1983 Beige Austin Ambassador

[sierraman]

£200 minimum weighed in... or probably more from a banger racer. 

[Motown]

4 hours ago, Talbot said:

@Motown

Did you go back in the end?  Price seems slightly fruity at £875, but I guess the days of tatty old 80s barges being £50 are long gone.

Arranged with the seller to go back but when i did there was no answer. £875 is abit steep but i guess he just wants back what he paid for it a quick google search reveals it was on Ebay few months back. I reckon he bought it had it transported and was put off by the amount of welding needed when it arrived.

[Motown]

4 hours ago, sierraman said:

£200 minimum weighed in... or probably more from a banger racer. 

I was gonna offer him £500 and hope that i got a decent qoute from a mobile welder. 

[leafsprung]

 

 

[vulgalour]

Ambassadors are weird on the values.  They're incredibly rare, but nobody really cares.  They'll soon all be tax and MoT exempt.  Finding one under a grand in any condition is rare now.  Panels are almost impossible to get, rear arches don't exist, and a lot of the trim is unique and not shared with other models.  £875 sounds about right, even in rough shape.  The value is in the displacers above all else really, other Ambo owners rarely pay a lot for parts and the market is tiny so breaking it isn't much of an option.

You buy one of these with your heart not your head.  It is a cheap way into weird retro motoring but definitely not for everyone.

[brownnova]

Because I was idly singing this yesterday my 2 1/2 year old woke up this morning and the first thing she asked for was “Y Reg on the telly” 

So far it’s been on 4 times 😂😂

I think my child is broken.

[grogee]

17 hours ago, vulgalour said:

Ambassadors are weird on the values.  They're incredibly rare, but nobody really cares.  They'll soon all be tax and MoT exempt.  Finding one under a grand in any condition is rare now.  Panels are almost impossible to get, rear arches don't exist, and a lot of the trim is unique and not shared with other models.  £875 sounds about right, even in rough shape.  The value is in the displacers above all else really, other Ambo owners rarely pay a lot for parts and the market is tiny so breaking it isn't much of an option.

You buy one of these with your heart not your head.  It is a cheap way into weird retro motoring but definitely not for everyone.

When I win the lottery I will have the very best one in existence. Which probably isn't very good anyway. 

I do like an Ambassador, it's one of BL's more pointless endeavours.

[artdjones]

I'm not sure if most of the people who slag off the Ambassador really know much about them. 

For more balance, Car Magazine tested one up against an SD1 and a Saab 900GLS in 1982. They didn't have the reputation of being soft on BL stuff, and certainly felt that the Ambassador measured up to to the competition, and was significantly better on some things, such as ride comfort.

One of @trigger's scans.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/triggerscarstuff/albums/72157629315055963/&ved=2ahUKEwiVmaG68rD8AhWXPewKHSJbDFEQFnoECA0QAQ&usg=AOvVaw3bxBffjoXrGNsQSD3p1PJl

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Dick Cheeseburger]

It seems apt to remind some of the newer members of the skillz of @rovamota in restoring the last Ambassador off the line:

 

[ETCHY]

I can remember reading  various road tests as a kid & actually riding in one when i was around 15. In tests they did rather well & they certainly  were comfortable & pleasant to ride in (more so than mk1 Sierras IMHO).

The trouble with the Ambassador was it was out of date when launched, it wasn't "sexy" or sporty, plus it was an Austin made by BL (or whatever they were at the time) & sadly none of these things helped it when new, or indeed help it now.

I personally like them but then..this is Autoshite..

[sierraman]

I like them because they’re odd, but against the competition they were obsolete before it even arrived. All the same I’d like to see it saved, it doesn’t look a hopeless case. 

[artdjones]

If they were out of date in 1982 it seems strange that Car magazine liked Ambassadors so much. They were notoriously picky about deficiencies in cars and not afraid to express strong opinions. 

[vulgalour]

The Ambassador deserved to do better, it really did.  BL fixed the failings of the Princess and brought it in line with the styling of the time inside and out.  They do feel like what they are, a middle class motor build to a middling standard.  More than just a facelift of trim, with the exception of the rear doors, every single body panel was changed.  The whole structure was reworked for the tailgate, even the rear inner wheel arches were redesigned.  It's sort of sad really, the Ambassador had everything going for it in the context of 1982 and deserved to do better.  Unfortunately, by making them less weird and more in line with mainstream taste they're less appealing now than the arguably worse Princess.

Personally, I'd love to get hold of an Ambassador and fit it out with Princess panels so it looks like a Princess and functions like an Ambassador.  You'd get the improved build quality of the Ambassador's interior, the much needed tailgate, and the Princess' better looking face.  Rear lights might be a challenge since chrome bumpers might not work with the Ambassador units, but if you're replacing welded on wings and stuff, it wouldn't be too much of a challenge.  Pipedreams at any rate.  Proper heart over head territory that one.

[ETCHY]

The Ambassador is really what the Princess 2 that came out i think in 1978 should've been or at least it should 've landed about 1980.

BL had a habit sadly of cars being a bit late to tbe party. The Maestro is another example.

[Dobloseven]

Spotted one in a scrapyard in Heacham, Norfolk last August. It definitely wasn't going to be scrapped. Owner usually has cars for sale. Think it was just out of Mot. Registration no. FKV527Y. Silver. Looked in pretty good nick. Spoke to the yard owner, but he was just locking up. Told him I'd call back but because Bank Holiday,he didn't seem to be there. For some reason I can't put the one photo I took (from a distance) on here. 

[Tommyboy12]

Good thing I bought the Cavalier when I did otherwise I would have probably bought this! It definitely needs saving. I'm sure panels could be matched to other models like the Ford Puma guys using Peugeot 206 front wings to repair their rear wings. I've used Mini floor pans on other cars too.

[sierraman]

A tragically misunderstood car, in any just world it would have smashed the Cavalier and the Sierra. 

[Split_Pin]

I didnt* get a funny look from my wife last night as I lay in bed on my phone at 12.30am looking up pictures of Austin Ambassadors.

[GrumpiusMaximus]

11 minutes ago, Split_Pin said:

I didnt* get a funny look from my wife last night as I lay in bed on my phone at 12.30am looking up pictures of Austin Ambassadors.

'Oh.  That's weird, I assumed you were looking at porn...'

'I was.'

[somewhatfoolish]

Class leading comfort and space let down by somewhat dowdy and arguably out of date styling, no 5 speed gearbox and no 6 cylinder option for the executives. The british Lancia Gamma! 🤣