Channel Island Chod: GM landfill

[alcyonecorporation]

No MoT there (which their cars will nevertheless pass were they to be repatriated).



God speed, ye Bergerac Harold.  

[mk2_craig]

I had the scanner out for something else this evening and thought I'd do a few that I had been intending to for ages.  This is then a sort of family car history:

 

That's me on the left.  This Renner 14 was new to my parents in 1977 and their only car until a late model mk1 Golf joined it in 1984.

 

 

The mk1 Golf was replaced by a brand new mk2 in 1985 and Dad traded the R14 in for a Uno later the same year.  Golf 2 proved impractical being a three-door so after a hunt for something more practical in spring 1986 we went almost to the opposite extreme.  I think the above photo was taken while waiting for the ferry to Denmark that summer.

 

 

The first Prairie was of 1984 vintage with the 1.5 engine.  We kept it until 1988 (later in its life I saw it fitted with early K11 Micra wheeltrims) and upgraded to a 1.8 ex-demo.  First photos summer 1988 in France, me on the left again.  Then in Guernsey early 90s.

 

 

Meanwhile Dad went from the Uno to an Escort 1.4 estate in 1989, a mk3 Fiesta 1.4 Ghia in 1990 then a Montego 1.6LX estate in 1991 and a year later the 2.0LX seen here (all youthful ex-rental cars).  He then kept this one, a late carb model I think, until 1997 which was long enough for me to get behind the wheel a few times.

 

 

Prairie went in 1992 and a new AX GT took its place.  Mum had this for three years then the green Punto 90ELX took over, Dad was running his own business by this time and kept the GT as an office car.  There had briefly been a pre-facelift AX10E in that role that he'd bought absolutely dirt cheap at a few months old, like £2k in 1991 or something.

 

This takes us up to the point I hit the road in an early mk3 Fiesta but that's another story.  Dad replaced the Montego in 1997 with the Volvo 850 he still owns, which is remarkable considering that nothing previously stayed with us more than a few years (the Punto also lasted a long time with the family and was only sold on in 2012).  Hope this was an enjoyable inerlude!

[doubleyeller]

Well this is a great thread going back to the beginnings of autoshite time. And all the photos still load!

 

So how many of those cars seen in 2007/8 still exist? Will hazard a guess at 10% max! Amazing that you could buy a mini estate for 2 grand back then.....

 

Are there any R20 or R30 survivors in any of the island's?

[mk2_craig]

Sadly no way that the public can check out a registration number and see vehicle status. But yes I would say most of the spots are away now. A few will have been exported e.g. the Herald above.

 

Can't say that I've seen a single Renner 20/30 the whole time. Might be something in a barn somewhere but there's not a whole lot of space so old junk does tend to get cleared out fairly promptly. Nearest I got was the overgrown R16 earlier in the thread but I think that's also been removed, either that or it finally dissolved into the undergrowth. The Viva that was near it is still there though.

 

As an example of how registration marks are "recycled" after vehicles are exported or scrapped, our red Prairie's number plate has made a reappearance on this (which I suppose is the modern equivalent):

 

[sierraman]

It’s great reading about people’s old cars on there threads. Our Focus is ex Guernsey.

[PiperCub]

My 1991 MX5 is ex-Jersey. Still only has 11000 miles on it! 

 

Have all the original paperwork, including the old-style (to us) logbook. Shame I couldn't keep the reg no. 

[dougiefourspeed]

Wow. I've just spent a fair bit of time engrossed in this thread from start to finish, some brilliant spots and a reminder that I really would like to visit the Channel Islands sooner rather than later! Funny to think that the surviving cars from the early pages in the thread are probably worth many times more now than when you papped them, the Cozzies, Integrales and Quattros spring to mind. 

[Fabergé Greggs]

That first photo of the grey prairie is totally great!

[mk2_craig]

Wow. I've just spent a fair bit of time engrossed in this thread from start to finish, some brilliant spots and a reminder that I really would like to visit the Channel Islands sooner rather than later! Funny to think that the surviving cars from the early pages in the thread are probably worth many times more now than when you papped them, the Cozzies, Integrales and Quattros spring to mind.

You got that right. While not quite in the same league, I actually bought one of the XR2s spotted in 2008, for £570 I think and kept it nearly ten years. I did the odd bit to it here and there but sold it in near enough the same condition for £2700 last March.

[dougiefourspeed]

You got that right. While not quite in the same league, I actually bought one of the XR2s spotted in 2008, for £570 I think and kept it nearly ten years. I did the odd bit to it here and there but sold it in near enough the same condition for £2700 last March.

