Hello folks!
Sorry if this gets long, but I tried to break it down into note
form to make it easier to read.
I returned from my 2-nearly-3-week business trip back to
Jolly Olde England on July 7th. Unfortunately I was too busy to visit
British Cars related places, like museums, race tracks or factories.
But I thought I would comment on a few observations you may or may
not be interested in.
First, it was _GREAT_ to be back home. I was lucky enough to be
living with my parents the whole time since it was only 19 miles
door-to-door to the office I was based at.
VOLVO 440 GLT
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I was given a company car to drive around in, since I had various
trips to make; Manchester, Rotherham, Telford, London, Reading.
The company car was a black Volvo 440 GLT, a sporty 4-door saloon
with a spoiler and electric sunroof. It was a nice car, albeit
typical boxy Volvo exterior styling it was comfortable inside.
It also had some great pep. The speedo said it could go upto 140 mph
but the fastest I could make it go (a couple of times on either the
M1 or M6) was 114 mph. This left me a little disappointed. Why did
the speedo say upto 140? Anyway, I verified the top speed of this
Volvo was only 118 mph when reading a car magazine later on. Oh well.
I frequently drove over 100 mph at sustained speeds. But my average
speed on the motorways was about 80 mph. The police Range Rover I
zoomed by didn't seem to mind this (ooops!). The national motorway
speed limit is still 70 mph.
AUSTIN MAESTRO
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Me dad's car is an Austin Maestro Vanden Plas, about 8 years old now.
I liked the wood trim inside! It wasn't as peppy as the Volvo and
I didn't like the clunky gear box. To be fair I only drove it 15 miles
or so and that was my first drive back in England after 5 years.
After driving the Volvo and the Maestro, I pined for my Acura Integra
back home which is so smooth to drive!
OTHER RIDES
~~~~~~~~~~~
I was driven around in a few other cars: My sister's yellow Ford Escort
Estate (not bad), my cousin's Ford Orion (hmmm, pretty nice), another
cousin's Ford Sierra Cosworth (pretty nippy) and my boss's Ford
Sierra hatchback (with automatic gear box --- argh!). Hmmm... there
seems to be a pattern here. "Have you driven a <mumble mumble>, lately?"!
ACURA INTEGRA and ROVER EQUIVALENT
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I was interested in finding the Integra in England (under the Honda name,
since it seems "Acura" is used only in the US market, not even Japan).
I didn't see one like mine (a 1993) but I did see a couple of the first
generation (pre-1989).
As you know, Rover and Honda are very closely associated. Some Rovers
resemble Hondas and visa-versa. I was driving up to Manchester one
Sunday and I noticed a familiar-looking shape in my rear-view mirror.
It "sort of" looked like my 1993 Integra. I let it pass me, and I passed
it again to get a better look at the car. Yes, it did look "a bit" like
the Integra, but it was some kind of Rover. I late verified from magazines
and newspapers that it was, indeed, a Rover 220 Turbo Coupe. Very nice,
but I still preferred the styling of my Integra.
ROVER 200/400 SERIES
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I decided during my stay that if I was living in England again I would
buy a Rover. I was particularly struck by the smaller Rover 216 GSi
and 416 Gsi hatchbacks. A nice, little, but luxurious family car with
attractive styling. I believe the Honda equivalent is the Concerto,
which is not sold in the U.S..
The the 1.6 Litre 214 GSi has 111 bhp @ 6300 rpm, a top speed of 118 mph
and 0-60 mph of 9.5 secs. Well, that's about one of the few Rovers within
my price range. Somewhere in the L12,000 range I think.
Now, if I wanted an Integra again, I would probably have to go for the
220 Turbo Coupe mentioned above (albeit I don't trust turbos). Performance
for this 2.0 Litre coupe is 200 bhp @ 6000 bhp, top speed 150 mph and
0-60 mph of 6.2 secs. Not bad, eh?
BIG ROVERS
~~~~~~~~~~
The new Rover to come out is the 600 series. The equivalent Honda is
the restyled Accord (when is this due in the U.S.?). The 800 series
is the top of the line. They are extremely attractive saloons. The
new grilles and the styling of the 600 reminds one of the BMW 3-Series.
