Retro Second Best

I prefer an underdog, the 'desirable' cars end up being the most common in a way, take minis, I love them, had 1 when I was 14 and 8 more followed over the years, but everyone saves them, they get handed around and hold their value.

Now, look at Metros, I broke maybe 5 for spares, threw them away...

Now if someone said to me which I'd rather have, Metro every time, apart from a few at the gathering I haven't seen a nice one in ages!

I make the best of what I have, weirdly, I do not have a car of my own a "play thing" so to speak, I sold my last car in November. I try to stick to no more than a grand for my "play thing" (I do run a modern daily for the family 56 plate picasso had it 6 years) but I do not see the point of spending 4-5k on a car that I rarely use, (2000 miles a year in my own car over the last 12 years). I also like different, I am currently thinking about a focus saloon a mk1 and fitting coilovers, and focus rs style 18" wheels and just keeping it clean, and I still reckon when its time to move it one I will get the same back what I paid for it.

Over the years the most money I have lost is on nearly new or new cars, but since 2005 I have looked at it differently. Ii bought a fiat marea 2.0 hlx estate 5 cylinder for £870, sold that 2 years later for £950. Then I bought a mondeo st24 for £1300, had that a year and sold that for £1300, then another marea 2.0 hlx estate which cost me £1500, but it caught fire, so I stripped it and got £1100 back, and then another fiat marea 20v hlx estate paid £375 for it. Spent a few hundred onit, and sold that almost 3 years later for £850. Then I bought a stilo estate for £970 had that almost 3 years failed the MOT badly and didn't have the time to put it right so sold that for £600. so all in all, it works out better financially. The Newer cars and new cars lost the most, and I decided that was a bad idea to do that again unless i was going to keep it till it was beyond economical repair.

I like the undesirable cars, you get alot for your money and often are fully loaded and when you put a few choice mods on them it does make people look twice at them.

Love the common word < underdog > and that statement sums it up nicely for me

Guess its all down to where you stand in the social circle of life
I like all the above have 'my level' IE things within my range of actually affording

The high fliers - Ferrari's and that sort / E types, you know the stuff. I appreciate but they don't ring my bell, because I cant possibly buy one.

But If I was a Harley street Dr or a Footie player - I guess Ferrari's and Porsche Bentleys etc.. You could afford quite easily so They are 'their' Runabouts

I am 10 years ago cutting edge! My fozzer is the first car Ive ever had with heated seats. Simple plesures!

Agree with social status dictating our desires. I can't really afford anything, a tax rebate bought me my old Polo, which was my daily drive, and my MGB and the Honda Acty were both free bar transportation costs. The only other cars I've bought came from the inheritance from my grandparents (£500 Nissan Micra) and the money from the insurance when my Micra was nicked (£400 Corsa). Emma's 205 was a £100 rescue from the scrap man. When searching for dream project cars on Ebay I set the price limit at about £1500, even then I know it's gonna be a long time until that's happening.

I was in a car park a few months ago, and there was a brand new Nissan GTR and Bently Continental GT. I said 'woah look at that' and headed straight over to a very tatty Honda Ballade for a proper look. Even took photos. It was lovely

That above is what I mean, 'RETRO RIDES' is that, No Mega money materialistic stuff just that

Many a time I have walked round a Hugely expensive car - I appreciate it,But its out of my league, I take pics and chat to the owner if he is there, I have no jealousy or owt. Its what you make of life. I do tend to err towards the 'underdogs' as said above. You know you have an underdog when Corgi Vanguards havent a model of it! Like - VENTORAS! be curse word

Like that vanguard model toy comment
Retro Rides is the forum of no egos and down to earth no nonsense motoring
Proved that point one day at M4 services as filling up my Suzuki home brewed 4x4 a supercar pulled in cant remember the name off hand but as i filled up the supercar owner was looking at my special not with disgust but a genuine enthusiasts way which reinforced back then in 2006 i was on the right path to motoring enjoyment / that underdog thing again.
Like others in reality cannot afford big budget nor wish to be tied to hire purchase so probably in my street of new tin cans I'm probably one of the few that actually own my own car and its British.
Never made any profit in four decades but never set out on this journey to get rich. Sure Lottery win would get me my dream retro filling station but the inner good feeling of owning retro cannot be bought.

I'm going to turn it on its head and say I'm the underdog, not the car. Never really had money and the most I've spent on a car is £2500 with most sub £1k but always driven cars that look expensive. My 635 CSi is a prime example, paid £900 as a non runner, ran it stock and tidy, and average Joe on the street perceives it as an expensive motor. W124's are the king of this illusion, but for it to work you need to run them stock and tidy IMO, a slammed car or a scruffy banger and the illusion's blown .

Nothing wrong with a few period mods, it's more like extreme looks, like say I'd rat looked my 635, that blow it cold out of the water.

There's also the perception they're expensive to run. When I turned up with a 635 my old man said '...and how are you going to afford to run that?' He worked in the motor trade all his life! When I told him it was £200 for a phase 2 service with a BMW specialist he nearly fell over. He was expecting double that.

I'd love an M3, hell I'd even settle for a 325i Sport, or an R107 Merc SL, but I can't afford one, at least not one I'd want to buy. So is my 325i cabby second best? Hell no! I love it. In fact I'm longing for salt free roads so I can give it a blast.