I got my first car when I was 23. :p2Toledos wrote:In an ideal world Dave....and the insurance on one for a 17 year old, would beDavePoth wrote:A Dolomite Sprint makes a much better first car...
Dolomited youth
Re: Dolomited youth
Re: Dolomited youth
My first car was (and still is) my dolly. I've had it almost 5 years now and I've crashed it once (and not fixed it yet either, really must do that somewhen) and nearly crashed it three times.
I don't think a dolly is a very good car for young people to be driving, I'd much rather they kept their saxos covered in fibreglass as if you're in a dolly it's not that embrassing being overtaken by a brown sprint
Dolomites (and triumphs in general) are far better cars in most respects than any modern piece of junk. I've been driving my mum's civic a lot while I sort out the head on the sprint and it's utterly horrible. There's no feel to anything and you can't see round corners due to the foot wide pillars. I don't see why they bothered fitting back windows as you can't see anything out of them because they're so high up and small.
I don't think a dolly is a very good car for young people to be driving, I'd much rather they kept their saxos covered in fibreglass as if you're in a dolly it's not that embrassing being overtaken by a brown sprint
Dolomites (and triumphs in general) are far better cars in most respects than any modern piece of junk. I've been driving my mum's civic a lot while I sort out the head on the sprint and it's utterly horrible. There's no feel to anything and you can't see round corners due to the foot wide pillars. I don't see why they bothered fitting back windows as you can't see anything out of them because they're so high up and small.
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Dollyboy
Re: Dolomited youth
1st car for me was 1500 SE, insurance for that was about £300 i think, 3rd F&T. that was 17 yrs ago, not a classic policy though.
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mrg444
Re: Dolomited youth
mines on a standard policy, fully comprehensive, 5000 miles per year, £900
(no NCB, no convictions, no offences)
(no NCB, no convictions, no offences)
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2Toledos
Re: Dolomited youth
£900 a year ?.... Streuth 
Suddenly, I don't feel so bad about being over 40 
£900 would keep me covered for the next decade 
Suddenly, I don't feel so bad about being over 40 £900 would keep me covered for the next decade -
Neil907
Re: Dolomited youth
You must be mad to pay that. When I was 19 I was paying £190 FC to insure my Jensen Healy and that was agreed value of 8k. That is just an insane amount to pay on a 1500.mrg444 wrote:i'm 19 and on my first dolomite (a 1500 in sandglow) on a standard policy, fully comprehensive, 5000 miles per year, £900
(no NCB, no convictions, no offences)
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mrg444
Re: Dolomited youth
yeah but for some reason everyone i have tried is quoting me between 1200 and 2800, and 900 seemed pretty appealing seeing as i've been looking for months lol... dunno maybe the insurance companys just don't like me haha 
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Lewis
Re: Dolomited youth
Muhaha......I paid 1800 quid for my first year's insurance on the 1850HL when I was 17.........Neil907 wrote:You must be mad to pay that. When I was 19 I was paying £190 FC to insure my Jensen Healy and that was agreed value of 8k. That is just an insane amount to pay on a 1500.mrg444 wrote:i'm 19 and on my first dolomite (a 1500 in sandglow) on a standard policy, fully comprehensive, 5000 miles per year, £900
(no NCB, no convictions, no offences)
All repaid though once I'd accumalated a sole year's NCB and it plummeted to 550 quid
Suddenly made it all worthwhile and negated the expensive first year.Insurance hasn't gone much above that since
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mrg444
Re: Dolomited youth
i'm dreading to think what mine will be when i find a sprint
900 on a 1500 would probably turn into 1900 on a sprint haha
by the way... i'm willing to part exchange my 1500 for a sprint if anyone is interested!
900 on a 1500 would probably turn into 1900 on a sprint haha
by the way... i'm willing to part exchange my 1500 for a sprint if anyone is interested!
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Jimmie
Re: Dolomited youth
Not so sure on this one, I'd much rather unexperienced drivers be learning the ropes in a Fiesta/Corsa etc, they're in plentiful supply!
I'm a 20 year old and must admit, my Clio, (1st motor) received punishment I'd hate to see done to a rare breed.
My Dolly gets used very carefully, never been over 3.5k rpm in my hands. I have a 16V Fiesta to relieve my stress in! haha, not quite.
I'm a 20 year old and must admit, my Clio, (1st motor) received punishment I'd hate to see done to a rare breed.
My Dolly gets used very carefully, never been over 3.5k rpm in my hands. I have a 16V Fiesta to relieve my stress in!
haha, not quite.-
BananaLee
Re: Dolomited youth
If I drove my Dolly like I did when I first started driving (Mum's Land Rover Discovery and later Toyota Corolla), I'd be pretty dead by now.
Bumped the Disco around several times before totaling it in a spectacular spin, and hurt the Toyota quite a bit too. Which is why I drive my Dolly wonderfully safely.
Bumped the Disco around several times before totaling it in a spectacular spin, and hurt the Toyota quite a bit too. Which is why I drive my Dolly wonderfully safely.
