The new news 24 thread

[brownnova]

Should you ever meet your heroes?

I turned 40 last week (which means I was only 20 when the forum was launched 😳😳) and for this milestone Mrs_Brownnova arranged the hiring of a Jaguar E-Type as my all time number 1 car. 

Ye gads what an exceptional automobile this is! A challenge through traffic-y Gosforth with the choke on but once on the open road this is truly one of the greatest cars I have ever driven. 

Frankly, A 55 year old car should not keep up as well with 2025 traffic, and it just oozes power and smoothness. When ‘they’ say you could nip to lunch in Monaco in one, I totally see what they’re saying after my 100 miles in one. I can see why @Six-cylinder likes his so much! 

 Massive ✅ off the bucket list! 
 

Plus… the Northumbria roads are stunning!!! 

[Six-cylinder]

6 minutes ago, brownnova said:

Should you ever meet your heroes?

I turned 40 last week (which means I was only 20 when the forum was launched 😳😳) and for this milestone Mrs_Brownnova arranged the hiring of a Jaguar E-Type as my all time number 1 car. 

Ye gads what an exceptional automobile this is! A challenge through traffic-y Gosforth with the choke on but once on the open road this is truly one of the greatest cars I have ever driven. 

Frankly, A 55 year old car should not keep up as well with 2025 traffic, and it just oozes power and smoothness. When ‘they’ say you could nip to lunch in Monaco in one, I totally see what they’re saying after my 100 miles in one. I can see why @Six-cylinder likes his so much! 

 Massive ✅ off the bucket list! 
 

Plus… the Northumbria roads are stunning!!! 

I have owned mine since before you were born then!

[High Jetter]

36 minutes ago, wuvvum said:

If I'm not very much mistaken, this esteemed forum celebrated its 20th birthday within the last few days.  Electric Leyland, the original founder, joined the forum on 24th October 2005 - I assume that's when the forum was set up.

(That's the beigest 20th birthday cake I could find.)

Yummy! 20 years, wish I'd stumbled onboard earlier. Where's the party?l

[High Jetter]

2 minutes ago, Six-cylinder said:

I have owned mine since before you were born then!

Good looking! Ser 1a? Memory is vague

[Six-cylinder]

1 minute ago, High Jetter said:

Good looking! Ser 1a? Memory is vague

1966 pure Series 1, but a 4.2 instead of the launch 3.8.

[brownnova]

41 minutes ago, wuvvum said:

If I'm not very much mistaken, this esteemed forum celebrated its 20th birthday within the last few days.  Electric Leyland, the original founder, joined the forum on 24th October 2005 - I assume that's when the forum was set up.

(That's the beigest 20th birthday cake I could find.)

Too many flowers for AS… 

[Six-cylinder]

46 minutes ago, wuvvum said:

If I'm not very much mistaken, this esteemed forum celebrated its 20th birthday within the last few days.  Electric Leyland, the original founder, joined the forum on 24th October 2005 - I assume that's when the forum was set up.

(That's the beigest 20th birthday cake I could find.)

Just 15 years for me, but I did lurk for a year or so before that.

[High Jetter]

2 minutes ago, Six-cylinder said:

1966 pure Series 1, but a 4.2 instead of the launch 3.8.

Kinda what I meant, without remembering it. Best one, IMHO

[wuvvum]

35 minutes ago, Six-cylinder said:

I have owned mine since before you were born then!

What an utterly fantastic photo.

 

Also happy 40th @brownnova.

[RayMK]

Happy 20th to the forum.   I joined 11 years and a few days ago.

Happy 40th @brownnova .   My birthday was last week as well  (76).  No E type drive for me, but a bottle of Burgundy from my daughter will keep me lubricated for several  weeks at a swig per evening.

A useless observation: The E type you drove has a registration quite close to that of my first motorcycle of more than 50cc, a 1971 CZ 175, bought brand new for £166 in Lincoln. Reg was MFE476J.

[LightBulbFun]

3 hours ago, wuvvum said:

If I'm not very much mistaken, this esteemed forum celebrated its 20th birthday within the last few days.  Electric Leyland, the original founder, joined the forum on 24th October 2005 - I assume that's when the forum was set up.

fun* fact the Last Invacar in Ministry Service was withdrawn only just over a year before the founding of this forum, on the 14th of October 2004, bit surreal (for me at least) to think Autoshite and Invacars almost overlap like that  

 

[BorniteIdentity]

Yesterday, we made it.

What a brilliant, dependable, loyal old thing it is. 

Obviously this is all a figment of my warped imagination because you can’t buy anything worth having for under £1000 (!)

Thanks to @Spottedlaurelfor keeping it warm between my two bouts of ownership. 

 

[Spottedlaurel]

30 minutes ago, BorniteIdentity said:

Yesterday, we made it.

Fantastic news! Have let Miss SL and her BF know as they helped a little in getting it there, including the trip to Dubrovnik.

[reb]

Wow, I have now been here for half of the life of the forum!

I just checked and my dad @Richard joined 19 years ago yesterday. Evidently there's no 5G wherever he's ended up past this realm of the living, though.

[Lord Sterling]

On 27/10/2025 at 17:00, bramz7 said:

Like many of us, I've made some comically bad car choices over the years, but this one is probably the worst. 

The amount of money I may as well have set fire to makes me quite annoyed. I should have known better, I certainly could have bought better but no, as per, I buy the shit heap dressed up as a nice car. 

I doubt these items will ever be worth anything but they were saved anyway. 

