Oldest Working Taxi

[martc]

This Opel Ascona taxi is working in Napoli. The photo is not dated, but the beaten up Partner type MPV to the right suggests it could be around 2000 or later, making this an old taxi still in service.

[warren t claim]

2 hours ago, martc said:

This Opel Ascona taxi is working in Napoli. The photo is not dated, but the beaten up Partner type MPV to the right suggests it could be around 2000 or later, making this an old taxi still in service.

In my area we never had an Ascona plated but we did have plenty of Mk1 Cavaliers. They all seemed to be 1600L models with the aftermarket manual choke conversion. I'm pretty sure they didn't come with a trip meter so remembering what tenths the odo was on would be essential.

[High Jetter]

36 minutes ago, warren t claim said:

In my area we never had an Ascona plated but we did have plenty of Mk1 Cavaliers. They all seemed to be 1600L models with the aftermarket manual choke conversion. I'm pretty sure they didn't come with a trip meter so remembering what tenths the odo was on would be essential.

My first ph car was a white 1.3 Mk 1 cav. Lasted well, until the gearbox disintegrated.

[warren t claim]

Just now, High Jetter said:

My first ph car was a white 1.3 Mk 1 cav. Lasted well, until the gearbox disintegrated.

Hang on a minute I'm not letting you fuck off without elaborating further!

You honestly worked a 1256 Viva engined Mk1 Cav as a PH car???? 

Why? Did you own or rent it?

[High Jetter]

Bought it, was the wife's company car of a fixings co, TR fastenings. Well maintained & looked after. £1,300, IICR, 1987.

[warren t claim]

1 minute ago, High Jetter said:

Bought it, was the wife's company car of a fixings co, TR fastenings. Well maintained & looked after. £1,300, IICR, 1987.

The only sub 1600cc mid sized saloons ever considered up to the job were the 1.3 Mk2 Cav and the 1.4 Mk3 Cav. You'd have to have rocks in your head/pipe to taxi a 1.3 Cortina, Sierra, Marina/Ital, Alpine/Solara.

[High Jetter]

Mate ph'd a R12. I shared a hack plate on a mk2 cav dizzzle for a while, hated it. 2.0 E reg Bluebird (K72?) was solid class for the job. Earlier locals loved ovlovs, tho.

[warren t claim]

1 minute ago, High Jetter said:

Mate ph'd a R12. I shared a hack plate on a mk2 cav dizzzle for a while, hated it. 2.0 E reg Bluebird (K72?) was solid class for the job. Earlier locals loved ovlovs, tho.

Was the Bluebird pez or a dizzler?

[warren t claim]

I'm trying to remember the various shite that used to ply for hire in my area.

Fiat. 131. Strada. Croma CHT.

Renault. 18. 20. Both petrol and diesel.

BL/ARG. 1.7/1.8 Marina/Ital. 1.3 Maestro. Rover 820. Several 1.6/2.0/2.0 diesel Montegos.

Back then and until about 2003 there were several drivers who fitted into the unique category of "just been made redundant and got to keep my company car as part of my payoff". As well as the usual rep spec Sierras and Cavs there were a few oddballs.

2.9 Sierra XR 4X4. Orion Ghia Injections. Mk2 Cav SRi 130s. MG Montego Turbo. Mk3 Granada 2.0i Ghias. Volvo 460. Saab 9000.

[Popsicle]

23 minutes ago, warren t claim said:

I'm trying to remember the various shite that used to ply for hire in my area.

Fiat. 131.

Father Popsicle PH'd a yellow automatic S reg Fiat 131 Mirafiori Estate in the 80's, it always seemed a bit needy but seemed to go pretty well.

[High Jetter]

6 hours ago, warren t claim said:

Was the Bluebird pez or a dizzler?

2.0D Executive, don't cha know. Manual 5 dr in red. Sold it when my Dad died in 1990 as I was needed to take over the family business - it went on to work the mean streets of Seaford for a few years.

[cms206]

September 21st in Clydebank...

[SunnySouth]

On 26/09/2024 at 22:03, cms206 said:

September 21st in Clydebank...

Has he made that number plate in his shed?!

[timolloyd]

Looks like a piece of pys

[warren t claim]

Those truly hateful pieces of shit did acquire a bit of a following in Scotland due to not rotting like every Fairway/TX.

[Lord Sterling]

There are places in world where old vehicles ply thier trade long after they would have expired in the UK/Western Europe.

My father is Syrian and I remember when we last visited around 20 years ago, most taxis were either Mk1 Golfs,  early 80s Mitsubishi Lancers/Colts, Ladas etc.... mostly early 80s stuff.

There was the occasional old 1960s Mercedes 190Bs & Cs, there was also the triangular cross border taxis that went from Damascus to Beirut to Amman, these were done either by late 70s Dodge saloon cars (for their power and comfort of cruising) or stretch W123 Mercs.

Cross border taxis:

Not a lot had changed. Most of the taxis I've seen are most probably still plying thier trade (despite how it is there).

The (presumably government-run) taxi company have been trying to foist a vehicle called a Saba Saipa upon taxi drivers. They are an impossibly small saloon car, but then, these cars are really going to be doing small journeys from local streets to the market. 

There are still bigger cars going around such Hyundai Lantras etc...

[cms206]

Six years old maybe isn't much but this is still minicabbing as of yesterday at least.

 

[cms206]

Still at work last night in Glasgow city centre

[LightBulbFun]

On 16/07/2024 at 12:09, Datsuncog said:

I'm pleased to report that S770 KGO is still going, since my last spot back in January - it nearly ran me over at a junction behind the City Hall last Tuesday.

What a way to go...

The blue rattlecan paint now extends well above the wheelarches fore and aft, suggesting the corrosion is now getting to rampant levels and that multiple layers of Plastic Padding may soon prove insufficient.

