cars

1952 Austin A40 Devon. My first foray into spannering, and learning about tuning. Still remains as one of the fastest cars I ever owned in its final form. Sold when leaving for Oz.

1961 VW Kombi Camper. Bought while spending my first night in Sydney - saw newspaper ad that pronounced it came with F-A-D-E-D paint! That was my cue. Repowered it by fitting 1340 kit. Great unit. Sold after buying Mini.

1980 Mini Clubman LS. Bought new ex-demo. Had 1098 with emission controls - which caused some grief. Oddly, the crank pulley flew to bits too. Otherwise fine and nicely furnished. Sold when leaving Oz.

Mk1 Cortina. Bought from fellow traveller while in UK. Burnt a lot of oil, so ringed and bearing and it went like clockwork for the year we owned it. Travelled all over England, Scotland, Wales. Left it in the carpark at Heathrow Airport when we returned home.

MG Magnette. Bought this and a Riley 4/72 for $150 the pair. Put the Riley motor in this. Bit rotten, but went very well and even handled ok. Nice dash. Did lotsa miles. Sold to friend after buying Wolseley.

Wolseley 16/60. Obscured by frog. Very tidy example bought from workmate. Used it for many years. Lowered it but it remained otherwise stock. Had seats recovered - very comfortable.

MG Magnette ZB. Bought in a very sorry state. My first attempt at a total restoration. Cost thousands and involved every single part of the thing. Had quite a lot of use out of it during the beginning, but after the body strip, I never had it back on the road before selling to a friend. Lovely to drive.

1963 Singer Vogue. Aka "The Bogue". Reliable unit whose bodywork was just beginning the slide. Never did a thing to it. Nice gearbox. Ghastly seats. Extremely uncomfortable on long trips. Sold to local in much the same condition I bought it.

1982 Bedford CF Auto. Brilliant van. Used this for work for many years after buying it from former employers. Drove very well and carried an enormous load when required. Given to friend after developing motor problems.

1971 Hillman Hunter Auto. Owned by my mother from new. I bought it when it got tired, and rebuilt the motor. Drove and handled well - horrid seats. Got written off by a runaway rubbish truck.

Hillman Hunter Auto. Bought dead and transplanted all the mechanicals from the previous write-off, except the auto which was now a 4-speed. Had Rapier cam and carb setup. Went very well indeed. Still crap seats.

My first Morris Marina was a rusty red version of this, a 1976 1800 HL - swapped for a used washing machine. That petty well sums up the status they commanded at the time. It was a stop-gap measure to get me through some transport shortage. Little did I know...

1981 Morris 1700 Estate - aka Marina Mk3, my second bite of the Marina pizza. Decided to use an estate for work, so I used all the power train from the doomed HL, giving it a spruce up in the process. Once again, I thought this would be the end of the Marina experience. More fool me...

1981 Morris 1700. This car (not actual photo, but same specs) was given to me after being terminally crash damaged. I trailered it home and removed a few parts. As I was not actually running an 'O' series engine, I did not save any engine or transmission parts. Should have..! Much of the interior had been trashed. I dumped it.

1980 Morris 1700 Estate. Factory auto. Given to me by grateful owners when they moved overseas. I had helped them maintain it for some years - didn't expect to gain ownership.! The body was better than my own estate. This marked the beginning of my collection - being given whole road-legal cars was a new experience...

1973 Marina 1.8 Estate. The owner of this mint estate offered to pay me $50 to take it away. I ended up giving him $50 when I saw how straight it was. I was not really interested in other than Mk3 models, and was intending to strip it - but it was too good to molest, so I gave it away.

1980 Morris 1700. The previous owners of this car failed a wof. They were quoted $200 to repair it, but figured they would get even less for the sale. The mechanic told them that I was probably the only person in town who would want it - so they gave it to me.! Had a can of organic tomatoes under the seat. Score.!

This Marina 1300 was probably a Mk1. Ejected from the barn it lived in, it was delivered to me. I let a local lad pirate some of the park lights, then gave it away to the same chap who took the 1.8 Estate. Looked to be in need of a lot of work.

"Frenchie". In honour of being French Blue, this 1977 1800 HL was bought to dismantle. There were various mechanical misdemeanours - but also, the ancient owner had been practising a fair bit of "parking by ear..", so there was hardly a straight panel on it. Of course, the engine was earmarked for a new home. It was totally stripped and dumped.

