I suppose everyone talks about all the wonderful cars they have owned. I came of driving age in the late 50s, not long after WW2 when youngsters could only afford prewar models, generally poorly maintained. My brother Colin opted for early Austin 7s. After I passed my test my Dad found what he thought was a real bargain, a 1947 Austin 10 which he bought for me. I was delighted to have it but it was really horrible. The engine rattled and was not happy at more than 35 mph and the steering more than somewhat imprecise.

 

This was before the days of the Mini and we both became fascinated with the Citreon 2CV, which we both bought. The 60 mpg was wonderful, but sadly very gutless. Amazing suspension, up and down kerb sized bumps, hardly noticing them

 

I also had a Corgi WW2 scooter as dropped to the troops. Mine was unique as it had a 2 speed gearbox, no suspension or speedometer but we clocked it at 35 mph.

 

From  the 2CV I moved on to an Austin 1100 which I thought would be as good as, or even better than a Mini. How wrong I was. It wouldn't drive in a straight line on a motorway and after 9 months both the driveshafts collapsed.

 

My brother Colin found a Rolls in a dreadful state going for £150 so we bought it as an investment. Sold 45 years later for £11000. Never ran it , just stored in his garage

 

After repairs under warranty I traded the 1100 in for a 1958 Citroen DS19 and was never happier. A truly wonderful car that was an absolute delight to drive. I took Raija to her home in Finland in it in the summer of 1966 and did around 6000 easy miles..

Sadly it developed a water leak (wet liner engine) that was beyond repair.

I then bought a Citreon Bijou, the only Citroen to be designed and built outside France.

It ws basically a 2CV engine and chassis with a British designed and built fibreglass body.

Beautifully styled for its time, however it had one enormous disadvantage. It was made of fibreglass 6 or 7 mm thick and weighed a ton, making the car struggle on even small gradients.

Undaunted I drove it to Finland the next year to get married and we came back wit it stuffed full of wedding presents and Finnish beer.

In those days Sweden had lorries with up to 3 trailers, like road trains, seeming to be several hundred feet long. It was a frightening experience to be overtaken by one as it seemed to go on for ever and you hoped it would not pull in too soon. Down hill was a different matter and we could get passed them, only to be overtaken again on the next hill.

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