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Old 03/04/08, 02:32 PM
Phil Blinkhorn Phil Blinkhorn is offline
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Join Date: 03/12/06
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There are a number around, though how much of them is glass fibre and how much is original metal is open to question.

The brochure made much of the styling and of the colour choices, including Fire Engine Red.

My father received one as a company car instead of the usual Hillman Minx. Registered as 775 LMY in Middlesex, it came as the De Luxe version, meaning it had extra chrome trim and a heater, whereas the Standard version, which wasn't launched until after the De Luxe, didn't have a heater. The Super had even more chrome, twin exhausts and a carpet.

I had hoped for Fire Engine Red, but Charcoal Grey arrived.

The front seat was a bench seat and the gear shift was a column change offering three speeds.

The exhaust pipe came out throgh an opening in the corner (corners on the Super) of the rear chrome bumper.

Like all of them it rotted - fast. The chrome round the exhaust pipe was showing rot after 3 months (my father was doing around 35,000 miles a year). The rest of the chrome was a pitted mess after 9 months. Prior to that, the sills had started to rot. I had the privilege of cleaning the thing most weeks for the princely sum of 1/6d and it was me who reported most of the new rust spots and rot.

The car lasted 10 months before it was replaced by the usual Minx.

Apart from the rot, my main memories are doing an indicated 85 mph on the A6 on the down slope from the Dunstable Downs. It wasn't the speed that I remember so much as the amazing wind noise from the shape of the wrap around windscreen and the quarter light hinges immediately behind. Also I recall sitting in the front passenger wheel well all the way from Leicester to Stockport, operating the windscreen wiper linkage which was under the inside bulkhead as the motor had failed.

As it was sleeting and around freezing, the heater was on and I had an headache for a couple of days after.
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