Can we talk about the Austin Allegro VP
Discussion
The first car I ever bought just for myself was a metallic blue 1500 Allegro. I loved it, thought it was a nice car. I sold it 3 months later when someone else offered me more for it than I'd paid and I couldn't really turn it down, about £350 IIRC.
I also vaguely remember having one of those equipe models. I don't think it was mine, but belonged to a mate, but we all used to drive around in each others cars depending on who was least drunk. It was quick, but also quite rusty and had something terminally wrong with it or got destroyed as it wasn't around for long. I actually quite liked it and fancied getting one for myself for while but that performance level would have been prohibitive insurance wise for me at the time (about 17 I guess).
I gave up dreaming of Allegros when I bought my next car after the Allegro, that was a 1978 Honda Accord. It was like a stepping forward 20 in car developement compared to the BL/Ford/Vauxhall products of the day, I mean it even had a remote boot release!!! It actually rusted worse than an Allegro though if that can be believed.
I also vaguely remember having one of those equipe models. I don't think it was mine, but belonged to a mate, but we all used to drive around in each others cars depending on who was least drunk. It was quick, but also quite rusty and had something terminally wrong with it or got destroyed as it wasn't around for long. I actually quite liked it and fancied getting one for myself for while but that performance level would have been prohibitive insurance wise for me at the time (about 17 I guess).
I gave up dreaming of Allegros when I bought my next car after the Allegro, that was a 1978 Honda Accord. It was like a stepping forward 20 in car developement compared to the BL/Ford/Vauxhall products of the day, I mean it even had a remote boot release!!! It actually rusted worse than an Allegro though if that can be believed.
Allegros weren't bad by the standards of the day, which were pretty abysmal. Cars didn't last long, and the unreliable rusty relics were not a true reflection of the car. My father-in-law had an A series one complete with quartic wheel when it was just a recent secondhand car; it never went wrong, was roomy, and was still all steel when nearly all contemporary Datsuns had rotted away terminally.
The only drawback I could think of with the VDP is that it was lumbered with the Maxi engine and gearbox, and therefore would be hateful to drive.
The only drawback I could think of with the VDP is that it was lumbered with the Maxi engine and gearbox, and therefore would be hateful to drive.
But compared to even a Datsun Sunny, let alone an Alfasud or Golf, the Aggro felt dated, cheap and nasty - not to mention abysmal to drive. The Sunny is not remembered with any affection but I must admit I was impressed when I first drove one , not with the razor sharp turn in or rorty howl from the engine room but from basic stuff that Datsun got right and we didn't- an original fit radio incorporated into the dashboard,instrument lighting dimmer, heating and ventilation that worked, a gearbox with unbeatable synchromesh,intermittent wipe and an engine which didn't stutter and fart until it was warmed up. It may not have had Lotus agility but what most people wanted was a car which worked all of the time.
My late father gave up on UK cars after his Dolomite went through five- yes five- gearboxes in 20k miles- and the n/s front suspension also collapsed - at speed. He bought an Accord - the first of many - and drove them for rest of his life . None went wrong- ever . A couple needed a new battery after fist few years - that was it.
We designed some great cars - Mini, Rover P6 , Lotus Elan , E Type Jaguar - what a shame we couldn't build them properly ....
My late father gave up on UK cars after his Dolomite went through five- yes five- gearboxes in 20k miles- and the n/s front suspension also collapsed - at speed. He bought an Accord - the first of many - and drove them for rest of his life . None went wrong- ever . A couple needed a new battery after fist few years - that was it.
We designed some great cars - Mini, Rover P6 , Lotus Elan , E Type Jaguar - what a shame we couldn't build them properly ....
I'm too young to remember any of the events talked about on here but I have an interest in classic cars. It just strikes me how much more modern and reliable the German and even Japanese cars were compared to the British cars!
It is sad that the strikes and greedy, clueless managers turned what had been possibly the top car designer/producer since cars were invented into a standing joke among car enthusiasts.
It happened in the aircraft world too! so many beautiful, world leading designs stifled by red tape, laziness and greed.
