Base spec absolute misery

[Richard]

  On 08/03/2020 at 13:08, Inspiral_Mondays said:

Is that an ashtray above the speedo?

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  On 08/03/2020 at 13:10, J-T said:

I think that’s the extensive HVAC system 

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It is the ashtray. The HVAC system is the two slots either side of the ashtray, rubbish by 70s standards but quite effective by modern standards. The posher models got fresh air vents.

[Richard_FM]

  On 08/03/2020 at 13:13, Noel Tidybeard said:

FIFY

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Renault liked to have differing engine positions- the earlier fwd cars could have the engine in front or behind the gearbox.

[Richard_FM]

I’ve got a soft spot for the acclaim because my gran had quite an early one.  She later had two Rover 200s so it must have made a good impression.

I heard they were designed to be put together easily,  so much that the production line at Cowley didn’t need as much manpower as the other lines.  

[JeeExEll]

  On 08/03/2020 at 14:12, Tamworthbay said:

Quite a few things, some worth having, some less so but well worth the upgrade money. Mine hasn’t got the rear wash wipe and has also not got the opening rear windows that both my GL and Ghia’s had. 

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I've a few Ford Cars brochure Capri pages scans from over the years, from memory 74, 76 & 77, 81, 82, 83.  Am sure you have them already but I can post any you want to see on the Shite Scans thread. Some early Mk2 stuff may have been posted previously in Dan's Capri thread.

[Tamworthbay]

  On 08/03/2020 at 15:35, JeeExEll said:

I've a few Ford Cars brochure Capri pages scans from over the years, from memory 74, 76 & 77, 81, 82, 83.  Am sure you have them already but I can post any you want to see on the Shite Scans thread. Some early Mk2 stuff may have been posted previously in Dan's Capri thread.

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Thanks! I think I have most of what was available for 83 when mine was built. The only one I haven’t been to track down is small Capri booklet that would have been available at dealers. If you have any scans of that I would be very grateful.

[ETCHY]

  On 08/03/2020 at 11:43, JeeExEll said:

Ford Popular, late 1950s.  No Ghia option available.

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From a time when if you were cold you kept your hat & coat on. It was better & faster than walking (possibly in the rain), & it was better than waiting for a bus.

Oddly coming from a family that never had a car & we had to walk a lot & catch buses, I do still think of using a car as somehow a bit of a treat ?

[NorfolkNWeigh]

  On 08/03/2020 at 13:13, Noel Tidybeard said:

FIFY

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Tomato, patato

[adw1977]

  On 08/03/2020 at 13:39, captain_70s said:

The Acclaim is a good appliance, I find it quite dull, but it's so good at being an car despite being nearly 40 years old I can forgive it that! It'd be nice if it was a higher spec though, I miss headrests, and a dipping mirror... The L was actually a poverty spec only introduced for 1983 for a couple of years, I'm not quite sure why unless BL wanted to try and press into the fleet car market or something...

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That's exactly what BL were trying to do.

[warch]

My recollection of the Acclaim was that it was a bit dull but really very well made by the standards of the day, a friend of the family owned the same car from new from the early 80s to the mid-90s and it still looked in good order and rust free when they offloaded it due to difficulties with emissions. 

[GeordieInExile]

My folks' neighbours had a Y reg Acclaim back in the day... Back in the day being from 1997 to about 2010.

[Justin Case]

My former neighbour still has his 11 reg Kia Rio 1. He should have a special Autoshite long service  medal for surviving 9 years  with a washing machine white car with an interior a sea of grey, equipped with such luxuries as doors locked by a key, windy windows, no air-con and black door mirrors operated by miniscule levers. For bonus shite points it was one of the last of the previous series, sold at a knockdown price after the next version had been released. Is there anything other than the basic Dacias that can match that in recent history?

[Yoss]

  On 08/03/2020 at 10:49, adw1977 said:

For a truly austere dashboard, you really couldn't beat a Mini.  Here's a 1979 850 City.

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It's  not austere, it's compact. And gives you all the information you need. 

[vulgalour]

Was first made aware of this base model via a Youtube video that I now can't find, the above may be the same car, there can't be many survivors.  in 1937 Plymouth offered a stripped out version of their Business Coupe, seemingly as a way to use up previous model parts.  You got one wiper at the front, and one brake light at the back, and that was it.  If it wasn't legally required, it wasn't fitted.  If it did more than make the car go and stop, and keep the weather off you, it wasn't fitted.  The above is the only pictures I can find of one, you'll just have to pretend the modern running lights on the bumpers aren't there, they'll be something of a necessity if you intend to drive it on the open road, I expect.  Interior was, from memory, rubber mats, plain seats, and a stripped out dash that looked more at home in a truck than a car.

