Average Cars From The 70's & 80's

hcb42

We had a 1972 Mk1 1/2 Capri, several escort Mk2 and a couple of Vauxhall Vivas, all in or around mid to late 1980s so still old bangers back then....hated those old cars!

mikey72

Remember the german NSU?
Rotary engines that used to seize whenever you started them.
Brand was dropped by VW in the mid 70's.

SnoopyBignose

My first ever car in 1984 was a 1976 Datsun Sunny which was a hand me down from my parents - they were getting rid of it so gave it to me. It was still an excellent runner.

The first car I bought myself in 1985 was 1980 Mark V Cortina, and I have to say it was the best one so far as I could maintain it myself and very little went wrong with it.

In 1988 I traded it in for a 1.6 Ford Sierra, which was a bit more sophisticated, but I could still get my hands on most of it. I was even able to "adjust" the notorious Ford automatic choke by inserting a screwdriver into it and wriggling it around!

My recent cars however, although comfortable and economical, are just too impersonal. The engine of my Mondeo is a big black box full of electronics and the bits I'm allowed to touch (oil filler cap, washer reservoir etc) are even coloured yellow to let me know they are OK to touch!

All the fun has gone out of owning a car

Rolandtheroadie

mikey72 wrote: »

Well, I've read the list, and apart from the fact the Japanese cars were wonderful, did anybody actually own one in the 70's or 80's?

I remember my dad having an x reg Mazda 626 and a 1983 Nissan Bluebird Turbo-X.

Loved the Mazda, it was one of the first cars we ever had with "Toys" so to speak.
We never got the Bluebird until the late 80's, but probably one of my favorite cars. Reg number UMC 163L, I'd buy it back if it was still out there.

sheslookinhot

My cars were
Datsun 160B L reg
Datsun 140J N reg
Cortina 1.6L S reg
Mini 1000 P reg
Ford Cortina 2000E M reg
Ford Cortina 2000E P Reg
Ford Cortina 2.0 GLS X reg
Sierra Sapphire 2.0 Ghia D Reg
Ford Seirra 2.0 GLS H Reg
Volvo 740 GLE B reg

bifold

I still have a 1978 Dolomite 1850HL:Dsummer use only
A 1989 Mercedes 230E is my everyday.

fatbelly

Ford Cortina 1.6 (two - one Mk 3, one Mk 4)
Moskvich
Wolseley 16/60
Triumph Herald 13/60
Austin Montego - my neighbour had one where he had fiddled with the chrome letters to read 'Austin Wont go'

Mrs_Ryan

No-one in our family could drive my ex-BIL had an old-style red Nissan Micra, but someone pinched it :eek: that must be about 1990. OH passed in the late 80's - seem to recall he said he had several Fiesta's but the engines blew up on them - he has a 59 plate Yaris now and before that he had a Y-reg Yaris, both much more reliable than the Fiestas he drove :rotfl:

Flyboy152

mikey72 wrote: »

Well, I've read the list, and apart from the fact the Japanese cars were wonderful, did anybody actually own one in the 70's or 80's?
All I remember were rot boxes that were an oddity to see around occasionally, and the Honda Accord made in the Leyland factory.

Remember the Volvo 66, haven't seen those for decades.
Peugeot 205, some of those are still going strong today.

The japanese had the motorbike market then though, Honda SS50 was the moped I had.

That was my first bike, it was a 1974 "M" reg, so was unrestricted. All my friends had AP50s and F1SEs (Fizzies), but the four stroke was a tougher and more reliable engine and I didn't have to keep adding oil to it when I filled up.

Matt1977

From 1977 and into the 1990s my parents owned:

1974 Cortina mk 3 1600XL estate with RoStyle Wheels. I vaguely recall sitting in the child seat in the centre rear bench of the car.
1976/7 Granada mk 1 2000 L with 4 speed manual. Most of these had the T bar auto box and were Ghia spec.
1979 Vauxhall Royale 2.8 straight 6. Sadly had to go as it was expensive to run.
1980 Talbot Horizon 1.3 LS. Was a bit of a come down from the Royale. Disliked the car immensley with its tappetty engine.
1983 MG Maestro 1600. A few steps up from the Tappetty Talbot. Sporty image with digital dashboard that went blank on hot summer days and an inaccurate voice synthesiser.

Also worth mentioning is the 1986 Vauxhall Carlton 2.2i CD that my parents bought in late 1993 to replace the MG Maestro. Pretty much the same as the Royale they owned in the mid 1980s but more affordable to run. I got to drive the car in 1995/6 when I passed my test and despite its 100k+ miles and aged I absolutely loved it. I wanted to buy the car from my dad in 1997 but the £822 insurance quote for a 19 year old student put a stop to that. :mad: Was replaced by a 1993/4 Astra.