Any love for Vauxhall Royales on here?

[carlo]

Looks very smart in black, and seems to have a suitable reg. number based on comments on this thread! Nothing better than buying a car which has featured in a Classic magazine. I bought a Peugeot 504 Coupe in 2000 which Martin Buckley (or his dad anyway) had restored through the pages of Classic & Sportscar a few years earlier - it makes a great piece of history to go with the car.

[AnthonyG]

Execellent looking barge. I would Waxoyl it thoroughly if you're going to use it as a daily over winter. Also a disklok (full cover steering wheel lock) to keep scum at bay.Autobarnstormers are still going, think they are mainly into Omegas etc now though, their stand at the NEC had a Carlton GSI, a Lotus Carlton and a late 1990s sporty Holden of some sort (HSV Commodore?).

[Spiny Norman]

Well, I got it!

Went through to Edinburgh on the train, the seller came & met me at the station and we went off to his place so I could have a good look round it.

You know sometimes there's that "Oh my God, what have I done?" thought that crosses your mind when you buy a car blind? Well....

 

It's better than I dared hope!

 

This car is in amazing condition (scabby front wing notwithstanding) and it drives like a five year old car. There's plenty of oomph from the 2.8 litre straight 6, the auto box works well, there are no nasty noises to speak of, the suspension and steering feel good, hell even the switches for the electric windows and indicators feel like new!

It cruised back along the M8 just before the traffic started to get busy at some mph (well it's so quiet..) and performed pretty much perfectly.

I've a feeling this is going to be a keeper!

 

The service history is worth a mention too. I have never seen a car with such a well documented history. Everything from the original V5 and purchase receipt, through every MOT since 1984, every visit to the main Vauxhall dealer documented and receipted (The total of all the bills must run to thousands!!), original owner's manuals (inc. the radio, which still works) and even the two part official Vauxhall service manual. No Haynes book of lies for me with this one!

The strut tops have been done very well a couple of years ago by a classic car restorer in Edinburgh, and they look fine to me. The wings are really the only dodgy bit of rust on the car that I can see at all, and only at the bottoms, so hopefully they can be fixed.

 

Ring bound service manuals, and folder full of receipts. Also shows photocopy of Practical Classics article from when one of their team owned the car for a while.

First (of two!!) dealer service booklets, including the business card from the salesman.

There's pages and pages of bills from Pearmans of Berkshire. Anyone know if they still exist?

Don't know what this is?

 

It runs really well, but it could do with an oil change at least, so I'll try and get some service parts and get it sorted before winter sets in.

That'll be tomorrow then....it was -6C here this morning!

[whitevanman]

You in the West coast area?

[Calum_B]

There's supposedly only 15 Talbot Alpines left on the road

makes you think that.I remember a mate of mine having one about 10 years ago, but must admit thats probably the last one I saw on the roads.

Wow, didn't realise there were so few!!I was just coming out of my local newsagents a few weeks ago, and one drove past! Jumped in the A40 and shot off after it (term 'shot off' used quite lightly here! )Got a poor pic of it whilst driving (it's a bit far ahead, but you can see it still)I don't remember seeing one since growing up, and even then I hardly ever saw them!

[Rocket88]

It runs really well, but it could do with an oil change at least, MAKE SURE IT'S 20/50 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!![sorry about the shouting]

[Spiny Norman]

You in the West coast area?

Sunny Glasgow! ..and yes, I know about the oil. Boggo 20/50 changed every 5000miles (probably more often than that given the low mileage I do.)

[r.welfare]

There's pages and pages of bills from Pearmans of Berkshire. Anyone know if they still exist?

Pearmains of Crowthorne? No, they are long gone now - an old-school small family-run, village location type of dealer that GM, Ford etc have purged in the last decade or so in favour of massive shiny showrooms on business parks. They sold my old Opel Rekord to it's first owner back in '78 - although it never saw the dealer again as he did his own servicing!

[whitevanman]

You in the West coast area?

Sunny Glasgow! ..and yes, I know about the oil. Boggo 20/50 changed every 5000miles (probably more often than that given the low mileage I do.)

Cool I might see it about sometime then