I-Spy Classic Cars/Bikes-What have you spotted?

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white exec
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Location: Sayalonga, Malaga, Spain
My Cars: 1996 XM 2.5TD Exclusive hatch RHD
1992 BX19D Millesime hatch LHD
previously 1989 BX19RD, 1998 ZX 1.9D auto, 2001 Xantia 1.8i auto
and lots of Rovers before that: 1935 Ten, 1947 Sixteen, 1960 P5 3-litre, 1966 P6 2000, 1972 P6 2000TC, and 1975 P6B 3500S
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Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by white exec »

New cars are not as heavily discounted as UK, where manufacturers seem to provide their dealers with more margin. Deals can be done on extras/options, but getting a sizeable cash discount not easy. Despite all that, sales of new cars here are very buoyant. PSA, Toyota and Seat are the biggies. Citroen amazingly popular, on the back of historic successes like C15 (lots still on the road) and BX (mainly not still on the road).

Cars here don't rust, but they are held on to as long as they're more-or-less legal and serviceable. Rural folk can hang on to theirs for a decade or two. As a hangover from the 80s and early 90s, when there wasn't much money about - and Andalucia has been the poorest part of Spain - tradespeople became very skilled in repairing things, and keeping vehicles on the road - a bit like Malta. So, as well as the modern main dealer network, there are still a lot of tiny garage and workshop businesses, who will bend, bash and paint anything, and a further good supply of metalworkers who will weld and machine. Similar no shortage of good carpenters.

An average 10-year-old SUV (like our RAV4) can still command €10k as a private sale, although trade-in would be much less generous.
Chris
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van ordinaire
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My Cars: Citroens:-
'81 2CV Club (quietly sleeping in a parallel universe)
'05 (yes, really) C15
'97 Xantia Exclusive estate
others:-
'96 Jeep Cherokee Limited - the "donor"
'99 Jeep Cherokee Orvis - the green one
'97 Jeep Cherokee Limited - the red one
'99 Cadillac Seville STS
'96 Cadillac Eldorado ETC
& numerous what might be described as abandoned projects!
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Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by van ordinaire »

Surprised there are enough RHD cars in Spain to be worth a mention; are they just the ones all the ex-pats 1st arrived in?

Otherwise, the prices are silly, I couldn't afford a C15 in Spain: all those I've seen come up on the 'net are getting on for 10 x the going price here. Are those prices reflected in the price of parts? I've been toying with coming over for a vanload of doors & bonnets.
Citroens:-
'81 2CV Club :cry:
'05 C15 :!:
'97 Xantia Exclusive estate [-o<
others:-
Jeep XJ Cherokees x 3 :?
'96 Cadillac Eldorado
'99 Cadillac STS :|
& the numerous "abandoned projects" #-o
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white exec
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Posts: 7445
Joined: 21 Dec 2015, 12:46
Location: Sayalonga, Malaga, Spain
My Cars: 1996 XM 2.5TD Exclusive hatch RHD
1992 BX19D Millesime hatch LHD
previously 1989 BX19RD, 1998 ZX 1.9D auto, 2001 Xantia 1.8i auto
and lots of Rovers before that: 1935 Ten, 1947 Sixteen, 1960 P5 3-litre, 1966 P6 2000, 1972 P6 2000TC, and 1975 P6B 3500S
x 1752

Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by white exec »

Ex-pats are responsible for most of the RHDs here, I guess. Huge numbers of imported cars, especially from Germany, where resident owners seem very reluctant even to re-register them (or themselves), the former being a legal requirement.

Parts prices same as anywhere else. Breakers yards huge and often with computerised stock.

Life here far from rustic. Heath service in Andalucia completely computerised, with reports, analyses, records, scans, x-rays and prescriptions (paperless) moving between hospitals and GPs just about instantly. Years ahead of NHS in many respects, it seems. Drug prices tend to be way lower of those in the UK, something which the pharma companies don't seem to want to talk about.
Chris
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Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by Peter.N. »

I have a friend in Feurteventura and the prices there are ridiculous, I don't think they allow RHD cars over there to stay and its also very expensive to get them there, I believe the paper work is expensive to sort out too. He has a Toyota truck which he spent a fortune on a few years ago, mainly welding and I think it needs doing again now.

Peter
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white exec
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Location: Sayalonga, Malaga, Spain
My Cars: 1996 XM 2.5TD Exclusive hatch RHD
1992 BX19D Millesime hatch LHD
previously 1989 BX19RD, 1998 ZX 1.9D auto, 2001 Xantia 1.8i auto
and lots of Rovers before that: 1935 Ten, 1947 Sixteen, 1960 P5 3-litre, 1966 P6 2000, 1972 P6 2000TC, and 1975 P6B 3500S
x 1752

Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by white exec »

That all makes sense, Peter.

At one time, RHD vehicles were not legal in Spain. This changed (I think) when they joined the EU.

Despite EU rulings which guarantee free movement of personal possessions across the EU, Spain still levies an import (matriculation) tax on new and used private cars being brought into the country by their owners. The car must be put on Spanish plates (re-registered, matriculated) if the car remains in the country for more than six months, or the owner becomes a Resident.

The tax is calculated on a formula, which runs something like:
List price (in Spain) of car when new × 14% . . . discounted on a sliding scale after 3 years of age, up to a max discount of 80% at 10 years old.

So: anyone importing a brand new car into Spain from another EU country needs their head testing!

The cost of matriculating our XM which came with us from the UK (a 1996 car, imported in 2004) was around €1200. This included about €140 for our accountant here to process all the paperwork, which included
- an Engineer's inspection, including an EU conformance check
- a more thorough ITV (MoT) test, which included actually checking for non-OE equipment and vehicle dimensions
- new plates (issued by the Police) . . . indistinguishable in sequence from a brand-new vehicle!

