Cars that you owned that didn't make the grade.

[Jim Craik]

After the Jag, I got a 69 Lotus Elan (S4?) I'm not positive about the model#, but like the Jag, and the Alfas, I just had to have one because it was so beautiful.

That said, it was the only car I ever owned that you could actually watch fall apart!

You would be sitting at a light and you could see the dash board screws backing out. It had a geat little motor, good breaks, great suspention, but the rest......not so much.

 

[Cliff Beer]

I've owned a lot of different cars....alfa, mg, ferrari, porsche, mercedes, rover, triumph is just a short list...and worked on all of them to a degree that I got to know each car very well. I never really had very high expectations for any of them so, frankly, I was never really that disappointed. Rather, pleasantly surprised when some particular aspect or experience was good.

I did restore a '72 chevy suburban 454 about 20 years ago...painted it black, removed all the trim, headers, big four barrel carb. Boy, did it go (in a straight line). Problem was it went about 8mpg and I was living in the city...the thing was so big that to park it I'd have to find two open parking spots together...which never happened. So, in the end, my plan of having a cool retro suburban hotrod for cruising around in just didn't quite live up to the dream....

I also restored a BRG '64 E-type drop head...while I was in college...and I agree, it drove like a truck. But the sorority gals definitely liked it.

 

[Garry]

I loved my Austin Healy, but you needed a bank to keep it running in top shape. The same goes for the lancia, a sweeter driving car you cannot find. It would track true at 90mph with the hands off the wheel and follow the curves on the interstate. However, you needed to a parts department to keep it running.
Garry

 

[Pat]

Ladies and Gentleman, I present the 1,500cc 1964 Datsun Fairlady Roadster. Three seats, the third "transverse" behind the other two and rear leaf spring handling that made every corner an unpredictable event. I had the car in college until a rod decided to launch itself through the left side of the block.

 

[Jack Houpe]

Sorry, I misread the title. These were all great cars to own.

That is classic! :laugh:

 

[Charlie Farley]

JIm,
But i bet that Elan S4 would still embarass a 40 through the corners ?

 

[Victors]

Most of my cars have been keepers, and I still keep and enjoy some of the first cars I bough.

When I was at school, my daily driver was a Siata, which I converted into a motor home (that sounds now probably overoptimistic to say the least), so I could sleep in it when I went camping, and whenever I had to take an exam at the University of Salamanca, as the last year before my graduation I was living far from campus.

The thing was a pain. It was based on a Fiat 600 (see picture), and many of the mechanisms did not work most of the time (I remember moving the windshield wiper with my arm in order to keep moving, not once, not twice...) , but the main problem in summer was overheating. Boy, even with the heating on to the maximum to increase the cooling capacity of the system, and at night, that thing would overheat in the Spanish summer!

I was very happy the day I sold it back in 81!

 

[Keith]

Ladies and Gentleman, I present the 1,500cc 1964 Datsun Fairlady Roadster. Three seats, the third "transverse" behind the other two and rear leaf spring handling that made every corner an unpredictable event. I had the car in college until a rod decided to launch itself through the left side of the block.

That wouldn't be "inspired" by an MGB would it now... :laugh:

 

[Pat]

Well they say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. While the mechanicals on the Fairlady were a bit primitive, I never had any issues with the electrical system - very "un-MG"

They later improved the car with a 1600cc engine and it was quite the SCCA club racer.

 

[Keith]

I never had any issues with the electrical system - very "un-MG"

Ah, but 'twas merely the "art of darkness"

 

[Keith]

After the Jag, I got a 69 Lotus Elan (S4?) I'm not positive about the model#, but like the Jag, and the Alfas, I just had to have one because it was so beautiful.

That said, it was the only car I ever owned that you could actually watch fall apart!

You would be sitting at a light and you could see the dash board screws backing out. It had a geat little motor, good breaks, great suspention, but the rest......not so much.

There's a nice one on Pistonheads right now for a mere £23,000 GBP - $36,700 USD..

 

[Ian Anderson]

Only car I owned that I was glad to se go was a Fiat Punto - purchased as a cheap daily run around.

In first 2 years it was in the garage for about 16 weeks
Electrics fell apart, ABS failed twice (once would not kick in and the other even trying to slow the car resulted in abs kicking in) ECU failed, steering was a disaster and terminally understeered - would swap laned mid way atound a roundabout if the road was damp, Front tyres lasted a max of 15000 miles.

Regrettably they do not have the 3 strikes and you are out here or they could have had that car back - definately made by an Italian on Monday when he had a serious hangover! Driven other Puntos and they were great - I just got a terrible one!

Ian

 

[Jeff Young]

I had a 1975 TR7.

Thread OVER!

(other candidates 1999 Suburban 2500, ask Ron about that one, starters were essentially a consumable, brakes lasted 10k, a/c didn't work, radio didn't work unless you slammed the door hard, dash lights fried, seat heaters stuck on, etc.)

 

[Pat Buckley]

Thread killer.

 

[Jack]

Re: Cars that you owned that didn't make the grade.

Most of them........

 

[Graham]

I had a 1975 TR7.

Thread OVER!

(other candidates 1999 Suburban 2500, ask Ron about that one, starters were essentially a consumable, brakes lasted 10k, a/c didn't work, radio didn't work unless you slammed the door hard, dash lights fried, seat heaters stuck on, etc.)

Jeff,

I too had a TR7. One of the worst cars ever made, apart from the Austin Princess that I owned for a month. That was EASILY the worst car ever to see the light of day.

I was at the classic car show a couple of years ago over here in Birmingham, and they had a Princess with a letter box slot cut out of the roof, where anyone who could be bothered could vote YES or NO as to the car's ability to reach "Classic" status.

I never did find out the result. IMHO, the car should be allowed to die quietly in a corner, never to see the light of day again...

 

[Tony Hunt]

Gentlemen,
You have never owned a bad car until you've owned a Lada.
I had to replace 2 Daily Drivers at a time when money was very short and foolishly bought a Lada 1200cc saloon and a Lada 1200cc estate (station wagon).
They were truly terrible cars, based loosely on the old Fiat 124, which the Russians bought as a job lot from the Italians at cut price without realising that most of the tooling was missing.
To drive, they were both appalling. Very poor brakes, disc front, drums rear with the handling of a supermarket trolley with a seized wheel.
The saloon, which I bought new, developed an oil leak within 1000 miles (the dealer had conveniently gone bust), ran its bearings and warped its cylinder head. The simplest solution was an engine from a local breaker's yard. (Breakers were doing a roaring trade).
The estate decided to deposit its hydraulic fluid all over the rear drums, which meant the brakes grabbed horribly. For a car with very little weight at the back, this made for interesting oversteer problems during the lightest application of the brakes. Eventually, they failed completely and I had to get home on the handbrake.
Both cars were nightmares to work on. There was an abundance of badly pressed panels with razor-sharp edges and nothing could be taken off without removing at least 2 other things first.
In the end, I gave them both away and Lada withdrew from the UK shortly afterwards, never to return.
Whenever I see a Renault F1 car bearing the Lada logo, I can't suppress a shudder.

 

[Keith]

It's really interesting to compare experiences because I owned several Ladas as company hacks and yes they were "basic" but so was the price

I would have to say that mine went through hell and back and one even broke a crankshaft at 100,000 miles and Lada replaced the entire motor for free even though it was 2 years old and out of warranty. I suppose the very worst experience with the 1500 Estate was the involuntary seperation of the throttle linkage whilst negotiating the Arc de Triomphe 'Speedway' (yes THAT one) in rush hour.

Apart from that they did what it said on their tin :laugh:. I even had a Lada Niva 4x4 which was damned good off road I have to say.

Can't say I ever owned a car in 50 years of ownership that I didn't like in some way (except for one NASTY dog) - I didn't think of them as having 'faults' but 'features'

In order:

1937 Sunbeam 10
1947 Sunbeam 10
1949 Austin Devon
1950 Sunbeam Alpine
1950? Jaguar MK IX
1952 Jaguar XK120 lightweight
1953 Triumph TR3
19?? Lotus 6
1960's Sunbeam Alpine
1960's Sunbeam Tiger
1962 Jaguar MKII 3.8
1962 Jaguar 'E' Type 3.8
1960's Jaguar MK X
1967 Shelby GT350
1968 Chevrolet Z28
1970's Ford Mustang (2nd generation) Yes, this was THE Dog!
1972 Camaro Z28 (2nd generation) turned into a race car
1974 Pontiac Firebird turned into a race car
1974 Chevrolet Camaro race car Kylami 24 hour race winner
1972 Boss 302 Mustang race car
1974? Boss 429 Mustang race car
1978 Chevrolet Chevette turned into a 1/4 mile drag racer
1978 Penske built IROC Camaro Chassis No. 18 driven by Al Unser SNR

You can see a strong theme developing here :laugh:

Then I got married. Then I got divorced. Then I got married. Then I got divorced. End of...:sad:

PS Sorry, forgot the Falcon GT!

 

[OhioMark]

I had a 76' Chrysler Cordoba back in school and if you parked it UP
a grade, it wouldn't start due to the poor carb etc....it left my then
girlfriend (now wife) stuck on campus many times. It rode great down
the interstate, but you wouldn't want to autocross that boat.

The second unmemorable car was my 1996 Jetta with a 2.0L matched
to a slushbox (wife's demand), and rock hard seats that must have been
stuffed with small pea-gravel. The thing was slower than a Yugo and
caught fire the day before we we're due to trade it in. The salesman
ended up buying it after the repairs so maybe he knew something I didn't?
They said it had 115 HP, but you'd be hard pressed to know it.

My first race car was 76' Caldwell D-13 that had seen better days prior
to my acquisition. Due to my inability as a mechanic back then, I had
more things breaking on it, or falling off it than I can remember plus the
motor was on par with the 1600 aircooled SV motors when it came to
Ker-blamo's...

 

[Dave Wood]

Ladies and Gentleman, I present the 1,500cc 1964 Datsun Fairlady Roadster. Three seats, the third "transverse" behind the other two and rear leaf spring handling that made every corner an unpredictable event. I had the car in college until a rod decided to launch itself through the left side of the block.

I still have the vent windows( non opening) for a 2000 version I worked on. The guy got into some strange financial problem and disappeared. His girlfriend paid to have it towed to her garage..that was 20 years ago. If anyone needs such a thing..let me know. Pay for shipping and they're yours.