Eye-catching black and whites

[lesapandre]

And with apologies two extraordinary colour pictures of Longbridge in the 50's. These are held by the British Heritage Motor Trust. The first shows designer Dick Burzi at a drawing board. Burzi was responsible for the whole Post-War Austin 'look'. This is such a good quality photograph you almost feel you are there looking over his shoulder. The car is a Devon or a Dorset - note the differing front wing line from the production car. Date probably about 1946 prior to the 47 launch? Front end is more radical - maybe he was later told to put on a more traditional front? You can see the old Austin 'winged wheel' on the prow.

[lesapandre]

And some kind of Longbridge fashion show with suitably decorated car. Those who knew the factory may be able to place this. The car is an A90. This would be about 1954.

[Remspoor]

Oh my do I have to pay a large licence fee for the last 2 images? I only have one for B&W on this thread.

[NorfolkNWeigh]

Amazing that they did any testing at all.

[NorfolkNWeigh]

What might have been if PCP deals existed in 1960

[JimH]

Breaking what appears to be the rules with a photo with no motoring content. It is, however, black and white and rather eye catching. I found it on the floor of the engineering archive of a recently(ish) shut down paper mill in Fife. Everything was going in the skip so I saved it. This is a rag boiler. Those with some knowledge of engineering and pressure vessels will look at the rivetted butt straps and the number and size of the bolts on the access door and wonder what sort of pressure it ran at.

 

 

The date pencilled on the back tells me it was taken in 1977.

[JimH]

Sorry it is so small but it should be of interest to anyone who drives one of those nice modern lorries with lovely comfy cabs.

 

 

Cosy, huh?

[Tadhg Tiogar]

image.jpegimage.jpegimage.jpeg Amazing that they did any testing at all.

 

They actually did a lot of testing of the Ro80 prototypes, and those test mules pictured were practically the finished shape once you remove the false rear fins.

 

The results of all that testing were why the NSU engineers informed the Board that the car wasn't actually ready for production because more work was needed on the engine - the tip seal problem was identified by them. The Board felt that the company couldn't wait, because finances, so the Ro80 was prematurely released onto the market, with all the consequences that followed.

 

In reality, the tip seals had been sorted by 1972, but too late to save the absorption into the VW empire. The Ro80 didn't do well in the UK market because it was very expensive compared to its competitors, especially in the last three or four years. Much of its use in the UK was over relatively short distances in town, and drivers didn't really understand the use of the clutchless manual gearbox - they assumed it would work like a full automatic, stuck it in top and made the engine labour away.

 

It has sometimes been asked why Volkswagen didn't hang onto the Ro80 and do a deal with Mazda to use their 12A/13B engines (which by this time had been perfected and produced rather more torque than the NSU one with a slight improvement in fuel economy). I don't think we'll ever know the answer to that one, but Volkswagen weren't in the habit of buying technology in from rivals.

[JimH]

The rotary engine was never really perfected, was it? It may have had some characteristics which made it useful in certain applications they were still pretty much useless as a means of powering a production car.

 

Once we'd worked out how to make a four pot engine run sweetly and smoothly the appeal of a turbine smooth engine that just happened to have a voracious appetite for fuel, oil and important seals waned rather quickly. I love the fact that Mazda keeps trying to make the damn thing work but it is still a dead end.

[Tadhg Tiogar]

The rotary engine was never really perfected, was it?

That really depends on what you mean by "perfected". I'm not sure you can deny that it works.

 

It may have had some characteristics which made it useful in certain applications they were still pretty much useless as a means of powering a production car.

Not sure that owners of three generations of RX7 would agree with you on that one.

 

....I love the fact that Mazda keeps trying to make the damn thing work but it is still a dead end.

But it does work. It's accepted that the economy's never going to be as good as a reciprocating one which has loads of bits in it, but it works.

[JeeExEll]

Oops.

Inverness-registered Vitesse was used to catch speeding crims south of Aberdeen.

[JeeExEll]

". . . . . Ohhhhh Hokey Cokey Cokey, . Ohhhhh Hokey Cokey Cokey, . ".

The next part of the song caused traffic chaos.

[JeeExEll]

 

 

Aberdeenshire 1976. Look, a Moskie estate.

[lesapandre]

Costa Brava 1968

 

 

[JeeExEll]

George, John, Paul, and Richard out of the hopeless early 60s popcombo 'The Consul Classics'.

Nothing ever became of them as band, disappeared without trace. Rumours were that George went on to drive an ice-cream van then worked at Halewood, John ran a paper-shop, Paul was a lorry driver who dealt in fork-lift trucks in his spare time, and Richard is still at school.

[kinkersaab]

 

 

Aberdeenshire 1976. Look, a Moskie estate.

 

Any idea where in Aberdeenshire this is?

[JeeExEll]

^ Aye, but need to look it up (no problm). Have been sent a few more Scottish 70s ones I'd never seen before but they were more focussed on the type of countryside / village buildings so the cars are incidental. Can sort it out latr if interested. The image quality isn't great.

[kinkersaab]

oh yes, i love old aberdeenshire stuff, I enjoy trying to trace them. please do forward any on you have 

[kinkersaab]

"I don't know what came over me Guv, I was standing in the middle of moving traffic and suddenly had an irresistible urge to do a Theresa May. I think I've been working too hard, can I take a couple of days' leave".

 

That one is top of union street at the holburn junction I think .  

[lesapandre]

Lambo...in the USA. This is California UCLA

[Andrew353w]

 

 

Aberdeenshire 1976. Look, a Moskie estate.

 

If the registration number had been "427" unstead of "437" it'd have been worth a few pounds to a Moskvich owner, as that's its model number!

[somewhatfoolish]

^ Aye, I don't think it was a direct fitment of a Cortina door Sheff but all I meant was that the design lines are similar. Maybe Taunus design influence? Don't know.

All interesting tho.

 

But, anyway, Glasgow 1980. Obviously in preparation for the Moscow Olympics.

Background street cars.

 

Not much different, the TSB's fucked off though.

 

[Tadhg Tiogar]

 

Not much different, the TSB's fucked off though.

 

bwmaryhillrd.jpg

Probably the TSB was fed-up of being robbed by people. Strange, 'cos I thought banks generally robbed the people....

[sheffcortinacentre]

They didn't like the competition.

[Dick Cheeseburger]

George, John, Paul, and Richard out of the hopeless early 60s popcombo 'The Consul Classics'.

Nothing ever became of them as band, disappeared without trace. Rumours were that George went on to drive an ice-cream van then worked at Halewood, John ran a paper-shop, Paul was a lorry driver who dealt in fork-lift trucks in his spare time, and Richard is still at school.

That really made me belly-laugh. Obviously we all know that they were actually called The Beatle Boys; a poor, Scouse tribute act to the American heavyweights The Beached Buoys, who were, in turn, a highly successful supergroup of ex-fishermen.

 

Back to the photos...

 

[Dick Cheeseburger]

[Dick Cheeseburger]

[lesapandre]

Canal Street Manchester city centre. Possibly George Best's Jag - or maybe he had moved on to a funky Marina coupe? It's actually not changed much. I can remember parking there 30 years ago and smoking out some people sitting by the canal when I started up my old 220D Mercedes - they were not pleased...I always fancied living in that house on the bridge...

[JeeExEll]

9DB228DB-E9AF-4E08-AA7B-D0E045A473DD.png[/url]

Phonebox pic reminds me of this film from 1972, 'La Cabina'. It's about 35 minutes.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=qdVB1EBPVbo

[somewhatfoolish]

A reminder of how lovely* it was living under Franco.