Women Spends 8.5k on an Austin Allegro
Discussion
"Robin Lawton, a Vintage classic car dealer who was a salesman at a British Leyland dealership when the Allegro came out, said: 'They were a very hard sell and a retrograde step because the cars they replaced, the 1100s and 1300s were infinitely better." - sums it up for me: each to their own, but the Allegro was the Alfa Arna of its day, hateful thing.
Don't see the issue with them to be honest. Far worse cars in the world than these.
To be honest while build quality was a bit suspect and they were rust prone so are lots of cars, I'm welding an MX5 back together at the moment, the build quality and rust and engineering are worse than anything BMC came out with it's shocking. But it's cute and handles quite well so we ignore that.
What I find most concerning is someone who obviously knew a reporter and photographer were going to come round and photograph her and the car thought that a scruffy old black shirt and manky trainers were the outfit of choice!!
To be honest while build quality was a bit suspect and they were rust prone so are lots of cars, I'm welding an MX5 back together at the moment, the build quality and rust and engineering are worse than anything BMC came out with it's shocking. But it's cute and handles quite well so we ignore that.
What I find most concerning is someone who obviously knew a reporter and photographer were going to come round and photograph her and the car thought that a scruffy old black shirt and manky trainers were the outfit of choice!!
Owend both a 1300 and an alegro pluss a mini, in order of drive it goes
1st mini
2nd 1300
99th alegro
in order of build quality they all come in equall 99th
in terms of development and freshness of design the alegro doesn't even finish, it was such a huge step backwards, a real "win" for the bean counter at BL, unfortunatly in every other term it was a total loss.
Strangely enough i owned 3, mainly cos after a few months i had to try one again cos i refused to beleive they were actually as bad as i thought i rememberd they were, i was wronge every time
Now days with rose timted specs i could drive one again, for a week or so till it hit me again, "Oh yes they were that bad, havn't i been here before"
Mind you who am i to talk i drive a 23 year old ford pickup truck
1st mini
2nd 1300
99th alegro
in order of build quality they all come in equall 99th
in terms of development and freshness of design the alegro doesn't even finish, it was such a huge step backwards, a real "win" for the bean counter at BL, unfortunatly in every other term it was a total loss.
Strangely enough i owned 3, mainly cos after a few months i had to try one again cos i refused to beleive they were actually as bad as i thought i rememberd they were, i was wronge every time
Now days with rose timted specs i could drive one again, for a week or so till it hit me again, "Oh yes they were that bad, havn't i been here before"
Mind you who am i to talk i drive a 23 year old ford pickup truck
wildoliver said:
I'm welding an MX5 back together at the moment, the build quality and rust and engineering are worse than anything BMC came out with it's shocking. But it's cute and handles quite well so we ignore that.
Shocking? Really???!!! By the time my Spitfire was 20 years and 60k miles old it had 3 layers of sills on one side, 2 on the other, a fibreglass bonnet and front quarter panels, inner wheel arches that didn't meet the outer ones any more and a boot floor that had dissolved on three edges. Even the inner strengthening panel inside the rear wings had rusted through, and they weren't exposed to weather!!! I won't mention the electrics or mechanical side...The MX5 succumbed to needing a little sill patch on each side at 23 years and 110k miles, and had it's original paint everywhere still (the "jubilee" Spitfire had been red, white and blue and was green when I finished it, proper patriotic stuff!).
Having owned two Spitfires and a TR6 I think the sheer fact that the MX-5 could spend a winter outside untouched and start on the first turn of the key convinced me that spending twice as much money for a BL product was not a good idea.
Love them, absolutely, but build quality?? Spitfires?? Only an Italian could design a car with rust traps like that!!!
dbdb said:
I like to see this kind of thing. Restoring an Allegro is the act of a car enthusiast in its purest form.
Indeed. She spent £8500 in 15 Years on a hobby. My mate spends £4K on golf club membership, a year.
