What was the first car you ever wanted?

[panhard65]

I can't really remember the first car I lusted after but I always wanted a Land Rover as my dad worked for Eastern Electricity and reguarly brought them home. I did get my first one when I was about 19 it was a series 1 long wheelbase and truly horrible. It spent more time broken than on the road but my own fault for abusing it. That still didn't put me off though and I have had loads of the things since. For real proper car lust I remember finding a Jensen 541S on a local farm. I showed it to my dad and he made enquiries about buying it but in the end it came to nothing. I did have one in the end in the late 90's a 1958 541 de-luxe. My dad was well impressed and it was the first car I ever fully restored. I sold it in 2001 as the paint was starting to crack and I couldn't stand to watch it get worse. There is no way I could afford another as they start around the 30k mark now.

This one wasn't mine but the owner of it kindly lent me his owners handbook so I could get it photo copied

[Walter White]

I wanted one of these when I was very young. My friend's dad had one, a 3L Ghia. His was light brown or bronze.

 

[Zantimisfit]

A Mini. Even from being a little kid I wanted a Mini.....and then a Mini and a Consul Classic

 

I remember walking with my dad when I was small and we passed a row of cars at a set of traffic lights. I was a little car nerd even then and saw this Standard Eight that must have been about twenty years old at the time. "Wooah look an old Standard" I said in a loud annoying precocious child voice. My dad said quietly "you know they might not want to be reminded they have an old car"

 

Up to that point it never even occurred to me that the car you drove might have something to do with money or wealth. I just assumed everybody drove their favourite car. This guy could have had a Silver Shadow...but he just loved Standard Eights. 

 

Wish it was like that.  

[DVee8]

A mates very fit sister,knocked around with the in crowd,she is about 4 years older than me.There was a new Capri 1.6 laser( reg,also a Lada riva and a beetle,so i'll have been 13/14.

I have had a 3.0 ghia capri 1974 in orange.

 

The one that I really lusted over.On my way to school i had to walk past the large house with electric gates the belonged to Laidler international.The car a Jaguar xjs in blue reg JEL25.

I have had a S-type 3.0se auto and a S-typeR,and for the last 10 years i think,the Daimler V8.

[Sloth in a bowl]

 

I'll even take it without the missiles.

[Ghosty]

Has to be a submarine, though?

[warren t claim]

Wow! I don't even remember starting this thread!

 

Just to continue on a slightly different theme.

 

When I was little I used to have a thing for any car with push button door handles, column change gears, separate sidelights and opening quarter lights. Basically everything our family Mk1 Granada didn't have.

[Asimo]

A lorry: a four axle rigid with double headlights.*   (See my recent post in Truck Shite)

 

**Dream specification later amended to include straight-eight Gardner 240 engine.

[HMC]

I used to have a thing (probably still do, although I appreciate povo models too now) for fords with the Ghia trim level. Especially mk2 fiestas that had a different front bumper treatment and 2 tone paint. There was a special edition called a firefly, in radiant red which had most of the exterior ghia trim- there were 2 down my street when I was little and the reg numbers still stick in my head( f282dnc and f-something-jeo) I really thought they were the biz aged 9, and I still do really.

[New POD]

GT6

[greengartside]

From the age of about 10 I always dreamt of having a Mini. I begged the parents to buy me one but they refused, saying that "It'd need so much work doing to it" amongst other excuses.

 

I did come close to persuading my dad to buy me a 1971 example that had been sat for many years in a local garage's front garden but that never materialised.

 

I've still never driven one, either.

[egg]

Triumph TR7 when I was about 5!

[Vince70]

My Dads old 1958 P5 Rover was the first car I can remember when I was young and even at 5 years of age I knew it was a cut above a ford or Vauxhall and then he went for a 1970 P6 and that was just space age with that long speedo.

 

Or it could of been My fathers £100 1971 XJ6 4.2 Daimler sovereign because it had a dash which looked like it belonged in an aircraft rather than a car with rows of switches and gauges and it even had a switch for toggling fuel tanks but obviously it didn't work.

