What's your thing?

[Peter C]

Schoolgirls.

Oops, wrong forum.

[JakeT]

Foreign number plates. I marvel at seeing ones from places I’ve not been to before, and when we go on holiday I love looking at the features and what sort of systems they use for registration. Even more, ‘old’ ones. Think DIN plates in Germany, old French ones (yellow rear plate), all of that stuff.

 

Also, car transportation systems. Having taken my daily to 14 different countries now it’s been in a few, but I’ve yet to find a mystical autotrain, where you park the car, have a cabin and wake up ready to drive elsewhere.

[Supernaut]

Purely by accident (at least the first two times), the E36 BMW 3 series.

I also enjoy a 90s PSA product (or small French hatchbacks in general) or a series Land Rover.

[MorrisItalSLX]

I like collecting handbooks/owner’s manuals/workshop manuals. Preferably genuine factory manuals, but not opposed to the odd Haynes, Gregory’s or Autodata.

[IronStar]

  On 29/07/2024 at 11:25, JakeT said:

Also, car transportation systems. Having taken my daily to 14 different countries now it’s been in a few, but I’ve yet to find a mystical autotrain, where you park the car, have a cabin and wake up ready to drive elsewhere.

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Belgrade (Serbia) to Bar (Montenegro) runs that service. Not even costly, but needs booking in advance. 
Very very slow way to get where you’re headed though.

[yes oui si]

Wheels and a near-encyclopedic knowledge of PCDs and suspension types. 

[sheffcortinacentre]

I'm fascinated by export/overseas versions of vehicles sold here the odd body styles, engine combos etc.

Also one offs, might have beens, experimental versions of  common vehicles built in house by/for manufacturers.

Eg MK1 escort  4dr & EST RS versions, 4 Dr lotus cortinas, etc etc.

[Saabnut]

Quirky, oddball but successful engineering, hence pre war Rolls Royce, Saab and 2 strokes.

[artdjones]

Any oleo pneumatic Citroen, particular pre hydractive.

I could have bought one identical to this once. Still kicking myself.

[St.Jude]

Pretty much like @wesacosa - unpopular/communist/underdog cars . Specifically the FSO Polonez.

[Dobloseven]

  On 28/07/2024 at 21:22, Dyslexic Viking said:

What's your thing? So something vehicle related that you are really into.

Come up with this  after learning that @Peter C has a thing for old airport tugs. And we have one that is in to invalid carriages, one thats on windscreen wipers etc.

So what's yours?

Mine seem to be old taxis and high mileage/hour vehicles and eastern block farm machinery.

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Bit of trivia.A company called Hallam Engineering made aircraft tugs.I was in the same class at school as the owners daughter,sadly neither are still with us.I have on my workbench a grinder with wire wheel given to me years later by his widow when I mended her washing machine,along with various other tools she was clearing out.

Personally, I'm fascinated by the small British carmakers that failed,Lanchester,Jowett,Allard,Lea Francis etc.etc.The ones that got away are somehow more interesting than the well documented big sellers.

[hairnet]

  On 29/07/2024 at 10:57, GrumpiusMaximus said:

Both guaranteed to go ‘pop’ at a moment’s notice.

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no thats just them the cars are fine

 

[Datsuncog]

Old-style scrapyards and rusty abandoned cars. And then taking photos of them.

The weathering on something that's been sat for decades just reels me in.

I've been known to make long journeys to visit certain yards.

Been a while since I was anywhere really good, but maybe it's something to start again...

[hairnet]

  On 29/07/2024 at 18:38, artdjones said:

Any oleo pneumatic Citroen, particular pre hydractive.

I could have bought one identical to this once. Still kicking myself.

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only ever seen gs ones go rabh maith agat

 

[Dyslexic Viking]

  On 29/07/2024 at 18:59, Datsuncog said:

Old-style scrapyards and rusty abandoned cars. And then taking photos of them.

 

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Below is the link to pictures of an old disused Swedish car scrap yard in the forests near Norway which you might find interesting. And I have been there maybe around 15 years ago.

https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=ae95a0e0aab0d175&sca_upv=1&rlz=1CARGFB_enNO1011NO1011&udm=2&q=bastnas+bilskrot&spell=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj3m7yY-MyHAxXAExAIHYJaMRsQBSgAegQIBxAB&biw=1536&bih=695&dpr=1.25

[Dave_Q]

The absolute bottom of the depreciation curve.

I mostly like German and performance stuff but I'm open to all sorts, but what gets me most excited is spending the smallest amount possible on an example of something that someone paid £30k or whatever ever for new.

