Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

I meant back in the day ….

If your parents don't take it, my mum will!

A puzzle?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-south-scotland-65625831

Needs more spoiler on the rear.

Some advice on newish car buying as I have no clue with modern stuff. Friend is looking at a honda something hybrid up to two years old max. Where to look. Lots of the honda sales cars are 2 owner cars and sub 10k which seems odd to me. All these cars are supposed to be ex honda staff cars.

Would you buy from cinch, or someone similar. Are there other places may be selling the Honda's at a better price.

Is there any difference in paying cash or getting finance and paying off immediately?

Cheers for the help and advice.

Parking up for a couple of nights in a multistorey in Liverpool. Reviews of all car parks in the area indicate there's a good chance of having my window put in for a little ransacking fun.

Obviously I'll take everything out of it and try and find something fancy to park next to, but will it do any good to open the glove box and remove the parcel shelf before I leave it? Any tips for not having your car broken into?

Oooh a Sharknose E24 6 series, love them almost as much as E30's :)

I went to a pre 2000 meet at Denbies last Sunday there was a few there as well as a few beautiful E9 3.0 CSL's
photos here ; https://www.flickr.com/photos/fixedwheelnut/albums/72177720308313803

Could you rent someone's spare driveway nearby instead?

Not sure on the etiquette of this but am planning a re-org of my cars and will have two for sale: a 61 plate MINI Countryman Cooper S; in good but used condition; been fantastically reliable; 84k miles; about £7k

Also a rather lovely BMW 1M in Alpine White; the best spec with no satnav and manual seats; 74k miles; will be in the £40k range. Apart from a couple of stone chips and the wheels needing a refurb (which I will get done) it’s pristine.

I've left a car in a multistorey in Liverpool a few times and it's always been fine. I think I've used Qpark before, it's always seemed pretty secure, you can park right next to the security office.

Just pay some cheeky young scamp a crisp fiver to look after it

Where to look

Underneath to make sure the catalytic convertor is still there.

Lots of the honda sales cars are 2 owner cars and sub 10k which seems odd to me. All these cars are supposed to be ex honda staff cars.

genuinely not that weird. close friend of mine used to work at honda HQ in bracknell. most people there were getting new hondas for 6mos to a year through their job. some sort of inventory management strategy - because the dealers were all keen on getting nearly new cars

I’ll take your MK1 and raise you an XR3

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Also a rather lovely BMW 1M in Alpine White; the best spec with no satnav and manual seats; 74k miles; will be in the £40k range. Apart from a couple of stone chips and the wheels needing a refurb (which I will get done) it’s pristine.

this is cheap, no? I thought 1M was 50k+ these days

The cheapest on AT is £40k with 105k miles; most expensive £100k with <1,000 miles … ignoring the super low mileage examples a sensible range is probably £40-50k … so given the mileage on mine I might be looking for around £42-44k.

Nice, great condition and a rare sight these days considering they seemed to be everywhere back then.

Good effort, but I see your XR3 and a raise you a Cozzy ;)

Vauxhall and Toyota do the same. Employees get a new car on a work scheme, then hand it in for another new one after 6-9 months

TIL BMW 1Ms have only appreciated in price...

Reminds me of:-

'Give us £10 quid mister and we'll look after your car'
'No thanks, I'll leave my dog in it, it'll be safe'
'But can your dog put out fires?'

Fuck yeah. Now this is a very rare beast.

1965 Buick Riviera - It's not a Gran Sport sadly. Gran Sports were the muscle car for the always odd GM brand. They were quite rare but rather tasty - 465ci V8 power plants with dual 4 barrel carb. Clearly from the same motoring school of thought as the Olds 442s of the same era (4oo ci - 4 barrels - 2 exhausts), but with more oomph. These bodies shapes made for some sexy low rider and custom car options. This one looks absolutely stock, down the to the simulated wood grain dash.

This year model also had a starring role in the absolute stone cold film classic: Roadhouse. A fine vehicle for the talents of Patrick Swayze and his mullet. Also featuring the amazing Jeff Healy. Probably the most 80s movie of 80s movies. Small town bad guy story, dodgy martial arts, love story with the local ER doctor, small part for a musician guest-star, Fox Body Mustangs, acid wash 501s, amazing sound track. What's not to love?

Buick survives today but mostly sells low quality waft-mobiles aimed at the golf set. Fuck know how they survived the brand cull at GM.

My dad's cousin Jim has five 1960s Buicks, all in mintox condition. I would probably be in line to inherit them had I not moved abroad. I'll see if he has any insight he can share.

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Buick is a really interesting car marque for us Europeans. I don't think there is an equivalent here.

I thought Buick as a brand only survived as it is/(was?) the biggest selling GM brand in China?

low quality waft-mobiles aimed at the golf set

That is a surprisingly large market in the US. Tiger Woods was their big spokesperson.

The GM cull of brands started happened in the early 2000s, well before any useful presence in China. But they might be big in China. Dunno.

Is the near death of Buick not connected to the slow and near final end of full size saloons in the US? Cars we never had in the UK (bar the Silver Shadow and the Grosser).