Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[clan chieftain]

These are just personal opinions......no doubt I will get slated but here goes.
The Sierra was worse than the Mk5 Cortina.
The Mk2 Cortina was worse than the Mk1.
The Princess was worse than the 1800 Landcrab.
The Mk2 Cavalier was worse than the Mk1.
The Chevette was worse than the HC Viva
And it goes on and on....Many manufacturers didnt improve that much on previous models.
You will note there is one glaring omission.
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The Clan Chieftain

[Bengt Axel]

I'd go further and say that in many cases later examples of the same model are inferior. MG Midgets are an obvious example of 'development in reverse', and my 1988 2CV6 was rubbish compared with my 1979 one (mind you, it was made in Portugal...)

[Jim.Walker]

There is the old maxim "If you can't improve it - change it"! The trouble is that with modern fashion consciousness old "designer" things stop selling. Manufacturers are already working on a replacement before they have launched the latest model. Change, for better or worse is inevitable in the modern world.

The problem is the public. The Jones's will always buy the new models and the others will always strive to emulate them.

Thank goodness I'm the type who wears everything out before I even think about new. Even then, if I can find good second-hand ..........

You are right in several cases 71Marina, but I cannot vouch for them all.

Jim.
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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!

[Phil - Nottingham]

I am a Jones and never buy newer models only older and older ones
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Rover P2
Rover P4
Rover P5 & P5B
Land Rover S2 & S3
Morris Mini Traveller Mk2

[Jim.Walker]

Point made and my apologies Phil. I think this might be a good time to hibernate! I have just realised you are not the only Jones on this Forum!

Jim.
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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!

[47Jag]

Larry,

I disagree with the Princess being worst than the Landcrab. I've had 2 Austin 1800s (one tuned to stage 3 MG spec) and a 2200 HLS Princess. The latter was so much quieter and smoother. If it had had a tailgate a la Ambassador it would have been perfect.

My 2 pence

Art

[Jim.Walker]

Even the 2200 Landcrab was quieter and smoother than the 1800, but that should be expected with a six cylinder and later engine. We had a fleet of 1800 Landcrabs at work and my private car was a 2200 version. I thought my 2200 was the bees knees and better than its successor.
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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!

[Phil - Nottingham]

Apologies accepted Jim

My 1938 Rover 16 is as roomy as our P4 and not much less so than our P5's but takes up a lot less roadspace.

My P5 and P5B are far roomier and look bigger than a Ford Mondeo but they are not.

They far more comfortable and better to drive than modern cars - even our Series Land Rovers are
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Rover P2
Rover P4
Rover P5 & P5B
Land Rover S2 & S3
Morris Mini Traveller Mk2

[Ashley]

I really love old Rovers and always have. I've had loads of P4s, a P6 and now a 75 and it's far more comfortable as well as riding and driving better and, although I thought I wouldn't, I love it as much as I did my P4s.

I have a MKVI, which is as good as it is because Lord Hives was a friend of the Wilkes brothers and knew that they had a good deal more sense than R-R did as car builders. Rover influenced its design and not surprisingly it is now regarded as the second and last time Rolls-Royce made the best car in the world.

I never had a P5B and would still like to own one of them, but I've already got too many cars.

Ash

[clascar]

I owned every model of the Cortina, my favourite was the mk2, then again it was a 1600E
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When I exhibit a car I get the Shudders. People queue up to tell me.
You should have done that, you should have done this. Ray

[RotaryBri]

[badhuis]

[badhuis]

In the late sixties replacement cars did rely more on the New! Easy to form/make! Cheap! plastics which is one of the reasons why I prefer the earlier types.
Hillman Imp: before oct 1968 when they get plastic dashs and inferior trim.
BMC & Triumph : all cars after about mid sixties got cheapened
Jaguar - prefer the Saloons over the XJ
MGBGT - only the first years are nice
etc

In my opinion, most cars after around 1970 had awful interiors and cheap trim. This, plus the general styling only took a turn for the better in the last few years.

[PAUL BEAUMONT]

My pet hate the "All Agro" seems to have escaped everyone's attention. It was simply horrible compared to the 1100/1300 variants, possibly excepting the comparatively rare estate version.
The Ambassador too was a poor sequel to the Maxi though my 1979 Maxi was a poor development of my earlier 1972 version except for its reduced thirst for engine oil.
PAUL

[Rick]

MGBs only seemed to get worse-looking as they got older, the 70s rubber bumpers, silly ride height and stripey seats not a patch on the earlier chrome bumper cars, with their chrome grilles etc etc. Safety requirements tended to prompt a lot of these unpleasant design revisions.

Spitfires evolved quite well early on, the 1147cc Spitfire 4 evolving into the Mk2, then perhaps the best of the lot, the 1296cc Mk3. After that the bodywork underwent a makeover, but the Mk4s (and 1500s) never appealed that much to me when compared to the earlier design.

Same with the GT6s, first the 1600 Mk1, then the Mk2 with the 2 litre engine and rotoflex suspension - probably the bestof the lot. Then along came the Mk3 which had the roto back end for a time, before a cheaper swing spring replacement was introduced.

XJ6/12, another of my favourites. The Series 1 looked great to me, the Series 2 with its horrid dash re-design and raised front bumper, began to lose the plot. The Series 3 freshened-up the design for the 1980s, but the chunky bumpers let the side down a little (a sop to pedestrian safety and the US I suppose).

E-Types got fatter as they got older, although a Series 3 roadster (manual), while not as nice looking as the Series 1 3.8, would make for a fine GT I'd have thought. As for the XJS...

And the Mini's replacement, the MiniMetro - so good (ahemm) was it that the Mini outlived it.

The TR7, hardly a worthy replacement for the TR6 surely? Boring 4 pot Dolomite engine, no soft top option early on, poor build quality (especially those limping out of Speke), dubious wedgy styling.. If the drop-top TR8 had been available from day 1, then perhaps it would have been a different story.

RJ
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