RE: Austin Metro Vanden Plas 500: YKYWT
Discussion
crostonian said:
it would be nice to think that for every permutation of every car made there was at least one survivor.
The Morris Marina 1.3, the 1.3L, the 1.3LS, the 1.3GLS, the 1.3 automatic, the 1.3L automatic, the 1.3LS auto, the 1.3 GLS auto (breathes in), the Marina 1.7L, LS,GLS, the same again in auto? No thanks. Cars that broke the mould and changed things for ever, sure. Cars that rebuilt a nation, like the Morris 1000, the 2CV, the Beetle, absolutely, but standard issue grey porridge stuff, no. Not unless it's the old "my Dad had one of these" which makes it personal to you. That's the social history bit. I think I might.
I have basically positive memories of them, though as a car-mad teenager who took his test in one in 1987, the view was that they had been comprehensively superceded by 205s, Unos & AXs. Compared to the Simca 1100 I practised on and was due to inherit once I passed the test, the driving school Metros felt like paragons of modernity with responsive steering, sharp handling, working synchromesh and cloth seats (though the black vinyl jobs in the Simca were remarkably effective at resisting cigarette burns).
The best Metro experience was in summer 1990. About a year after the Berlin Wall had been torn down, I and three friends from uni set off in a 'champagne' 3 door 1.0 litre L. We spent three weeks driving to Hamburg, Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig and Prague. The beige Metro looked positively sophisticated among the Trabis and Skodas. Beautiful cities, happy people, cheap beer, endless beef stew & dumplings; great times.
Here's an interesting article about what might have come next.
http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/spy-shots/austin/aust...
I have basically positive memories of them, though as a car-mad teenager who took his test in one in 1987, the view was that they had been comprehensively superceded by 205s, Unos & AXs. Compared to the Simca 1100 I practised on and was due to inherit once I passed the test, the driving school Metros felt like paragons of modernity with responsive steering, sharp handling, working synchromesh and cloth seats (though the black vinyl jobs in the Simca were remarkably effective at resisting cigarette burns).
The best Metro experience was in summer 1990. About a year after the Berlin Wall had been torn down, I and three friends from uni set off in a 'champagne' 3 door 1.0 litre L. We spent three weeks driving to Hamburg, Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig and Prague. The beige Metro looked positively sophisticated among the Trabis and Skodas. Beautiful cities, happy people, cheap beer, endless beef stew & dumplings; great times.
Here's an interesting article about what might have come next.
http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/spy-shots/austin/aust...
shibby! said:
I had one as a first car.
It couldn't have been at a time when they were less cool.
However it was my first car, my parents bought me it. So I appreciated it, and drove it a lot.
Same here. A 1.3GS from the late 80s. I drove the bejesus out of that car until it blew it's head gasket one late Sunday night on the M1. Never cool but always fun and the steering could teach modern cars a hell of a lot. Would I want a Vanden Plas? Hell no. But an MG Metro or the later GTa? That could tempt me for a laugh, if it was REALLY cheap.It couldn't have been at a time when they were less cool.
However it was my first car, my parents bought me it. So I appreciated it, and drove it a lot.
Ali_T said:
Quickmoose said:
I had an MG Metro, rusty rubbish pile of junk that ha a strong engine, a sunroof .
Don't forget that, not only did it tilt, but it could open too.....if you took it completely out and stored it in the big and strangely rubberised bag in the boot!
I had a 998 metro as my first car, my friend had a 998 mini as his. The metro was always jumping out of second gear so we got a new 998 (1275!) engine to put in over a weekend.
I took the metro out late on the Friday night with the intention of giving it a good send off and probably getting it towed home but it took all the abuse I could give it, including sticking it in 1st gear at 45mph several times.
My friend was also shocked when I passed him on the Sunday night because he had no idea about the engine swap.
I took the metro out late on the Friday night with the intention of giving it a good send off and probably getting it towed home but it took all the abuse I could give it, including sticking it in 1st gear at 45mph several times.
My friend was also shocked when I passed him on the Sunday night because he had no idea about the engine swap.
kambites said:
The first car I ever drove was my parents' Maestro VDP. I know it's fashionable to hate all things British Layland but it was a decent enough car compared to its contemporaries. I don't know about the metro though.
1985. I had a Maestro VDP. The one with the talking computer.Edited by kambites on Wednesday 5th August 10:46
One chilly morning I cranked it up. "WARNING ENGINE OVERHEATING!"
Pretty much everything bolted on by the VDP trim track failed.
I changed employers so the car went back to be replaced by a Cavalier GL. Luxury!
Oh I like that ! Mk1 metro's mg or Vdp with wolfrace sonics and a proper rev counter just so more appealing than all the later metro's yeah I no I'm sad 
I think this would be a great addition for Breadvan 72''s BL collection nice little retro city car
I think this would be a great addition for Breadvan 72''s BL collection nice little retro city car
Edited by loose cannon on Wednesday 5th August 11:56
I wouldn't but I watched the Japanese anime Paprika recently and was surprised to see an ADO16 VDP feature --> http://www.imcdb.org/vehicle_102452-Vanden-Plas-Pr...
