1975 FE Victor!

[Vin]

I like these. It looks well smart.

 

It's a Grimsby (JV) reg on the old gal. There was a vauxhall dealer on Pelham Road in Grimsby (can't remember the name though...) My uncle bought a shovit from them in the early eighties...

[alf892]

Well bought......really nice car from the coke bottle era. They were always a looker and that looks great cleaned and shiny.

 

Must be a different driving experience to your normal fare?

[michael1703]

That interior looks bathroom fresh!

 

[TagoraSX]

Well done Dicky, very smart

[HillmanImp]

Does anyone else think the headlights make them look a little mentally challenged?

[fred]

Brilliant -

had 6 FE's 4 FD's Ventoras - Love them awesome buy

 

I am now officially green with envy - Think I still have a haynes manual for these cars somewhere

Will dig it out if you want it!

[Steviemillar]

Fantastic buy, and impressive progress so far fixing it's foibles too.

 

I really like FE era Victors/VXs. A neighbour to my parents had a 74 VX4//90 in the darker metallic blue that Vauxhall offered at the time. He was running it as his everyday car and changed front wings on it at one point so these were still in the black primer when he sold the car to banger racers I think in the late 80s. I was gutted to see it being taken away to its death.

 

One of these is on my one-day-soon list!

[Noel Tidybeard]

its clarence the boss eyed vauhall

[Alexg]

Utter class, first rate purchase.

[Felly Magic]

Not all Voxorls R Shit it seems

 

Potsie McAlpine's VX in poverty spec, but also metallic blue!

 

 

 

[Magnificent Rustbucket]

A superb looking car. I love the colour of it, especially the interior.

[xtriple]

Lovely car. I am well jealous.

 

They are also owned by nice, classy people as I tried to buy one (a VX 4/90) when they weren't terribly old, It was lovely but the owner would not sell it to me as he didn't think I was the right type of person for the car!

 

Put me off Vauxhalls for life!

[Angrydicky]

I like these. It looks well smart.

 

It's a Grimsby (JV) reg on the old gal. There was a vauxhall dealer on Pelham Road in Grimsby (can't remember the name though...) My uncle bought a shovit from them in the early eighties...

Well spotted! It was sold new by County Motors Ltd of Brighowgate, Grimsby, to its first owner in Cleethorpes, who died in 2009. The car was then sold and recommissioned last year.

 

Well bought......really nice car from the coke bottle era. They were always a looker and that looks great cleaned and shiny.

 

Must be a different driving experience to your normal fare?

 

Well, it's smooth, fast and comfortable, so very different!

Brilliant -

had 6 FE's 4 FD's Ventoras - Love them awesome buy

 

I am now officially green with envy - Think I still have a haynes manual for these cars somewhere

Will dig it out if you want it!

Thanks for the offer, but I already had two copies among my Haynes manual stash, and the previous owner still has a third copy to give me!

[Bren]

About ten years ago I could have had a 2300 GLS auto for nowt - it was tidy.

 

It got cubed as I had no room.

 

The 3.3 will just creep over the ton and give you high teens fuel economy. 123 hp from 3.3 litres. Fucking dire.

[HMC]

Those plates are great too, finish the car off perfectly, I guess they must be the originals?

[Sudsprint]

Superb

[Angrydicky]

They certainly are the originals, and I love them. I've already lovingly removed, straightened out and cleaned the front one!

 

Fortunately, they haven't been painted black and silver, like this Victor, which I think really ruins the look of 1970s cars!

 

[HMC]

^ agreed! I do like the driving lamps with those covers though. Was that snapped at that meet trigger organised a while back?

[Angrydicky]

Yeah, looks like Shotley. I do need to replace the broken foglight as it lets down an otherwise very clean car (No rust, never been welded and doesn't need any!), but I haven't managed to find a matching replacement yet. I might end up having to buy and fit a pair of the Lucas ones, which are much more common, but I'm loathe to do that because I think these ones have been on the car since new.