The only thing is I would want to start up smoking again if I bought an XJ6 now just so I could use those ashtrays but only hamlet cigars though for the real Arthur Daley look.

 

The thing is I'm so indecisive but I was really lucky growing up as my father would only drive shite and got bored with cars quickly and would swap them on a monthly basis. So I know where I got it from.

So it's either a Jag or Rover that got me into cars.

[D Spares & Tyres]

Sierra ( with the larger headlamps, I didn`t like the lower spec one )

 

I still have the toy I got when I was 4 when the Sierras came out. They looked so modern and different back then. I loved that toy and always wanted a Sierra. I had a few but they were all underwhelming, even the XR4x4 which I enjoyed owning but I thought it was under powered for such a large engine.

[Guest Breadvan72]

A Lotus Europa.  I had the Matchbox model of the early high-sided one  (Renault engine), and drooled over a JPS version that I saw in the street in the early 70s.  I eventually had two of these, one a 1972 Twin Cam in yellow, the other a 1973 Special in JPS colours. Big-valve 1600 Lotus-Ford twin cam with two Dellorto 50s. Yummmm.  The 1972 one was in a state, the 1973 one may have been the best unrestored one in the UK.  It's in a collection in Hong Kong now, which makes me sad.  The yellow one is now in Australia.

 

 

 

 

[Guest Breadvan72]

JPS interior.  A bit blurry - perhaps I was blubbing.

 

[The_Equalizer]

Volvo P1800 Jensen built. I saw someone crash a mid-60s P1800 near my house when I was 15 and wanted one ever since. I did own a very low chassis number (#3004 - see image below) which I discovered in deepest darkest Pembrokeshire purely by chance. It was first bought by a friend and then sold to me. I only drove it once as it need a full restoration of which I was never going to get round to. I sold it to a very nice man in Sweden who I think is restoring it. He's well known in Swedish P1800 circles.

 

 

Other cars I was busting to own was a MPW Chinese-eye Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud/Bentley S3. There was a dealer just down the road from where my good friend lived who let us - aged 17 - both drive a drophead version. My friend very nearly put it through the back wall of the dealer's garage after braking a shade late. Might have just managed to buy one with my house deposit a few years ago - I mean who really needs a house - but now absolutely no chance.

 

There's also and interest in Jensen 541 and CV8. Bristols of various types and Rover P5 and P5B coupes. I guess only the latter is a possibility. Still fancy an early RR Shadow or Bentley T1. That, or a MPW version (I've still not bought that house!)

 

In the meantime there's plenty of eye wateringly cheap 90s/early 00s metal to play.

[anonymous user]

Was that P1800 from Milford Haven? I remember one sitting on a driveway/hedge in Pill for years

[omegod]

Austin Montego Countryman Estate in dark blue, with roof rails !!! Used to be a dealer near me and I saw one when my mum was getting petrol. i was totally captivated by it at the age of 9

[The_Equalizer]

Was that P1800 from Milford Haven? I remember one sitting on a driveway/hedge in Pill for years

 

It was actually Llanrhian just up the road from Porthgain. We were on holiday in Trefin and I had my dad's MGB. I was talking to the local shop keeper and the MG got us on to the topic of old cars. I just happened to mention that I liked P1800s and he said his friend had one. Literally about three minutes later his friend walked into the shop and so I was invited to come and look. Still skeptical thinking it would be an Amazon or some other Volvo I went down the road. When he opened the garage door there was this P1800. Not only that, but it was a very early Jensen-built version. There were only about 10-ish on the road then (early 1990s) so it was akin to finding P1800 holy grail. About two years later my friend bought it and then, eventually sold it to me. It was solid in some spots and crusty in others. It was a very early RHD Jensen-built car and I think the earliest roadworthy one at the time. I kept it for a couple of years, but had only just started working and, what with funds being so limited, I was never going to have the time or money to do it. Moreover, it was annoying my dad no end being stored at his so it was sold. Fortunately to a Swedish enthusiast - who also went on to co-write a book on the P1800.

