What's the oldest car you saw on the road today?

Kaiser D

Been out and about today and came across a rather quiet housing estate with some incredible examples of auto****e in almost every garden and I started thinking to myself you just don't seem to see many older cars on the roads these days. I even notice 96 reg cars are thinning out on the roads today, I'll always take notice of anything 96 or earlier while out driving.
The oldest car I saw on the road today was a MK3 Golf.

Older cars seem to be disappearing quicker by the day.
When was the last time you saw a MK3 Fiesta, MK3 Astra or a MK5/6 escort?
Even cars like the Volvo 850 or the MK3 Ford Transit are seldom seen now.

I suppose it's partly to do with the high price of scrap over the past few years and the government scrappage scheme but before that the roads were filled with older cars.

I guess you could argue the point and say old cars are sometimes taken off the road for a reason, but it always struck me as odd when people would scrap a perfectly reasonable 96/7 car because its failed the NCT and replace it for something new and expensive, which will most likely just cost more to own in the long run as well as buying it in the first place.

Shame really.

Here are a few of the cars that I saw today while in this estate. I couldn't get photos because I was being watched by people. I'll be back there, though.



This was next to a Renault 5 which sat under a cover in a driveway. A perfect example of someone taking good care of a perfectly good old car, I thought to myself. The Civic (85-D-1768) is still on its first owner.

vickers209

seen a 77 ford pickup driving down the hard shoulder on arklow bypass today looked well

kikel

74 Type 2 VW

corktina

saw a mk2 transit today...Ok so it's mine but I saw it

Heikki

I never look at cars on the road.. How boring

ION08

84 merc 230d estate

Sobanek

1992 Opel Vectra (Vauxhall Cavalier).

Edit: Scrap that, just went out for a smoke and saw a 1990 Ford Sierra.

ottostreet

My own...97!

davycc

a 92 carina in daily use locally--id love that civic OP

ianobrien

I spotted a '90 Citroen BX (shining and had all original plastic wheel trims), a Mk2 Escort, Mk1 Escort, Mk2 Transit and a Hillman Avenger Tiger. No pics I'm afraid.

dh0011

OP why did you blank out most of the number plates and then type one in your post?

Ded_Zebra

ianobrien wrote: »

I spotted a '90 Citroen BX (shining and had all original plastic wheel trims), a Mk2 Escort, Mk1 Escort, Mk2 Transit and a Hillman Avenger Tiger. No pics I'm afraid.

Where did you see the BX? Can't remember the last time I saw one... Glad there are still some knocking around

Kaiser D

dh0011 wrote: »

OP why did you blank out most of the number plates and then type one in your post?

I didn't, Google Maps did.

dh0011

aaah now i see. (I just had a blonde moment)

dgt

In Clonmellon at the side of a shed is a yoke from the late 30's/early 40's thats sat there since about the 60's. Thats the oldest yoke I saw today

On the road a 1970 Ford 5000

davycc

Kaiser D wrote: »

I didn't, Google Maps did.

I know that estate very well;) Artane nth Dublin

that silver audi 100/a6 & white pug 405 are neighbours of my crazy ex :pac:

I never noticed the 85 civic before though

Kaiser D

davycc wrote: »

I know that estate very well;) Artane nth Dublin

that silver audi 100/a6 & white pug 405 are neighbours of my crazy ex :pac:

I never noticed the 85 civic before though

I don't know the estate very well. Funnily enough, my girlfriend lives close by and I was just out for a walk this morning

The Civic is close by the Renault I mentioned and a red Nissan Sunny saloon. It looks in a state to be honest.

YbFocus

A mk3 fiesta, because of the invention of rust these things seem to be like hens teeth these days

davycc

Kaiser D wrote: »

I don't know the estate very well. Funnily enough, my girlfriend lives close by and I was just out for a walk this morning

The Civic is close by the Renault I mentioned and a red Nissan Sunny saloon. It looks in a state to be honest.

Sweet Ill be in Dublin again next week & have a nosey at the Civic & see if its for sale at all..

good to see some people have the sense to not replace a perfectly fine older car just to keep up with the reg plate snobs next door(my ex is one lol)

Kaiser D

davycc wrote: »

Sweet Ill be in Dublin again next week & have a nosey at the Civic & see if its for sale at all..

good to see some people have the sense to not replace a perfectly fine older car just to keep up with the reg plate snobs next door(my ex is one lol)

I was just walking through the place and had about 10 eyes on my the whole time. The people there don't seem too friendly - I wouldn't dream of knockign on the door of a house there!

davycc

Ha it takes more than a few northsiders to put me off!

RandomAccess

There's a mint 92 Mazda 323 saloon in grey running around donnycarney/fairview area. It's a shame older cars are being scrapped, more need to be preserved, could be useful to period setting of movies and tv too.

Days 298

Days 298 wrote: »

Saw and heard and old black mustang today on my way home. Don't know what year though. Had a ZV reg. Wish more cars sounded like it!

Was that in south Dublin?