[Angrydicky]

Oh yeah, the Victor only has a month's MoT left on it, so I went over it to see what it'll need. All I could find was one insecured steering rack gaiter (now cable tied), and the other gaiter which has split and needs replacing. Fortunately, among the very useful spares the car came with (loads of new/NOS stuff), was a new steering rack gaiter. I'll get that fitted today, then we'll get it booked in for another test.

[lisbon_road]

That looks immaculate. 

 

My father has had one from new, a later one.  I seem to remember a story in the owners club magazine about a 2300 like yours with only 3K miles on it.  It was purchased by someone who put it into daily all weather use.  If you've got hold of that car you have something really unusual.  All that blue plastic trim is incredibly vulnerable and sadly they do rust badly.  Looks like yours has neither and should also be worth a fair bit.  There just aren't any left.

 

I'd suggest keeping it dry and out of the sun whenever possible. Fine, you probably want to use it and all that, but I remember the wings on my parents going at five years old and the trim isn't durable. 

 

There was some comment about undergearing - it isn't fixed with the Getrag box as although it has five forward gears, top is still direct.

 

Good luck with it.

[Vin]

Well spotted! It was sold new by County Motors Ltd of Brighowgate, Grimsby, to its first owner in Cleethorpes, who died in 2009. The car was then sold and recommissioned last year.

 

 

Well, it's smooth, fast and comfortable, so very different!

Thanks for the offer, but I already had two copies among my Haynes manual stash, and the previous owner still has a third copy to give me!

 

 

I've heard of County motors...In the 1990's there was a vauxhall dealer in Grimsby called 'Cromwell County' which no doubt was some form of merger or something...it in turn later became 'Wilson & Co' who are still the Vauxhall agent in the town...

[Felly Magic]

The base model was snapped at Shotley, and it  belongs to Paul McAlpine from Norwich, who used to organise the Super Dooper 70's show at Wroxham Barns

[maxpower]

Used to drive a friends one of these... think it was a 2200..i maybe wrong......auto box and velor seats that just hugged ya to death ...then the twat wrapped it around a pole while pissed

[RobT]

Cracking purchase Dicky, I love these old Victors. Is it staying at home, or are you taking it to University? I'll have to pop down to Canterbury for a look if you do!

[Angrydicky]

Staying at home in the garage for the moment Rob, but I probably will drive it down soon! You're welcome to pop over to see it!

 

We also need to arrange another Kent/SE London AS meet, so I might bring it along to that!

[inconsistant]

Cracking purchase Dicky, I love these old Victors. Is it staying at home, or are you taking it to University? I'll have to pop down to Canterbury for a look if you do!

 

I'd be up for this too Rob.

[inconsistant]

We also need to arrange another Kent/SE London AS meet, so I might bring it along to that!

 

Or we could just do this?

 

(Not too soon though, the 924 is off awaiting repairs at the moment!)

[Angrydicky]

That looks immaculate. 

 

My father has had one from new, a later one.  I seem to remember a story in the owners club magazine about a 2300 like yours with only 3K miles on it.  It was purchased by someone who put it into daily all weather use.  If you've got hold of that car you have something really unusual.  All that blue plastic trim is incredibly vulnerable and sadly they do rust badly.  Looks like yours has neither and should also be worth a fair bit.  There just aren't any left.

 

I'd suggest keeping it dry and out of the sun whenever possible. Fine, you probably want to use it and all that, but I remember the wings on my parents going at five years old and the trim isn't durable. 

 

There was some comment about undergearing - it isn't fixed with the Getrag box as although it has five forward gears, top is still direct.

 

Good luck with it.

I remember that 2300S, in fact it was sold to that chap by "thedoctor102" who is famous/infamous on here! Good luck to him I say, more people need to use old cars as intended, and he had the money to buy the very best example, and hopefully maintain it as well as possible.

Mine's pretty good, but not immaculate. The top of the back seat has turned quite brittle from the sun, the carpets are bleached from blue to grey, and the dashboard top has also faded from the sun and been sprayed the wrong shade of blue. There's also a bit of paintwork to do - a few giffer style aerosol repairs and a bit of a dent in one front wheelarch, which has revealed a small rust hole and filler in the bottom of the drivers side wing. It's incredibly solid for an FE that's done 75,000 miles though.

[Vin]