Vintage Car Novice Here!

[myoldjalopy]

"The oldest car I’ve driven was my first car, a 1995 fiesta"
Crikey! I've never driven anything as modern as that!

[mrs.smith2012]

Haha to me that was OLD… actually technically my FIRST car was a 1985 Mazda. It belonged to my grandad who passed away when I was 12 and my parents hung onto it in the hopes that it would be my car when I passed my test… but before I even started lessons my cousin who was older needed a car really badly, so she ended up with it. Still slightly put out about that! I wonder where it is now… if anywhere!
I can still remember how that car smelled. My grandad had it from brand new and only drove it once a week to do their weekly shop. It was absolutely pristine.. I called her Queenie

[philthehill]

The oldest car I have driven was a 1930s Lea Francis Doctors coupe with the gearchange to the right of the drivers seat and the accelerator between the brake and clutch pedals. No performance from the meadows engine but a pleasure to drive.

Lea Francis Prescott 2.jpg (68.93 KiB) Viewed 3225 times

[mrs.smith2012]

Wow!
Actually when I was first browsing the classic car for sale site somebody had a 1930s Austin up for sale… it was incredible and actually drove… but did need alot of work so they were selling it at a crazy cheap price. I was tempted… but knew it was a stupid idea haha
I love history and vintage stuff and to drive around in something that old would be incredible!

[Wes]

Oldest, my late dads 1935 Oldsmobile F35, 3.5 Litre side valve, 6 cyl.

[Chief]

I don't know what your budget would be, but you're only 90 minutes away (or 3 hours by public transport) from ESM - a place, if you do get a Minor, you'll end up relying on alot for buying parts from anyway (they also do restoration work in addition to car sales):

https://www.morrisminorspares.com/cars-i26


I too wanted a VW Beetle (fan of the Herbie films), but I read online that the engines could sieze very easily from rust and we lived by the sea which put me off having one.
My sister already had a Minor and when we visited and got a ride in it I thought, this car is nice, so later when my parents offered to buy me my first car I went on eBay and didn't know where to start, then I asked what car my sister had and in searching for them, fell in love with a Minor I saw there, it stood out amongst all the other Minors for sale.
I didn't know anything about cars (such as the dangers of buying a car sight unseen 500+ miles away off eBay ) so I knew nothing about monocoque designs etc. so the information in the auction description about some floor pans having holes in and requiring work didn't worry me as I knew that floors were flat and garages did something called welding with metal panels. I feel the Beetle wins in this regard in having a seperate body/chassis for rust repairs.
Anyway, it survived its 500 mile road trip home, and on being MOT'd it was discovered that the brakes were ready to fall off the car (and that the valid MOT it had should never have been issued) and also none of the local garages would touch it due to the extensive rust repairs required (sills, floors, etc.) so back south it went to get the work done at a since closed restorer.
Unfortunately it required further restoration work over time due to its living near the sea, but that's the trouble with living so close to the sea - it's not rusted quite so much since moving inland

[mrs.smith2012]

Love seeing the old cars!
A Beetle was always ‘the car’ but realistically as much as love the look of them I feel like they are the ‘next level up’ with regards to maintenance etc and I’d really want to be able to do stuff myself if I can. Rust also worries me as I know Beetles are pretty bad for it, and this car will be outside.
That website looks cool although a little more than what I was hoping to spend. I have around 5k put aside and was hoping I could get something around that price? They seem to vary massively from as little as 1500 to over 10k.
Like I said I’m not looking for an immaculate show piece but I’m also not looking for a project so something in between.
My goal is to hopefully get my manual licence sorted and in the meantime educate myself on the minor so when I look at these ads I can get an idea of what I’m buying. I’ve seen some nice cars that sit within my budget and they look fine to me but I don’t understand the big write ups that come with them so I need to educate myself more!

[myoldjalopy]

You should be able to get something decent for around £5K, but it may well require a lot of searching and travelling around the country these days. There are plenty for sale but they are dotted about the UK.....always a good idea to take someone knowledgeable with you when inspecting, unless you are fully clued up as to what to check out on a potential purchase.

[mrs.smith2012]

That’s promising to know!
Happy to travel for the right car, biggest concern will be getting it home if I’m not confident with driving, but I’m sure I can enlist the help of a friend. I’ll definitely be sure to take someone with me when/if I do get to the viewing stage. I say IF because I still have to get my manual test before I can even start looking!

[geoberni]

That’s promising to know!
Happy to travel for the right car, biggest concern will be getting it home if I’m not confident with driving, but I’m sure I can enlist the help of a friend. I’ll definitely be sure to take someone with me when/if I do get to the viewing stage. I say IF because I still have to get my manual test before I can even start looking!

I must admit I brought mine from about 75 miles away; I was unsure how reliable it might be so I chose to hire a trailer to bring it back.
In the first few months, the engine just died on me twice, requiring recovery back home both times.
After the first time, we we got him home, he fired up and I couldn't fault anything.
After the second time, some weeks later, the engine was still dead when I tried it; that's when I found the Coil was the problem.

I did wonder at that point if the guy I'd brought him from had been unable to discover why the car was just dying, so sold him instead....

I was really glad I'd used a trailer on that first trip.

[Chief]

I was really glad I'd used a trailer on that first trip.

Yup, pulling a trailer 75 miles with a Minor on top probably built up your arm muscles in readiness for doing all the work on it once home

I still have to get my manual test before I can even start looking!

