Neighbours motors / noteable motors around where you grew up...

[neil72]

I grew up in a council house in North London on what was a fairly well to do street but it turned rough as hell in the mid-80s including being the scene of a massive riot!

When we moved there in 1976 our neighbour was a midwife who drove a VW 411 Estate, top car, she used to take her 4 kids and me and my two brothers to school in it,

The guy opposite was Polish and own a grey Skoda, he ran me over in it!!!

The family two doors down were a bit posh, the dad was a bank manager and he bought a brand new Rover SD1 in brown, he used to give us a ride in it occasionally on a Sunday, lovely motor.

The best one i can remember is one of our teachers lived a bit further up the road, he owned 3 Maxis, one in white, one is that horrible beige and one in blue that he bought brand new but always had starting issues, i can still see my Dad and him under the bonnet sorting out various 'issues' with the electrics, good job my dad was a jack of all trades for the BBC and had been an electrician.

Moving onto the late 80s when my brothers started to get cars, this was where some real noteable cars appeared, mainly because they were absolutely horrible, the Mk1 Escort Estate bought for £20 from a dark underground car park in Hackney, what could go wrong, the Mk3 Cortina that i leaned on and my hand went through the wing, the cut and shut Mini Estate, the Beetle with Formica inner wings, the crappy red Chevette bought outside a pub in the High Road for £12, one owner car too, yeah right, and best of all the beast of a Volvo Amazon that was the best of the lot, my brother still talks fondly of that car more than 30 years after he sold it.

Nowadays, nothing of interest to see, even the 70s Mini that was in a front garden for 20 years has gone.....

 

 

 

[leafsprung]

For a time i lived on a dull as ditchwater cul-de-sac in Chelmsford in the mid-80's. The house opposite got themselves a shiny new B-Reg Cavalier in that kind of avocado bathroom suite green.   Then the neighbour got  one of them fancy Sierras. Compared to our Metro HLE they were bloody posh.

Then there was a house down the road with a TR7 and next door to that was something metallic blue which had FOUR exhaust pipes. To this day I wonder what it was but assume it could have been a De Tomaso Pantera. To me as a 6-8 year old in the era of Dukes of Hazzard, Knightrider, A Team, with a box full of Matchbox cars,  it was like Hollywood arrived on my doorstep. 

[GeordieInExile]

Untill quite recently my folks' elderly neighbours were rolling around in a gold Triumph Acclaim on a Y plate. 

They eventually got rid of it and replaced it with a Micra. 

[neil72]

When i moved to Archway in the early 90s my neighbour used to drive a brown Toledo, he upgraded to a Capri 1.3L.

Moved to Finchley back in the early 00s, had nice neighbours, the lad was a bit of a boy racer and drove a Rover 216 Coupe, but the two blokes who lived down the road used to drive in a TWO DOOR SIERRA, they upgraded it eventually to a Skoda Favorit, and the Sierra was scrapped.....the guy a bit further down the road used to daily drive a Sierra XR 4X4 but it was pinched after he died.

[Spottedlaurel]

First neighbour's car I can recall was a pre-Arrow Rootesmobile of some sort, I think a Super Minx. Owned by a nice old Suffolk boy who'd worked for years/decades on the farm where my dad got a job. He also had an old 1930s car (Austin 7 or the like) rotting away in their chicken run.

I have quite a few photos of my/family's old cars with neighbours' bilge in the background, will hunt a few out but this is one of my favourite shots taken circa 1985:

For a while an Italian family lived at the house where there's a Volvo 300-series, they had a Fiat 130 saloon which seemed very exotic. Chap who had the Maestro on the left previously ran a brown Lancia Beta saloon, and the butcher who lived up the road where there's a silver Fiesta Mk1 had a couple of Triumph 2000/2500s in succession. I remember the beige Datsun 120Y being resprayed on the driveway by its plumber owner. I sometimes got a lift to my part-time job at Tesco in the white Sunny on the right.

I can remember all of this and far, far more about cars on our estate back then, but not whether I bought Mrs SL a wedding anniversary card just before we went on holiday last month....

[Cavcraft]

When we moved (to the second house) up here from down south, one of our neighbours had a Daytona yellow Capri Mk1 3000E. I think he worked for Ford, and moved from Dagenham to Halewood. The other side had a Vauxhall Victor, I think.

