Tat, remembered

[Sham]

Something happened a few months ago, and regaling my extended family with the story of how it came about got me thinking that maybe, just maybe the good folks of a certain beige and slightly rusty forum might have some similar stories about tat from years ago that lives on in some form.

So, without further ado, take a seat in your favourite wingback and I shall begin.

My Dad passed away when I was 11 - in 1985, but he was in his 50's when I was born in the mid 70's so its not as if he was a very young man.

Frankly. he would have been a popular figure here, a string of shit cars kept on the road by willpower and hard work - or as he would've been called then, a motorist.

Hillmans - Imps, Avengers, Hunters, Minxes
Triumphs - Dolomites, Heralds, a Vitesse
Citroens - 2CVs, Dyanes, GS, Ami
A Daf 66
Simcas
Rovers, Austins, Morris' and various other tat.

His cars were what linked me and him together in a different way to any of the other kids. I always helped* him with the work and I've tried very hard to find some of the cars since he died. The only one I've been able to track down that is currently in use was the Ami 8 estate he had for a while. Its still in good shape and I met the current owner at a show a couple of years ago. He didn't want to sell at the time, but if/when he does he has promised me first refusal. There were always some cars that, for some reason, I had very little detail memory - despite memories of the cars themselves.

I don't have many photos of my old man, he always took the pictures. I have just 3 in fact. One of him, posed, as a little boy in the late 1920's and one of me and my little brother with him one Christmas in approx 1980. The third only came to light last autumn. I was given it by one of my older brothers. It was Dad with his Hillman Super Minx - a 1963 registered estate. This car, more than any other, I remember as "Dads car". It was in the family, in various states of roadworthiness for over 10 years by my reckoning and was one of a few I couldn't remember the reg for so couldn't try and track down. I remember helping to push it when some tosser syphoned all the fuel out of it and I remember the exhaust falling off when it hit a speedbump in a caravan site on holiday in Hemsby. I remember my kid brother falling out the back when the lock failed. I remember the entire car being covered in greenfly during a plague* and sat on the sea front at Gt Yarmouth waiting while Dad cleared the radiator as best he could, and many other memories tied to the car.
So, I looked online and the DVLA have no record of it - when I searched deeper I found that the car was either scrapped or had the number taken off of it, because during the 80's the registration number belonged to a funky* moped. And I found that the number was for sale - for £36 plus fees.

So, though I may not have one of his cars - yet, a small part of the best* one lives on attached to my 2010 Skoda Octavia. And I have a little memory twinge about the photo everytime I walk up to the car.

[timolloyd]

Lovely story

[Split_Pin]

That's excellent you got that plate back, I imagine that's a very rare occurrence  for a car as old as that. 

I love stories like this, it's often about the people and not the car.

[Sham]

I can't take credit for any of it, blind luck and the invention of Google can, I'm happy it happened though.