I have a strange soft spot for the all-aggro, because in 1976 my Grandad retired and traded in a Wolsey 3.0 Litre Crab, for a Vandom Plas, complete with 1500 twin carb engine, driving the front wheels, through a 5, (yes 5) speed gearbox.
After stopped driving in 1998, my uncle inherited it with just 15K on the clock, and no amount of pleading would get him to sell it to me, and following my Grandad's death in 2000 my uncle scrapped it.
So this woman deserves a bloody medal.
I don't remember the Allegro as being any worse for rust than most cars of that era but it was never very popular. Legend has it that it was the only car that Crayford abandoned for a convertible because the shell was just not strong enough.
There's something very reassuring about that story though, but I'm not sure about the colour, surely the restored one in the picture is Harvest Gold with a Limeflower interior.
There's something very reassuring about that story though, but I'm not sure about the colour, surely the restored one in the picture is Harvest Gold with a Limeflower interior.
New POD said:
dbdb said:
I like to see this kind of thing. Restoring an Allegro is the act of a car enthusiast in its purest form.
Indeed. She spent £8500 in 15 Years on a hobby. My mate spends £4K on golf club membership, a year.
That's just £566 a year. Absolutely nothing as far as a hobby goes, hell I'm sure a large number of people here pay that extra in insurance just to have a nice car. I've had **months** when I've spent more than that on my 'project'.
Even if I have zero desire for an Allegro still love to see the kind of passion that leads to restoring one. Fair play to her.
Fastdruid said:
New POD said:
dbdb said:
I like to see this kind of thing. Restoring an Allegro is the act of a car enthusiast in its purest form.
Indeed. She spent £8500 in 15 Years on a hobby. My mate spends £4K on golf club membership, a year.
That's just £566 a year. Absolutely nothing as far as a hobby goes, hell I'm sure a large number of people here pay that extra in insurance just to have a nice car. I've had **months** when I've spent more than that on my 'project'.
Even if I have zero desire for an Allegro still love to see the kind of passion that leads to restoring one. Fair play to her.
New POD said:
Fastdruid said:
New POD said:
dbdb said:
I like to see this kind of thing. Restoring an Allegro is the act of a car enthusiast in its purest form.
Indeed. She spent £8500 in 15 Years on a hobby. My mate spends £4K on golf club membership, a year.
That's just £566 a year. Absolutely nothing as far as a hobby goes, hell I'm sure a large number of people here pay that extra in insurance just to have a nice car. I've had **months** when I've spent more than that on my 'project'.
Even if I have zero desire for an Allegro still love to see the kind of passion that leads to restoring one. Fair play to her.
At least she's got something she can (rightly) be proud of, presumably kept her happy for 15 years and for peanuts.
Fair play to her, looks to be a nice example and atleast it makes a change that something a bit left field has been restored. However,in saying that the statement 'I drove it back from Somerset, put it in the garage and it has not turned a wheel since. I wish I could take to the roads in it but I cannot risk getting it scratched or damaged.' Ultimately (in my opinion), makes what she has done an utter waste of time/money. All she has essentially done is spend £8,500 on an ornament. Cars are meant to be driven, they can be used without being ruined.
shoestring7 said:
New POD said:
[ because in 1976 my Grandad retired and traded in a Wolsey 3.0 Litre Crab, for a Vandom Plas, complete with 1500 twin carb engine, driving the front wheels, through a 5, (yes 5) speed gearbox.
FWIW I'm pretty sure the Wolsey 18/85 had a 2200cc 'Six'.SS7
singlecoil said:
shoestring7 said:
New POD said:
[ because in 1976 my Grandad retired and traded in a Wolsey 3.0 Litre Crab, for a Vandom Plas, complete with 1500 twin carb engine, driving the front wheels, through a 5, (yes 5) speed gearbox.
FWIW I'm pretty sure the Wolsey 18/85 had a 2200cc 'Six'.SS7
SS7
PS 'Wolseley'
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