Someone up the road had a 'woody' Mini estate with a really good number plate ( 111 and three letters, forgotten what) and a few years later the people next to them had a 'B' reg Rover Sterling saloon, iirc.

[Bear]

Tuxford:

We had BL Shite, then Audi 80/Passat/Polo/Golf Cabrio. I thought most other cars were crap - witness the six year old Cortina Mk3 with bitumen tidemark etc.

Cars around: neighbour had a Lancer Turbo, friend's dad had a Scimitar GTC, there was a Firenza droop snoot under a cover near the caravan park (allegedly with a Ferrari engine, yeah), on Beavercotes Lane someone had a pale green Tagora, my other friend's neighbour had a purple Avenger with giffer crooklok, over the road from me were stock car racers and they had an Austin Gypsy, a variety of things for racing... I was offered an early restoration project of a VW Fastback 1600TL (told no!) for £50... The Dukes had a Sunbeam Alpine (Series V IIRC), 1920 Chrysler, Triumph Mayflower, Jubilee Minx. A few kit cars biffing about.

One friend's dad had a yellow FE Victor but I only saw the back of it in a garage - another friend's dad had a Renault 16, which was amazingly floaty and weird. Some photographers who came to the studio brought nice cars - I was obsessed with Citroens, CX and BX (invited to use a plastic bonnet one as a trampoline to show off the plastic!), one guy had an Aston Martin DB5 in blue when they were still just an expensive old car rather than insane money.

Borders: House down the road had Heralds rotting in the garden, garage in Morebattle had an Alfa Montreal I nearly bought for £2500 (non-running - got scared I couldn't fix it), the Toyota Celica Sunchaser liftback I had was around the area for ages before I got it. One of the people who did crosswords for us drove a Vauxhall Viceroy (a 13 year old car that seemed like a relic). Loads of rally cars - Chevette HSR with 2.6, Escrots and so forth. Some dickhead used to bomb around Kelso in a Sinclair C5.

I noticed everything with wheels and I wish I could replace those memories with, I dunno, people or nice places.

[quicksilver]

I can't remember what car my next-door neighbour had, but he worked for BT so he'd often bring home a yellow Metro or Maestro van. Joy over the road bought a brand new battleship grey FSO Polonez, then after a few years traded it in for a Fiesta XR2. She had eclectic taste in cars as in her youth she'd apparently owned a big Healey. Elaine, the other lady who lived with her, had Motability cars (I remember a Corsa and a Peugeot 106) but bought a beige Mk1 Fiesta as a stop-gap; my granny then bought it from her and it ended up being the car I passed my test in. Next door to them changed hands several times and I remember a Datsun Stanza and a red Sierra estate at different times.

Round the corner one way were an elderly couple who had his and hers Minis, a red Italian Job and a gold Mayfair, and along from them was a Fiat Strada that was forever suffering electrical gremlins. On the other side was a recovery driver who'd frequently bring a truck home with his car on the back so it looked like it was always breaking down. Further along was a young lad with a blue Mk4 Escort that I think was ex-Motability, until one day it came home on a tow rope with a bent roof after he'd rolled it. The chap at the top of the street bought the house next door, knocked them into one and put in a drive-through driveway, on which sat a Jaguar XJS that never seemed to move.

Out on the main road was a bungalow occupied by an old chap with a Mk1 Fiesta. His garage was very slightly sloped so he'd roll it out by pulling on the back bumper. Along from him at various times were a Peugeot 309 SRI, a Montego Advantage and a Lancia Prisma. We'd lift-share to school with a family in the next street; husband had a Citroen BX, wife a puke yellow Mk1 Astra replaced by a new red Mk5 Escort. Elsewhere on the estate I remember a Renault Fuego and a Honda Quintet.

[Eyersey1234]

We moved to the Isle of Wight when I was 12, cars I remember the neighbours there having were the couple opposite us buying a H reg Ford Orion, later replaced by a M reg Escort saloon. Their next door neighbour had a T reg silver Focus when we moved there, replaced by a X reg blue Escort, 52 reg green Focus, 54 reg silver Fusion then finally a 06 reg blue Focus, all bought new. Two doors down from us was a blue Volvo 740 estate.  Our next door neighbour had a silver Mazda 323, replaced by a blue Mazda 626, he also had a silver Honda Civic for a short time. Another neighbour had a Peugeot 406 estate.

