Anyone here ever own a "classic" car?

mike65

I've been lurking in the Clasic Car section of the newsagents again! Got me wondering if anyone here has ever owned and run something from the early 70s or before and if so what was it like with regard to insurance, servicing, parts etc. Is it viable cheap motoring or just a daft fantasy with holes in the pockets?

Mike.

ButcherOfNog

classic car insurance is pretty cheap, i know someone that did this, 300e fully comp and a 6000mile yearly mileage limit. not a good idea as a main car.

finking of a nice 20yr old 911 at some stage

Silvera

I've owned a few classics - Ford Anglia 105E, VW Beetle's, Morris Minors, Opel Mantas etc.

- Insurance is cheap if it's your second car. Limited mileage policies can start as low as c.€180.
- Road Tax for vehicles over 30 yrs old is c.€45 (depends which county you live in)
- NCT - Not required on a vehicle which is taxed as vintage i.e. 30yrs or older.

You are probably better off going for a mainstream car if it's your first classic or you don't have a lot of mechanical knowledge e.g. VW Beetle, as parts are easier to obtain.

Getting in touch with a Classic Car club is a good place to start, or check out the Classic Forum at - www.eforecourt.com (Excellent Irish site)

Cheers,
Silvera.

RicardoSmith

Interesting link, thanks. Owning classic car is something I'd love to do in the future too.

Quigs Snr

I have a 77 Spitfire Mike (also in waterford by the way), a good classic costs a fair bit to buy, but if you don't pay for a quality restored motor up front, you will pay later. I got an old spit needing a bit of work, but running. It#ll probably cost 2k (mostly body work) in the end to get it 100%, but I only paid 1600 in the first place.

Note that you will need to have another insurance policy on a normal car in order to get insurance on a classic. My insurance (age 27 4yrs NCB, is about 450 Euro on the Spit w/ carole nash), tax is as normal for a 1.5 (must be over 30 to get cheap tax) and it needs an NCT, although emissions etc... will be measured against the original emissions of the car, not present standards.

Oh yes, make sure you get a car that can run on unleaded. You'd be surprised how many don't and how hard it is to get LRP in other parts of the country.

Most of the cars in the buyandsell etc... are lemons too. I wasted about 10 trips around the country, going to see cars that just needed a 'lick of paint'. In fact in one spit, I stood in it and went through the drivers floor panel.

There is a spit in waterford that might be for sale, about 4k, mark 4, yellow spit fully restored. Nice. I can get a number for you if you want. There is another one for sale at that antigues shop on ballybricken, all polished up etc..... but crud (again about 4k) avoid like the plague,it looks alright, but the arse is going to fall out of it. I'd estimate about 2.5-3k repairs.

Old cars, won't start in the cold, don't like mornings and break down more than modern cars. They rust easily too. It would be better to keep them garaged, especially the british leyland ones of the 70's. (MG, Triumph, Austin etc......)

mike65

Thanks for all that Quigs! I'll keep an eye out for your Spitfire

I'm only musing it must be said...at the moment.

I'd avoid anything less than 30 years old as I like the idea of $40 road tax and no NCT. I'd also avoid anything made after 1972 anyway due to BMC/BL/Leyland etc build problems. The Rover P6 is one of the best oldies as they have a alluminium panel over steel frame build - a bit like the Land Rover Defender, which means they are fairly decent at resisting age. They also handle tidily.

Just found this-
http://www.rover.org.nz/pages/thep6/roverp6.htm

Hmmm, I'm typing myself into buying one!

Mike.