Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[62rebel]

"local" being altogether misleading, as i am in South Carolina... anyway; i was down the scrappy looking for seats to replace my Falcon's broken down front bench, and i ran across a VandenPlas Allegro auto shift saloon. the grillework and interior were MIA, but the rest of the car was pretty much complete. it's a shame it'll end up getting shredded as there's literally nobody here to salvage the bits that are interesting. Leyland really cocked that one up... you practically have to kneel down to get at the boot. idiots. a decent hatch would have been fabulous.
there was a horribly rusty rubber bumpered B there as well... it must have had a running engine as the good parts are gone off it now.
i've found a 1959 Anglia (100series) only a state and a half away.... well; i can dream.

pity that the wooden binnacle in the VdP won't be saved, it was easily the prettiest part of the car.

[smiffy220]

I'm amazed someone went to the trouble of shipping an Allegro to the states in the first place?? They must have wondered what on earth it was when it arrived over there.
Must be the strangest find ever that mate.
Dave
_________________
Born to rally, forced to work!

1980 Opel Manta 2.0 SR Berlinetta
1934 Morris Cowley Four (my late fathers)

[Scotty]

WOW!

[Nic Jarman]

I recon it drifted there after someone threw it in the sea.
_________________
1936 Morris 8 Series 1
1973 MGB roadster
1977 MG Midget 1500
Dax Rush

[Peter_L]

Allegro....... all one needs is a bit of imagination and a spare weekend.

www.rmauctions.com/CarDetails.cfm?SaleCode=lf08&CarID=r124&Currency=GBP

[62rebel]

i must admit i was relatively unaware of the cultural phenomena that is the Allegro... it looks like a fairly roomy car until you reach that ridiculous bootlid.
we're right on the coast; lots of military folks bring their beloved rusties back home from abroad and they molder away (the car, that is) for lack of repair parts and technical expertise. being in such a salty and humid environment does absolutely nothing FOR cars with minimal rust proofing...
when i were but a nobbin, i found a Renault Dauphine in a scrappy way back in the hills of Virginia. that car was not much older than i was, but eaten up with rust, around 1978 or 79.
odd furrin cars pop up here pretty reg'lar like.

[RotaryBri]

In 1976 I changed my job and was offered a company car from a choice of Ford Escort Mk II, Vauxhall Viva HB or an Allegro. I tried all 3 cars and being 6'4'' the only one that I could get comfortable in was the Allegro. This was the 1500 cc Super and 40,000 miles later it had never let me down and the only replacement part was the rear silencer due to a loose baffle. It was extremely comfortable, had a good ride and was economical. A really good choice but as for the looks - not my cup of tea at all.
_________________
Keep Torqueing,

RotaryBri

1976 NSU Ro80

[Rick]

When I were but a lad, a friend of mine's mum had a bright orange Aggro estate. My lasting memory of it is the horrid (brushed nylon?) seat material. In its defence though it was quite an interesting shape, and looked like a proper estate rather than a saloon with an extra bit welded onto the back.

RJ
_________________
Rick - Admin
Home:https://www.oldclassiccar.co.uk
Videos:https://www.youtube.com/user/oldclassiccarRJ/videos
OCC & classic car merchandise (Austin, Ford ++):
https://www.redbubble.com/people/OldClassicCar/shop

[peter scott]

[Jim.Walker]

Funny innit?
The Allegro is probably the most maligned car ever produced. I can't speak for the rest because I only had one. BUT. It had the legs of almost anything else its own size, seemed to think the Peak district was as flat as Lincolnshire and went so far on a gallon of petrol I think it had a private hate for filling stations.
I've never been much bothered by styling, mostly charmed by how it goes and how much it costs to run. It did not care for petrol, used no oil and nothing ever broke and it treated snow like tarmac. I loved it and only sold it to buy a bigger car to tow a caravan.
Oh well........perhaps I was lucky, or maybe I'm queer (NO! change that to strange!).
_________________
Quote from my late Dad:- You only need a woman and a car and you have all the problems you
are ever likely to want". Computers had not been invented then!

[Richard H]

I've never owned an Allegro, but I do agree with you Jim, I think a lot of the Allegro's reputation was completely undeserved. I've heard they aren't actually that bad to drive at all, in fact better to drive than the equivalent MK2 Escort!

Someone down the roads has a tidy Pageant Blue S reg Allegro estate (AEV 860S), which I covet

[Kelsham]

I had a neighbour who bought one new, he exceeded 100,000 miles without any trouble and regarded it highly.

I remember it particularly because I backed into the side of it one dark night, and had to go and inform him of my carelessness.

he was very gracious. A few years on the paint took on a different shade where it had been repaired. I always felt guilty when I saw it.

If you want a bad car try the Renault Dauphine. Known as the rollover Renault. I spun mine three revolutions before hitting the kerb. Body by Baco foil which ensured their speedy demise.
Because of the swing axle with rear engine you had to keep accelerating round corners to be safe. If this became impossible, the back would overtake the front.

Regards Kels.

[Rick]

A few years back they showed on TV a roadtest from the BBC's motoring programme of the day (prior to Top Gear, mm what was it called again??). They were driving it with mild gusto on a twisting road, the way the whole car hopped and lurched looked terrifying.

The original design for the Aggro was quite low and sleek, but by the time it entered production it was a dumpy looking thing and quite removed from the promise of the early drawings.

R
_________________
Rick - Admin
Home:https://www.oldclassiccar.co.uk
Videos:https://www.youtube.com/user/oldclassiccarRJ/videos
OCC & classic car merchandise (Austin, Ford ++):
https://www.redbubble.com/people/OldClassicCar/shop

[Peter_L]

I can't think of a Motoring Programme as such prior to "Top Gear" and that started in 1977 with non-other than Angela Rippon.

Motoring and motor sport in general seemed to be frowned on by the TV, especially the BBC. Not surprising when one considers the attitude that so many U.K Governments have had to Motor Sport.

Some "Wiki" facts about Top Gear...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Top_Gear_(1977_TV_series)

All of which reminded me that I have Raymonds Baxter's autograph, along with that of Pat Moss, and quite few more, from the days when the Monte Carlo Rally had a starting point in Edinburgh and they would stop on the A1 near Doncaster for service.

[Rick]