Peter C

First destination reached, a port in Belfast. The Sierra is making the crossing tonight and is scheduled to be with me by either Tuesday or Wednesday morning, depending on logistics. It will be making the journey on the back of this thing. So far so good.

Is that possible? A Mk2 with Mk1 glazing?

Just received confirmation email from the DVLA that the car is mine. The seller has sent me one more photo. The Sierra may start its journey tomorrow instead of Monday, details to be confirmed tomorrow morning. Excitement level is high.

Just received these photos, the Sierra is ready for it’s trip to the UK.

I have a large collection of What Car? magazines that date back from mid 1980s to mid 1990s. I should get them laminated really, as I get quite aroused whenever I peruse them. Details taken from a magazine that dates back to 1987, same as the incoming Sapphire. Sierras of all shapes and specifications often featured in road tests and similar articles. They usually did well, scored average points, were said to be comfortable, reliable and cheap to run but dated. Makes sense.

The seller told me that the Sierra started life down in Kent and after many years found its way to Scotland, which is where he found it and brought it over to Northern Ireland. It’s now coming back to the south east of England. From a £3 text message check, it’s a four owner car.

Further to these two threads: It looks like I will soon be the owner of a very tidy 1987 Ford Sierra Sapphire 1.8L. I was looking for a poverty spec Sierra in the south east of England but thanks to @cort16 my next toy currently resides with a collector based in Northern Ireland. A deal has been done and Sierra will be put on a low loader on Monday and arrive here in Buckinghamshire the follow day. I have spoken with the seller, checked out his comprehensive Facebook presence and he seems totally genuine. WCPGW? Nothing. There was talk about me picking up the car in person, however for logistical reasons and my imminent big birthday that will keep me busy for a couple of forthcoming weekends, I wouldn't be able to fly to Belfast for at least the next 3-4 weeks. I hope to receive more photos from the seller later today but these are images taken from his Marketplace listing. The Sierra has a genuine 33k miles on the clock, apparently with adequate paperwork to back this up. Online MoT records go back to 2005 and it is clear that the car has seen very little use over the past 18 years and passed most MoT tests outright. 37 year old Sierras don't look this good unless they've been looked after and have clocked up low mileages. More about this gem once progress is made with the seller. The reason why I wanted a poverty spec Sierra is because when I was a student, I bought a D reg Sierra 1.6L from my then girlfriend's dad. I paid £800 for the car, which was about 10ish years old at the time and was owned by girlfriend's dad from new. It was mint. I sold it and bought a Guards Red Porsche 924 but that's another story. Sometime later I bought a Sierra 2.0GL estate. I bought it cheap and it came with Ford Escort S2 Turbo 15" alloy wheels, which I sold for a decent price and fitted a set of Sierra steel wheels and Mondeo trims, which I got from a mate for free. I sold the car a few months later for a lot more than I paid for it. Win. Fast forward (not Fast Ford) a good few years and when I bought my first house, I needed a cheap estate for tip runs and trips to DIY centres. I bought another red estate, this time a 1.8L, fitted with a lovely CVH engine that snapped its cambelt on the second journey. I had it fixed by a local garage for £250. It needed three valves and a new belt. Later, this became my wife's first car, however as it didn't have power steering and was too heavy to drive, it was quickly replaced with a Vauxhall Vectra 2.0 GLS. That was a good car. Fast forward even further, my wife and I moved to a rural spot in Buckinghamshire and I treated myself to a lovely Sierra Chasseur estate, again fitted with a 1.8 CVH motor. That was a one owner car, an ex Ford employee who was given the Sierra as a retirement present from Ford management. I kept it for a few months, sold it to a friend who was later diagnosed with a terminal disease and I ended up selling it for him to a complete stranger who looked very pleased with himself as he was driving away. He should have been, it was a lovely car. Whilst I had the Chasseur, I bought a Sierra 2.0i Ghia hatchback for £150, a runner, with MoT but it was shabby and I flipped it as soon as the V5 arrived, in the process doubling my money. So, ladies and gentlemen, this is why I want another low spec Sierra. I want to relive the good old times and have a car to play with that won't be flashing an EML at me, won't need an EGR delete and will put a lasting smile on my face. More soon.

Not far now!

Just about anything posted by the shadow

My £5k 13 year old Juke. 100% reliable, 45MPG, comfortable, perfect daily.

Bump - the auction is this weekend.

PM me your PayPal details and I’ll ask my wife to send you the cake.

Very nice, my guess that you’re collecting a Vauxhall was right. My wife had a 2.0 GLS one of these in awful dark blue about 20 years ago, it wasn’t a bad car. Looking forward to more updates.

@SiC You've summed up my TT experience perfectly, thank you.

Vauxhall?

My first car was a 1976 Harvest Gold 1275GT, fitted with Denovo run flat wheels and tyres, a walnut dash and a Webasto sunroof, purchased in c1991 for £100. That’s me on the left.

Too reliable*

Yes, I believe so.

This one isn't a Mk1. This is:

Great to have you back, life is worth living again. Re-bookmarked.

Bring back HMC! Please sign my petition.

Such a shame, I loved his updates.

Everything else works ok but Autoshite can’t find HMC’s thread. What’s happened?

Absolutely bloody incredible, amazing and awe-inspiring and these are all understatements. Bookmarked!