It is sad that the strikes and greedy, clueless managers turned what had been possibly the top car designer/producer since cars were invented into a standing joke among car enthusiasts.
It happened in the aircraft world too! so many beautiful, world leading designs stifled by red tape, laziness and greed.
The_Burg said:
Wozy68 said:
To me, what a very sorry state for VP ......... Finishing their days on the likes of the Allegro et al. All that skill utterly wasted 
Not quite, there was the Metro, Maestro and Montego VP as well.The Montego was nice car from what i remember of my dads around 1986. Certainly better than the Sierra / Cavalier of the time, was pretty quick too and lovely seats.
In the same way that we should have pronounced the Ford Capri with the emphasis on the first syllable then - correct but nobody ever did? Or the Renault Clio - should actually be 'Cly -oh ' not Clee -oh '?
And 'lil' deuce coupay' sounds just wrong - 'coop' innit ..
And we say 'Ren-oh ' when the correct pronunciation should be 'Run -oh ' with the 'R' sailing pretty close to a Jonathan Woss version. I could go on.........
So in the unlikely event of my ever uttering Vanden Plas I will expose myself to ridicule and still say 'plah ' !
And 'lil' deuce coupay' sounds just wrong - 'coop' innit ..
And we say 'Ren-oh ' when the correct pronunciation should be 'Run -oh ' with the 'R' sailing pretty close to a Jonathan Woss version. I could go on.........
So in the unlikely event of my ever uttering Vanden Plas I will expose myself to ridicule and still say 'plah ' !
Edited by coppice on Wednesday 10th February 08:00
The_Burg said:
There was a project on here many years back fitting a 2.7 V6 from a Rover 827.
Had a hunt but can't find it, seem to recollect it was owned by the bloke form 5th Gear TV show?
Jonny Smith:Had a hunt but can't find it, seem to recollect it was owned by the bloke form 5th Gear TV show?
http://www.carpervert.com/blog/?p=41
Has anyone ever managed to make a truly luxurious small car? At every fuel crisis someone tries it, but by loading gadgets and trim onto a small and necessarily unrefined car and it never really works. The Panther contraption based on a Triumph is the ultimate example.
On the one hand short wheelbase and small engine makes the ride unrelaxing, on the other people are reluctant to pay as much for a small car as a large one.
On the one hand short wheelbase and small engine makes the ride unrelaxing, on the other people are reluctant to pay as much for a small car as a large one.
Dr Jekyll said:
Has anyone ever managed to make a truly luxurious small car? At every fuel crisis someone tries it, but by loading gadgets and trim onto a small and necessarily unrefined car and it never really works. The Panther contraption based on a Triumph is the ultimate example.
On the one hand short wheelbase and small engine makes the ride unrelaxing, on the other people are reluctant to pay as much for a small car as a large one.
Ive lovd the idea of small luxury. Like a jag xj but shorter in the back and small boot, but keep the space and toys upfront. Its never really workdd thiugh. Bristol tried it with the 404, and made 50 odd. It seems thd cost will still be there, bug you get less metal for your moneyOn the one hand short wheelbase and small engine makes the ride unrelaxing, on the other people are reluctant to pay as much for a small car as a large one.
Radford Minis of course; and by the standards of the time things like the Riley Elf and Wolseley Hornet had a certain cachet (well, wood dash anyway, and a little light in the grille for the latter) ) ; Riley 1.5 ; and Triumph 1300 was a sweet thing when it first appeared - very middle class image. The template was set (and I am not sure ever repeated to the same effect) with the Cortina 1600E and Corsair 2000E- the former especially looked fabulous(fat wheels, greet dash , good seats etc ). Aubergine the colour of choice for both.
coppice said:
Radford Minis of course; and by the standards of the time things like the Riley Elf and Wolseley Hornet had a certain cachet (well, wood dash anyway, and a little light in the grille for the latter) ) ; Riley 1.5 ; and Triumph 1300 was a sweet thing when it first appeared - very middle class image. The template was set (and I am not sure ever repeated to the same effect) with the Cortina 1600E and Corsair 2000E- the former especially looked fabulous(fat wheels, greet dash , good seats etc ). Aubergine the colour of choice for both.
