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Father Ted

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Your Reliant is lovely Ray. Far different to my Rialto, and very different to drive i would guess.

 

Thanks.  Driving it is initially terrifying. The lack of power (17.5bhp when new in 1961), on/off clutch, crossply tyres, non-servo'd brakes and the lack of a normal complement of wheels takes a few miles to get reacquainted with.  After that phase it is just a matter of staying out of the way of other traffic e.g. tractors, cyclists and mobility scooters.  Audi's etc assume I am parked.  It cruises at 45-50mph and I'm told that it will reach 62mph in large countries.

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Thanks.  Driving it is initially terrifying. The lack of power (17.5bhp when new in 1961), on/off clutch, crossply tyres, non-servo'd brakes and the lack of a normal complement of wheels takes a few miles to get reacquainted with.  After that phase it is just a matter of staying out of the way of other traffic e.g. tractors, cyclists and mobility scooters.  Audi's etc assume I am parked.  It cruises at 45-50mph and I'm told that it will reach 62mph in large countries.

Have you driven any of the modern* Reliants? I would love a go in one of there early ones to see the difference. I was told even the Regal 3/25 or 30 are very much different to the Rialto.

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Have you driven any of the modern* Reliants? I would love a go in one of there early ones to see the difference. I was told even the Regal 3/25 or 30 are very much different to the Rialto.

 

Yes. In the early '70s I had a Reliant Regal 3-25 saloon (600cc), bought mainly because I had just got married and only had a motorcycle licence. Wifey wanted a heater.  That one drove well, but I did not know any different, having never driven a four wheeled car. We went from Bucks to Redcar several times and even Scotland once, all the time with a leaking head gasket.  The car eventually caught fire on the way to work and blocked the A41 for an hour before the breakdown service cleared up with a dustpan and brush.  Many years later in 1992 I bought a dilapidated MKVI Regal (of today's post) and gradually refurbished it, getting it back on the road in 2005. In 2007 I bought a Rialto saloon (letterbox boot) and was amazed at how different it was from the earlier two Regals.  The Rialto could, with care and a stategically placed heavy toolbox, be thrown around and had very good roadholding.  It could also reach an indicated 80mph with ease (and noise).  

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I have a massive soft spot for those fiestas with the 1.25 engines. They were the weapon* of choice for my generation as a cheap banger first car. At that point Novas were a bit long in the tooth and the fiesta were newer + more powerful. Those 1.25 engines (Yamaha design you know!?) in that car accelerated far more rapidly and revved far more freely than any right they had to.

A mate barely fitted in his (even with the seat right back) and mercilessly hammered the hell out of it. In two years of ownership and around 15k miles, he got through 3 clutches, handbrake cable, 3 pairs of tyres and two lots of brake pads+discs. How he never ended up smashing that car, I never know.

If I drove one now, I probably find it incredibly slow. However to a 17/18 year old, it seemed not far* off a hot hatch*. :D

They still seemed a bit new when I was at first car stage (unless you had money, or your parents did!) most of the idiots my age were still running Nova’s or Fiesta mk2/3, one even had an E reg mk1 Micra. I didn’t of course, getting a Capri then a Volvo 340...

Anyway,

My younger sister however did have that model Fiesta. In fact she had two of them, the second was a slightly rough W reg 1.3 with the old ohv engine. That one was slow and loud, and it looked progressively worse and worse as the years passed and she beat the shit out of it. Yet it always started and just kept plodding on for years.

 

The first one she had was probably my favourite of her cars! It was an R reg 1.4 Ghia in metallic black with velour seats and A/C. It had that 16 valve engine but the bigger one and absolutely flew! Man did that thing go! It drove beautifully and was actually a lovely car to be in too.

She didn’t have it much more than a year though as it turned out the sills had rotted through both sides almost along their entire length. She sold it and bought the one above as replacement.

 

I do like those Fiestas tbh, I never used to but as they’ve got older I like them more. They’re, in my eyes anyway, exactly what a small hatch should be. Small, nippy and cheap. Not like the oversized overweight fucking ugly abortions car makers shit out now! I’d borrow her Fiestas occasionally and really did enjoy flying about in them.

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Yes. In the early '70s I had a Reliant Regal 3-25 saloon (600cc), bought mainly because I had just got married and only had a motorcycle licence. Wifey wanted a heater.  That one drove well, but I did not know any different, having never driven a four wheeled car. We went from Bucks to Redcar several times and even Scotland once, all the time with a leaking head gasket.  The car eventually caught fire on the way to work and blocked the A41 for an hour before the breakdown service cleared up with a dustpan and brush.  Many years later in 1992 I bought a dilapidated MKVI Regal (of today's post) and gradually refurbished it, getting it back on the road in 2005. In 2007 I bought a Rialto saloon (letterbox boot) and was amazed at how different it was from the earlier two Regals.  The Rialto could, with care and a stategically placed heavy toolbox, be thrown around and had very good roadholding.  It could also reach an indicated 80mph with ease (and noise).  

You have had a few Reliants then. Shame about the 3-25 must have given you a fright. My Rialto is the letterbox boot one too. Never had it up to 80. You will need to show me how its done  :-D

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Had a letter through from admiral, our multicar policy is up next month, but due to their underwriting criteria, they cannot offer insurance for this coming year. That's a new one on me, is there any particular reason this would happen, or is it just a computer says no scenario? Have looked about and can actually get a quote cheaper elsewhere, but a bit peeved that they won't even take us on again!

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Guest Hooli

Had a letter through from admiral, our multicar policy is up next month, but due to their underwriting criteria, they cannot offer insurance for this coming year. That's a new one on me, is there any particular reason this would happen, or is it just a computer says no scenario? Have looked about and can actually get a quote cheaper elsewhere, but a bit peeved that they won't even take us on again!

The underwriters won't cover your fleet so admiral can't offer you cover. I've has it in the past from other companies.
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The underwriters won't cover your fleet so admiral can't offer you cover. I've has it in the past from other companies.

We have our modernz Peugeot 208 and the Prelude on the policy. Presumably they don't like having the chod on it. Fuck them then

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I'm using the AS bike 405 today and I figured out how to get the cruise control working, which was nice, so that's remote locking and cruise now working without spending a penny. I haven't taken the drivers door card off yet to try and sort out the interesting window/mirror electrics.

 

My daily w203 wagon did this last week:

 

post-4715-0-89288700-1529651818_thumb.jpg

 

Its developing a few more noises, so I'm treating myself to a replacement 203 with 1/3 of the mileage ... For sale thread for the leggy Merc coming soon.

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Got hold of a reproduction period gb sticker off e bay to cover a small dent....attachicon.gifIMG_4900.JPG

The unskilled/lazy man's answer to bodywork rectification.

  

^

I've just attached an eBay-sourced Norfolk Line GB sticker to The Volvo's rear window:

 

attachicon.gifDffvAf9W4AARslY.jpg

 

:mrgreen:

What you boys need is a couple of 'AS' stickerz.

 

http://autoshite.com/topic/31899-autoshite-gb-sticker-£1-pp-see-first-post-for-details/

 

[/shameless hawking]

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The new car cover ( the old one was a double duvet cover unstitched) has arrived.

Given the car has doubled in value recently I thought I’d treat it.

 

It’s one of these and I’m very pleased with the fit for a non bespoke thing.

http://www.hamiltonclassic.co.uk/acatalog/IndoorCoverCarBreathableDustFree.html#aST

 

It says it’s indoor use in the ad. but the technical info says water resistant and suitable for car ports and barns too. It’s supposed to be totally dust proof (needed round here) unlike the dearer stretchy Lycra one I was first looking to get- those apparently are recommended for posh showrooms etc.

post-8687-0-23790100-1529685009_thumb.jpeg

post-8687-0-07424700-1529685053_thumb.jpeg

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