[reb]

  On 29/07/2024 at 19:08, Dave_Q said:

spending the smallest amount possible on an example of something that someone paid £30k or whatever ever for new.

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Adjusted for inflation the list price of my most recent acquisition was something like 35k. I have paid... not that.

[stuboy]

... collecting 80s/90s etc diescast cars

80/90s vauxhalls

80's to present day ford's

and much more.................

[inconsistant]

I may have posted a photo of my collection of Scalextric MG Maestros before by my thing is really 1/32 scale slot car police, fire, marshal, pace car, and other support vehicles. Sounds normal when I say it out loud but quite niche written down!

 

I’ve also recently developed a bit of an obsession with the history of plastic bumpers. Meant to write an article about them for the 924 owners club mag but got a bit too obsessed and haven’t finished the article yet…  

[hairnet]

  On 29/07/2024 at 19:08, Dave_Q said:

The absolute bottom of the depreciation curve.

I mostly like German - da da da..............

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[cms206]

Also happy to discuss airport tugs with @Peter C - is there a thread I missed?!

[IronStar]

Had another think about this, and I think the right answer to this one, other than the previous one is - basket cases.

I have a great dislike to seeing a car get scrapped, so over the years I’ve spent way too much money keeping cars off a scrappy. Most of the cars I have as projects in various states of stall, are usually attempts to keep something people would’ve scrapped long time ago on the road. Sort of last chance saloon for the cars.
I like seeing the cars taken back from the brink, and made into something undeniably nice. I equally enjoy reading or watching other people doing the same thing. Especially not-so-desirable and expensive ones which would certainly become tincans if not for dedicated owners.

[Low ontime]

  On 29/07/2024 at 19:47, stuboy said:

... collecting 80s/90s etc diescast cars

80/90s vauxhalls

80's to present day ford's

and much more.................

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I have considered this as well…. Since the eye watering prices happened 

[Tomtation]

+1 for hydraulic Citroën, the good ones - without all the electric bollocks. Also performance versions of French shite (Renner 25 V6 turbo, yes pls!)

I have BXs, I'd love an XM (really early 2.0, I'd do a +T) and CX (22TRS I'd slap the turbo kit from a Renner 21 turbo on) to make up a trio of French turbo fancies. All in bleu romantique monsieur.

Coachbuilt, alternative body styles of mass produced cars e.g. Henry Chapron DS/ID convertible or loads of the Pininfarina stuff e.g. Volvo 780

Posh shit I really need but can't afford, Ferrari/Maserati/Jag, this includes low cost big liability stuff 🙄

[artdjones]

Also Renault 4s . The best of the "people's cars "

[NorfolkNWeigh]

For some reason I like cars that waste power somehow, they should be fast but make all the right noises and feelsuper smooth and wafty but just dont go very fast. Older Rolls and Bentleys, V8 Rovers, V6 Fords. The 4.6 V8 Range Rover I’m currently wafting about in is a perfect example . On Saturday I pulled out to overtake a couple of 50 mph dawdlers and MrsN following me in a nasty 2.0diesel SUV almost crashed into the back of me as the slush box tried to find a few of the supposed 225 horses that were once in there.

[UltraWomble]

Old shit mopeds.

Particularly Tomos A3M mopeds from the 1980's

[Pieman]

Couple of others I forgot to post earlier...

Banger racing - but not so much the crashing part, I like looking at what cars have been raced over the years and where and when, and how many examples of a particular model have been raced, stuff like that.

The history of the BTCC, especially the 1990s Super Touring era, and finding out where all the cars are now.

Collecting motorsport programmes and entry lists.

[wesacosa]

  On 29/07/2024 at 22:06, Pieman said:

The history of the BTCC, especially the 1990s Super Touring era, and finding out where all the cars are now.
 

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me too on that one. Its a shame that nobody seems to update the super touring register anymore . 

I wish I'd have bought one when they were cheap. I remember the Janspeed Nissans cropping up for sale about 15 years ago for hardly anything, I seriously thought about bidding on Gareth Howells Mondeo rolling shell when it sold for about 3 grand on eBay ten or so years ago 

[Blue 850]

  On 29/07/2024 at 18:38, artdjones said:

Any oleo pneumatic Citroen, particular pre hydractive.

I could have bought one identical to this once. Still kicking myself.

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Irish market special. Introduced to replace the very popular Peugeot 305 van by the Irish Peugeot/Citroen distributor.  Built by Heuliez. I have the press release in one of the hundreds of Irish car magazines I've been collecting for the past 25 years .