In time-honoured Belfast Cab tradition, that just means that it can at last elevate to its final form - a full body advertising wrap, with the added benefit of providing some much-needed structural integrity.

sad to report that S770KGO was issued a Certificate of Destriction on the 17th of December 2024, almost like it was sacrificed to be the Christmas Turkey.... 

On 13/01/2024 at 09:12, Datsuncog said:

There was definitely an R-reg cab still knocking about a while back; I haven't given up hope of finding that...

did you ever find the R prefix TX1? I genuinely wonder how many survive still, think I have said it before/elsewhere, but if I had the means, I very much would go out of my way to preserve one in the same way @egg is preserving a K prefix Mondeo  

there are actually *no* 1997 TX1's taxed at all according to how many left!

[warren t claim]

I know someone with an R plate TX1 he's keeping in storage.

[warren t claim]

Will the Yanks allow a 25 year old TX1 to be imported without any running gear fitted?

[High Jetter]

6 minutes ago, warren t claim said:

Will the Yanks allow a 25 year old TX1 to be imported without any running gear fitted?

Who is the oldest working driver?

Can I book you from Lime St on Friday afternoon?

[warren t claim]

23 hours ago, LightBulbFun said:

sad to report that S770KGO was issued a Certificate of Destriction on the 17th of December 2024, almost like it was sacrificed to be the Christmas Turkey.... 

did you ever find the R prefix TX1? I genuinely wonder how many survive still, think I have said it before/elsewhere, but if I had the means, I very much would go out of my way to preserve one in the same way @egg is preserving a K prefix Mondeo  

there are actually *no* 1997 TX1's taxed at all according to how many left!

For the pleasure of @LightBulbFun

[High Jetter]

28 minutes ago, High Jetter said:

Who is the oldest working driver?

Can I book you from Lime St on Friday afternoon?

Serious, going to Aigburgh. Get in about 5. 😀

[warren t claim]

I'll happily cover your booking. 

[LightBulbFun]

53 minutes ago, warren t claim said:

Will the Yanks allow a 25 year old TX1 to be imported without any running gear fitted?

I was wondering this, I think they can get a bit tetchy if vehicles are incomplete in some fashion

28 minutes ago, warren t claim said:

For the pleasure of @LightBulbFun

Shiny! ended up on the private plate TXI 122 and sadly showing an export marker since the 25th of Jan 2023! wonder if it is in America  now since 2023 would be bang on 25 years old, im surprised they did not take the private plate off it tho before exporting it...

[warren t claim]

2 minutes ago, LightBulbFun said:

I was wondering this, I think they can get a bit tetchy if vehicles are incomplete in some fashion

Shiny! ended up on the private plate TXI 122 and sadly showing an export marker since the 25th of Jan 2023! wonder if it is America  now since 2023 would be bang on 25 years old, im surprised they did not take the private plate off it tho before exporting it...

Interesting. He's kept quiet about selling it.

[Datsuncog]

On 01/07/2025 at 23:58, LightBulbFun said:

sad to report that S770KGO was issued a Certificate of Destriction on the 17th of December 2024, almost like it was sacrificed to be the Christmas Turkey.... 

Ah, that is sad - though not quite unexpected, as KGO did look pretty hanging towards the end there. Still, over two decades of service is pretty good going! Belfast does seem to be the final destination for many older cabs.

On 01/07/2025 at 23:58, LightBulbFun said:

did you ever find the R prefix TX1? I genuinely wonder how many survive still, think I have said it before/elsewhere, but if I had the means, I very much would go out of my way to preserve one in the same way @egg is preserving a K prefix Mondeo

I haven't seen the R-reg TX1 again, no - it was one of many older taxis (including a couple of FX4 Fairways and Metrocabs) that never seemed to come back into service again after COVID. I guess they either deteriorated while off the road not earning during the various lockdowns and got replaced, or else their drivers just decided to jack it in. It usually seemed to be older guys driving them - younger cabbies seem to go for Fiat and Peugeot vans.

One of the Fairways that used to ply the ranks in central Belfast - in a distinctive shade of green - was operated by a guy not far away from me; a Google Streetview check shows he seems to have swapped it for a newer model around 2022 or so.

There were about four disused cabs parked up here back around 2020/21; sadly I can't remember the plates!

[LightBulbFun]

On 01/03/2024 at 15:36, LightBulbFun said:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/carsyoudontseeanymore/posts/3869950543326482/

@warren t claim ya gotta know the driver surely?  (G965EHC if the reg is hard to make out in the photo)

I always wonder what the story is with vehicles like this, because its fairly likely the owner-driver would of bought the cab when it was new or fairly current, so what made them decide suddenly not to upgrade, but to stick with a particular cab? or is this the cabbies first and only cab? he started his first day in it and just never felt the need to upgrade?

 

what I find most impressive is that not only is there a an FX4 still plying for trade, but that its *just* a Fairway, its not a Fairway driver, (note the silver disc wheels) so its still got Drums all round and front suspension dating back to the original 1958 design I think

G965EHC is now showing as SORN and out of MOT now, so it sounds like its no longer plying for trade, but I really hope its just getting some off-the-road TLC, or is heading towards preservation! it would be a shame if it was scrapped, showing 553,929 miles on the last MOT!

 

@warren t claim you would not happen to know the driver would you? Liverpool is sort of your area right?  

[Madman Of The People]

On 02/07/2025 at 16:45, warren t claim said:

Will the Yanks allow a 25 year old TX1 to be imported without any running gear fitted?

As far as I’m aware, you can import ANYTHING into the US that’s more than 25 years old.

Send it to me.  I’m pretty sure I can find a redneck mechanic who can drop an LS engine into it!