Oh Dear.. now I know I'm old

[fuddyduddy4]

What handypandy said brings back fond memories.We were in a band and used to get around in an old ford zephyr estate.Problem was there wasn't enough seating in the front for all of us.So the smallest and thinnest of us used to make himself rigid and we would pick him up and feed him into the back with the gear just like a mic stand.Health and Safety today would have a field day.

[darra]

'17 quid a week' darra, what year was that, not like the pre-historic times of the likes of TorontoTony, myself and others ....and 'contract' ?

 

1974 Sheffield Smelting company. Gave my mother a weeks wages for my board and still managed to save a bit

 

---------- Post added 27-08-2016 at 12:48 ----------

 

recalculated it and it was £16.50 / week about £71 / month. Mind those were the days when it cost 2p on the bus into town and 2bob a pint

[ivan edake]

All of us "oldies" go on about old cars and say how good they were and " they don't make em like they used to"and say other nice things about them.In reality they were a load of crap,Fords especially. Anglias were real rot boxes.I have lost count of the number of new rear spring hangers I have welded on these things.The front suspension struts used to break through the wings and had to be welded.The engines were "ringy" and breathed heavy,sills rotted in a few months.Other Ford models had similar problems.A30s and A35s also corroded everywhere especially near the handbrake lever,this eventually used to come through the floor and then needed extensive welding.All the B.M.C range of cars had a rapid wearing front suspension setup with wishbones and kingpins which needed constant attention.One exception being the Morris 1000 which used a trunion setup and regularly allowed the front wheel to collapse under the car.Triumph Herald and Spitfires rotted as they were rolled off the production line.Modern cars really are much better but of course home repairs are much more limited due to their complexity.Having said all this I really love these old cars and my favourite has always been the Austin A40 Farina.

[echo beach]

All of us "oldies" go on about old cars and say how good they were and " they don't make em like they used to"and say other nice things about them.In reality they were a load of crap,Fords especially. Anglias were real rot boxes.I have lost count of the number of new rear spring hangers I have welded on these things.The front suspension struts used to break through the wings and had to be welded.The engines were "ringy" and breathed heavy,sills rotted in a few months.Other Ford models had similar problems.A30s and A35s also corroded everywhere especially near the handbrake lever,this eventually used to come through the floor and then needed extensive welding.All the B.M.C range of cars had a rapid wearing front suspension setup with wishbones and kingpins which needed constant attention.One exception being the Morris 1000 which used a trunion setup and regularly allowed the front wheel to collapse under the car.Triumph Herald and Spitfires rotted as they were rolled off the production line.Modern cars really are much better but of course home repairs are much more limited due to their complexity.Having said all this I really love these old cars and my favourite has always been the Austin A40 Farina.

 

I owned a typical turquoise green/black roof mark 1 version of that car in 1963. It was my second vehicle; the first one being a 1953 A40 Somerset.

 

You're quite right ivan when you say that cars from the past were not as reliable

as today and the quality of the bodywork was often poor, but it was a different era.

Those were the days when the 'extras' you could buy included a heater, a radio, windscreen washers and white wall tyres.

At least you could start them with the handle when the battery was nearly flat on a cold winter's morning and work on them when something went wrong. They also had character with names like Somerset, Devon, Oxford and Cambridge. I'll bet some of the forum's older contributors can add many more interesting place names after which cars were christened.

 

echo.

[bullerboY]

I spent 50yrs fixing this load of British crap even the A40 Farinas were crap give me the VWs any day yes they were not free of faults but a sight better than this rubbish we made.

[fuddyduddy4]

Remember the old Ford cars and vans fitted with windscreen wipers driven by pressure from the exhaust manifold,ludicrous when you took your foot off accelerator the wipers went ten to the dozen,when you pressed hard on accelerator the wipers stopped.

[echo beach]

I spent 50yrs fixing this load of British crap even the A40 Farinas were crap give me the VWs any day yes they were not free of faults but a sight better than this rubbish we made.

 

So bullerboY from what you say that 'British crap' kept you employed over a working lifetime.

Well, every cloud; sorry car; has a silver lining!

It's perhaps fortunate, therefore, that post war some of us were patriotic and bought British cars instead of those 'vorsprung durch technik wunder autos' which have come to the fore in more recent times. If that had been the case you might not have been so busy.

 

echo.

[francypants]

Over 50 years ago my father in law bought a car which had a manual windscreen wiper lever on the dashboard. When it rained he had to manually flip the lever left,right,left,right with his left hand whilst driving !!

[handypandy]

I spent 50yrs fixing this load of British crap.

 

In 1978 I drove the firm's new Datsun pick-up into British Leyland Longbridge. I pulled up outside the electricians shop and a crowd quickly gathered around booing and hissing (banter fortunately). "Pull the bonnet then, lets have a look"....."Flippin eck " (or words to that effect) "Its our A series engine!"

 

I remember thinking at the time... yes mate, no doubt built in a Japanese, state of the art factory and not in a place like this, where the lads have to work with equipment thats half a century out of date.

 

 

.

[kidley]

So bullerboY from what you say that 'British crap' kept you employed over a working lifetime.

Well, every cloud; sorry car; has a silver lining!

It's perhaps fortunate, therefore, that post war some of us were patriotic and bought British cars instead of those 'vorsprung durch technik wunder autos' which have come to the fore in more recent times. If that had been the case you might not have been so busy.

 

echo.

 

It would be interesting to know which "British" car you drive these days being as you are so patriotic? McLaren Maybe.