After the initial excitement I have not had any more news of this, "Peoples Car" that is supposed to sell for about $2,050 US. Obviously it would not meet safety and emission standards in very many countries but it did start me thinking of the concept. Could Ford create a modern version of the Model T that would sell for $ 4,000 -$4,500 US, Roughly 2,800 to 3,100 Euros ??? More important, would there be a market for such a machine in the US or Europe? My concept would be a small 4 seat machine, 2 door hatchback with a 1000cc TD motor. Construction possibly from recycled aluminum and plastic, with steel only where needed for strength and wear resistance. Very light weight with plastic body panels/steel door panels. It should get around 65 miles per gallon and have the option of 5 speed auto or 6 speed manual trans. I think Ford could do this but if too successful it would reduce their big car sales. Lots of room for comment here,,, go for it !!! Read more

Reading Luds contribution to the 'motoring memories' thread brought back memories, good and bad. I am sure others will have stories to tell - but for starters a selection of memorable lifts..................

1965 and stranded on the outskirts of Leicester, having just made in one go all the way up the M1. Picked up by a bunch of gypsies, ( or do I have to say 'travellers in this new PC world), in a heavily chromed pickup truck. They spent the whole journey to Loughborough telling me they hated students, with me trying to pretend I was not wearing the highly visible purple, yellow and grey University scarf. I had developed an escape strategy which involved removing the keys and making a run for it if necessary. The thought of outrunning anyone now seems a distant memory. Plan never implemented, they even went out of their way to drop me off. I can only think they were winding me up.

Once a hitcher, always a hitcher, and over the intervening time I have both given and received a variety of lifts without adverse incident.

Fast forward to 2007 and I hitched from Rodez to close to Montpellier with a sucession of lifts,starting with a Cambridge educated French lawyer, and finishing the last 5km on the back of a 16yr olds 50cc moto. No helmet, no speedo and loose gravel on some of the blind bends of the single track road. Maybe I should have refused it, but it was hot, I was knackered and there was very little traffic.

What stories do others have to tell?


p Read more

Hi, first time here. Been reccomended that I'll get some good advice so here goes.


My Fiesta 1.25 o2 reg started overheating today and no hot air would come out of the blowers, even on full.

Unfortunately I was driving in a bit of an emergency so I had to keep going. Drove with the needle in the red for maybe 15 miles tops.

I'd had an overheating problem back in October and a local garage had a look and said something about my vents being clogged up etc so hot air couldn't get away from the engine?!?! Anyway they carged me just under a hundred quid for sorting that, putting some coolant in etc and the problem went away... until today.

Between then and now I've put a few thousand on the clock, including several 5+ hours drives in one go and had no overheating problem.

So after this happened today I rang a different local garage, again on a freinds reccomendation. They have said that I have likely warped the head gasket through driving with the needle in the red etc. Have advised me to drive it up to then with the rad cap off so they can have a look at it.

Anyway, I just wondered if anyone has had this problem, what else it could be, how to fix it etc??

If you any more information, I'll gladly tell you what I can. Thanks for your help in advance :) Read more

I've had my Ford Ka for over 5 years and a new problem seems to have occurred. On Monday during the course of a journey, I stopped on a narrow road to let a lorry past, and when I pulled off again, there was an unpleasant buzzing noise which had not been there previously.

It seems to be coming from the front left of the car. It is particularly audible in 2nd gear between 10 and 25 mph, and in 3rd gear between 25 and 40 mph. It is barely audible in 1st and 4th, and I've never heard it in 5th. It is only audible if one accelerates hard - if one accelerates gently through the gears, one does not tend to hear it. It is completely absent in neutral and seems to be absent in reverse.

(Not having any mechanics in the area, I gave the most knowledgeable chap I know a lift to demonstrate the fault, and he couldn't hear anything odd, rather to my surprise.)

Any ideas? Read more

I was perusing a Van magazine in Smiths and came across an article on a 60`s Mini Van.

Now, memory would have the Mini Van as being quite a reasonable vehicle, at the time - and the 60`s DID seem like `modern times` didn`t they? At the time that is.

But looking at a photo of the van now internally and there are thin little seats, everything pared to a functual basic.

Memory distortion and motoring then? How do you perceive things?........

Remember watching the Brighton run (Genevieve) with one of the lead actors being Kenneth More? Now the shock is to see the film again and realise that both the vintage cars in the film AND the 50`cars in the background are merging towards each other and are starting to look equally ancient.

You travel to an area not visited for 30 years and it`s `gone` - you might think memory is going, but, as you know, it`s all those changes - tree growth, infrastructure, road changes.

Maybe there`s a certain road, perhaps over a bleak moorland that`s almost the same. But the landscape around has changed and there`s that dissonance with long term memory.
But looking out to sea, carefully, only including that unchanging headland in the visual field.. Or seeing the white cliffs emerging from the mist on a returning channel ferry.. The perfect match of memory is there.

You could almost expect the 67, red and cream Triumph twin to be behind you - poised with a tank of Super - only a fast 90mph blast down those country lanes - to the flaxen haired girl, parents and the Alsation who`s sharp little puppy teeth left small white marks - still evident on these ageing hands and - as realised dimly, even then - companions until eternity.

Speaking of which, It was crazed as an adult and used to think that cars were alive. Even when The Old Man arrived home in his own car, the dog used to let out a howl like a wolf and go for the only soft part, the tires - with as much ferocity as can be imagined.

There was then the apologetic whining when the Old Man got out.... as though it didn`t know he was in there.

Anyway, are you an argumentative Web Bot, waiting for another argument? Or a Human Being? ;-)

Tell us about yourself - in the interest of uplifting the Human condition

All the best!

oilrag Read more