It seems they are something of a cult car there, though whether that would apply also to the Metro VDP?
It seems they are something of a cult car there, though whether that would apply also to the Metro VDP?
NailedOn said:
1985. I had a Maestro VDP. The one with the talking computer.
One chilly morning I cranked it up. "WARNING ENGINE OVERHEATING!"
Pretty much everything bolted on by the VDP trim track failed.
I changed employers so the car went back to be replaced by a Cavalier GL. Luxury!
I don't remember anything going wrong with my parents' one except for the talking computer (which was broken when they got it) and the cam belt (which finally died about five years after it should have been changed). It was more reliable and felt more solid than the mk2 Golf a friend had at the time and in a different league to the Orion another friend had. One chilly morning I cranked it up. "WARNING ENGINE OVERHEATING!"
Pretty much everything bolted on by the VDP trim track failed.
I changed employers so the car went back to be replaced by a Cavalier GL. Luxury!
Looking at this makes me realise how much car ownership has changed since the eighties when I was a child.
My dad had a decent blue collar job and my mum was a housewife, but we had a decent standard of living.
My mum drove a Talbot Samba and later 1.2 Nova, whilst my old man had Montego, a Cavalier and then later Volvo estate which I guess would have been quite a prestige car back then.
I remember a few of my mates mum's and dad's owning a number of Metro's, various Rovers, Courtinas, Fiat Pandas, Fiestas, Escorts and Cavaliers. No-one really had particularly flash cars back then that I can recall. As a kid I used to get excited if I saw something quite 'exotic' on the road such as a Vauxhall Calibra or an Escort Cabriolet. My dad worked his whole life to own that Volvo.
Nowadays most people seem to own a car no older than three years old and even kids barely past their tests seem to be tooling around in almost-new Fiestas, Audis and BMW 1 Series. Every man and his dog meanwhile seems to own a semi-prestige or prestige car.
People's motoring expectations have changed so much.
My dad had a decent blue collar job and my mum was a housewife, but we had a decent standard of living.
My mum drove a Talbot Samba and later 1.2 Nova, whilst my old man had Montego, a Cavalier and then later Volvo estate which I guess would have been quite a prestige car back then.
I remember a few of my mates mum's and dad's owning a number of Metro's, various Rovers, Courtinas, Fiat Pandas, Fiestas, Escorts and Cavaliers. No-one really had particularly flash cars back then that I can recall. As a kid I used to get excited if I saw something quite 'exotic' on the road such as a Vauxhall Calibra or an Escort Cabriolet. My dad worked his whole life to own that Volvo.
Nowadays most people seem to own a car no older than three years old and even kids barely past their tests seem to be tooling around in almost-new Fiestas, Audis and BMW 1 Series. Every man and his dog meanwhile seems to own a semi-prestige or prestige car.
People's motoring expectations have changed so much.
Amazing car and again, if I had space........maybe not!
A Metro was my first car, which I learned to drive in, was supposedly a 1.0 (actually had a 1.3 under the bonnet...great pocket rocket back in the day bombing down the A217!) in red sitting on an old x plate. Lasted me all of 4 months before it met a wall on it's way to it's MOT!
Two cars later and I was the proud owner of a 1.4 Rover Metro GTa (couldn't afford the insurance back then of a GTi). Even so, a great little go-kart of a thing!
Ahh the memories!
A Metro was my first car, which I learned to drive in, was supposedly a 1.0 (actually had a 1.3 under the bonnet...great pocket rocket back in the day bombing down the A217!) in red sitting on an old x plate. Lasted me all of 4 months before it met a wall on it's way to it's MOT!
Two cars later and I was the proud owner of a 1.4 Rover Metro GTa (couldn't afford the insurance back then of a GTi). Even so, a great little go-kart of a thing!
Ahh the memories!
Fashionable though it is to mock (in some cases, admittedly, justified), remember that this was intended to replace the Mini, which back then was viewed not as a cute collectable item, but as a crude, uncomfortable, cramped budget car.
To those who say this will never be a classic (normally folk younger than me...), think on these:
Morris Minor
VW Beetle
Just about any VW from the 60's & 70's, come to that
BMW '02 & 3 Series
Ford Escort
etc
None even remotely remarkable in their day, now regarded as classics and priced accordingly.
The Metro isn't / wasn't ever perfect but it was sharply-styled, roomy and drove well enough in its day. It broke no new ground mechanically, but remember it was developed during the low point for British Leyland that was the 1970's.
To those who say this will never be a classic (normally folk younger than me...), think on these:
Morris Minor
VW Beetle
Just about any VW from the 60's & 70's, come to that
BMW '02 & 3 Series
Ford Escort
etc
None even remotely remarkable in their day, now regarded as classics and priced accordingly.