Slightly depressing to think that if I were ten years older (started driving 2009 at 17) I could have afforded many of the cars I would truly love to own back then! I suppose you shouldn’t wish your life away though...

[mk2_craig]

We interrupt this broadcast to bring you houseshite-related news.

 

http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r254/mk2_craig/jersey05-06-07/23-06-07/house.jpg
Finally; If Autoshite made houses. Mad. Definitely inspired me to self-build my own place with an enormous garage on the first level

 

My dream dwelling snapped (gulp) nearly a dozen years ago has unfortunately experienced an amputation of its most interesting feature:

 

Then

 

Now

 

Ah well.  Let's have some dreadful old diesel-powered toss as some consolation (I think I got busted photographing this)

 

 

 

As you were.

[LightBulbFun]

was catching up on this thread and it got me thinking

 

Did the channel islands ever get Invacars?

[Split_Pin]

Typical modern philistines. That house just looks ordinary now.

[martc]

We interrupt this broadcast to bring you some dreadful old diesel-powered toss as some consolation (I think I got busted photographing this)

 

 

As you were.

 

That diesel powered toss says 'Lister' on the grill, whats the story behind that? Is it powered by one of these?

 

[mk2_craig]

I've no idea!! I initially thought it was one of those old daihatsu jeep things but I'm guessing it's a Dutton kit or similar?

[michael t]

Haven't seen this thread before (somehow!!) Love a nice old spotting thread. Amazing what motors where common sights around the Channel Islands just 10-12 years ago..

 

Keep them coming!!

[scruff]

Not spent any time geeking out on here for ages and then one of my FAVE threads is on the front page!! GOD BLESS YOU MK2CRA1G AND THE PEOPLE OF THE CHANNEL ISLANDS

[AnthonyG]

At first glance that blue thing does look like a ‘pre-Fourtrak’ Daihatsu circa 1978 but I think it’s a some sort of kit. It doesn’t look any bigger than a Suzuki SJ yet the Daihatsu’s were larger.

 

I should imagine the Lister badge is a giffer trinket. It looks like the sort of vehicle you’d see behind a row of stationary engines puffing away.

[mk2_craig]

Breaking news: Citroen GSA. 

 

That is all. 

[mk2_craig]

Slightly shite photo I'm afraid, but this was the metals yard this morning.  Shame about the Rootes thing on the left, I'm sure there's a photo of it in intact condition earlier in this thread, which I must update properly one of these days.

 

[Aston Martin]

Ahoy there.

We saw lots of chod. My personal favourite being a Db7 V12 Volante. Instead you can have this pic of a ropey mg zs.

[Split_Pin]

An unmolested limited edition Mini from the 1980s must be a rare thing now. I have a Corgi set with one as part of of it, alongside a Red Hot and a Ritz.

[Aston Martin]

34 minutes ago, Split_Pin said:

An unmolested limited edition Mini from the 1980s must be a rare thing now. I have a Corgi set with one as part of of it, alongside a Red Hot and a Ritz.

 

It appeared to have no security. In England it would be chained to a bulldozer.

[mk2_craig]

We interrupt this broadcast to bring you:

A real live Renner 25 Turdo DX in the wild. Photos from a while back, but spotted it in the same position the other day. YES PLEASE !!!

[wuvvum]

Was the owner stood nearby, holding out his cap and requesting donations from passers-by to fund new tyres?

[Split_Pin]

Can I just say Hurrah that the oldest thread in Autoshite is still coming up trumps with astonishing shite spots. 25 Diesel, WOULD. 

[mk2_craig]

On 3/10/2021 at 9:11 PM, Split_Pin said:

oldest thread in Autoshite

The excellent Spottedlaurel's Spottings is older and more regularly updated, which I'm glad about as I love browsing through it from time to time. I've got a huge amount of previously-photographed tin to upload onto here eventually, and I'd love to go back through the thread and deal with all the broken Photobucket links as well. However that needs a big chunk of time that I'd be struggling to fit in any time soon, unless some windfall comes my way and I can sack off my job a quarter of a century early!

[mk2_craig]

This is one that I’ve known about for at least 15 years but never had the balls to go in and snap. The site is now in the process of being cleared and unfortunately some other old shite has already been swept up into a giant dustpan, this old Dolomite is probably next to be skipped. 

[SiC]

It's always the BL wing badge area that survives but rusts around it. 

[Aston Martin]

Mon frere, I'm setting you a challenge.

You have until the 1st of June to find a certain car, I've just seen one and I haven't seen one in years.

So there's either 4 billion or 0 of them on the island.

 

You need to find a Fiat Idea on Jersey plates.