Spain have apparently told Brussels they will stop doing this; they just haven't said when.

Importing personal vehicles from outside the EU is even more complicated and expensive.
Chris
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C5 X7 VTR + Satnav Hdi estate Silver
C5 X7 VTR + Hdi Estate 2008 Red

In the past: 3, CX td Safaris and about 7, XM td estates. Lovely cars.
x 1199

Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by Peter.N. »

No wonder its expensive, something to be said for living here. :wink:

Peter
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Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by CitroJim »

Very intersting :) Thanks all!
white exec wrote: 06 Nov 2018, 08:29 tradespeople became very skilled in repairing things, and keeping vehicles on the road - a bit like Malta. So, as well as the modern main dealer network, there are still a lot of tiny garage and workshop businesses, who will bend, bash and paint anything, and a further good supply of metalworkers who will weld and machine. Similar no shortage of good carpenters.


Reminds me very much of Cyprus in the 80s... Anything could be repaired/fabricated... Exhaust places carried no ready-made stock - all was made up from scratch from a selection of tubes and silencers...

And again, anything could be kept going almost indefinitely :D Those were the days...
Jim

Runner, cyclist, time triallist, duathlete, Citroen AX fan and the CCC Citroenian 'From A to Z' Columnist...
Peter.N.
Moderating Team
Posts: 11563
Joined: 02 Apr 2005, 16:11
Location: Charmouth,Dorset
My Cars: Currently:

C5 X7 VTR + Satnav Hdi estate Silver
C5 X7 VTR + Hdi Estate 2008 Red

In the past: 3, CX td Safaris and about 7, XM td estates. Lovely cars.
x 1199

Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by Peter.N. »

Used to be similar here Jim. In the '50's there was a chap at my local car sales place that repaired batteries, he used to work in the loft above the workshop which wasn't high enough to stand up in. He had a gas burner which was used to boil a gallon can of water, a hose was connected to it and inserted into the filler cap hole, the steam eventually made the pitch hot enough for him to be able to pull the faulty cell out after cutting the connecting bars. He would then fit a new cell and cast new links and posts from molten lead also heated by the gas burner.

My first car was a 1939 Ford Prefect with 6 volt electrics which weren't exactly scintillating, so he made me up an 8 volt battery from a cut down 12 volt case which improved it no end.

He went on to have his own battery and plate making company.

Peter
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van ordinaire
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Posts: 2537
Joined: 23 Jun 2015, 14:45
Location: Live & work in London but weekend in Devon (or do I now live in Torbay & work in London?)
My Cars: Citroens:-
'81 2CV Club (quietly sleeping in a parallel universe)
'05 (yes, really) C15
'97 Xantia Exclusive estate
others:-
'96 Jeep Cherokee Limited - the "donor"
'99 Jeep Cherokee Orvis - the green one
'97 Jeep Cherokee Limited - the red one
'99 Cadillac Seville STS
'96 Cadillac Eldorado ETC
& numerous what might be described as abandoned projects!
x 405

Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by van ordinaire »

S. Africa was like that (& might still be for all I know), I well remember a crowd of us arriving in assorted Jags at a hotel in Port Elizabeth one evening in October 2000. Whether it'd been particularly hot that day I don't know but there were a lot of electrical problems. A local auto electrician duly arrived, collected 1/2-doz alternators, a dynamo + a starter & left. he was back in the morning, while we were having breakfast, to fit the various components & collect virtually a nominal sum from each of the delighted owners in time for everyone to leave at the scheduled time.

Peter's story reminded me of the "Saturday boy" at my car parts shop of choice when I lived in Northampton, who had a workshop upstairs where he'd repair/re-con/upgrade alternators & starters while you waited, for the price of the parts + a "drink". There was other place that provided a similar service, on a more business-like basis, but they did hydraulics as well as electrics - I recall asking them once if they could overhaul the 3-pot calipers for my Lada Niva, the answer, without even seeing them, was "Yes - if you can get the bits" I got so used to this sort of thing that I just thought it had become the norm - it was quite a shock when I returned to "The Smoke" to discover just how lucky I'd been out in the sticks.
Citroens:-
'81 2CV Club :cry:
'05 C15 :!:
'97 Xantia Exclusive estate [-o<
others:-
Jeep XJ Cherokees x 3 :?
'96 Cadillac Eldorado
'99 Cadillac STS :|
& the numerous "abandoned projects" #-o
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CitroJim
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Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by CitroJim »

Peter and Van, great stuff :D The battery repair description is so vivid I can smell the acid fumes from here!!!

Van, I well recall a 'drink' being a valid unit of currency :)
Jim

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Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by NewcastleFalcon »

One of these is a familiar "face"...no one has decided to restore it yet!
Nf own work
Nf own work
Regards Neil
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Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by CitroJim »

That looks to me like a Vanden Plas Allegro... Quite sought-after now...
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Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by NewcastleFalcon »

Saw a 30 year old Ford Fiesta at Sainsbury’s garage today.

There was a Lexus coupe sort of thing in front of it. No contest in the head turning stakes the Fiesta mk ll won hands down.


It was the same colour as my old fiesta after all :-D like this

Image

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Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by myglaren »

My second daughter had a "C"-reg Fiesta as her first car and loved it.
Her daughter's new boyfriend has a bright yellow "D"-reg in immaculate condition and only 35,000 miles on the clock - it was his grandmothers and has spent most of it's life tucked up in a garage.
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Re: I-Spy Classic Cars-What have you spotted?

Post by CitroJim »

I had one just like that on an A plate...
Jim

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