Didn't catch the reg but saw one the other day. Beautiful car.

BeepBeep67

Seen a nice old black Porsche on the N11 yesterday between Greystones and Wicklow. Didn't get a proper look as I had a car full of kids and it was sandwiched between a few cars. Possibly a 356, didn't see the reg.

cletus

Work colleague has an '83 Granada as his daily driver

Wibbs

Sobanek wrote: »

Edit: Scrap that, just went out for a smoke and saw a 1990 Ford Sierra.

Wow I haven't seen a Sierra in yonks. Rust seemed to be a real issue with them and worse it started to eat away from the inside, so you'd not notice until too late.

Outside my door is my late 90's car. My next door neighbour has a 94 Starlet, another across the road has a 90's Fiesta. There's an 85 Ford Capri I see regularly enough(wish I still had mine). There's a Ferrari 308(I think) that's local, but not a daily driver I'd imagine. Yesterday I saw a Toyota Twin Cam in great nick, didn't get the exact year, but mid 80's anyway. Cracking car them yolks.

There are quite the number of older cars around. The idea that old cars get scrapped more quickly today I think is a little inaccurate(or ye're much younger than me:)). Yes the scrappage scheme and the boom did take a lot of perfectly good cars off the roads, but go back further and old cars were much less in evidence. When I was growing up in the 70's and 80's a 5 year old car was already old and a 10 year old car was positively fossilised. Today you see a LOT of 5 and 10 year old cars on the roads today. In most peoples heads an 03 reg is not that old, but it's a decade old. Driving around in say 1983, you'd be waiting a good while before a car from 1973 would pass by, now it's like every second or third car is ten years old.

dylbert

I often see a 91 Hi ace knocking around, I'd say there a few miles on it.

Red Kev

1990 Golf Van
1988 Pajero
1991 Escort
1995 Escort
1986 Fiesta (one of the very last cars registered under the old system, registered just before Xmas '86)

All of the above I see most days, all daily drivers, Fiesta & Golf are first owners, Pajero was imported here in '92 and has the same owner since.

Andrew_Doran

Regularly see two auld fellahs using these as daily drivers:

1986 Ford Sierra
1988 Volvo 340DL

Mycroft H

Neighbour has a Opel Kadette E in daily use. I think it's 84 but I'm not sure as it's a pre 85 registration.

Moomat

Have a mint '95 3.1 Trooper which I gladly see every day! Only 80k miles on it so another 500k to go Wouldn't swap it for some of the modern rubbish going around... Has everything you could possible need, heated Recaro seats, panoramic sunroof, heated and foldy in mirrors, digital AC/climate control, even has them lights that light up around the corner when you put you indicator on... Ahh you've got to love the Japs!

Kaiser D

Moomat wrote: »

Have a mint '95 3.1 Trooper which I gladly see every day! Only 80k miles on it so another 500k to go Wouldn't swap it for some of the modern rubbish going around... Has everything you could possible need, heated Recaro seats, panoramic sunroof, heated and foldy in mirrors, digital AC/climate control, even has them lights that light up around the corner when you put you indicator on... Ahh you've got to love the Japs!

Much like my 96 JDM Legend, some brilliant equipment on board!

Moomat

Kaiser D wrote: »

Much like my 96 JDM Legend, some brilliant equipment on board!

what's a JDM Legend?

Kaiser D

Moomat wrote: »

what's a JDM Legend?

Honda Legend, JDM

Moomat

Ahh, now I know! They are an awesome machine. Beautiful car, well ahead of it's time spec wise! I remember Mitsubishi had a large saloon also, monster of a yoke, like a galant on steriods! Can't think of the name...

davycc

Moomat wrote: »

Ahh, now I know! They are an awesome machine. Beautiful car, well ahead of it's time spec wise! I remember Mitsubishi had a large saloon also, monster of a yoke, like a galant on steriods! Can't think of the name...

Sigma?

Kaiser D

Been told there is a Nissan Prairie around Tallaght.
Anyone close by see it?

bazz26

A neighbour of mine had a 1988 Toyota Corolla up to recently.

ABajaninCork

Saw a little red '88 Datsun tootling about the Ballyhooley Road today. Car looked in good nick considering the age.

ba_barabus

bazz26 wrote: »

A neighbour of mine had a 1988 Toyota Corolla up to recently.

I saw that model Corolla with a 1994 reg in white in Nenagh yesterday. It must be a South African import.

Wibbs

Wibbs wrote: »

When I was growing up in the 70's and 80's a 5 year old car was already old and a 10 year old car was positively fossilised. Today you see a LOT of 5 and 10 year old cars on the roads. In most peoples heads an 03 reg is not that old, but it's a decade old.

When you start looking... Damn this thread. On my short enough paper run earlier today, I was glued to reg plates. Didn't see anything pre 90's save for the 85 Capri laser I mentioned earlier, but there are an awful lot of 00 to 05 cars out there that are trundling along fine. I was thinking though maybe that is a "boom" thing? That people upgraded during those years, but since the downturn maybe haven't because of finances?