[timolloyd]

What a great thread.

I grew up in a relatively nice cul-de-sac, SE England, in the late eighties. I recall:

- a neighbour over the road with a mk1 Cortina. I was fascinated by the CND rear lights. Must have been quite an old car by that time, I guess.

- our neighbours with a V8 Vanden Plas SD1.

- a family further down the street with a mk2 Astra Estate LXi. Always seemed quite posh, compared with our Metro.

- another family over the road who were into bangers. They had several early Starlets tucked round the back of their house, which were occasionally brought out front for loading on to a trailer.

- a young-ish couple with two large dogs who had an early Discovery.

- a guy who drove trucks long-distance to/from Eastern Europe. The road is far too small for trucks, but he would park his on a near-by main road. The reg was H1KGB!

- And the caretaker at my school who ran several TR7s. As mentioned up thread, the pop up lights were a source of fascination.

[reb]

I only remember two cars from the estate I lived on as a child.

A pogweaseled red Volvo 240

And what would have been a basically brand new Corsa C driven by a nice chap in his early 20s. It sticks out in my mind because it was very shiny and had the Corsa badge altered to say "ARSE"

[Markeh]

I don't remember many cars from our street - it was a small and fairly low-end newbuild estate in a Nottinghamshire village in the mid-90s, don't think many people had much interesting. I remember our next door neighbour for most of the time I was growing up had a Saxo, met her husband who had a Passat, then they moved - she then had a Nissan Tiida for quite a while, and last I saw was newly divorced and in a Hyundai ix20. Nothing really on Street View as it's only ever been on my folks road twice. I remember a few cars from previous neighbours - a facelifted Vectra C, a green Rover 25, some photos of my cars have also revealed what looks like a Mk3 Golf GTI (which apparently was for sale for £600!), a facelift 306, a white Mk1 Clio Prima, a blue Mk2 Punto and a green Mk2 Mazda 2. Current next door neighbour had a newish 4 Series cabrio which has since been replaced with a Mk5 Golf GTI.

One of the houses at the back of ours did for a short spell have some sort of 70s converted ambulance/camper thing. The reg doesn't come up on Mycarcheck - I am 99% sure someone on a spotted thread on here has taken a picture of it before - it stuck out to me because where they would've been stood to take the photo was the end of our garden!

I remember my gran's neighbours cars (30s semis in allegedly a better area) quite well though - on one side, he had a Mk3 Capri Laser which I don't recall moving often, and a private plated 90s Jeep Cherokee (reg check tells me it was a 97 Laredo diesel) The chap the other side had a gold Jag XK8 until he had a family and changed to a 1 Series and a BINI, later a BINI Countryman. According to Street View, if they're still in that same house, he's now got a Panamera. I do remember the old bloke over the road had a lavender-coloured Mk1 Mazda 2 which never seemed to move.

Here's the Cherokee as of 2019, it's gone in the latest Street View, no longer on the DVLA, and apparently the owner passed in the last couple of months too - I myself haven't been down there since she moved out in around 2018.

Current neighbours - one side, they had a Corsa B when I moved in (I'm told it was a stopgap car after theirs was written off - a Citroen of some description), swapped that about a year later for a 14-plate Suzuki Swift and they've just chopped that in recently for a 73-plate Citroen C3, which I'm reliably told will be the last car they buy! Other side didn't really have much at first but since the current owners bought it have a number of cars - I think currently they have a Meriva B, a Fiat 500X (which very recently replaced a battered looking Mk1 Qashqai), a Mk2 Insignia taxi (why yes, it is a Wolverhampton-plated Uber driver, how did you guess?) and a Jag XF - I think they had a blue new shape Scirocco for a bit as well but I reckon that's gone now.

[artdjones]

The only local car I can remember is the black Humber with red seats of the lady around the corner who ran a taxi service with it. My parents would hire her when we needed to go somewhere. It was probably a Hawk, a Super Snipe might have been a bit thirsty for a working car.

[bunglebus]

I remember a few of the neighbour's cars. Somewhere I even have some terrible drawings I did of a few of them, which are quite a good aid to remembering what they were 

Of note were opposite neighbours two sons who were (and still are) weirdos. One of the sons still lives with his mum now he's in his 50s, the dad died a few years back. They had some quite interesting stuff like an early 5 series and an MG Metro (square centre caps being especially striking to me). The one that really sticks in my mind was the Talbot Matra Rancho, because there was nothing at all like it anywhere.

