'd say in Dublin you'd wait a long time to see a Toyota Cressida but in the sticks one could come along any time now!

Mike.

Silvera

Yeah, it's a pity there aren't more 70's and 80's cars around.

The thing is they are in a sort of "twilight zone" as regards being classics or not.
However, I would say that the biggest problem when it comes to 80's cars, is the fact that you cannot get Classic Insurance for them (until they are c. 20 yrs old).
I had a mint 1986 Opel Manta GTE a few years back, which I decided to sell because I could not get a classic insurance policy for it. I could only get a standard policy, which was a lot more expensive, and would not include an "agreed valuation" of the vehicle, i.e. if the car was stolen or burnt out I would only get the value of an 86' Opel - not it's true classic value.

In the UK, you can get classic policies for most cars even if they are only 10 years old. In fact some cars are deemed "future classics" from new, and can be insured as such if desired !

Another problem here is the fact that we cannot get "everyday use" classic policies.

I have seen a few 70's/80's cars recently, including an 81' Ford Cortina parked outside a house in Tallaght and a 76' Toyota Carina at a car show last year.

(Also, unfortunetly, cars under 30 years old attract full VRT rates if imported.)

In fact it is now even getting rare to see an old (pre 87)
registration.
Pity they can't be transferred to our modern cars as happens in the UK

Captain Trips

I would say it's because of insurance and registration really. The actual limit on classic tax & insurance is 30 years, so you'll only get it if the car is 1973 or before.

I would love a DeLorean (hehe, saw one on the M7 once!) but it would at it's oldest is 1982 or 1981. A lot of the cars in the 20-30 year old bracket would have large engines and would not be worth it really.

However, once it's 30+, there are some amazing options. I was quoted only €300 a year on a 1968 5.7l V8 Mustang, as long as it was a) not my primary car and b) only 5000 miles a year. That quote was outside of being a member of a club. I think it was from Carol Nash (they have an office in Dublin). I am also only 26 (but 7 years full licence and NCB).

However, those 60s cars are way more classic c/t late 70s and 80s. Or at least, IMHO, they may be of more sentimental classic status than like "real" classic status, like say a Stingray Corvette.

Silvera

Actually, you can get a Classic Insurance policy for a car around 18 - 20 years old.
I got a quote, in 2000, of £284 for an 81' Opel Manta Berlinetta from Carole Nash.

However, you still have to pay full Road Tax rates and get an NCT for the car. (As opposed to a 30 yr old vehicle - €45 Road Tax and no NCT required).

We should be able to get classic policies for selected models (at the very least) which are over 10 years old, and perhaps a concession on Road tax rates also for vehicles which are insured on a classic poilcy i.e. restricted mileage policies.

e.g. BMW 320i, Opel Manta, Ford Capri, Toyota Celica, MR2, etc. etc.

We live in hope :rolleyes: