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

Man up and get one made

Absolutely lovely!

Thanks, arms feeling pretty drained after all that elbow grease! I did attempt to use my torque wrench but it didn't go down that low (6-8NM) so just nipped it up concentrically. I've previously stripped a rocker cover bolt on a motorbike and that wasn't fun. Smaller torque wrench is on the shopping list.

Thinking air-con 'delete', charcoal canister 'delete' and washer bottle relocation may be on the cards to tidy up the engine bay. How was the track?!

^^it was. that is the local 'public car yard' where people leave cars for sale. I was hoping there would be a piece of paper blutacked to the window...

Where was this? Pretty sure I saw this in New Cross/Peckham last week

the People's Democratic Republic of Brockley

Volvo p1800 too old and slow?

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How the hell did we get back here again?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIEblgU_z50

Be curious to grab folks thoughts. I'm moving to the US for a bit probably 9m - 2yrs.

Seeing as the car is a depreciating asset and with the ceaseless march of insurance increases it seems silly to keep it (last was c.£640 - I thought it was £550!).

The car:
2010 Mini One 1.4
30k
FSH (BMW Mini + Technosport BMW specialists)
A few extras – air con, heated wing mirrors, whatever the top of the range headlights were at the time

Valuation seems to be £4-5k

Without wanting to jinx myself when we return we’d be thinking about a family so would need a car with 5 doors, therefore despite loving the thing it would have to go and I can’t see us being a two car family (unless one is a fun car).

The case for keeping it is that me and Mrs. Hugo7 really like it. It’s got a known history and is a practical car - 5* NCAP, EURO 5, good depreciation, falls in the lower sections of parking permits, etc. Also if I’m back in <9 months I’d need a car and it would still be a good one.

My gut says try to sell it before I go and if it doesn’t sell, keep it.

Any tips on how to sell?

Any other ideas like storing it? Admiral won’t do SORN and dropping mileage to <500 makes no difference. None of my mates I trust need a car, so that's out... and unlike my motorbike I can't quite see the same mutual benefit.

sell it! it's not like it is a rare, pre-war racing car.

I can sort some out if you want. You can just about make it behind my bike. Oh and it's got the TLC service pack that's transferable.

@brm True. Well it's pre the Shower Posse war in Jamaica.

I'm struggling with logical reasons, but basically I just really like it and it was my first new car.

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Ha! Looking at the photos it's sort of dawning on my that I've obviously got a penchant for retro-remakes.

(although I guess the new bonnies would be more analogous to the BMW Minis)

What are you doing with the bike?

A mate has a lockup so it'll go there... I hope!

I think / hope it should be easier to insure SORN/no-low milage as well.

Also once the bonnie range hit <£6k their value seems to correlate to their condition/milage. I am also crossing my fingers that it will hold or appreciate its value long term as it's EURO4, EFI, but still one of the last of the "proper"* Bonnie remakes.

Although there are tonnes of them around so I can't see it ever rocketing in value.

*Nothing against the new ones but they are proper modern bikes Vs an old bike that doesn't leak or need pushing in the rain.

Up by Edinburgh for lel, drive over puddle that is actually pot hole to centre of earth full of water. Flat tyre is fine, I have spare. When commence driving however I realise that battery light is on. Car stops and starts, check battery and alternator terminals and all kosher so assume it's just gammy connection (I'm an optimist).

Car dies on motorway.

Have emergency juice so can just about get enough charge to get back to control, where I discover that the pot hole has cracked alternator and alternator is dead.

No alternators in breakers around here, so onto the rac lorry I will be going. Fml.

thats sh*tty man.

@Dammit

I've got it.

Scimitar GTE with a V8.

I've got a 6 speed manual Jag S Type box in the garage, you could bolt it to a Supercharged V8 out of the XK/JR for 400bhp.

Sorted.

Fuck me Scimitars are cheap.

Hang on, I think I may have cracked it.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1972-JENSEN-INTERCEPTOR-MARK-3-AUTOMATIC-6-3-LITRE/222516841931

Mercedes-based; tick.
AMG V8 engine upgrade surely only a phone call away.

http://evolution.coleman-milne.co.uk/

I know a guy that built an interceptor with the V10 out of a Dodge Viper. That'd do nicely...

Do a Viperceptor on it.

Dammitar?

Living near the route to the crematorium of outer north west London,
we see many hearses:
http://limousines.co.uk/jaguar/
The 4-door hearse looked tasteful.

We also recently saw a Saab 9-5 hearse
http://saabworld.net/showthread.php?t=31489

That's the one! Built by the lovely and extremely talented chaps at Valley Gas in Hampshire.