How we dress and what we drive

[Harp]

We have (last time I counted) about 5 Jaguars... three of them running just fine... even the parts are not as expensive as some makes of cars' parts are.

I drive a '94 Jaguar XJS convertible that bleeds a bit of oil,
has a tricky top cover, a trunk lock stuck on isolate, and gives
only 15 miles to the gallon; and cops love to ticket for some reason.

 

[Gene]

This is my baby!

 

[PADDY]

A very MOD moped...

Straight out of Quadrophenia!! much more BRIGHTON than Kentucky, I'd say You just need the fox tail on the aerial and the parka on!! Very nice, love all the chrome and *bling* on it! :eusa_clap

 

[Gene]

Straight out of Quadrophenia!! much more BRIGHTON than Kentucky, I'd say You just need the fox tail on the aerial and the parka on!! Very nice, love all the chrome and *bling* on it! :eusa_clap

I've got the parka, but the foxtail I thought was a bit much

 

[Fletch]

Fordist tho I am, I would like to recant my desire for a '35 Fordor - I'd rather have that year's Plymouth.

The peripatetic Fletcher DeShays in Parry Sound at the time of the "Brunswick Panatrope affair." The instrument in question was inside the Tiffany Dance Hall, whose manager, Mr. Albertson (or Alfredson), took the picture.
DeShays picked up the PJ Deluxe touring sedan (he recalled the color as a sort of "gunmetal blue"; it cost $650) at the Lynch Road plant, Detroit, on June 3. After a week filling in with the Joe Haymes band at Walled Lake, he headed to Parry Sound, not exceeding 35 mph for the entire trip as per manufacturer break-in recommendation. He spent the first night in the backseat, which he remembered as "pretty damned comfortable."
Despite everything she'd promised, Liisa never arrived. "I never," DeShays related, "wanted to see, touch, or smell another Sweet Caporal after that day."

 

[DerMann]

I went from driving a 1993 Geo Metro hatchback with 1.0L 3 cylinder 54hp engine to a 1995 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham with a 5.7L V8 LT1.

I dress more or less the same, though. Jacket, trousers, shirt, fedora, and tie. In the Geo, though, I could not wear my fedora in the car. The Cadillac allows for a much higher ceiling, so I can get away with wearing any of my hats.

Also, AC keeps me from taking my tie or jacket off.

Filling the 23 gallon tank is quite the financial experience. Worth it in every way, though.

 

[PADDY]

Very close to buying 'this'...

A 1937 Morris, which I would pick up from Nottingham (UK). But I 'need' a reliable car for work, and this would have to be a second car to tinker at (which isn't possible right now - sadly).

 

[PADDY]

Porsche 356a Speedster

I just saw one of these the other day in Edinburgh. Gloriously sunny day, hood down, guy and pretty girl in the car with the wind in their hair, sun on their face and happiness in their hearts! What a picture. This car just 'turned' heads as its' throaty sounds knifed through the windy Edinburgh streets - wonderful (I so, so would love this beauty!).

Driving through France to Cannes or Nice in this with the hood down....bliss!!

 

[HodgePodge]

I love the styling of the front, but the back of them looks like a hearse to me. Shame - how did they get the front right but the back so, so wrong???

This is entirely my opinion, which likely doesn't carry much weight, but I don't think they got a single thing right when they designed the PT 'Loser' (get it? 'loser' rhymes with 'cruiser.' That is what my car-minded friends dubbed it.)

The Chevrolet HHR is, in terms of styling, what the PT cruiser should have been, imo. True, the HHRs iterior is plastic, plastic, and more plastic, but if you set it beside an old delivery van you can atleast see the resemblance. No such luck with a PT cruiser.

Sadly, unless I have the company car (an HHR, that I picked, see the bias?) for some reason, I am stuck taking the bus or walking. A few years back there was a late '40s Desoto 2dr at a dealership near my work, with a 'best offer' sign in the window, but I didn't think I could come anywhere close to what they would deem a reasonable offer, so I had to just look longingly at it until one day it was gone.

 

[Edward]

Nothing like a ride with the hood down, the A-2 or Irvin on and the sun beating down. She even smiles at me each morning

Just the thing for that morning commute to the salon, eh? Heh. Those little Mazdas are great, actually - and the earlier ones are fast beginning to become quite desirable on the "classics" market. Potentially the Spitfire of their generation.... and a great alternative to something older if that isn't practical.

Edward, do you mean this?

Its a Toyota MR2 Spyder, and is the closest thing I could think of to fit your description.

Nah, that's not it - I'd recognise one of those. The thing I mean, from the outside you could mistake for a late 50s / early 60s Peugot....

LOL I think 95% of all the outfits I have shown in the outfit thread consists of a tight pencilskirt, so photos shouldnt be hard to come by

True, true.... I've seen one orf two on there.

This is my baby!

You do like to know what's behind you, then? As Paddy said, tres Quadrophenia!

Paddy, I've always loved the lines of the 356 myself - definitely the best looking car Porsche ever produced, and I'd certainly choose one of those over a 911. Arguably, the 356 is little more than a Beetle in a party dress... but what a dress it is! My only deliberation with a 356 would be whether to go with the convertible, or run with the coupe, the latter being potentially much better suited to our climate, and that little bit more secure when parked in the open. The more affordable option these days is to go for the VW-based Chesil replica (available either as a kit or factory built - new factory build, depending on engines is around GBP28K). They're beyond my current budget, even were I to be buying a car, but given that kind of money lying around, and off-street parking, and I'd be tempted....

http://www.chesil.biz/

 

[PADDY]

Well Edward...

