This is the moment I realise I’ve had
way too many cars…I’ve not listed them all, as there’s some I’ve forgotten. I’ll add photos in when I can find them! You’ll notice I love a shed, either as a curio or to run alongside my everyday car.
From the beginning in 2004;
Ford Focus 1.6 Zetec (my first car, and I adored it for all the reasons you do a first car, and the fact it handled sublimely)
Vauxhall Corsa C 1.2
Nissan Micra 160SR (massively underrated little warm hatch)
Toyota Corolla 1.6 GL (my first shed - like losing your virginity, a liberating, enlightening but also embarrassing experience)
Focus ST170 (my first “performance” car - again, I adored it)
S1 Lotus Elise 111S (bit of a result aged 20, but I stretched myself too far to buy it. Worth it, mind)
Rover 620ti (a proper sleeper of a car)
Rover 416 Tourer
Ford Puma 1.7 (wow, what a car. Probably the best FWD chassis I’ve ever driven, and that gearbox. I still look for one now, and went to see an 8k mile one a year ago I thought would be “the one”. It had a hole forming in a sill…)
MG ZS180 (the one that got away. It was mint, and I never should have sold it)
Rover Streetwise (bought from a neighbour, I dropped a VVC engine into it. Went like stink, and was a fun sleeper. It’s still around 14 years later, with a mate, who is selling it, if someone fancies an interesting daily drive)
MGF Trophy (took it to Italy on a massive road trip and did a few track days in it. It was a decent car, but an MX5 is better, sorry MGOC bods.)
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Proton 1.5 (shed - sold to a Polish chap whose only English was “Motor good”. It was, to be fair to him)
Another Elise 111S (this one with the Bell & Colvill 170 conversion - made a wonderful noise, and was great on track, but didn’t “breathe with the road”. Loved it in my mid 20’s, by the time I got to my late 20’s, I’d realised good damping was more than something made from granite)
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Rover 25 - the first of many! (rescued from a garage contact for £75, I rebuilt the engine, plus other fettling, and it became my partner’s car, then sold to my instructor at work. Collectively we took it from 60k to 140k before it succumbed to rust)
Rover 100 Kensington
S3 Lotus Elise S (still got this, eight years later, bought new, and I still love it. Has the classic Elise traits with some useability - air con is definitely a good thing even with a removable roof. Been tempted many times by a Cayman but I just can’t cheat on Norfolk and its pure, ever relevant, brilliant little sports car)
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Peugeot 106 diesel (dubbed the ‘Mingemobile’ due to having to fend off so many women as I drove this rattly, snot green lump of pure delight down a high street)
Another Micra 160SR (my mate has it now, it’s on 130k yet looks like it’s done 30k. Brilliant little thing)
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Rover 75 (another “My parents had one” car. This one was an unusual pre-production car. Creamy smooth, it was like driving along in a hot bath. To my eyes, one of the prettiest saloon cars, too.)
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Another Focus ST170 (made a few mods to this one to make the engine what it should have been, had a feature in
Modern Classics mag and did a few track days in it, including breaking down on the Nurburgring, which was entertaining, ish. Swapped for the car below.)
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Rover 214SEi (one of my “heritage fleet”, it’s done 16k miles, has tonnes of history and is absolutely mint. Bought it as my parents had one when I was a kid, and I just love it to bits. Still have it.)
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Rover 25 (rescued from Wales from the owner who was selling due to an engine fault nobody could fix. Go me - I fixed it - shedded around for a while, then sold it to a pal who utterly abuses it, yet it still proceeds to this day.)
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Rover 200 BRM (thought I’d love it, but struggled to bond with it. The LSD made it a tuggy, tramlining mess, and I just couldn’t get on with it. Sold via Collecting Cars and couldn’t have been happier.)
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VW Up! GTI (bought new as a daily drive, but I can’t face leaving it in station car parks, so hence sheds. Needs better tyres and dampers to be a true great - which are in the plans for the future - but it’s a spirited, fun little darling of a car - a more mature Micra 160. Still have it.)
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Austin Metro automatic (a whim purchase, which I had amazing fun in, until breaking my leg and time off work meant some trimming of automotive fat had to be performed. I miss it, lots.)
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Smart ForTwo (a sensible purchase triggered by said leg break. Ruinously expensive to sort mechanically, so sensible quickly went up in smoke, but it gave me my mobility back at a miserable time, so I do look fondly back on it. Sold quickly when said leg started working again.)
Rover 200Vi (the one, the one that I’d searched for, for years, and didn’t think existed. They’re rare - sub 100 left - and mostly absolutely knackered. This one isn’t - 20k miles, absolutely mint and full of memories when my Dad taught me to drive aged 13 on a farm in France in theirs. It’s 10x better to drive than the BRM and even the smell of the interior makes me happy. Still got it, will never sell it.)
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Toyota GR86 (when these were released I was gutted I missed the initial allocation, as they were one of the very few new cars that “spoke to me” and that I got really excited about. Then I got an email from Toyota last July, and here we are. Had a few wobbles, but a few great drives have etched the car under my skin. Still got it, but if you told me I have to choose between it, and the Elise…sorry Toyota, but there’s no choice.)
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Citroen C1 (bought to replace the Smart as a daily drive. Not a moment’s trouble from it, and I stupidly sold it to a friend when they expressed an interest. The car holds a place in my heart, as I bundled some pals into it, drove to Wembley, and watched Luton ascend to the Premier League.)
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Citroen C3 Picasso (replacement for the C1 when I thought practicality would be ideal. Dealer was a complete moron, which straight away soured the experience. My Dad however took a shine to it, so he had it once I’d been through the car and sorted out a few issues. He loves it.)
Rover 25 (another shed, charmingly basic as the rare 1.1 with keep fit windows. Bought recently for chips, with 24k miles and needing nothing except a service, cambelt and four tyres - Michelin, naturally. Even sheds deserve the best.)
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