[N19]

  On 08/03/2020 at 11:51, Tamworthbay said:

You forget the all important G on the back, no longer are you base model peasant! the extras were not amazing but nice to have and especially for such a small amount of money. At the moment I can’t find a single other example of a 1.6L with metallic paint from the factory. Mine is a very rare (read unpopular) Imperial red paint as well. Sadly the DVLA will no longer give you a list of previous owners so impossible to be sure but it could well have been a demonstrator. It has three previous owners to me, the second was a guy in Stoke who ‘had it from new’ according to the guy I got it from. That would fit with it being a showroom car as well. The extra £18 got you better looking seats (but the same underneath), chrome bright rings on the wheels, the centre console, slightly better stereo (with a cassette no less), so you would think most people would spend that extra few quid (equivalent of about £50 in today’s money). And possibly carpet bits in the parcel shelf but can’t be sure as whilst it says that in one of the brochures I have I have never seen one without them in any Capri.

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Mine is a 1979 1.6L and the parcel shelf (original) is carpet less... The original owner specced a cassette player and I think a couple of other bits which weren't included in the L spec - will need to check. 

 

Incidentally mine is also an unusual colour - "Corsican Blue" - seems to have been used on a fair number Cortinas but very few Capris, possibly for the 1979/80 year only. 

[Rod/b]

  On 07/03/2020 at 18:37, The Mighty Quinn said:

I worked at a BL dealer when the Acclaim was current. It was hoped that the Acclaim would be joined by more Honda based stuff to sweep away the rubbish BL had been making. The Acclaim's warranty record was just incredible. Nothing went wrong with them, unlike what went before it.

 

 

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My grandad bought an Acclaim when he retired, on the Y plate. He had it 3 years and sold it to my Dad who kept it until it was about 11 years old. In that time the only thing that went wrong was the cambelt snapped (on holiday, in west Wales) which luckily was fixed with a new belt - no bent valves or other unpleasantness- and an ignition module shat itself. The rot killed it.

[Tamworthbay]

  On 09/03/2020 at 01:47, N19 said:

Mine is a 1979 1.6L and the parcel shelf (original) is carpet less... The original owner specced a cassette player and I think a couple of other bits which weren't included in the L spec - will need to check. 

 

Incidentally mine is also an unusual colour - "Corsican Blue" - seems to have been used on a fair number Cortinas but very few Capris, possibly for the 1979/80 year only. 

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So Ford weren’t lying! The L is pretty rare anyway but I have never seen the carpet less shelf so interesting to hear that. Mine had carpet but is dead. I have got a replica from the Capri club and was going to put the old carpet back in but I think I will leave it out now. And I have never seen a Corsican Blue one either, it’s a nice colour.

[Luxxo Waftybarger]

I had a base spec mk2 Volvo V70 2.4 petrol auto with 140 bhp. Nothing 'specced' other than a basic CD player.

The cloth seats were incredibly comfy. Great big flat and wide expanse of squishy foam. Nothing else like it in modern cars. Much preferred to higher spec D5 with the harder leather. The induction noise to get it to motorway cruising speed from a slip road was also fantastic.

It averaged 19mpg!

[Richard_FM]

  On 09/03/2020 at 04:05, Rod/b said:

My grandad bought an Acclaim when he retired, on the Y plate. He had it 3 years and sold it to my Dad who kept it until it was about 11 years old. In that time the only thing that went wrong was the cambelt snapped (on holiday, in west Wales) which luckily was fixed with a new belt - no bent valves or other unpleasantness- and an ignition module shat itself. The rot killed it.

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Rust seemed to kill off most acclaims luckily my gran changed hers for a 2nd hand rover 200 in 1989 when it was still solid.

[Rod/b]

  On 09/03/2020 at 08:18, Richard_FM said:

Rust seemed to kill off most acclaims luckily my gran changed hers for a 2nd hand rover 200 in 1989 when it was still solid.

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Dad px’d the lovely Acclaim CD for a crappy g reg Rover 213 in about 92/3. It wasn’t far off base spec, pogweasel pink, and fell very much into the “just a car” category. That got chopped for a H plate 414SLi shortly after, which was a world away from the 200.

[LoftyvRS]

  On 08/03/2020 at 11:50, adw1977 said:

1984 Laser, with the small headlights and slatted grille:

1986 Laser II with the flush nose:

1990 Laser, which was the lowest trim level:

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I remember back in 1985, my parents were looking to replace their ageing 1968 HB Viva with a Brand New Sierra, and were torn between the early Sierra 1.6 Laser with the small lights and slatted grille, or the "new" Sierra 1.6 L with the larger lights and smooth grille. Both were pretty much the same price so the extra spec of the Laser won the day with it's 5 speed gearbox, tilt and slide sunroof and Nimbus Grey metallic paint. B823 RDH was collected in the snow of February 1985 and was in the family till 2001 when it had still only done 48k miles. 

I was learnt to drive in it by my dad, even took my test in it! As testament to his giffer driving style it never even had a set of brake pads in it, just 3 x exhausts due to rust and a clutch due to judder. Faultless apart from that, even the 1.6 E-Max unit was not a bad drive. 

 

[bunglebus]

I think vans have had the biggest areas of improvement in terms of driver comfort.

VW - single instrument, card liners on the doors, vinyl bench and the headlight bowls looking at you. Still sylish.

 

 

60s Transit

 

Even into the 70s Bedford didn't give you much

 

 

Buy a new Transit Custom however...