I wonder if it would be possible to find a test center with the least amount of wait time, even if it means travelling far to do your test. Although I passed my test long before there were large waiting lists, I did an intensive driving course with the test at the end far from home. And if the test center is near a Minor you're interested in, you can hop out of the instructors car at the end of the test and into the Minor and away you go

[philthehill]

Having passed my driving test many years ago in a manual Austin A40 Farina I thought it would be interesting to find out the process for converting from a auto licence to a full manual/auto licence and it appears to be quite a simple process.
https://www.gov.uk/automatic-driving-licence-to-manual
As regards the old BMC Manumatic gearboxes do they fit into the manual or automatic category?
It appears that if you have a Manumatic gearbox and pass your test in a Manumatic fitted car your licence will be only for driving a automatic car.

[mrs.smith2012]

Yes it’s quite a simple process to upgrade and I plan to do a intensive course which will cost more but can hopefully be fast tracked for a test, even with a fast track though it could still be several months before they can fit me in.
I was hoping to be able to do the test in my home town as I’m familiar with driving here but I’ll see how it goes. If the wait is too stupid I’d definitely consider travelling!
Tomorrow is an ‘assessment’ lesson so the instructor can hopefully give me an idea of how many hours I might need to pass… hoping it all just comes back to me so I don’t have to do a lengthy course… it’s been 20 years since I drove a manual though haha
I’m actually a bit scared

[mrs.smith2012]

That’s promising to know!
Happy to travel for the right car, biggest concern will be getting it home if I’m not confident with driving, but I’m sure I can enlist the help of a friend. I’ll definitely be sure to take someone with me when/if I do get to the viewing stage. I say IF because I still have to get my manual test before I can even start looking!

I must admit I brought mine from about 75 miles away; I was unsure how reliable it might be so I chose to hire a trailer to bring it back.
In the first few months, the engine just died on me twice, requiring recovery back home both times.
After the first time, we we got him home, he fired up and I couldn't fault anything.
After the second time, some weeks later, the engine was still dead when I tried it; that's when I found the Coil was the problem.

I did wonder at that point if the guy I'd brought him from had been unable to discover why the car was just dying, so sold him instead....

I was really glad I'd used a trailer on that first trip.

I bought my first car unseen off eBay for £100… drove to the other side of London to pick it up. Guy said where you from, I said Essex, he said… you won’t get that back to Essex, bearings have gone
We did get it back, but got my father in law to drive it, took hours because we couldn’t go above 20mph

[simmitc]

If you're used to a manual choke, then that's a good start. In all the really bad winters that we have had, colleagues at work always commented that the one car they could be sure of getting there was my Minor. If properly maintained, they always start. They are also very easy to work on. I once worked on a Beetle for a friend and the manual advised that to change the dynamo, one had to remove x,y and z; but that "you may find it easier to remove the engine" I'd take a Minor any day.

[mrs.smith2012]

If you're used to a manual choke, then that's a good start. In all the really bad winters that we have had, colleagues at work always commented that the one car they could be sure of getting there was my Minor. If properly maintained, they always start. They are also very easy to work on. I once worked on a Beetle for a friend and the manual advised that to change the dynamo, one had to remove x,y and z; but that "you may find it easier to remove the engine" I'd take a Minor any day.

Yes I’ve heard that Beetles can be hard to work on as you have to take out bits to get to bits. Even looking at the engines side by side the Minor’s does seem more accessible compared to the Beetle, which looks a bit compact and crammed in! I definitely wouldn’t fancy my chances trying to figure that out!

[les]

I got my van out of the garage tonight for the first time in months, I put the key in the ignition, looked at it, and the van started !
Well maybe I had to turn the key but you get the picture. I did charge the battery yesterday in preparation. Some are great, some are trouble. Be careful.

[mrs.smith2012]

I got my van out of the garage tonight for the first time in months, I put the key in the ignition, looked at it, and the van started !
Well maybe I had to turn the key but you get the picture. I did charge the battery yesterday in preparation. Some are great, some are trouble. Be careful.

Yes I’m aware there might be a few bad eggs out there, cars that might have been neglected etc… if I do go ahead I’ll just do my homework and be really mindful about what I buy… I appreciate the advice though. Definitely not something I want to go into with my eyes closed.
Van looks great btw. A friend of mine was saying the other day he owned a Morris van back in the 70s. Still misses it!

[FranWex]

We picked up our 1958 Morris Minor last year after dreaming about one for a long time. She’s called Doris, and it’s mostly my wife who drives her — and she absolutely loves it. Coming from modern cars and with no mechanical background, it’s been a bit of a learning curve, but great fun all the same. My main advice to anyone looking is to try to get the best car for your budget. Check for rust and make sure it’s been cared for — maintenance is everything with these classics, in my opinion. We were lucky in the sense that I could drive her from day one.

Doris isn’t just a weekend car — she’s driven during the week too, mostly in summer and on dry winter days. Parts are fairly easy to source, and once you get into it, upkeep is pretty manageable (hopefully!).

If you’re into Morris Minors, I’d highly recommend Blind Man Morris on YouTube — lots of superb advice (YouTube linkhttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPuC20QmSFAuwoJeUTfz_VQ/videos).
He’s also published a book, Morris Minor Fault Diagnosis and Repair: It Was Working Perfectly Yesterday!, which you can find on Amazon
.https://www.amazon.com/Morris-Minor-Fau ... W2FL93?utm

Also it goes without saying, the Morris Minor Owners Club forum is fantastic for talking to people, reading stories, and learning more about these amazing cars.

[mrs.smith2012]

Aah yes Blind Man Morris… I’ve been watching his stuff, have subbed to him! Great channel! I’ll check out those books too!

Had my driving assessment today, got through it in one piece so now just have to wait for a test date. Once I have that I can book my course. Actually wasn’t too bad going back to manual but struggled with the stopping and starting… I live in a very built up area with LOTS of roundabouts and traffic lights so I got a bit flustered on occasion and literally just forgot how to drive