This is my original blog for all our non-caravanning trips since 2009 and more recently posts about coming to terms with being single again having been widowed in 2018. And anything else too really!

My caravanning blog is (Get Your) Legs Down and all our trips in the caravan are there. My grog blog is The Ale Archive where I list every beer I’ve ever tried.

Wednesday, 5 February 2014

Richards Wrecks – Number 1

1999 - 583

A new and occasional series of mini blogs from the Blogger in Black featuring my less than impressive collection of old crates that I’ve driven over the years

First up is, obviously, my first ever car, a dear old Mini.

Registration SJE 163S (sad I know) I paid  525 quid for it with about 76k on the clock. I bought it before I’d passed my test and remember the day I ripped off the L-plate at the rear – and half the paint came off with it! As anyone who has owned a Mini will probably tell you, it was great fun to drive, although the longest trip it did was probably to the rally at Silverstone for the Mini 30th Birthday celebrations. More often that not it went as far as the local pub and was picked up the following morning!

I converted the old sealed beam headlights to brighter halogen ones and at one point had four driving lamps on the front too.

With drums all round for brakes and an 850cc engine  it had a reported top speed of 78 m.p.h. – and that’s the most I ever got out of it!

Had it for about three years then sold it when I got the use of a works vehicle. Thoroughly enjoyable and would love to have another drive of one now.

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