Next to them were a nice Indian family who had a silver Peugeot 104, then a MK1 Golf that sounded like it was about to explode. Their daughter bought a 2CV and asked us kids to help her work out the umbrella handle gear lever.

Next door to us Les and Edith, he had a tatty dark blue MK2 Escort van, and they had a couple of Marina estates, one of which caught fire one evening thanks to one of Les's discarded cigarettes. Later they bought a nearly new MK3 Cavalier and got me to peel the dealer lettering off the tailgate. They then moved to Derbyshire.

Mr Jones 3 doors down had a MK1 Escort and used to drive up the road with the choke out and shake his fist at me as he passed. Just his sense of humour, I can still conjour up the smell of uncatalysed 4 star exhaust fumes on a cold winter morning as I fetched the milk off the step. Later he moved into a home and the house was bought by the Balls family, I went to school with the elder of two sons, and my mum used to be forever complaining about their house improvements to the tune of an extension over the garage and conservatory. They had a VCR so I went down there and watched Back to the Future on a tape rented from the local shop. Father worked for Salian builder's merchants and apparently always wanted a Rolls-Royce, so bought a Silver Shadow which was not exactly in a great way, another one that sounded like it might blow up at any minute.

Dave and Jill who were in between the Balls and Les and Edith had a Spitfire, which was quite amusing as Dave had the biggest beer belly imaginable, how he fitted in it I don't know. Funny enough after Les and Edith left two brothers moved in, one of them had a GT6 which he took us out for a spin in one evening.

Think that's about all the memorable ones, there was an old couple on the estate who seemed to always have a Golf GTI or Renault 19 16v which didn't quite look right to me as a teenager. How dare old people have fun cars!

[Missy Charm]

On 14/08/2024 at 14:21, Rust Collector said:

Walking to school in the early noughties, there was somebody on Western Road in Newhaven who owned a Pontiac Firebird. I remember desperately wanting to own it as an 11 year old 🤣

No picture as it’s too far back for Google etc., but from memory it was vaguely like this:

Although now I’m doubting myself and thinking it might’ve been a gold one.

Either way, it’s one of the first cars I remember desperately wanting after seeing it.

 

Strange bit of synchronicity: the occupant(s) of a bungalow almost directly opposite the secondary school I attended had at least two Pontiac Firebird-Trans-Am type things.  One was parked in the drive; it was black, so possibly a 'Smokey and the Bandit' replica, and looked in good condition.  No memories of ever seeing it move, however.  There were two - I think - more Pontiacs in the front garden: one was blue and the other was red.  Both were utter heaps in fairly advanced stages of decay and each car had been partially stripped for spares; I'm not convinced the red one was a car at all - it may just have been a pile of panels that vaguely looked like a Trans Am.  

It's all gone now.  The bungalow has been tarted up and the cars have disappeared.  Oddly, however, a Trans Am collector has recently popped up in a different road a mile or so distant from the one-time Pontiac bungalow.  Firebird Family Mk2 have a purplish-blue Smokey-and-the-Bandit-style car, which is so cool it makes me covet a GM product (bad), and a Knight Rider shape Firebird that I'm indifferent to.  The purplish-blue car, when I last saw it, looked good; the other one was a bit tatty.  Not clapped eyes on either for some time as the owner(s) have hidden both cars from view.  At one stage both were parked in the open in the drive; more recently, however, one gained a car cover and the other a portable tent-garage thingy.  The one with the cover has subsequently had a rudimentary wood-and-plastic shelter built for it and has disappeared inside.  Never seen either car move under its own power.  

It could be the same person/family.  Patterns of behaviour do repeat.  It could also be someone else entirely.  