 

I did hear of the one in Milford Haven when I visited the Pembrokeshire motor museum (which I understand is now closed). No idea what happened to the Milford Haven.

[maxpower]

Sunbeam Rapier alpine/fastback

 

no pic coz i laptop being a twat

[puddlethumper]

In the sixties I wanted a PA Cresta. Fins, bench seats, n stuff. Phwoar! 

I only had £40 for a car when I passed my test in 71 and a Cresta I knew of for sale was £60, so I had to make do with a MK2 Consul. It had the bench seat, but it just wasn't as good, in my eyes.

[Jams]

AX GT!!

Always liked them but never had the opportunity

[vulgalour]

I don't know which was the first I ever wanted, but the first I put a concerted effort into finding after doing research was a 1960s VW Beetle.  It was quite disappointing to find out just how bad even expensive ones were when I went to see a few back in the 90s.  I'm glad I did my research at the time, otherwise I would have definitely bought a well polished air cooled dog egg.

 

 

I'd still quite like a little 1200 in an obnoxious colour some day.  I doubt I'll find one in budget judging by the way the prices keep climbing for what is a pretty dreadful little car.

[Jimbo]

Real world cars, my first memorable want was in the mid 70's lusting over a school mates dads Mk2 3.0s crappie in gold with a Autoplas rear window louvre. As a teenager I had a Saturday job dewaxing Colts locally, Celestes and Sapporos where lusted over until I clapped eyes on the first black and white Lancer 2000 turbo delivered to the dealership, I believe that could have been my first ever trouser moment...but it also could have been the porn mags the mechanics had stashed in the workshop lol.

 

Other memorable cars was a Jensen Interceptor, a Daimler Double Six also regulars at the Colt dealers and my uncles Orange BMW 2002 in the day when BMWs had working indicators.

 

My dad also had a couple of really cool cars out of the Vivas, A40s, Beetle and other rotten chod, in a Opel Record 1900 coupe his first 100mph car and a NSU RO80 with the Porsche type alloys. I used to pretend the Opel was the general Lee jumping in and out to it through the pillarless windows lol.

 

Happy days.

[mikebee]

easy.mk1 Capri 3litre E in metallic purple with the vinyl roof a set of wolfrace wheels to go thanks 😊

[The_Equalizer]

I don't know which was the first I ever wanted, but the first I put a concerted effort into finding after doing research was a 1960s VW Beetle.  It was quite disappointing to find out just how bad even expensive ones were when I went to see a few back in the 90s.  I'm glad I did my research at the time, otherwise I would have definitely bought a well polished air cooled dog egg.

 

image-thumb.png

 

I'd still quite like a little 1200 in an obnoxious colour some day.  I doubt I'll find one in budget judging by the way the prices keep climbing for what is a pretty dreadful little car.

 

I was in the same in the early 1990s. I actually got a 1964 small window Beetle as my first car. When driving it home after buying it the gear knob broke off in my Dad's hand. It was a sign of things to come! I worked out with what I spent on this car in the first year of ownership I could have run a Porsche 911. Still I must admit I loved that little car and had some cracking adventures in it. I eventually sold it in the mid-2000s as it was clogging up my parents' drive way to someone that went on restore it and it now lives in Huddersfield I believe. APR238B I miss you!

 

I also owned a 1957 Oval. One memorably trip was driving to the docks in Birkenhead. It was dark and pissing with rain. It only had semaphore indicators and the wipers weren't wiping. Definitely not a good trip.

 

[Six-cylinder]

I had to buy my reference material to check I was correct before posting here, the Ladybird Book of Motor Cars from the school library when I was at primary school!

 

A while ago, but I do remember wanting a Maserati Mistral over an E Type because it was the fastest in the book, 155 mph compared to an E type 150 mph!