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straylight
Re: Dolomited youth
Dolly for a first car ? hmmmm
My old man forced me in 1980, at gunpoint, into following the staid family tradition of morris1100 ownership, and considering I was driving an 800km round trip every month, wasn't really that smart. Came the city though, and a 15km trip to uni each day, the family genetics of fuel economy and trying to do more in a smaller car shone through. Brit lotus vs yank mustang philosophy. Problem was, the 1100 wasn't a well behaved car and several mishaps were needed to teach me about not braking while cornering.
The sprint was the rebel streak. Fast, flashy and something to hoon around in. Bought her in 1982 at 20. Chicks, fast cars and stupidity. I at least had the 2 years city and open road driving experience of the 1100, so wasn't totally moronic. The prangs I had were not the result of tomfoolery, but inattention and other driver error.
Given the sprint was, in those days, fairly modern, surrounded by cars of lesser handling (anyone ever driven a holden kingswood or Torana ?) and performance, it was probably the safest of the cars to be in. Even on Cross Ply Radials she handled well.
These days though, car safety and handling has come a long way. I'd rather my young uns' experienced their first crash in a car with airbags, intrusion bars and decent crumple zones. Crashes round here, on straight country roads where the limit is 110km/hr, usually involve sliding off the road and rolling the car down the embankment into a tree or collecting kangaroos, deer, cattle and wombats. Last year we had 6 deaths from the nearby town of naracoorte, population 5000, in three incidents. This year our small community of 500 has had two rollovers, both involving 17 yo girls and a double fatality involving a man and his defacto's child.
so I'll be advising my young 'uns to splurge their money on a solid and modern holden/ford/honda/mitsubishi or something that is reliable, safer, cheaper to run, less expensive on insurance and won't break my heart when they crash it (hopefully not injuring themselves). That first crash is inevitable. I think the young first time drivers need all the defence they can get. Give them ABS, give them airbags, give them intrusion bars.
The sheer reliability and saftey of modern cars is staggering. Our Holden Commodore (1998) has done 280,000 km and still gets only a regular service. V6, just about indestructable. Airbags, ABS, solid performance and comfortable. Parts are cheap. The engine management system means I don't work on it. It just doesn't miss a beat. A post 2000 mitsubishi magna or similar vehicle is worth so few dollars it would be crazy not to take advantage of the reliability and safety.
That said, I would then push them as hard as I could into owning a dolly (or another classic) as a second car, about 20+ years of age. It will necessarily need to be a labour of love so will be an exercise in mechanics, driving safety and being in tune with the car.
Modern cars are boring as anything. Driving the Commodore is a soul less experience. But as a first car I think the dolomite (or any other classic) is not a smart choice.
stu
My old man forced me in 1980, at gunpoint, into following the staid family tradition of morris1100 ownership, and considering I was driving an 800km round trip every month, wasn't really that smart. Came the city though, and a 15km trip to uni each day, the family genetics of fuel economy and trying to do more in a smaller car shone through. Brit lotus vs yank mustang philosophy. Problem was, the 1100 wasn't a well behaved car and several mishaps were needed to teach me about not braking while cornering.
The sprint was the rebel streak. Fast, flashy and something to hoon around in. Bought her in 1982 at 20. Chicks, fast cars and stupidity. I at least had the 2 years city and open road driving experience of the 1100, so wasn't totally moronic. The prangs I had were not the result of tomfoolery, but inattention and other driver error.
Given the sprint was, in those days, fairly modern, surrounded by cars of lesser handling (anyone ever driven a holden kingswood or Torana ?) and performance, it was probably the safest of the cars to be in. Even on Cross Ply Radials she handled well.
These days though, car safety and handling has come a long way. I'd rather my young uns' experienced their first crash in a car with airbags, intrusion bars and decent crumple zones. Crashes round here, on straight country roads where the limit is 110km/hr, usually involve sliding off the road and rolling the car down the embankment into a tree or collecting kangaroos, deer, cattle and wombats. Last year we had 6 deaths from the nearby town of naracoorte, population 5000, in three incidents. This year our small community of 500 has had two rollovers, both involving 17 yo girls and a double fatality involving a man and his defacto's child.
so I'll be advising my young 'uns to splurge their money on a solid and modern holden/ford/honda/mitsubishi or something that is reliable, safer, cheaper to run, less expensive on insurance and won't break my heart when they crash it (hopefully not injuring themselves). That first crash is inevitable. I think the young first time drivers need all the defence they can get. Give them ABS, give them airbags, give them intrusion bars.
The sheer reliability and saftey of modern cars is staggering. Our Holden Commodore (1998) has done 280,000 km and still gets only a regular service. V6, just about indestructable. Airbags, ABS, solid performance and comfortable. Parts are cheap. The engine management system means I don't work on it. It just doesn't miss a beat. A post 2000 mitsubishi magna or similar vehicle is worth so few dollars it would be crazy not to take advantage of the reliability and safety.
That said, I would then push them as hard as I could into owning a dolly (or another classic) as a second car, about 20+ years of age. It will necessarily need to be a labour of love so will be an exercise in mechanics, driving safety and being in tune with the car.
Modern cars are boring as anything. Driving the Commodore is a soul less experience. But as a first car I think the dolomite (or any other classic) is not a smart choice.
stu