[Shite Ron]

We moved into a new house in 1972 when I turned 3, my parents moved 2 doors down in 1985 and still live in the same street so I can name almost every car in the street from the late seventies to the nineties. The house directly opposite had an Olympic Blue Cortina 1.6 XL when they moved in, replaced by a mk4 1.6 base estate, this was replaced by a 1.6L mk4 estate, then replaced by a mk5 2.0GL estate, then he changed jobs and had a Yellow Datsun 180B estate, this was replaced quite quickly by a yellow mk5 Cortina 2.0 Ghia estate, this was replaced by an early Sierra 2.3 Ghia which I don’t think he was too impressed with and was replaced by a Nissan Silvia, all were company cars, his wife had an Anglia estate, replaced by a rough Maxi, I far preferred the Anglia estate as we regularly had a lift home from school in both, I once had a lift in the Cortina Ghia estate and that seemed really opulent especially as we were sat in the boot on the deep pile carpet. Next door down to this house had matching cars in the mid seventies. Two Viva’s, two Bond Bugs and Skoda Rapids, I cannot remember in which order. Next door up opposite had an mk2 Cortina 2 door, replaced by a mk1 Escort 4 door, then a Rover 2000 P6, replaced by an Oyster Gold Capri GL with a vinyl roof and steel sunroof, this was replaced by a brand new mk2 XR2. I could go on but this post is getting quite long. From the age of 13 I used to help the milkman deliver milk to earn money to buy my first car so could name every interesting car for around a quarter mile radius or more and often remember the cars that were in the houses as I walk my dog around the streets near my parents when visiting them.

[Eyersey1234]

Our next door neighbour in the 90s had a C reg Peugeot 309,replaced by a J reg Skoda Favorit Forum Plus. His son had a C reg Subaru 1.8 Estate in brown, replaced by a H reg Rover Metro. The neighbour in the corner had a Austin Allegro, replaced by a Maestro then a Mk2 Astra which was written off when it became the filling in a 3 car sandwich. Next to him was a  F reg VW Golf Mk2 followed by a G reg VW Polo Fox. The house next to them had about 3 or 4 Citroen ZXs in a row and the house next to that had Citroen 2CVs then when they moved the new neighbours had a Hyundai Lantra followed by a Hyundai Accent. The neighbours in the corner had a silver E reg XR2 followed by a red H reg XR3i cabriolet and a Cavalier Mk3, Rover 600 and Rover 214 as company cars

[DavieW]

The only car I can remember when growing up was our next door neighbour's Capri 2.8i. All the rest were boring compared to that. 

I do remember my mates Dads Maxi auto and being very disappointed the gear lever didn't move when it changed gear 😄😄

[Macscrooge]

The first house I can remember (I was aged 2-4) was a new build at the end of a cul-de-sac in Portlethen near Aberdeen.  Late 1960s.  
Neighbours’ cars included a Triumph Herald, a seemingly enormous Ford Zodiac (pale blue with pointy tail fins), a red DAF 33 and a dark blue VW Beetle. 

[Split_Pin]

More brilliant stories since I last checked 😃

I forgot to mention that although my parets' neighbour in the early 1980s, Mrs Hamilton didn't drive, her friend who lived at the top of the road, did. She'd come all the way down the road to visit her in her blue Simca 1000 with its big square headlights. She never took it out of 2nd gear and I remember the noise ofnit very clearly.

Fast forward to 2026 and my neighbours would probably be best to comment on that weird guy in the street that changes cars all the time, each one worse than the last 🤣

Even although my estate is relatively modern, being completed in 2004, there's quite a bit of chod about although most of it is long dead on the drive. Next door's son who moved away and got married about ten years ago, left his Accord Type R on the drive and a pretty neat mid 90s Civic with fancy engine and running gear. They're under fresh covers though so still cared for.

There's a house at the corner with a very dead P Reg Celica and T reg Subaru non Turbo that he wants 500 quid for. Down the bottom of my street theres a really messy house with a equally dormant R reg Transit. I do remember it running and driving but that was about 10 years ago.

There's a large house opposite me with just one guy living in it, presumably bought as it has a double garage where he keeps a lovely sounding Mustang, I think its a 2004 model.

[Macscrooge]

The next house (1970, I wasn’t quite 5) was another new build at the end of a cul-de-sac. 
The folk across the street were pharmacists and clearly quite well resourced. They had a grey Triumph 2000 for caravan dragging and a white Simca 1000 for everyday. Later the caravan puller was a silver Chrysler 180. In the lateish seventies the caravan was replaced with a VW camper (a T3) and the Simca with a 4-door Chevette.  
Next door to us had company cars - an emerald green Cortina mk2 was followed by a silver mk3 wagon and a white mk3 saloon. A fancy XL if memory serves.  Next to them lived a teacher at my secondary school.  They had a red Princess wedge and then an Acclaim.  
Across from them was a bloke who worked offshore. He bought the green Cortina already mentioned an seemed to have it forever. 
The last house had a company FE Victor estate, then an orange Fiat 132. Their second car was a Lada 1200 estate - the first I’d ever seen. Later they had a brown Fiat 131 estate.  One of their sons had a red Lancia Beta saloon.  
in the next street interesting shite included an orange MG B GT, a Wolseley 4/68(?) - the farina body in highly polished black. Then there was a VW 1500 saloon (not a Beetle) and a yellow VW K-70. 

