Irish motoring in the 1980’s

road_high

RandomViewer wrote: »

Rover 213 would have been the commonest, rust prone but otherwise good wee car (Honda mechanicals) Metros sold okay for a few years until people realised how **** they were

Woman down the road had a white 1988 Rover 200...complete with a Bruce Springsteen 88 full width windscreen sticker!!
I don’t think there was an Austin Rover dealer here in Kilkenny. Perhaps in Carlow or laois.
I know the English love metros but I think they’re ****e and compared to even the Fiesta from 1977 completely outclassed. And that’s before the Fiat uno and Peugeot 205, Opel Corsa came along soon after.

road_high

Darc19 wrote: »

Not sure if it's been mentioned, but the Renault Fuego was the wannabe yuppie and the Toyota celica was the posh yuppie's car of choice.

I had Datsun cherry, Ford escorts, golf GTI and then my favorite, Nissan Maxima which just happened to be white - same colour and model as the unmarked garda cars. Now that was FUN!

I remember the Renault Fuego- they weren’t uncommon.
Bizarrely for the austere times they were lots of “sporty” Coupes like that and the likes of the Celica. They all sold fairly well. I know they were more 70s but Ford Capris too seemed quite ubiquitous. School friend late 80s had one as their family car! They had a few in fact.
Now we have loads of money and none of the mainstream makes bother very much with affordable coupes

mickdw

My memory of the 80s is fiats and them rusting away by the time they were 3 years old. Big holes in the body at that age.
We switched to a sierra around 85 and it was a big step.
Still lots of issues with carb etc around that time. Once the fuel injected ones came in, they were a pretty good car.

alias no.9

RandomViewer wrote: »

First gen Camry would have only slightly bigger than a Carina, Cressida was the Granada rival

I put up a pic of a booted Celica earlier on the thread, it was pretty much a Camry coupe from the same era.

Genghis

Great thread!

Car theft was way more common in the 80s. My Dad's car was actually stolen twice in the same night once. He noticed it gone around midnight, enlisted a neighbour to go look for it and found it about 3k away. Drove it home, woke up next morning to find it gone again!

The other thing was drink driving. Perfectly acceptable. Work mate of mine regularly tells us of his old man's first car. Bought a car with a holiday trip planned from North co. Dublin to Cork. No lessons, provisional licence and sure figure it out as they go. Then stopping for a pint or two in each town from Naas onwards. 12 hours later arrived all safe and sound.

I remember car seat belts in the back didn't exist, and were basically advisory only in the front. Car seats for kids were not a thing either; your Mam held you in the back seat until you could sit up yourself, thereafter from maybe 2 and a half the back seat was yours.

On the topic of trips down the country, my Mams auntie and uncle would come home from London once a year, and we would all pile in to the car to Monaghan to visit her childhood home. Mam, Dad, Granny, Auntie, Uncle and 3 kids all in a standard saloon car (Renault 18 I think). One child in granny's arms, one on the gearbox and 6 year old me in the passenger footwell.

When we got a bit bigger Dad would swap cars with someone in work to have an estate for the weekend, way more room for the growing kids in the boot.

almostover

First cars I remember at home were 2 Opel Rekords. Both maroon with hearing aid brown interiors. My mother had a 2.3D one as she drove a 40mile trip to Cork and back for work. Father had a 2 litre petrol which he now tells me was a sow on juice. Great cars according to him, big tanks. Back when Opel made good cars. Mother replacedhers with a 1.7D Vectra, a 91 model. Non isuzu engine. We had that car for many years, did almost 300k miles. Father bought a 1990 Diahatsu Fourtrak jeep 2.8D, another great yoke. He put multiple clutches in it from towing a horsebox, but it gave no trouble. Learned to drive in that jeep. Changing gear was like stirring coal. Was a real old biscuit tin too, deafening at 60mph. Good times!

dePeatrick

I had the good, the bad and the ugly back then. Starting with Renault 4, had about three of them, loved them to death, then a Ford escort, crappiest car I have ever driven, afterwards a mk II Cortina, loved it even though it swayed around corners and over bumps but it had a colum gear change and a full seat in the front then a Renault 16 ts, loved it even though it was a rust bucket, then a Lancia Beta...a 'real car' amazing machine with a hell of a burble out of the exhaust, nothing could keep up to it...somewhere in there I had a souped up Opel Manta that did around 8 miles to the gallon, I jest you not, amazing from 0-30mph after that boring.

Also had some motorbikes around this time but another thread...

There was zero notice taken of drink driving or speed limits and it was a regular occurrence to hear of fatalities on the roads.

I keeep remembering cars I had like the Renault 5, rubbish it was...I could go on but who cares..:D

road_high

The Renault 4. The vans especially. Were they more popular than Minis here? They could be used as a family car but still very cheap to buy and run

I Was VB

Some great replies here lads!

beauf

road_high wrote: »

The Renault 4. The vans especially. Were they more popular than Minis here? They could be used as a family car but still very cheap to buy and run

P&T had loads of them.

https://twitter.com/aboutleitrim/status/696439415552548864/photo/1
https://www.ebay.ie/itm/Peover-Model-Promotions-Renault-4-Irish-Post-Van-P-T-Boxed-/381250018415

gormdubhgorm

Well there was no NCT's back then. My auld fella had a Mazda early 80s'. Cars used to rust a lot back then.
Kept car for a decade.

Huge hole from rust was created in floor of front passenger seat.
Solution = put down chip board to cover it.

Used to have great fun moving board as kids and looking at road. Got shouted at.
Once auld fella walked into house drowned wet and laughing - it was not raining he had driven in a big puddle.

