Axon's Automotive Anorak: Britain's True Everyday Classics

With all due respect to its owner, this metallic bronze-coloured Opel may not be the most exciting car in the world, but it really perked my morning up to see such an uncommon car being used on such a grotty day. As we both refueled, I got chatting to the Kadett’s owner, and it turned out that this Opel was his daily drive, as his one and only car in which he drives a few hundred miles each week. 

This impressed me greatly, as trying to keep any old car on the road for daily use can be a challenge, especially when it is a model such as this early 1970s Opel, which was rare on UK roads even when it was new, never mind 45 years on. Quite where you can find parts and so on for a 1972 Kadett in Britain is a mystery to me, but… 

An acquaintance of mine uses his1953 Bristol 403 on a daily basis, which in spite of its age, and being almost 20 years older than the Opel, is probably an easier car to live with realistically as most engine, body and trim parts can still be sourced for the Bristol, via the Company’s service and parts workshop facility in Brentwood, West London.

As the owner – but far less frequent user – of an earlier 1951 401, I can vouch for the fact that these Bristol models make for ideal classic daily transport, as the performance and comfort levels are nicely suited to today’s motoring, even if the brakes (particularly on the 401) leave something to be desired modern traffic.

Inspired by the intrepid Opel owner, for the past three months I have been making a mental note of any older classics I’ve seen being used and going about their every day chores on the road, parked in supermarket car parks, queuing at petrol stations, and so on, as I’ve driven around the Country.

Although I admit my research wasn’t conducted very scientifically, I spotted a surprisingly healthy number of older cars on our roads, caught in weekday traffic, and made a quick note of them.  From these observations, I compiled the Top Ten classics in noticed clearly being used for regular journeys, and not just trips to classic car events, with the faithful Morris Minors comfortably taking the lead over the VW Type 2 and ‘real’ Minis.  The Top Ten classics being used were as follows:

1.         Morris Minor

2.         Volkswagen Type 2 LCV/camper van

3.         BMC/BL/Rover Mini

4.         Land Rover Series 2 and 3

5.         Volkswagen Beetle

6.         Citroen 2CV

7.         Range Rover           

8.         Triumph Herald/Vitesse

9.         MG B

10.      Saab 96

In addition to the above, on my UK travels over that past three months I have also spotted a few MG Midgets, Fiat 500s, Volvo 200s and Amazons, Triumph Spitfires, Saab 900s and Rover SD1s, plus the occasional Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow and Reliant Scimitar GTE, seemingly all in regular use too.

There were a few surprises too.  For example, despite many thousands being sold here in period, it is now very rare to see an old Ford Cortina or Escort, a BMC/BL 1100/1300, Hillman Imps, Morris Marinas and Renault 4s being used, and when did you last see a Hillman Avenger, a Renault 12, a Vauxhall Viva or Chevette, for example, or indeed almost any Japanese car 25 years or older, such as a Datsun Cherry or Toyota Corolla? 

Despite slightly questionable statistics on the Internet, popular sites such as How Many Left give some indication as to how many, or more often how alarmingly few, once common vehicles are now left on our roads, or declared SORN.  It’s worth a look to see if your own cherished car is listed, and if so, how many other examples remain registered in the UK.  Now rare cars such as the Fiat 131 Mirafiori and original Lancia Beta Berlina could be assumed to have virtually vanished, yet at the recent Italian Car Day at Brooklands almost a dozen of these ‘they’ve all rusted away’ saloons were present, and in very rude health indeed.

Relatively ‘modern classics,’ such as early Mazda MX-5s, MG TFs, Peugeot 205s, Porsche 944s and more recent 911, plus original Land Rover Discoveries, are still quite familiar sights on our roads, but it may not be long before these virtually disappear as well.  After all, have you seen a Mini Metro recently…?

Lead image by Thomas Doerfer licensed under CC-BY SA 3.0