I'm so sick of buying cars now. I'm lucky the ex HMC Micra is mine as it's been a trooper with this Delta fiasco. It's doing 48mpg average which is really good for a 30 year old car with 55hp. I do have a Delta replacement lined up, but the size of it is making me feel queasy and I've been lucky to find K11 sized parking spots at 2am lately. 

Mats are always worth saving 😉

I know how you feel about the parking issue. Sadly, its what we have to deal with unless you find a property with a large parking facility, but then when you do, you'll not be able to afford to run bigger, more comfortable shit heaps if at all.

[Six-cylinder]

11 hours ago, wuvvum said:

What an utterly fantastic photo.

 

Also happy 40th @brownnova.

Taken by me, published in a practical Classic's restoration supplement and I liked it so much we had an oil painting of it painted from the photo, that hangs on our lounge wall.

[hairnet]

chris ya auld biffa

alex ya auld biffa

bramz - only thing italian worth buying - panda

[Snake Charmer]

Today l passed my DVSA demonstration test  with a clean sheet and have been crowned as an Mot Tester. 😁

[Fat_Pirate]

23 minutes ago, Snake Charmer said:

Today l passed my DVSA demonstration test  with a clean sheet and have been crowned as an Mot Tester. 😁

Well done!  Can I be the first to ask you to write a MOT pass for my car?   My usual tester has got upset as it has a radius arm with the structural rigidity of a bourbon biscuit.  There's a fiver in it for you, let me know.

[vtec-e]

Decided that all my tyres are running slightly underinflated, so pumped up all 12 with the trusty Halfords footpump. Left the Ix20's space saver to check tomorrow, the Astra has Goo, and there was no way I was faffing about under the Clio in the wet, so another job for tomorrow 😄

[tooSavvy]

Congrats to the Forum.... Next year no need to lie about "Challenge 21" when loading up with gin 😉

I'm sure I joined when I'd just got MrSavvy [57plate]

..... setting a low bar for myself, I'm sure I got a 'Horse Vs Train' during that thread 🤔

*Archivist amongst us might unearth it, but server wobbles may have cast those heady days into the Great Webbisphere 🫤

🚙💨

[stuboy]

blimey 20 years ago... i joined January 2014..............

[Hawkeyethenoo]

Going to EICMA bike show in Nov. First time in a good few years, maybe 10. Easyjet Holidays were very keenly priced, two direct return flights from EDI to LIN Linate and four nights in a 4 star Milan city centre 'otel for £558.  ABTA bonded too. Okay, that doesn't include seats, that's another £36 and another £32 spent on in-flight afternoon tea vouchers, milk and two sugars in mine. I hope that cucumber is fresh, love. 

Said flights have now been subbed out to ITA Airways, formerly known as Alitalia who went skint.  WCPGW 🥸

Hire car booked, Panda or similar, aye that'll do nicely.

[stuboy]

I do question some people's ability to park... bloody access panel was tiny.. I stole not broke unit off a vehicle off the road, and for shit and giggle I used the magic of sellotape to least make the broken one look pretty parked up...lol

[hairnet]

i was thinking about that too

flight is 75 

metro 24h ticket 7.60 - can use it to get to malpensa they said

found an agri turismo 3 miles away for 75

decisions...........

not sure if can face the flight tho

was thinking of going to errol for the auction but the train is 126 quid ffs

 

[Mr Livered]

On 28/10/2025 at 22:21, wuvvum said:

If I'm not very much mistaken, this esteemed forum celebrated its 20th birthday within the last few days. 

Crumbs, that is a good run. Many lesser forums have fallen by the wayside in that time, victims of Friendface groups and so on, but it does seem that these beige pages very much have a role to play.

I've been here 18 and a half out of the 20 years; there have been lengthy periods where I haven't visited much but just like the very best kind of old friend, it always seems to be still there when I need the digital equivalent of a battered but cosy armchair to sink into. 

There was the Devon local autoshite meet, I wonder how long ago that was. Hosted by yours truly, I arranged south-west based shiters to turn up in force in their chod so that we could all go to to the Moretonhampstead Motor Museum together. Unfortunately my organisational skills were found lacking, the museum was closed and we all went to the pub instead. The shiters in attendance were very kind about the situation and we had a good time in the end, because they were a fantastic bunch and it was all about having a day out in our cars with like minded people: nobody took it too seriously. 

For me that sums up the lovely atmosphere of the place, and I feel very lucky to have found it. Long may she continue being such a cracking corner of the internet

[Angrydicky]

That BX estate of many shiters, E79 EPN, has resurfaced on FB marketplace.

Unfortunately, ruined by being painted matt black (the kiss of death for cars)

Marketplace – 1988 Citroen bx | Facebook

'Citroen bx 1988 1.9d runs and drives fine gear selector a bit sloppy but still drivable suspension works fine could do with some more fluid in but still works fine logbook here in my name has 11 month mot not in no rush to sell it I’d be using it but can’t insure it so no point it just standing here can come with a lode of spare parts if wanted'

£900. In Bishop Auckland.

 

[loserone]

@dollywobbler has pointed out that the chap who matt-blacked it also brought it back from the dead.  

It's only half an hour or so from me, happy to collect it if folk want a group buy or something.

[loserone]

A couple of pics from when I drove it up North (an hour and a half north of this)

[comfortablynumb]

Doesn't look bad Matt black to me, at least it's all one colour and vaguely presentable.

Said  the owner of a Matt black car 😜

Anyway, as usual, their car, their choice etc etc

 

Edit- anyway just remembered mines satin black, I'm upper class don'cha know😁

Edited October 30 by comfortablynumb
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