[The Old Bloke Next Door]

In the 50's on the council howsing estate that I lived on at the time was a bloke with an immalate up right gland rhat every Sunday morniing he would wash it with soapy water, lether it off then polish it. Tbere was an old saloon with flat tyres that we played in as kids and a bloke with a new Austin A30.

[Wibble]

Late 1970s, in a town in Ayrshire that I’ve been quite derogatory of in the past. Newish houses but still being developed and some new neighbours had a house build next to ours. Mum and Dad got on well with them.

Dad’s company car at the time was a ‘77 Cortina 1.6L Auto. Neighbour came home in his new company Granada 2.0L and invited me to sit in it, as his son wasn’t interested. “What do you want to ask”, he said. Embarrassing for me, as there was nothing I needed to know. I eventually managed to remember the strange key hole on the rear wing, so asked about that. It was for an alarm, apparently he worked for a jewellery company. 
 

Next door had a big old Datsun, that I can’t remember the name or model numberof. Opposite had a Mk3 Cortina 2000E and a couple of doors down from him was a Marina TC coupe, which the owner wheel span down the road every time the old air raid siren went off, as he was an on call fireman.

[ProgRocker]

Nothing too exciting having grown up on a council estate during the 1980s and 90s. Fords, Vauxhalls, BLARG. However, I recall 2 cars parked outside a neighbour's house for a time in the early 1990s that were noteworthy.

One was an early Volvo 144 that was a fairly unusual sighting for me even in the early 1990s. That was replaced by a big Mercedes-Benz, which looked absolutely magnificent. Stacked round headlamps and 'clap hand' wipers, so it was likely the W108 model. I went giddy every time I saw it.

[dozeydustman]

This is quite lengthy as I remember a lot of neighbours’ motors.

I was born in Erith October 1978, parents paying my maternal grandparents a peppercorn rent on a second house they owned; by mid-79 we had migrated to Gravesend in a new build (Miskin Way area). First of all we had my paternal grandfather’s old Simca 1501 in that copper/bronze metallic they did. This went the way of all Simcas (rot) and was replaced by a Mk2 Cortina, it was a bluey-grey colour with a black rear panel. Going on that I would have saidGT or 1600E but apparently a 1300. This got nicked and was replaced by my maternal grandad’s Princess 2200HLS (LMX281P). My brother was still travelling in the car by slinging a carry cot on the back seat when the Cortina got nicked so he would have been no more than 9 months (early 1983).

Distinct cars I remember from this house were Mike the Greek & his wife Dr Sandra who had something nondescript and a brown mk1 Escort in a one-up from base spec as it had these hubcaps:

I used to play with sons Lee and Paul (same ages as me and my brother). Opposite was ? & Brenda, again I can’t remember ?’s car but Brenda had a brown mk1 Escort in poverty spec (different hubcaps to those on Sandra’s:)

Again I was friends with their two elder kids Leigh and Nick, similar ages to me and brother. Next door was Ken & Margaret. I cannot remember their car but me and their daughter Carrie played around together in our back gardens (not a euphamism). She had a much older brother (10-12 years age difference) who by the time we moved away had a Mk1 XR2 in Black.

I cannot remember their name of the other next door neighbour but he had a Mk3 Cortina saloon with square headlamps, in various shades of doom blue and rust. He may have been a David.

Three doors down from him was an older man called Peter who owned a Mk3 Zodiac, which always looked cool and enormous.

Opposite and two doors down from Leigh & Nick was Alan and Linda, with whose younger daughter I went to pre-, primary and first of my secondary schools, and still keep in contact. They had a Mk3 Cortina estate, probably L or lower spec, in a very pale yellow. They owned this until the 1990s by which time they had moved to a larger house, round the corner from where we had moved.

