The Old Days; What Do You Remember?

The old days for me began in 1970 and Dad’s brand new 1970 GT6+. That was a little rocket. Then came the 1971 MGBGT, then the 63 TR4. I got to drive them all when I was just 16. Dad trusted me, (not sure if my girlfriend did). Then I bought my own, a red 1967 TR4A with a roll bar and white wire wheels.

During that time there were plenty TRs, MGs and Healy’s on the road. They were a common sight, flashing headlights and a friendly wave. A special club it was, much like today, but different. Different because when you ran across another and that was often, they were almost always, (but not always), worn out, rattle-y, noisy, faded interiors, torn seats, damp, smelly, draughty, had delaminating wood dashes, rust on the quarter panels and along the joints, loose saggy ragtops, clouded rear windows and did I say draughty? And you know what, you always had that feeling of while driving these babies, you were outside, no matter what the weather. I mean, if on the highway a huge semi came along, it was like you were a piece of it, can you smell what I’m stepping in?

Now that I think of it, these bad boys wore out fast when they were daily drivers. In thinking about it, we replaced the seat covers when the 63/4 was only 13 years old and had 43K miles on it. It needed a ring job, carpets were shot, dash pad cracked in a million places and the list goes on! No wonder Dad paid only $375!

Yep, ...no matter what or where, these roadster gave up a drive with more adventure than any human should be allowed to have, and don’t they still do?

Now tell us yours….