LITTLE ROVERS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
They still make Minis, of course! New this year is the Mini Cabriolet.
BRITISH FORDS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The new Mondeo is out. I don't think its coming to the U.S.. Its a
very stylish car. I loved all the Fiestas in their various forms. My
cousin Lorna has just bought a used Ford Sierra Cosworth. Phew, all
that extra flash on the bodywork! The Ford Escort Cosworth is much
more attractive despite its big rear spoiler.
VAUXHALLS
~~~~~~~~~
I used to hate Vauxhalls. Years ago when I found out that they were
owned by General Motors in the U.S. I hated them more!
There are some attractive ones on the roads lately, however. I like
the restyled Cavalier hatchback. The Vauxhall that impresses me the
most, at least visually, is the new Calibra. It is very sporty looking.
I believe it is based on the Cavalier, but it certainly looks like it
means business.
AMERICAN CARS!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yes, I saw _two_! The first I hardly noticed it at first. I must have
forgot I was back home for a moment! I noticed the two girls in it
first (ahem...) then noticed it was a Chysler LeBaron Convertible with
the top down. Yikes! Who would buy one of them in England these days?!
The other was a new Ford Thunderbird, parked in the street. It was
Left Hand Drive too.
LBCs: LITTLE BRITISH CARS --- old sports cars
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Surprisingly few sightings, I'm afraid.
I saw a few MGB's, but they were mostly rubber-bumpered. I probably
saw just one midget. I didn't see the new RV8 though.
All of the Triumphs I saw were Spitfires of various ages. I didn't
see one TR-6 or any other of the TRs.
Austin-Healeys... no sightings.
Morgans... surprise, surprise... I saw quite a few. At least 7 or 8!
I've no idea why. Perhaps they were newer ones since Morgans are
still being made (by hand!).
Loti and Caterhams. I was surprised to see so many Super Sevens!
I probably saw a dozen, at least!
TVRs: See below.
FERRARIS and TVRS (huh?)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In all my time in America I have seen lots of Ferraris but I have
never seen a _true_ Ferrari dealership. Where I was based in Loughborough
(pronounced "Luffbruh"), there was a full-blown Ferrari dealership only
400 yards from the office. They also sold TVRs, which are also still
being hand-made in Britain.
The dealership was gorgeous! They had a full-size service department (I was
told that they take cars in from all over Britain) and were in the process
of servicing various Ferraris and TVRs of various ages! It was a very
interesting place to walk by on my various lunchtime trips downtown
and you could see right into the service area. All the mechanics were in
their Ferrari-Red overalls and the place looked spotless.
Of course I would see the Ferraris and TVRs being driven about town too.
Could Loughborough have been sportscar heaven?!! Sure seemed like it!
OLD BRITISH CARS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Supposedly the economy in Britain is poor these days, but you wouldn't
know it from the cars. There are so many new or new-looking cars on
the roads it was a rare pleasure to see _anything_ from before the 1980s.
Perhaps this is proof that, indeed yes, most British cars from the 1970s
were pieces of junk and didn't survive very well into the next decade!
This, even considering that MOT laws are very strict about keeping cars
in good working order and that most cars are well looked after.
I remember seeing one Ford Cortina, about 1974 vintage. It looked in
great shape, but now it looked very old amongst all the contemporaries.
But there was one type of old car that I saw many instances of. The old,
reliable and faithful Morris Minors! Now that does say a great deal
about the quality of British cars way back then!
Oops, nearly forgot. Yes, the Mini. Of course there were quite a few
old ones in various forms of repair.
After looking at the Mini though, new and old alike, I can't help but
feel like how small they are compared to today's cars. Especially
on the motorways. Have I been in America too long?! Well, whatever,
the new 30th Anniversary Edition Cooper in BRG with the white roof is still
a highly attractive Little British Car!
Oh well. I've written enough and you're surely bored by now! Congrats
if you made it this far!
I'm looking forward to my return trip for the last two weeks of August!
That will be with my family and will be all holiday this time!
Cheers and Happy Motoring!
Garry Archer Esq. archer@hsi.com
3M Health Information Systems, Wallingford, Connecticut, U.S.A.
"An Englishman never enjoys himself, except for a noble purpose." - A.P.Herbert
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