Now back in MY day ... ...

[John-M 0]

There have been a couple of threads recently that included discussions about some of us 'older' members.

 

So I thought I'd start something here : -

 

Many of us moan, grumble or complain about some aspect of modern-day driving, so how about a trip down memory lane, for the benefit of the 'young-uns' here ??

 

The subject, driving related please, could be a recollection of how driving used to be, or a tale of some incident or occasion ... ...

 

I'll start it off :-

 

Now, back in MY day ... we had just the one speed limit. 30 mph in a 'built-up area'. Everywhere else was unrestricted. Now we have limits of 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 and 70. And speed cameras to catch us if we transgress :(

 

 

And, lest anyone thinks this is all going to be about 'the good old days' ... ...

 

Now, back in MY day ... we really did need to have fog-lights. And not the stupid ones fitted to some cars now - in the same unit as the headlights - they had to be right down as low as possible to get the light under the fog. A good trick in realy dense fog was to follow ( using just side-lights ) fairly close behind a motor-cyclist because they had so much better visibility. In my biking days I often had a stream of cars behind when driving the 20 odd miles home from work in a 'pea-souper' fog.

[dragon green 5]

When i learnt to drive it wasnt law to wear seat belts !

Jimmy "bloody" Saville on every advert clunk trip every trip, No speed cameras, that was heaven

[John-M 0]

Ah, Jimmy Saville, I remember him well. He DJ'd at a club in Leeds - nice fella, really :)

[Dr Forinor 0]

How old are you John-M if you dont mind me asking?

[John-M 0]

This year I will be 66.

 

Now in My day ... ... that was considered 'old' lol

[Guest]

Back in my day a gallon of petrol was 50p.

 

I could fill my Honda CB50J for under a pound and that would get me to work and back for a week.

[Conker 0]

Back in my day.... Hold on, it still is my day.

 

Feck off wrinklies !!!

 

(Joking)

:lol:

[Philmo 0]

Ah, Jimmy Saville, I remember him well. He DJ'd at a club in Leeds - nice fella, really :)

Can be moody - just like me!

He's a regular int' Flying Pizza on Street lane.

[Philmo 0]

Back in my day a gallon of petrol was 50p.

 

I could fill my Honda CB50J for under a pound and that would get me to work and back for a week.

 

You've always had a thing about leather - eh? :ignore:

 

I remember when I could fill my mini-van for a £1!! :clap:

[corozin 0]

I can remember the time before the Golf GTi, when the Capri 3.0S was king of the road.

[fla 9]

I can remember the time before the Golf GTi, when the Capri 3.0S was king of the road.

 

wasnt it the 2.8 with the pepperpot wheels????

[Reggit 0]

I can remember the time before the Golf GTi, when the Capri 3.0S was king of the road.

 

wasnt it the 2.8 with the pepperpot wheels????

 

I'm sure it was the RS 3.1

[beastie4126 0]

Now, back in MY day ... we really did need to have fog-lights. And not the stupid ones fitted to some cars now - in the same unit as the headlights - they had to be right down as low as possible to get the light under the fog. A good trick in realy dense fog was to follow ( using just side-lights ) fairly close behind a motor-cyclist because they had so much better visibility. In my biking days I often had a stream of cars behind when driving the 20 odd miles home from work in a 'pea-souper' fog.

 

I remember this happening to me all the way into to london one day. Scared the bloody life out of me thinking I was going to get squashed by 10+ cars

[junkie 0]

I remember when max power was actually good and cool to read and the Opel manta was king of the road.

[Dr Forinor 0]

The earliest I remember is when the petrol was 78.9p/litre, not that old really eh...

[craigowl 0]

Firstly, salutations to John-M :salute: I will be close behind him, reaching 65 this June. :shrug: "Where does all the time go?"

 

The year I passed my test - 1972 - (I was 26 - many of us didn’t need a car even by that age!), the British car industry was going down the tubes due to greed and complacency and the fact that workers in other countries like Japan and Germany were knocking their pans in whilst we went on strike and whinged.

 

Japanese cars were only just appearing to have some quality, (Toyota Corolla coupe was good buy then) but, (and John will possibly confirm this) many of the older generation with cash would not buy Japanese on principal (Shocking WW2 POW stories were still appearing on the front page of the News of the World a few years earlier - can you believe that?)

