Shite car hire 1983 edition.

[Spiny Norman]

Saw this ad for car hire from a 1983 CAR magazine. What shite delights await the weary traveller at his local airport check in!

A Renault 5 (not even a TL, but the dismal 850cc 'L' version) for a mere £12 a day, or £69 a week if you could stand it that long, or an Alfasud or a Maestro for £15 daily, £90 a week if you couldn't.

 

Or how about treating yourself to something a bit sporty for that special trip? An Alfa GTV6 or Porsche 924 could be yours for a mere £336 a week. (As could a Saab 900 Turbo - hmmmm, maybe there's a business opportunity to be formed. Hello, is that Dragon's Den? )

 

Would you have gone for the cheapo options in true shite tradition, or would you have taken your shoulder-padded moll to the sushi bar in something a bit tasty?

Or, assuming such delights as a new Austin Metro City were available today for a mere 12 quid, would you?

 

[chaseracer]

Were those number plates made in the dark?

[Shep Shepherd]

What a diverse choice of cars - I had no idea that Alfas were ever available as hire cars in the UK

[ashmicro]

MG Maestro was a brave choice in 84! No EFi then, just the bastard twin carb that never worked right.

[RedSparrow]

I liek this so I done some googling.

 

First one is from triggers flickr.

 

 

[Spiny Norman]

I'm pretty sure T & C had a Countach at one point. In fact was there not a story doing the rounds that all the fibreglass kits of the Countach owed their existence to one act of bastardry on their car hired for a weekend to make moulds from, or is that just urban myth?

[Pete-M]

What a diverse choice of cars - I had no idea that Alfas were ever available as hire cars in the UK

 

Avis had a big fleet of 145/6s when the twin spark jobbies came out. Most had dead engines before 10k miles.....

[rml2345]

That's a much more diverse range of cars than you get now. I'd love to think I'd have treated myself to an Acclaim auto but being tight it's unlikely...

[Guest]

 

 

I rented this actual car in Boston in 1989, I'm pretty sure. I knacked all the tyres.

[chaseracer]

 

I'll take the Porsche 356 in front of the Maestro, ta very much.

 

 

EDIT: Has that Trafic moved at all...?

[Negative Creep]

What a diverse choice of cars - I had no idea that Alfas were ever available as hire cars in the UK

 

Avis had a big fleet of 145/6s when the twin spark jobbies came out. Most had dead engines before 10k miles.....

 

 

Presumably they were for those tourists who wished to embark on a scenic tour of the UK's hard shoulders

[Station]

Gr8x8 scanz! Those 944's have not and never will cease to be sexy looking motors.

[Shep Shepherd]

What a diverse choice of cars - I had no idea that Alfas were ever available as hire cars in the UK

 

Avis had a big fleet of 145/6s when the twin spark jobbies came out. Most had dead engines before 10k miles.....

 

 

Presumably they were for those tourists who wished to embark on a scenic tour of the UK's hard shoulders

 

[Shep Shepherd]

I liek this so I done some googling.

 

First one is from triggers flickr.

 

 

Is that a Nissan Cherry Turbo behind the tree?

[Madman Of The People]

 

 

I rented this actual car in Boston in 1989, I'm pretty sure. I knacked all the tyres.

 

 

 

It's unlikely you rented one of these. That's a US-spec Ford Granada, last made in 1982. Unless that particular branch was hiring out seven-year-old cars, I'd say you had something else. Most likely, you had an LTD Crown Victoria saloon, which had similarly dated, square-rigged styling, even as late as 1989.

[chaseracer]

Is that a Nissan Cherry Turbo behind the tree?

Good spottage!

[Wilko220]

Could someone maybe re-post those scans again - just for Cavette?

[Volksy]

My Old Man used to get hire cars for our annual trip down to Heathrow to go on our family holidays. Being a tight Yorkshireman, he'd always opt for the cheapest smallest car on a one way hire, so generally the journey was uncomfortable for me and my bro as we'd have to share the back seat with at least one suitcase and a load of other crap.

I'd always get quite excited when we went to collect the car the night before, which one of the shiny new vehicles parked outside would we get? In no particular order I can remember the following...

 

Mk1 Fiesta 1.1L: Noisy, tinny, and crap bootspace, cases on our laps.

Mk3 Escort 1.3L: Loads of room, and my old man quite liked it, but being 'antiford' professed he didn't.

Renault 9 TLE: Weird car with an econometer on the dash, and My Dad thinking you had to keep it in the green or bad things would happen. Very long Journey.....

Fiat 127 Comfort: After the Fiesta incident, my Dad had a stand up row with the Hire chap, claiming that the boot wasn't going to be big enough. Low and behold it swallowed all the cases and bags with ease, much to my old mans astonishment. He ended up buying one of these for my Mum soon after, as he thought it was ace.

Citroen AX: See fiesta.

Renault 5 Campus: Similar to the 127, only he bought me one when I got my first job.

Fiat Strada: One of my favorites, remember looking at all the crazy details, like the wealth of plastics, the round door handles etc. Dad didn't like it as it was too modern!

Sierra 1.6L Estate: Rare upgrade from Godfrey Davis, wouldn't fit up the driveway.

[vulgalour]

I think it's a Yorkshireman tradition that money is to be kept until a special occasion presents itself and then, and only then, is some of it to be spent, sparingly, and change should be received.

 

That's probably why we took a family of four and all the cases in an Acorn hire Rover Metro/100 which was a bit of a squish but very capable once unloaded. It's also probably why another time Dad had a metallic green Perodua Nippa, every panel of which would flex and threaten to dent when it was closed.

[CreepingJesus]

If I had a time machine, I could afford to rent a Roller for a day. Just.

I'd love to see my card go thro one of those roller thingies, just so I could get a carbon copy receipt.

[Negative Creep]

It's remarkable how little the 944 has dated. Show that to someone with no interest in cars and it could easily pass for the late 90s