Bristol Cars goes into administration

[andyps]

I don't understand the lack of desire to get publicity for the cars, Steve Cropley of Autocar seems to have had occasional short drives and evo have mentioned and driven some, but mainly customer cars rather than official Bristol products, the most recent being the Fighter which was included in a comparison of other cars including the SLS. Sure, it might create a mystique about the cars, but it also hid them from the view of far too many people and almost certainly hindered sales which is a shame. It did probably keep them away from footballers, however, so not all bad. There have been a few celebrity owners, however - Liam Gallagher is one I remember hearing about.

[BlueMR2]

Garlick said:

I liked their cars, in fact I posted a few pics of examples for sale and 'spotted' cars over the years on here.

Trouble is me liking them didn't pay their bills, me buying a host of other cars instead of one Bristol didn't pay any bills, me standing up for them in pub debates didn't pay any bills.

Sorry Bristol, I was a true fan but I never helped you to succeed and I'm sure that rings true for many on here. We all loved you, but few have been brave enough to buy (even used). I hope a future can be found in the end.

I can't even afford a 2nd hand one.

Whats the euromillions jackpot this week £51 million?

[Garlick]

Manks said:

Garlick said:

I liked their cars, in fact I posted a few pics of examples for sale and 'spotted' cars over the years on here.

Trouble is me liking them didn't pay their bills, me buying a host of other cars instead of one Bristol didn't pay any bills, me standing up for them in pub debates didn't pay any bills.

Sorry Bristol, I was a true fan but I never helped you to succeed and I'm sure that rings true for many on here. We all loved you, but few have been brave enough to buy (even used). I hope a future can be found in the end.

So, Garlick, if their cars were so good why did you not buy one?

That's my point. Many of us talked of our love, but few were brave/ rich/ different enough to prove it with our cheque books.

I'm saddened by this news, but sadder that I was just a fan who wasn't ballsy (read wealthy) enough to purchase a car I admired.

[Huntsman]

r129sl said:

The company and the cars they built were wonderful. The Fighter was my fantasy car. It is (perhaps was) the only new car well-suited to doing what I want of a car: covering ground at very high speed in comfort, built to last forever. Of course it was fast. But it is narrow, too, meaning you can steer it through traffic or along RNs with ease. It had a 28gallon tank, so you can cover 500miles or more without stopping (the only way to average 100mph over long distance). It had a long wheelbase for stability. It had long-travel suspension for comfort. And best of all, it is subtle, low key, below the radar: nobody notices it. The fact that you wouldn't buy it makes it all the better in my eyes.

I've added you to my Christmas card list.

Garlick said:

I liked their cars, in fact I posted a few pics of examples for sale and 'spotted' cars over the years on here.

Trouble is me liking them didn't pay their bills, me buying a host of other cars instead of one Bristol didn't pay any bills, me standing up for them in pub debates didn't pay any bills.

Sorry Bristol, I was a true fan but I never helped you to succeed and I'm sure that rings true for many on here. We all loved you, but few have been brave enough to buy (even used). I hope a future can be found in the end.

Well said. We, collectively, should have bought more of their cars. I feel that we have lost an old friend.

[ewenm]

BlueMR2 said:

Garlick said:

I liked their cars, in fact I posted a few pics of examples for sale and 'spotted' cars over the years on here.

Trouble is me liking them didn't pay their bills, me buying a host of other cars instead of one Bristol didn't pay any bills, me standing up for them in pub debates didn't pay any bills.

Sorry Bristol, I was a true fan but I never helped you to succeed and I'm sure that rings true for many on here. We all loved you, but few have been brave enough to buy (even used). I hope a future can be found in the end.

I can't even afford a 2nd hand one.

Whats the euromillions jackpot this week £51 million?

See this one: http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2405621.htm looks like a good classic alternative to an Aston V8.

[Raize]

I looked at the Bristol section of the classifieds just now, and check out this 3k one I found!

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/list.asp?s=38

[Hendry]

I love that so many people don't get Bristol, because it means I get to drive around in something you don't often see.

Too bad there won't be any new ones to set my heart on.