 

The German car industry had firmly re-established itself (with the help of the British army in 1945/6-ish!). The British have always secretly - or not so secretly - admired the Germans for their technical abilities. "Jerries? Do you a good pair of binoculars they will." – That quip was in a popular ITV comedy years ago – unforgettable!

 

Personally, by 1971, my wife and I had given up hope on "British" - our Austin 1100 which my wife had bought new in 1967 having just rusted through wheel arches and sills after only THREE years. :brickwall:

 

This pic from June 1972 shows a large proportion of typical cars - several of them German, including ours (Opel) - "looking on" at one of the aircraft that helped bring Nazi Germany to its knees having destroyed much of its heavy industry. The truth is stranger than fiction.

 

PS - The first water-cooled VW - the K70 (cool name, eh?) was a rust bucket. Appeared about 1971ish IIRC.

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sneachda/4160180664/

[Mr Sands 0]

Great shot craigowl; the irony is irresistible and you're quite right; as you put it so beautifully, truth is invariably stranger than fiction...

[John-M 0]

I dont't particularly recall any anti-japanese feelings in the car world, but definately the British motor-cycle industry was devastated by the Japanese bikes that came along. Or, depending on your point-of-view, the British bike makers sat on their laurals too long and ignored the threat of well-made, quiet, modern Japanese bikes.

 

Now back in MY day ... ... Nortons and Triumphs had nothing to fear from the screaming little 125cc and 250 cc Hondas - but that didnt last long :(

[millerman 0]

The year I passed my test - 1972

 

wooooo i was not born until 1973 and i thought i was one of the older members on here :lol:

passed my test in 1990 and really wanted a mk 1 golf gti but never owned a mk 1 :(

[corozin 0]

I can remember the time before the Golf GTi, when the Capri 3.0S was king of the road.

wasnt it the 2.8 with the pepperpot wheels????

 

I'm sure it was the RS 3.1

 

Nope. Pepperpot wheels were a 1980's design, and found thier way onto 2.8 Capris, XR2s, XR3s and some Orions from around 1981-84. The 3.0 Capris didn't have those wheels

 

The 2.8 Capri was the car of it's time, and was usurped by the Sierra Cosworth when it came out in around 1984. Although the 3.1RS Capri was quicker, nobody actually bought the RS3.1 because of the extra cost. The 3.0s was a lot more common and my Dad's friend had one in John Player Special livery which is still a cool look IMHO.

 

@Fla - the 2.8 Capri was a much better car than the 3.0, but it's about 5 years later than the period I'm reminiscing about! As a 17 year old I had two friends who owned 2.8 Capris (they were brothers actually) and I can't forget how fast they felt at the time. Of course in reality a G60 or VR6 would murder a 2.8 Capri in a straight line - shows you how far things have progressed in 30 years.

[Jim 2]

A old neighbour of mine owns a 2.8 Capri but with a turbotechnics turbo conversion. Went out in it once and it scared me half to death... can't imagine what it's like in the wet with wheel rear drive and what I assume to be the most basic suspension setup on the rear!! :)

[corozin 0]

A old neighbour of mine owns a 2.8 Capri but with a turbotechnics turbo conversion. Went out in it once and it scared me half to death... can't imagine what it's like in the wet with wheel rear drive and what I assume to be the most basic suspension setup on the rear!! :)

 

Live rear axle, same as a Transit van. I think they called them "live" rear axles because of the "lively" handling they produced. Bit like a cattle trailer with 160bhp !

[Jim 2]

Had a feeling it'd be a live rear axle. Just looked at Capri's on Autotrader.. boy, they've gone through being cheap bangers and don't half fetch a few quid now. Could only find a handful for sale and a low mileage, nice condition 2.8 was listed at £8,000!!

[Mcr VR6 0]

This pic from June 1972 shows a large proportion of typical cars...

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sneachda/4160180664/

 

yeah, that is a great photo. I have no chance of recognising most of those cars tho, terrible with anything earlier than the 90's! :scratch:

[Philuk 0]

i remember transformers and heman being on tv.. can i have a back in my day effort for that? although someone will come along and say they were reruns as im only 24 lol