Still, again,going back to my youth in the slightly earlier days of horseless carriages cars, cars have become incredibly reliable by comparison to the past. Outside of some Merc and Volvo models that couldn't be killed short of a direct missile strike(and even then the Volvo...) your average car was generally a collection of parts trying to make it's way to the scrapyard. They recycled themselves . Before the Japanese got involved the average driver was a petrolhead almost by necessity and got their hands on the oily bits way more than the average person today. Then the Japanese did get involved and my god I don't need to take a file to my points every few weeks. However after a couple of rainstorms your car would often become Toyko Rusty Red, even if you had ordered and received Midnight blue from the dealer. :eek::)

For my mind anyway I suspect that the period just after the need to take grease to your trunions and just before the cars became mobile computer networks may well be the sweet spot for longevity. I'd near bet that in classic car meets in 2050 there'll be more 1995 cars than 2015 cars still driving in a near original state.

porsche boy

I regularly see a mid 50's Morris Traveller in black, an '82 Ford Cortina or Granada estate in beige, two different '88 Toyota Corolla's a red and a gold, a beautiful late seventies 635csi in black, an early nineties Merc 230CE coupe, my own '95 Primera SRi in black as well as somebody elses one in red, a '79 Audi 100 in silver all floating around Tallaght. Would see most if not all on a weekly basis, they all seem to be driven by mechanics or people in the motor trade.
We dont take kindly to 'modern cars'!

porsche boy

I regularly see a mid 50's Morris Traveller in black, an '82 Ford Cortina or Granada estate in beige, two different '88 Toyota Corolla's a red and a gold, a beautiful late seventies 635csi in black, an early nineties Merc 230CE coupe, my own '95 Primera SRi in black as well as somebody elses one in red, a '79 Audi 100 in silver all floating around Tallaght. Would see most if not all on a weekly basis, they all seem to be driven by mechanics or people in the motor trade.
We dont take kindly to 'modern cars'!

mondymike

I do often see a grey sierra saphire cosworth, a mk3 black cortina, early pre facelift with all the chrome trimmings and a 1991(?) I think silver sierra late model, hatch, i think its a classic (derivative) cuz it has the tinted rear lenses. All about the roselawn area of blanchardstown. Then last month i saw a mk2 jag parked up by leixlip motor Factors, a mk2 black Granada coming out of Bradshaws in newbridge and a 2 dr 240 in front of me coming into clane

pajor

1994 Citroen ZX I think it was.

Once again I shall bring up the point that the Irish know squat about looking after a car. Go to any country on the continent (even the UK are better than us) and you'll see plenty of old Citroens, Pug 205 and 405, Volvos and so on and so forth.

Especially in The Netherlands where the old Fiat Panda is a favourite. :pac:

road_high

pajor wrote: »

1994 Citroen ZX I think it was.

Once again I shall bring up the point that the Irish know squat about looking after a car. Go to any country on the continent (even the UK are better than us) and you'll see plenty of old Citroens, Pug 205 and 405, Volvos and so on and so forth.

Especially in The Netherlands where the old Fiat Panda is a favourite. :pac:

And even fiat cromas of all things. Big cars especially are seen as worth keeping on the road regardless of age.

ba_barabus

road_high wrote: »

And even fiat cromas of all things. Big cars especially are seen as worth keeping on the road regardless of age.

To be fair they rusted like hell and most just didn't last at all.

The thing is in France and the like up until recently you had a Citroen, Pug or Fiat garage in every village who understood the cars. They're mostly still there so the older stuff is easy to keep going and cheap to keep going too.

dgt

ba_barabus wrote: »

To be fair they rusted like hell and most just didn't last at all.

The thing is in France and the like up until recently you had a Citroen, Pug or Fiat garage in every village who understood the cars. They're mostly still there so the older stuff is easy to keep going and cheap to keep going too.

I nearly got sick when I saw this one in a yard in the North earlier this year and all. Felt like new inside, despite having galactic mileage. 2.5TD, such a waste of an epic car that had just been ran in :(:(

ba_barabus

dgt wrote: »

I nearly got sick when I saw this one in a yard in the North earlier this year and all. Felt like new inside, despite having galactic mileage. 2.5TD, such a waste of an epic car that had just been ran in :(:(

I spotted a few Series 1 Croma's in Spain during the summer. They still looked well and amazingly none had rust.

pajor

ba_barabus wrote: »

I spotted a few Series 1 Croma's in Spain during the summer. They still looked well and amazingly none had rust.

I'd guess the kinder Spanish weather would have something to do with that.

ba_barabus

pajor wrote: »

I'd guess the kinder Spanish weather would have something to do with that.

That and they looked after the cars. I even spotted a Seat Malaga in mint condition and numerous old Seat 600's, Renault 6's and lots of other stuff. It can't all be down to the weather as some of them were in the Pyrenees while others were inland where winters can be pretty harsh.