I can never recall been stopped by guards because of hole in floor. I suppose if it was alright for the Flintstones...

freshpopcorn

I used watch episodes of Crimewwtch UK on YouTube.
Escorts, Sierras were popular.
Granada’s were as well.
Vauxhall Senators looked like massive saloon. That may have been considered more well to do.

kerry_man15

Alfa Romeo Alfasud and Ford Capri probably were considered 'boy racer' cars although not really that kind of culture back then, not to the extent there is now anyway.

Millionaire only not

Apart from mercs the Toyota crown was one of the top cars available. We ended up with one registered in 1981 think dessie o Malley had it ! Converted it from petrol to 2.8 diesel.
Electric windows . Control radio from the rear and most of all air conditioning and a fridge . And the famous electric Ariel .

RandomViewer

kerry_man15 wrote: »

Alfa Romeo Alfasud and Ford Capri probably were considered 'boy racer' cars although not really that kind of culture back then, not to the extent there is now anyway.

Boy racer culture was in Donegal from the 1960s , Minis and Mk1 Escorts, Capri was an old man's car

road_high

Millionaire only not wrote: »

Apart from mercs the Toyota crown was one of the top cars available. We ended up with one registered in 1981 think dessie o Malley had it ! Converted it from petrol to 2.8 diesel.
Electric windows . Control radio from the rear and most of all air conditioning and a fridge . And the famous electric Ariel .

How did that even work? Neighbour had a Rover SD1 and same thing- think daddy said they put a Nissan diesel van engine in it. No one would be even bothered now, youd just go buy a different car.

road_high

Air con was unheard of here. We had an 80s jap import civic in the mid 90s. That had it but not sure we ever used it or knew how!! I couldn’t live without it now. People put up with hardships no one would now

road_high

Someone said Nissan were more popular than Toyota and yes I think that’s true. The Sunny was the car of choice, the Bluebird with families. Not to mention the hordes of rotten Datsuns still going strong. Micras of course too. They did a car van too based on the Sunny. Remember a teacher had a boxy red one! They also had a Mercedes 180 so we thought were loaded.
Nissan patrol was more common than the Land Criuser then too

beauf

road_high wrote: »

Air con was unheard of here. We had an 80s jap import civic in the mid 90s. That had it but not sure we ever used it or knew how!! I couldn’t live without it now. People put up with hardships no one would now

I wouldn't say hardships more hassle.

I'm probably thinking 70s but the key for lifting the aerial always stuck in my mind for some reason. Seems so pointless now.

Likewise all the clothes, sponges and even wiper blades you'd have inside the car to deal with condensation.

Car lighters and ashtrays. You'd be constantly fiddling with them as kid. Nothing else to do I guess.

ShedTower

We definitely had to push-start cars a lot more back in the 80s.

beauf

ShedTower wrote: »

We definitely had to push-start cars a lot more back in the 80s.

For sure.

I think there was sweet spot late 80s early 90s for car reliability. Before that there reliability and corrosion issues. After that electronics and general complexity become an issue.

colm_mcm

Exhausts were certainly more prone to failing back then.

BonnieSituation

JoeA3 wrote: »

Tax dodging was probably the original reason but it was still definitely a thing right up to about 1992! At that stage there was definitely a bit of vanity in it, getting the new 89-X- plate

Looking at the old log book on my 1990 carina and it seems it wasn't taxed until 1992!

road_high

I’d have to say the biggest change in Ireland with regards to motoring has been in safety. In attitude, car safety, road quality and design.
It was considered a bit square to wear a rear safety belt right up to the late 90s.
Seems unbelievable now but they weren’t even fitted as mandatory until the mid to late 80s sometime.
Attitude has probably seen the biggest change though with regards to the likes of drink driving and occupant safety. Who would dream now of carrying more passengers than there was belts for? That was still standard practice when I was a chap

odyssey06

road_high wrote: »

Attitude has probably seen the biggest change though with regards to the likes of drink driving and occupant safety. Who would dream now of carrying more passengers than there was belts for? That was still standard practice when I was a chap

Yep and sometimes you were lucky to have a seat... as a kid I remember going to play a GAA match for the school sitting on the floor of a Hiace!

road_high

On a lighter note, horrible cheap ugly seat coverings were de rigeur in the 80s/90s. If you got a “new” car you had to “keep the seats” by covering them in these horrors. No one does that now apart from in working vehicles for farmers vets or builders. And they’re the special work ones

cml387

road_high wrote: »

I’d have to say the biggest change in Ireland with regards to motoring has been in safety. In attitude, car safety, road quality and design.
It was considered a bit square to wear a rear safety belt right up to the late 90s.
Seems unbelievable now but they weren’t even fitted as mandatory until the mid to late 80s sometime.
Attitude has probably seen the biggest change though with regards to the likes of drink driving and occupant safety. Who would dream now of carrying more passengers than there was belts for? That was still standard practice when I was a chap

Seat belts became mandatory in 1979. They were fitted as standard in the early seventies.

freshpopcorn

road_high wrote: »

On a lighter note, horrible cheap ugly seat coverings were de rigeur in the 80s/90s. If you got a “new” car you had to “keep the seats” by covering them in these horrors. No one does that now apart from in working vehicles for farmers vets or builders. And they’re the special work ones

These were popular around me well into the 2000's!

freshpopcorn

cml387 wrote: »

Seat belts became mandatory in 1979. They were fitted as standard in the early seventies.

The rear one's didn't become mandatory until 1992 from my understanding!

Arthur Daley

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