Good call with the Radford Minis, sadly though the quality of the work wasn't quite up to VDP standards with many examples! If you can find an original, unrestored one take a look behind the dash / under the carpet / in the boot / under the bonnet and you'll often find the original factory colour intact, Radford didn't bother stripping the shells properly and starting afresh, everything was simply masked up and the new fancy colour applied on top. In their favour, at least they chose some nice paint schemes based on RR and Aston colours of the day.Agree on the 1600E, there is a beautiful aubergine example in the museum at Gaydon.
eliot said:
The_Burg said:
There was a project on here many years back fitting a 2.7 V6 from a Rover 827.
Had a hunt but can't find it, seem to recollect it was owned by the bloke form 5th Gear TV show?
Jonny Smith:Had a hunt but can't find it, seem to recollect it was owned by the bloke form 5th Gear TV show?
http://www.carpervert.com/blog/?p=41
W00DY said:
That's what he reckons, but all concepts get sanitised and it should have been obvious that the details were still s
te.
Tat long bonnet, super raked windscreen and low roofline were entirely impractical and the only nice bits of design.
Actually the possibility was there. It may be that the car was supposed to be wider than the final product, that the crappy TIS may have been replaced with an end-on gearbox and a wider lower profile radiator could have been used.te.Tat long bonnet, super raked windscreen and low roofline were entirely impractical and the only nice bits of design.
But of course, this was BL where the designer designs one thing, the engineer engineers another thing, the bean counters want to reuse something (or many things) and the whole thing ends up looking like a turd.
Northernlights said:
Had they taken the sports stripes off that Equipe thingyme, and pre-drilled holes where rust would appear, it could have been a lightweight special. If they had got Colin Chapman involved, it could be as valuable as a Lotus Cortina by now. Maybe.
Our Equipe, in which i passed my test in in Barrow-in-Furness circa June 1986 had a rather delicate pinstripe not this garish Starsky and Hutch affair. Car was decent enough around South Lakes lanes and M6 trips. happy days. Used to gouge me shins when the front seat slid forward clambering out of the back because the metal runner was so brutal. Think it was 5 speed, which was still relatively impressive versus most stuff. I used to tune the carb, probably not that well as a 17 year old, using Haynes manual. Deep spoiler, fog lights and fast corroding alloys looked great IMO! Cant find an image of our simple stripe version on Google though. We lived in a house that was part of the RAC rally and only two miles from the Newby Bridge service centre. Amusingly PH did a test of some car a while back and broke an alloy on a protruding rock just near my house, which I can instantly visualise and recall to this day. Rev counter and wooden gear knob, full carpets, with part checker fabric seats that didnt burn your legs. Series 3 restyle was hideous though. /ramble
I never had an all agro but I did have a Maestro 1.6 VDP , all the clichés in a row , 1 elderly owner , low mileage (30k), full history , fully undersealed and serviced from new .no rot but only 2 weeks MOT .
Metallic russet red , very beige and brown interior . I took it into work for an MOT and despite all the p... taking it sailed through .
It was bought for peanuts and as a giggle . I went to work for a classic restorer shortly afterwards and it got loads of attention from visitors and customers whenever it was taken to work .
It all worked and all I ever fixed was a droopy headlining, a couple of elbow joints on the vac pipes and replaced a nylon joint on the gear linkage .
It wasn't a good drivers car but performed ok . The steering was impressively heavy at parking speed , even when compared to much older and larger stuff .
Sold it after a couple of years and made a handsome profit .
Metallic russet red , very beige and brown interior . I took it into work for an MOT and despite all the p... taking it sailed through .
It was bought for peanuts and as a giggle . I went to work for a classic restorer shortly afterwards and it got loads of attention from visitors and customers whenever it was taken to work .
It all worked and all I ever fixed was a droopy headlining, a couple of elbow joints on the vac pipes and replaced a nylon joint on the gear linkage .
It wasn't a good drivers car but performed ok . The steering was impressively heavy at parking speed , even when compared to much older and larger stuff .
Sold it after a couple of years and made a handsome profit .
Gassing Station | Classic Cars and Yesterday's Heroes | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff