The £73 Suzuki Alto... Now sold.

[pandamonium]

I had just lost a bit of mojo, that's all. Long story, but it should be sticking around now, all being well.

[Cavcraft]

It looks a metric shit load better now, but please get that Back-to-Black (or spray) off the bumpers.

[pandamonium]

I'm afraid the bumpers were sprayed black when I got it, I just went over with a fresh coat. Not sure what else to do really.

[KruJoe]

Never mind that, it's looking loads better already. I'd have gone for a bright silver for the wheels to perk it up a bit, but meh, it would have cost another £3 to do that!

I hope the MR2 seats go in easy enough for you. Is it worth keeping the cloth from the old seats to staple* onto them, to make them match the rest of the interior?

 

* Other methods of attachment may be more appropriate.

[pandamonium]

Wheels will be silver eventually, but that would require effort to mask up the tyres!

[Ratdat]

Wheels will be silver eventually, but that would require effort to mask up the tyres!

 

Although I have never given it a go, I've heard of brushing washing up liquid onto the tyres, letting it dry then spraying the wheels after which you just hose down the tyres. Sounds plausible but like I said, I've not tried it.

[vulgalour]

PVA glue also works for this trick.

[M'coli]

I'm glad this is staying, it looks like a cool wee car.  I was interested in boot capacity and rear seat capacity, so thanks for the photos.

 

What a lot of people fail to remember about small cars of this era (and those of years previous, like the Herald) was that they were designed to have seating for two adults and two children, not 4 adults; as children grew, the family would migrate to a larger car (we went from a Herald to Cortina estate when me and my sis were 8 and 12).  Although, I suppose by the mid-80s, middle class families could be affluent enough that they might have 2 cars, and an Alto could be insured for a nanny to drive too...

[skattrd]

Unless I'm mistaken the Alto is and always was a kei car, so whilst we may have got bigger engines than the home market the car is still physically a kei, so no more than 3.2m long & 1.4m wide

[Junkman]

You are right.

Although the 3.20m rule was upped to 3.40m in 1990 (that's 25 years now) and again to 3.48m in 1998, when also the width was increased to 1.48m.

From model year 2005 onwards, the Alto export versions did no longer meet the Kei length restrictions.

[pandamonium]

I might just cut a 12" hole in some card, probably easier.

[trigger]

It's pretty revolutionary but you could just buy a roll of tape and mask them off?

[brickwall]

Takes ages that, what with the tape being straight and the wheel round

 

Bin liner with a hole cut out is easier.

[dollywobbler]

I thought about this for ages with the Disco, and in the end, opted to just remove all the tyres. Cost me 'a drink or two' and allowed me to slop paint all over the place with no worries! I've always found that with tyres on, it's very hard to get decent coverage on the very edge.

[trigger]

It took me 1/2 hour to tape my wheels up the other day, just do it in small cuts and work your way around the wheel, then use some cheap wrapping paper to lay over the top, cut the out for the wheel and tape that up and Bob's your uncle.

 

These are from when i did my old Alto wheels but i used a newspaper back then.

 

[wackywacerwill]

Having taped up many times before I was going to try the hole in a bit of card trick but then cut it in half, let the tyres down and jam it in between tyre and rim on my next effort.

I hammershited the van wheels a few years back so naturally they are going rusty again now.

 

Alto looks great.

[M'coli]

The other way is to use 4, 1-metre-long 10 cm-wide strips of paper or card attached cicumferentially and vertically at the junction of the wheel and tyre.

[pandamonium]

Interior / rear pics as promised

[vulgalour]

I'm... I'm actually kinda jealous right now of your little car.

[DVee8]

^^ Same here

[pandamonium]

Now sold.

 

I have £375 in my pocket too!

[r.welfare]

Impressive profit margin!

[michael1703]

Que lots of hatred that you didn't offer it for sale on here for £74.50

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Excellent work monium!!!;

[dollywobbler]

Great stuff.

 

1. Buy shite that even Autoshiters reckon is a disaster waiting to happen.

2. Complete drive home with no problems.

3. Drive around in it for a bit.

4. Clean car, write decent ad.

5. Enjoy enormous* profit.

 

Sounds easy. Why can I never do it?

[wuvvum]

Indeed.  If I'd managed to quintuple my money on every car I've owned I would be a very rich man by now.

[Jim Bell]

Respect to anyone that can turn a profit on any car in these austere times.

Never mind a "special interest vehicle".

 

Well played the Count.

[cort16]

He's on autoshite and made a profit on a car! Burn him he's a witch!

[pandamonium]

Lol. Managed to sell the Peugeot too!

 

Just wait til you see the replacement!!!!!!!

[DeeJay]

You are the Doctor AICMFP.