1980 Morris 575. My first 1275cc 'A' series unit. Bought after a chance email encounter - I flew up to Auckland and drove it back - with a free 1800 HL motor and auto in the back. It went very well, once I figured out the fuel shutoff which was leftover from a previous CNG installation. Destined for a repower using car running gear and power.

1980 Morris 1700 Estate. Advertised as a non-runner, but more of a non-runner than the ad would have you believe. The clutch was so shagged in this that the car did not move the slightest when in gear. Motor was used as the basis of a 2 litre conversion, but the rest awaits resuscitation. Good body.

1980 Morris 1700 auto. The result of me actually advertising to buy, and my first "expensive" Marina. Living in a dry climate, and having covered only 78,000k this looked like the ultimate Marina. There were a few dramas in the delivery trip, but it lived up to expectation. Very smooth unit and probably my best example still.

"Moss". 1980 Morris 1700. Had sat in a field for nine years. Couldn't believe it was still dry and tidy inside. No question about reviving this one - it was purely to strip for important parts. Apart from the body shell, pretty well all of it will resurface in other cars. Fabulous resource considering it must have been in excellent condition when laid up.

1980 Morris 1700 auto. Featuring the lowest mileage I had seen - 65,000k, this car had enough faults to make me suspect I was misled. Motor was not original, and very average. Came with panel damage which was quite easily repaired, but there are signs of rust which suggest bad storage. Has been upgraded to 2 litre and goes very well.

1981 Morris 575. Bought this on impulse as it was from Blenheim again - and being a dry climate, is conducive to rust-free vehicles. The previous van was looking like an expensive renovation, and I thought this might be a better candidate. It was, but still work to do. Interesting recovery. Currently stripped ready for panel work and paint.

1981 Morris 1700. Bought from a car sales. Cost me $1040 and came with $12,500 worth of receipts.! Could not believe that someone had spent so much on a Marina - especially as everything I looked at had either been assembled incorrectly, or was just totally wrong. Fabulous paint though, and a suitable case for treatment. Its responding now...

Dispelling the Marina myth..!

Ok folks - time to come clean. When I first became owner of a Morris Marina, I was rather disparaging to say the least. Fact is - I had never had any first-hand experience of them, and I echoed the sentiments of many in running them down. Having said that - I was very enamoured of the MGB power unit, especially when equipped with the proper manifolds and twin carbs - and I knew that the locally badged "1.8 HL" model featured both.

My experience with that first car - shame I have no photos - and there's proof of the fact that I did not rate the car at all - was actually quite rewarding. I put that down to the fact that I had very low expectations. However - everybody I spoke to who had owned one at some stage - seemed to have fond recollections of the car, and rated its performance as quite acceptable. By the time I began to be the recipient of complete running cars for free, I did not want to admit that they had redeeming features, as that would likely place some higher value on the car I was about to acquire for nothing, or a mere pittance. Today - in 2009 - all my Marinas are appreciating in value, while most people's cars are costing them handsome sums of money whilst sitting in the driveway. Add to that the fact that I enjoy every occasion that I drive one of them - and that can be up to 20 times a day - and you would have to agree that there is the sign of a successful vehicle.

In their day, Marinas outsold many other contemporary models, and yet they were designed to be an affordable everyday transport - nothing exotic or lavish. I would have to say that with a manufacturing life of nearly 10 years, they were extremely successful. The fact that they did not necessarily inspire the greater motoring public, is just a fact of life. Nor did Mk3 Cortinas - and try finding a good example today.

My point is this. Before you broadcast your ignorance (as I have done..) by joining in the popular opinion and slating such mediocre offerings from British Leyland and derivatives - try driving one. You will no doubt be surprised. I was - and continue to be. The twin carb version of the Marina will out accelerate an MGB from 0-60mph. There's a fact that you won't hear from MGB owners.! The Mk2 and 3 versions had improved suspension that solved much of the criticism that motoring journalists levelled at the first units - and then there were the anti-sway bars that were optional fitments to the Mk3's here in NZ - all my cars now feature them, although only about 50% did so as purchased. There are other refinements that the discerning owner can take advantage of, as well as various modifications that have subsequently proven to be of benefit - so before you join the masses - consider where your opinion is coming from...

No. They're not for sale..!!

Kilroy

1981 Morris 1700 auto. Passed in at auction - owners offered it to me cheap as there were repairs necessary and they wanted it to have a good home. Been the family car for many years until Ivan died August 2008, and it became a problem to keep the car maintained. Drove it back from Masterton without the niceties of wof or reg, but all went well.