The Metro isn't / wasn't ever perfect but it was sharply-styled, roomy and drove well enough in its day. It broke no new ground mechanically, but remember it was developed during the low point for British Leyland that was the 1970's.
didn't it have gas suspension? or some such.
That post about the 80's. So true.
Dad with blue collar job, for life, working his way up to a Carlton or a Volvo
Mum at home, with a Fiesta/Nova
Boys getting excited by an XR3
...and now
Dad's changing jobs every year, got the BMW straight off the bat, hard to improve on that for many years until you go for the 2nd hand exotica.
Mum's at work too, Audi/SUV straight off the bat, dosn't want to inmprove on that, as long as it's new.
Boys not really getting excited about cars anymore, unless it's a chrome wrapped Gallardo.
That post about the 80's. So true.
Dad with blue collar job, for life, working his way up to a Carlton or a Volvo
Mum at home, with a Fiesta/Nova
Boys getting excited by an XR3
...and now
Dad's changing jobs every year, got the BMW straight off the bat, hard to improve on that for many years until you go for the 2nd hand exotica.
Mum's at work too, Audi/SUV straight off the bat, dosn't want to inmprove on that, as long as it's new.
Boys not really getting excited about cars anymore, unless it's a chrome wrapped Gallardo.
James Junior said:
Nowadays most people seem to own a car no older than three years old and even kids barely past their tests seem to be tooling around in almost-new Fiestas, Audis and BMW 1 Series.
Yup.The difference is that many live at home, paying peppercorn rent to parents.
Car loan = £Small deposit and, what, £2-500 per month (even allowing for insurance)
Mortgage = £Huge deposit and enormous monthly payment.
If you have a reasonably paid job (which many do) you can see the appeal of the former and the unattainability of the latter.
TWPC said:
I think I might.
I have basically positive memories of them, though as a car-mad teenager who took his test in one in 1987, the view was that they had been comprehensively superceded by 205s, Unos & AXs. Compared to the Simca 1100 I practised on and was due to inherit once I passed the test, the driving school Metros felt like paragons of modernity with responsive steering, sharp handling, working synchromesh and cloth seats (though the black vinyl jobs in the Simca were remarkably effective at resisting cigarette burns).
The best Metro experience was in summer 1990. About a year after the Berlin Wall had been torn down, I and three friends from uni set off in a 'champagne' 3 door 1.0 litre L. We spent three weeks driving to Hamburg, Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig and Prague. The beige Metro looked positively sophisticated among the Trabis and Skodas. Beautiful cities, happy people, cheap beer, endless beef stew & dumplings; great times.
Here's an interesting article about what might have come next.
http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/spy-shots/austin/aust...
Definite shades of the Citroen AX in there somewhere! That did pretty well not long after this time.I have basically positive memories of them, though as a car-mad teenager who took his test in one in 1987, the view was that they had been comprehensively superceded by 205s, Unos & AXs. Compared to the Simca 1100 I practised on and was due to inherit once I passed the test, the driving school Metros felt like paragons of modernity with responsive steering, sharp handling, working synchromesh and cloth seats (though the black vinyl jobs in the Simca were remarkably effective at resisting cigarette burns).
The best Metro experience was in summer 1990. About a year after the Berlin Wall had been torn down, I and three friends from uni set off in a 'champagne' 3 door 1.0 litre L. We spent three weeks driving to Hamburg, Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig and Prague. The beige Metro looked positively sophisticated among the Trabis and Skodas. Beautiful cities, happy people, cheap beer, endless beef stew & dumplings; great times.
Here's an interesting article about what might have come next.
http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/spy-shots/austin/aust...
Turbobanana said:
Fashionable though it is to mock (in some cases, admittedly, justified), remember that this was intended to replace the Mini, which back then was viewed not as a cute collectable item, but as a crude, uncomfortable, cramped budget car.
Nah. Around 1980 the boy racer du jour wanted a Cooper S but settled for a 1275 GT. The Mini was still well regarded into the 80s.[quote]To those who say this will never be a classic (normally folk younger than me...), think on these:
Morris Minor
VW Beetle
[quote]Just about any VW from the 60's & 70's, come to that
BMW '02 & 3 Series
Ford Escort
etc
None even remotely remarkable in their day
{quote], now regarded as classics and priced accordingly.
Oh Mini Metro's. I used to spanner on these for four years in the Met Police. Probably about 2 a day would go through most of the mechanics hands.
High maintenance, as old technology but nothing you couldn't fix with a paint brush, saw and toolkit out of a Christmas cracker.
And surprisingly OK to drive.
But I'd never want to see another.
High maintenance, as old technology but nothing you couldn't fix with a paint brush, saw and toolkit out of a Christmas cracker.
And surprisingly OK to drive.
But I'd never want to see another.
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