For 1985-2001 see 

Edited Sunday at 11:37 by dozeydustman
Cut out the 1985-2001 section as made a new & more thorough post

[Royale80]

Nothing exciting where I lived in the 70's- although one neighbour had a Volvo 66- could always hera it approaching!

Just remembered one neighbour had a Hunter GLS, another a Granada 2.0- not even an L. 

The best though was at junior school. Mike the local Polish shopkeeper had a brand new L reg Jensen Interceptor which we drooled over daily. 

Then in secondary school in 1979 Mr Bonner bought a brand new Peugeot 604SL.

[motorpunk]

Boring stuff in the nice street on a housing estate in the East Midlands for me. Vaguely recall a neighbour having an SD1 and washing it every Sunday with my Dad tutting that “he’ll rot the sills out” for getting it wet. There’s a white Esprit that hasn’t moved since I first noticed it 30 years ago, lawn parked, not too far away. Window left down! 
 

I suspect that I’m the car guy in the village I live in now. Everyone knows the Fiat and Elise, and I used to often have some press blag thing on the drive (sadly, no more). In 30 years time there’ll be tales of “that weirdo with the moustache who used to enjoy setting off the speed camera with his tiny yellow car”. 

[danthecapriman]

One of our neighbours had a Capri mk3. They weren’t very nice people in general and I remember the owners kids deciding to use the front of it as a slide one day until they broke the windscreen doing it. 
Another had a green mk3 Escort, and another had a green mk4 Cortina estate.    
Our next door neighbour had a beautiful maroon Volvo 240 saloon which they kept for years. It was one of those cars that was washed without fail every weekend and always looked absolutely pristine.

Later on in a different house one next door neighbour had an Austin Metro in beige.
The other side next door neighbour had a completely fucked Austin Metro van he used for his painting & decorating business. Their normal family car was a bright red Renault 19. After they moved away the new neighbours had a ceramic blue mk3 Escort and a nearly new mk5 Escort in red. 
Another neighbour there had a black Sierra which I absolutely loved! It was a great looking car. 
A guy a few doors down had an R reg (I think) Austin Princess in beige with a brown vinyl top.   
An elderly couple a few doors down a dark blue B reg Austin Maestro which they a very long time. Not long before we moved away it was replaced by a H reg Fiesta in a metallic silver/grey colour.

Next house again. 
Next door was a miserable old hag who did nothing but complain and she had a Citroen Pluriel thing. 
The family opposite had a VW T3 camper. 
We weren’t there very long though.

Next house. 
Next door had a mid 90’s Mitsubishi Pajero in a very dark blue. He had a huge boat in his front garden for years too which eventually had to be sold as his health deteriorated. It was a big enough boat to need a mobile crane and a low loader to shift when he sold it!
Someone almost opposite had a green Morris Minor 1000 they used regularly. 
Vicar who lived behind the church opposite our house had a maroon K reg Mondeo. 
No much else memorable from there though.

This house there’s absolutely nothing of any interest really. All modern blobs. Mine are by far the oldest cars anywhere near here. 
The next closest is a 2003 Volvo V70 further up the road. 
 

[Rustybullethole]

Handy man fella up the road had a doom blue mk2 Cortina estate, very battered and faded.

Flash chap a few doors up had a Mk1 2ltr Cav - later gifted to us. Ex old bill this one, was a cracking car. 

Mk5 Cortina, what was the run out one they did, carousel? Silver with some strips down it. Had some assisted brakes which caught my dad out when we borrowed it. Can still remedy the lock up and screech.

I remember a bay window camper setting alight at the end of the street. Also a Skoda Estelle wrapping itself around a lamp post. Tree his was quite impressive I felt, one with the speed achievement on such a small road and two with the damage caused to the car. 

[danthecapriman]

1 hour ago, Rustybullethole said:

Handy man fella up the road had a doom blue mk2 Cortina estate, very battered and faded.

Flash chap a few doors up had a Mk1 2ltr Cav - later gifted to us. Ex old bill this one, was a cracking car. 

Mk5 Cortina, what was the run out one they did, carousel? Silver with some strips down it. Had some assisted brakes which caught my dad out when we borrowed it. Can still remedy the lock up and screech.

I remember a bay window camper setting alight at the end of the street. Also a Skoda Estelle wrapping itself around a lamp post. Tree his was quite impressive I felt, one with the speed achievement on such a small road and two with the damage caused to the car. 

Run out Cortina’s were usually badged ‘Crusader’.