There's a few used Fighters floating around though.

Sad news.

[Ozzie Osmond]

andyps said:

I don't understand the lack of desire to get publicity for the cars,

I have long suspected the reason was that the cars were hopelessly outdated.

[Garlick]

ewenm said:

See this one: http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2405621.htm looks like a good classic alternative to an Aston V8.

Lovely car, and while not cheap (in the true sense of the word) it is affordable to many on here.

[ZeeTacoe]

Ozzie Osmond said:

A shame in many ways, especially for the workers.

But then you can't get away with making outdated and over-priced cars for ever! IMO of course...

The modern wealthy would rather spend their cash "blinging up" something like Cayenne/Aston/Bentley/RR/X6 than spend it buying an ugly English motor car.

I'm surprised this hasn't happened sooner.

[Ozzie Osmond]

Huntsman said:

We, collectively, should have bought more of their cars.

I wouldn't touch one with my money. How many have you owned?

[Trommel]

Ozzie Osmond said:

I wouldn't touch one with my money

Of course not, you're a Socialist.

[whoami]

ewenm said:

BlueMR2 said:

Garlick said:

I liked their cars, in fact I posted a few pics of examples for sale and 'spotted' cars over the years on here.

Trouble is me liking them didn't pay their bills, me buying a host of other cars instead of one Bristol didn't pay any bills, me standing up for them in pub debates didn't pay any bills.

Sorry Bristol, I was a true fan but I never helped you to succeed and I'm sure that rings true for many on here. We all loved you, but few have been brave enough to buy (even used). I hope a future can be found in the end.

I can't even afford a 2nd hand one.

Whats the euromillions jackpot this week £51 million?

See this one: http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2405621.htm looks like a good classic alternative to an Aston V8.

"In December 2010 it went to Bristol Cars for a major service .....Invoice in file for £4500!."

So not really then.

[Manks]

Trommel said:

Manks said:

So, Garlick, if their cars were so good why did you not buy one?

As I said above, why do you think it is an objective decision?

Nothing objective about "good" in this context, which means "desirable".

I suspect the truth is that whilst many people liked the cut of Bristol's jib, fewer genuinely believed that these were cars worth spending a lot of money on. Which is somewhat borne out by their current predicament.

[Hendry]

Ozzie Osmond said:

A shame in many ways, especially for the workers.

But then you can't get away with making outdated and over-priced cars for ever! IMO of course...

The modern wealthy would rather spend their cash "blinging up" something like Cayenne/Aston/Bentley/RR/X6 than spend it buying a bespoke English motor car.

Quite. But I'd rather shoot my family than drive a blinged up Cayenne or X6. And I'm not alone now. Where to go now?

It hasn't escaped my notice that this sad news comes within a week of Aston announcing the Virage, a car created purely by their marketing department to fill a gap between the DB9 and DBS.

[anonymous-user]

The best thing about Bristols is the hooters.

[Stu - B]

Wonder if we will now hear something from Tony Crook? If so, hope it is not something bonkers like it would still be running if he was in charge.

[Trommel]

Manks said:

Nothing objective about "good" in this context, which means "desirable".

I suspect the truth is that whilst many people liked the cut of Bristol's jib, fewer genuinely believed that these were cars worth spending a lot of money on. Which is somewhat borne out by their current predicament

I wouldn't buy a Blenheim new, but I'd take a Fighter over something like a 599.

Unfortunately not many footballers, Arabs or Eurotrash agree and they are usually the ones (conspicuously) spending the money.

Maybe Mansory should put a bid in.

[fido]

I might need to borrow Ozzie's flamesuit but .. whilst folks bang on about their 'Britishness' they were based on old BMW cars and even look a bit like them .. so i don't really see the appeal (except to a very niche market). Of course it's sad when any company dissappears (along with the skills that go with it) but i was more saddened by the demise of Austin/Rover/Triumph. Sorry just my opinion.

[ewenm]

Breadvan73 said:

The best thing about Bristols is the hooters.

Certainly give me the horn...


since no-one else was responding to your bad puns.