 

[MorrisItalSLX]

  On 08/03/2020 at 10:49, adw1977 said:

For a truly austere dashboard, you really couldn't beat a Mini.  Here's a 1979 850 City.

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Leyland took a leaf out of Fords book with the 70s Minis, a different dash for each model.

Single dial in the middle for the 850, triple dials in the middle for the 1000, twin dials behind the steering wheel for the Clubman and triple dials behind the steering wheel for the 1275 GT.

[Asimo]

  On 09/03/2020 at 09:46, bunglebus said:

I think vans have had the biggest areas of improvement in terms of driver comfort.

 

 

 

 

60s Transit

 Transit Custom however...

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I am all for comfort but I don't see any extra comfort there, just a lot of extra ugliness and trivia. It is over-styled, over-stuffed and cramped compared to that mk1 Transit.

The new van will be much quieter and much, much, much safer in a collision but in my experience of both these vans it is only the economy, steering, brakes and mirrors that have functionally improved in any meaningful way over that of the mk1 Transit.

And the modern van's  heater is feeble in comparison to the 1969 heater.

Weirdly, the doors sound exactly the same when they are closed!

[Eyersey1234]

I drove a Transit Custom a couple of years ago and thought it very car like. 

[N19]

  On 09/03/2020 at 07:16, Tamworthbay said:

So Ford weren’t lying! The L is pretty rare anyway but I have never seen the carpet less shelf so interesting to hear that. Mine had carpet but is dead. I have got a replica from the Capri club and was going to put the old carpet back in but I think I will leave it out now. And I have never seen a Corsican Blue one either, it’s a nice colour.

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Dug out the brochure today, complete with the 'optional extras' that had been specified... 

[Timewaster]

  On 09/03/2020 at 11:02, MorrisItalSLX said:

Leyland took a leaf out of Fords book with the 70s Minis, a different dash for each model.

Single dial in the middle for the 850, triple dials in the middle for the 1000, twin dials behind the steering wheel for the Clubman and triple dials behind the steering wheel for the 1275 GT.

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True, but rather than an entire plastic injection moulded dashboard, the mini dashes consisted of 2 pieces of vinyl covered cardboard and a plastic housing of sub egg box quality. 

My Mayfair had half a pack of blue tak in the dash to suppress the rattles and creaks. 

It did have the padded top rail though. Luxury. 

[JeeExEll]

Mk1 'click-lock-slidey' door on the passenger side too.  I'd forgotten how that worked.  A pal's dad, a washing-machine service engineer, had a works-supplied early 70s Mk1 for a few years, a 2.0 V4.

Fully open or fully closed the sliding driver's door was fine, but if open about half way it was really rattly when driving along  (worn or broken rollers?) and you could also detach it at the bottom halfway and lift it open like a gullwing.

This is all the dashboard you need in a Transit.  I'd swap the ignition key and choke positions round though.

[ETCHY]

  On 09/03/2020 at 16:44, N19 said:

Dug out the brochure today, complete with the 'optional extras' that had been specified... 

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My first car was a 1.6L Capri  in a pale metallic blue with a brown interior, & it had none of the goodies the one in the picture had. It did however have some particularly shit aftermarket  plastic wheel trims that would fly off at every opportunity (a couple of times being returned by folk who'd spotted them ping off) - It was hardly the stuff of Bodie & Doyle.

HHH 880V , I wonder where you are now !

[Richard_FM]

  On 09/03/2020 at 18:59, ETCHY said:

My first car was a 1.6L Capri  in a pale metallic blue with a brown interior, & it had none of the goodies the one in the picture had. It did however have some particularly shit aftermarket  plastic wheel trims that would fly off at every opportunity (a couple of times being returned by folk who'd spotted them ping off) - It was hardly the stuff of Bodie & Doyle.

HHH 880V , I wonder where you are now !

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It was last taxed on 17 February 2001 so might be in a garage somewhere.  21 years on the road is good going for a car from that era.

[RoadworkUK]

I feel that I should mention the original base spec Ford Ka in this thread... because it was the most sensibly specced car in the whole world.

Instruments: Just a speedo, fuel gauge and some idiot lights.

Heater: sensible three-speed fan and rotary stratification controls.

Stereo: Ford Model 1000, FM only plus cassette. Actually sounded terrific.

Hand-cranked windows were fine 'cos you could easily reach over to open the passenger side if you needed to. Seats had masses of fore / aft sliding adjustment so even certifiable freaks like me could fit behind the wheel. Dashboard floodlight illumination was beautifully judged. Rear seat had a 50/50 split fold and you could set the squab in two positions to allow a bit of extra bootspace in exchange for the plebs in the back sitting bolt upright. Also had incredibly well-judged hard-wearing yet not uncomfortable seat fabric. Huge door bins; a handy shelf / tub in front of the passenger; a carpeted cupholder thing behind the gear selector. And the very most beautiful interior clock of the 20th century.

It was just the very manifestation of "you'd need to be mad to want anything more". 

Except for rustproofing, obvs.