Thread: What was your most Crap Car?

Has no forum member owned a Morris Marina...........or aren't they game to admit it?

When I was based in Proserpine, a young draughtsman bought a Marina. Once or twice a week I'd have to render roadside or car park assistance or pick up from and drop him off home.
The poor young fella couldn't afford to get rid of it nor keep it. From memory, it got written off in a 'Single Vehicle Accident'.

Originally Posted by Discodicky

The AP automatic trans in the 1300 and mini deluxe etc was a POS.
We were fixing oil leaks BEFORE they were delivered new, and after about 3,000 miles we'd be replacing the clutches etc and they were a p...k of a tranny to do, compared to a BW35.

When the 1500 was introduced, Leyland Australia had the gall to put a sticker on the rear window saying "the civilised sports car".........

Oh, and before the first batch of 1500's were sold we'd get them off the wharf in Hobart and drive them to the Heathorn's w/shop and down the back where the customers couldn't see them and we'd pull the engine/g-box assy and fit new g/box's supplied by Leyland Australia. They changed the syncro design.
To dismantle the g/box you had to 'explode' the syncronisers to get them out of the housing. They were really frail and would break chips off the syncro hubs.
The engine wasn't too bad (although very noisy in the o/head cam area).
The camshaft didn't run in bushes, and if the oil got dirty or never changed, it would pick up in the housing and....be very expensive.
But the g/box was an absolute disaster. We'd be rebuilding box's every 15,000 odd miles.

You are correct about the M1500 gearboxes , every one we sold we had to do the gearbox. Synco's would brake , we would pull them out overhaul & put back in then X fingers they would work 1 out of 3 we pulled out again because the syncro's broke on the test drive, The mini's had the same problem not sure were Leyland were buying the symcro's but they were rubbish , we never had the problem with BMC boxes. The oil leaks from the cables was horrific unlike the ones on the 1800's which only leaked with age from the heat from the exhaust, we recovered them with a shrink wrap type material that you soaked in a special thinners to make it expand , once it dried out it shrunk tight onto the cable.
The AP boxes the only problem we had with them was the forward clutch . We would drop the motor out take the housing off the front of the transmission fit clutch plates & seals in & put the motor back in. In all the years working for a BMC , Leyland & JRA dealer we never did a complete AP box.
The only problem

Originally Posted by Bigbjorn

You bought a Citroen and expected resale value? Oh! you poor misguided person. Most used car dealers I knew would just about sack on the spot any salesman that wished to trade in a Citroen, Renault, Peugeot, Fiat, Alfa. All widely known as 90 day dogs. At 90 days in stock most financiers expect the floor plan to be paid out.

Was not my idea to buy the Citroen I wanted to buy her another Hyundai but she wanted a Citroen / Peugeot or BMW. She is now driving a trouble free Hyundai I30 Diesel , 6 years with only services unlike the Citroen with a list as long as your arm at every service. I will admit that after the Citroen was out of warranty & we took it to a independent garage it did improve out of site.

Interestingly, my father owned a 1500. Unless he was concealing something from me (it was after i left home), it never had any serious issues. He replaced it after he moved to the bush with a Citroen DSpecial, mainly because the 1500 kept hitting the sump on the road, and he was afraid it was going to get damaged. He passed it on to a grandchild, who drove it for several years without issues until she knocked a hole in the sump. Repaired that with silicone, and it was still going for some years after that. Not sure what happened to it eventually.

(The DSPecial lasted him until he stopped driving, and went to my sister, who drove it for about another ten years before deciding the road had deteriorated enough that she needed a four wheel drive.)

Originally Posted by JDNSW

Interestingly, my father owned a 1500. Unless he was concealing something from me (it was after i left home), it never had any serious issues. He replaced it after he moved to the bush with a Citroen DSpecial, mainly because the 1500 kept hitting the sump on the road, and he was afraid it was going to get damaged. He passed it on to a grandchild, who drove it for several years without issues until she knocked a hole in the sump. Repaired that with silicone, and it was still going for some years after that. Not sure what happened to it eventually.

(The DSPecial lasted him until he stopped driving, and went to my sister, who drove it for about another ten years before deciding the road had deteriorated enough that she needed a four wheel drive.)

Must have been a Tuesday through to Thursday car. All the mechanics would hide if a 1500 came in for a gearbox.

Originally Posted by rick130

I make it a point of not adding up the expense list.

They are a nice thing to drive though, arent they?
It doesn't have the character of the Deefer and i baby it so much more, but it's quiet, comfortable, and steers and drives well.

It is definitely the most comfortable 4WD I have owned and it is also Very capable as well, That is why I have persevered with it

Originally Posted by Saitch

Has no forum member owned a Morris Marina...........or aren't they game to admit it?

When I was based in Proserpine, a young draughtsman bought a Marina. Once or twice a week I'd have to render roadside or car park assistance or pick up from and drop him off home.
The poor young fella couldn't afford to get rid of it nor keep it. From memory, it got written off in a 'Single Vehicle Accident'.

The six cylinder Marinas were bloody dangerous. The handling was so bad.

Has no forum member owned a Morris Marina...........or aren't they game to admit it?

My friend has just restored a six cylinder coupe . 3 speed and all.
Goes like a cut cat.
He had Kmac make up a Bathurst spec front anti roll bar.
It was metaflake candy apple red when he bought it and he has left that colour.

It joins his D type replica, MGA, and Morris Cowley.
There is really no hope for him.

I forgot a couple of my dogs.
Austin 1800 Mk1. A good car which I bought cheap with 36000Miles on it . Driven by old lady to church. Trouble was all the valve seals were gone and it used prodigious amounts of oil. But I figured oil was cheaper than fixing it. It was a good car and served well for several years with few problems. I couldn't keep a top radiator hose in it. They kept blowing where the heater hose was glued on. They handled amazingly flat and ditto the Kimberley.

A friend also had a Kimberley which I drove up the Goulburn Valley loaded with 4 people and wine filling the footwells. A Datsun 1600 was trying to pass but couldn't catch us. Amazingly I met him years later and he told me the story.

I also had a HA Viva which I went from Brisbane to Adelaide in to attend a wedding. Never missed a beat although the oil filter housing someone had bent, pushed out the gasket just out of Jerilderie on a freezing morning. Refitted it, filled the oil and continued. Drove it from Brisbane to Charleville then down to Cunnamulla one long weekend when the road was dirt. Did the suspension bushes but that was all. Falcon ute passing at St George broke our windscreen then it rained all the way back to Brisbane. Character building.

Oh and a VW 1600 squareback which I prepped for offroad with an engine rebuild including a Porsche 356 cam grind and raised the suspension.

Oh forgot my Renault 16TS . Fantastic engine and used to cruise on 105Mph every day on the way home from work at Broadmeadows along Quarry Road. I spoiled it by having HD shocks on it when I had the front arms straightened.

AND the R12. I bought for peanuts with a shredded interior. I was able to buy a whole interior for I think 50 bucks. One of the few tickets I have got was on the way back to Melbourne from Canberra to sell it and a cop got me with an amphometer for 78MPH. What a great little car it was.
Regard sPhilipA