A red 1970s Lancia Fulvia Coupe - my one and only car - more body filler than metal! My long suffering granny bought it for me in 1979 and paid the four figure insurance. The Rathgar car dealer who sold it to me told me that he had brought it to Brittas Bay that summer and couldn't keep the birds out of it - I think he must have meant the seagulls! My excuse, I was 18 and mad for speed and probably spent more time drunk than sober in my late teens.
When I was finished with the car I swapped it for a stereo system and have never felt the need for a car since. I have always lived close to railway stations - a two minute walk at most and a ten second one the closest.
Below an identical model but not the one referred to above.
A Lancia Fulvia Coupe? Jaysus, if you were only ever going to have one car you didn't do too badly DM. They were very pricey when new, fantastic engine sound. Very successful rally car too. V4 engine IIRC. Lancia were always wonderfully engineered cars and so pretty to look at. Pity their rust proofing was non existent. They came as standard with rust from the factory.
Rejoice in the awareness of feeling stupid, for that’s how you end up learning new things. If you’re not aware you’re stupid, you probably are.
starting in 1990....
Volvo 245DL (awful yoke)
Peugeot 205 XRAD (a rocket)
Peugeot 205 XAD
Peugeot 305 van
Peugeot 309 van
Peugeot 405 GTX estate (lovely to drive, lost to a head on with a gravel lorry)
Peugeot 405 estate
Peugeot 406 saloon
Peugeot 406 estate
BMW 520D SE E61 (big jump in power from the Peugeots)
BMD 520D SE F11
Also have a T4 camper and T4 van, off the road for transplant surgery - van is the organ donor
00 Micra. First car. A nice wine colour. As it was the first car, it was the BEST CAR EVER!!! Went to a younger sibling as their first car.
88 Citroen AX GT. Confirmed the love for small cars. Rather unreliable but a hoot to drive. Lovely torque from the 8 valve engine.
05 Almera. The Citroen being retired to a weekend car as it was unreliable, I needed a daily driver. Written off after 28 days of ownership (on a Friday 13th)
05 Almera. Replacement for above. Dull but kept going.
14 Leon. Reasonably quick. Current daily.
77 Escort Ghia. Replacement weekend car. Fantastic to drive as it has massive feedback compared to modern cars.
?? Octavia vRS. Octavia ordered but it probably won't arrive until next year.
I don't change the daily driver too often. There's been a few yokes half onto for a short while for the odd Motorsport event and/or broken for bits for friends Motorsport cars (Starlet, Vectra SRi, Impreza, RS2000, etc)
Hairy-Joe wrote: ↑Thu Apr 14, 2022 9:41 am
?? Octavia vRS. Octavia ordered but it probably won't arrive until next year.
That's a nice machine! But jaysus the order lead time has gotten ridiculous
I was looking around to replace the aul' 09 Mercedes 200 Cdi last november with something new. Everything I had my eye on had ridiculous wait times
I finally gave up and bought a 2 y/o BMW 225XE iSport with only 7K on the clock. It's a UK import plug-in hybrid which attracts less import taxes and apparently seems to still make sense for dealers.
I think I got in under the wire of the massive jump in second hand prices tbf, I could still get what I paid for it even though it's now rolled over to a new year
Posted this originally on the other site, so decided to re-brand it! After more than 40 years driving this is the first time I've written down a list of cars I've owned. Enlightening experience to be honest. Had to check some dates etc from some old diaries, so here goes.
Began driving as a teenager in 1979 and was insured in my aunt's car, a 1975 Fiat 127. A great little runaround and the aunt hardly got to use it. So, two years later I bought my first set of wheels:
1981 - 1976 Datsun 120Y 1.2 - Lovely little runner. Unfortunately crashed it in snow going to work. A bruised ego and write-off followed!
1982 - 1977 Lancia Beta 1.6 - Rare hatchback (no one else I knew ever had one!) Comfy but poor electrics and rust prone. Trade-in after 6 months.
1982 - 1977 Datsun 100A 1.0 - 2-door. Economical but basic run around. Frugal though and reliable. Traded it in after a year.
1983 - 1979 Datsun 140J 1.4 - Nice comfortable reliable car. Took me all around the country. Traded down after a year for financial reasons.
1984 - 1977 Toyota Corolla K30 1.2 - Basic reliable car. Great engine. Kept it for two years before cash sale.
1986 - 1980 Toyota Corolla DX 1.6 - Big change in car design from the K30. Ongoing problems with heater but kept it for 3 years.
1989 - 1984 Ford Sierra 1.6 - Big and comfortable for marriage and new arrivals! Spark plugs very prone to damp! Traded it in after 4 years.
1993 - 1988 Daihatsu Charade 1.0 - Small and basic but indestructible. Constant problems with wet footwells I remember.
1995 - 1988 Toyota Carina II 2.0 - Great car but couldn't keep petrol in it! Moved up seven years with its trade-in.
1997 - 1995 Toyota Carina E (XLi) 1.6 - Good reliable family car, not as much fun to drive as its predecessor though!
1999 - 1995 BMW 3 (E36) 1.6 - Had some cash and impulse-bought a Beemer! Lovely driver but impractical for 3 kids. Trade in so!
2000 - 2000 Renault Scenic 1.6 - 1st purchase of brand new car. Back to basics with family runaround. Very unreliable with lots of repairs!!
2004 - 2004 Peugeot 307SW 1.6 - Another new buy and a vast improvement on the previous. Reliable, had 7 seats and no faults.
2005 - 1995 Honda Civic 1.6 - 4-door saloon. 2nd family car. Lovely driver but attempted robbery+broken ignition meant a quick trade-in.
2006 - 1999 Ford Fiesta mk4 1.3 - Great little 2nd car runaround. Very few problems, bar the bright green colour!
2007 - 2006 Saab 9-3 1.8. Another impulse purchase. Lovely drive with cream seats. Lost her on a corner and ended up in a field. Write-off!
2010 - 2005 Ford Focus mk2 1.6 - Saloon model. Back to basics following the Saab. Reliable but uninspiring.
2011 - 2011 Seat Ibiza 1.2 - Scrappage deal for Fiesta. Another new buy. Very reliable 2nd car. Mrs quodec loved it for the 8 years we had it.
2013 - 2009 Ford Focus 1.6 TDCi - First diesel after 22 years driving. Comfy though a little noisy. Decent mpg. Trade-in after two years.
2015 - 2011 Toyota Avensis 2.0 - Second diesel. Comfortable and plenty of poke. Sat-nav + reverse camera even! Nice mod cons!
2017 - 2013 Kia Sportage CRDi 1.7 - My 3rd diesel. Fine engine and nice interior. Sunroof but no sat-nav though.
2018 - 2015 VW Passat B7 1.6 - Current 1st family car and probably the best diesel I've had! Comfortable + lively yet frugal engine. A joy!
2019 - 2015 VW Golf Mk 7 1.6 - Current 2nd family car. 1.6 engine not as responsive as the Passat's but Mrs quodec loves its versatility.
2022 - 2019 VW Golf Mk 7.5 1.0 TSI - Still undecided about EVs so 2nd car is now a small petrol engine. Very responsive. Herself loves it!
So 24 cars and most of my adult history wrapped around them.
They were very pricey when new, fantastic engine sound. Very successful rally car too. V4 engine IIRC. Lancia were always wonderfully engineered cars and so pretty to look at. Pity their rust proofing was non existent. They came as standard with rust from the factory.