There's any amount of vintage tourers I'd love to have from Buggattis to Astons to Mercs to Frazer Nash...etc, etc...
But sadly, I need reliability of 'knowing' I'll arrive at my destination when I say I will [huh] The modern world doesn't seem to make allowances for vintage modes of travel...unfortunately.
The Japs make a very reliable and good performance car for the money - you just cannot fault our far eastern cousins. And stats show that the MX5 (or Euno or Miata - depending on your market area of this globe) is the best selling two seater convertible 'ever!' And when I'm in the driving seat of 'Betsy' ...well... it's easy to see why.

I took Betsy for a long tour up the coastal road of Northumberland and into Scotland yesterday. Twas going up to a wee place for fly-fishing (Rainbow and Brown trout). The sun was beating down, I passed by Chillingham Castle (most haunted place in the UK), past Bamburgh Castle on the shoreside, past Holy Island off the coast, over the Tweed River (one of the finest salmon rivers you can get in the UK) and up to St. Abbs (a little fishing, coastal village that hasn't changed much in 200 years). It was wonderful. Brought the Irvin, but it stayed in the boot (the trunk for my American pals).

Betsy is such a responsive gal and just a touch on the accelerator, loosen the reins and she's away over Beacher's Brook like a champion!!

Hairdresser's car did you say? well then those Hairdressers have very good taste in sportscars and feel 'the need for speed!'

Though..., these are still tempting...oh, 'soooo' tempting...

 

[Lincsong]

I drive a Ford F-150 extended cab. So I run the gambit from what I wear and what I drive.

 

[BinkieBaumont]

The Royale Sabre - a Quality Kit Car

In the past, 'quality' was not a word often associated with kit cars, unless it was prefixed with some other word like 'bad' or 'poor'. But things have changed. There are some very impressive kit-cars on the market today in the UK, one of the most notable being the Royale Sabre.

The Sabre was designed by John Barlow, who started the Royale Motor Company in 1991. Its styling is based on that of the 1930s - 1940s era and people have commented that it looks like it could be a classic Jaguar or BMW. But the Royale Sabre isn't a copy of any car that actually existed at that time. Safety and quality were top priorities, and the fibre-glass and aluminium body panels, reinforced by a substantial steel chassis and steel bars inside the doors, reflect this. It feels as solid as, and has all the comfort you'd expect from, a production car. The roof doesn't leak, you don't get worrying creaks and rattles as you're driving along and the doors even close with a nice, satisfying clunk, and with the soft top you have the wind in your hair and ruffling your racoon coat!

As a kit car it has the advantage that you can have almost exactly the specifications you want. It is designed for Ford Sierra or Granada running gear (engine sizes from 1.6 to 2.9 litres), but even something like a 3.5l Rover V8 engine can be adapted. It has the option of a soft-top or hard-top (or both because they're interchangeable), you can choose which mod-cons you want, eg electric windows, power-assisted steering, stereo system, and you can use whatever interior trim you feel like. Some people even make their own modifications to the bodywork using the kind of fibre glass you can get to repair boats or rust on cars.

Binkie would prefer a "Split" windscreen as in the Buffori, I think this is two square and the door handles need to be a bit more rounded

So basically what you get is a new car that looks like a classic, but without the poor build quality generally associated with kit-cars. The only problem for most people is that you have to build it yourself, or pay someone else lots of money to build it for you. Well, it's not for everyone... but when you can put a decent one on the road for around £10,000, it's certainly worth considering if you're even just a bit mechanically-inclined. Think of it as a big kid's 'Mecano' set or 'Airfix' kit.

 

[PADDY]

That's sweet Binkie.

I too would go with the split windscreen if it was an option. Still, a lovely kit-car (even 'that' name 'kit car' has an old negativity about it, wish it was changed to something like a 'Homage Car' or anything is better than the K-C).
Thanks for sharing that, I must look it up on the net now...

 

[Story]

Knew that Royal Sabre writeup looked familiar.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A385733

 

[PADDY]

***BARTENDER NOTICE***

Gents. Please try to *Acknowledge* your 'sources' if you are going to use "direct quotes" from other people's work. *Quotes* are handy when they already give all the 'meaty' information, but please make the effort to acknowledge their work

Thanks guys for your furture cooperation .. !

 

[Edward]

The Sabre in the photo looks nice.... I'd be inclined to give it something more vintage looking in terms of wheels, but then that's a matter of personal taste - something that looks as if it could have come out of the thirties versus something that is a carry on of thirties design into thed twenty-first century. There certainly are plenty of great kits around these days. I'd be inclined to go that way if ever I did have the need of a car and the readies to finance and run one.

 

[PADDY]

These cars range from £4k to £10k

Pretty good value for money if you ask me! and 'yep'...they are Kit Cars = Amazing!!

 

[PADDY]

And a 'few' more of these Kit Cars...

They look great and many have large V8 engines under the bonnet! Now wouldn't these turn heads (and more importantly, they are more accessible to buy than the 'real deal.').

 

[PADDY]

So HOW would you DRESS to drive these babies..?

Some of my ideas...