The Reliable Old Boy and Girl thread...

[fotorabia]

I have developed a social habit of approaching old boys and gentile ladies i.e 70s-80s age group when I see them pull up in ancient well maitained shite..if anybody else has anecdotes to add to this..please do..as these old boys and girls are a credit to servicing and cherishing their shite...and proves that old vehicles should not be such a disposalable commodity..

 

So aabout half an hr ago as i parked the 300D...this W116 glided past me..nothing unusual until i identified the diesel noise emission...so here it was..a 1978 W116 300SD-Turbodiesel...LHD..the only one imported new into Australia...now owned by Norman..a lovely gentleman in his 80s who had inherited it off his brother in law who was the first owner..its only got 102000kms on it...slightly rusty and adorned with possum shit..but i spoke at length with him..his one reason for keeping it was due to a few years ago he was caught up in the middle of a serious accident...hit front and rear...the woman who ran the red light and destroyed a BMW nearly died...and he said that his car didnt even move..those huge safety impact bumpers USA style worked for a reason..Norman was a truly inspiring character..gave me great life advice...told me of his success and failures..but still a very positive determined old character..and an owner of such great recognisable quality ..of course..only an elite few of realise that old shite is better than glossy new shite..

 

 

 

 

 

[CreepingJesus]

I parked next to a '95 Volvo 850 yesterday, intending to take a picture. Before I could get the phone camera going, I was accosted by the car's 70 year old owner. Never got round to taking the pic, but we had a good chat about gently ageing Volvos (hers has well over 200k on it, and between her and her son, have had it 15 years), and other stuff. Turns out she was a truck driver too, before ill health took her off the road, so we'd plenty to chat about!

I was recalling how I'd done a proper double-take in Edinburgh last year, when a V70 identical to mine (even the reg number wasn't far off), had parked near where I was delivering. Again, that time, an old lady had got out of it, and we'd spent a few pleasant minutes praising the old tanks. That time, she'd seen my confused expression, so I felt it only fair to explain myself, and thus the ice was broken.

The common thing that comes up in talking to old folk about shit old cars like ours, is that they too appreciate they're not worth much, so you don't fuss over them so much; they're easier to fix than newer stuff; and besides, you don't really need all the fancy gizmos anyhow. I've enjoyed a few of those sort of conversations, and always come away feeling quietly happy somehow. Reliable old boys and girls indeed - they know what they're about!