Classic/collectible Cars

[GTAm]

Hmm, the one in poor condition that I saw was white, but a bit of TLC could have gotten it back to good shape. But even among the MX3s, the worthwhile one would be the V6 incarnation.

Peri the one I saw was painted a pearlscent white. And looked really good. I've driven the V6 (wonder how many are here?), but it was a very short drive. I think that 1.8 V6 is the lowest capacity V6 ever produced.

However I must say that the 4 pot is also a real gem to drive. Drove our very own Pradfred's car from Bandarawela to about half way to Colombo and thoroughly enjoyed it. The handling is fantastic, the ride is good and the steering is nicely weighted. In fact imo it's a lot better in every area compared with a CRX 2 which I have also driven a lot.

That drive did not end very well though as I was whipping the car off and having a load of fun and laughing a lot which turned out to be a bit too much. I managed to bust the delightful gearbox in the process. Managed to nurse her home though.

[GTAm]

For Future Classics I just thought of the Mitsu FTO. Amazing how I've not seen one for ages...... I've read a few good reviews but never had the pleasure of driving one myself. Can anyone tell me what they are like to drive?

[Supra_Natural]

For Future Classics I just thought of the Mitsu FTO. Amazing how I've not seen one for ages...... I've read a few good reviews but never had the pleasure of driving one myself. Can anyone tell me what they are like to drive?

There's one on the classifieds right now

http://www.autolanka.com/ad.asp?ID=90195

[Pericles]

I think that 1.8 V6 is the lowest capacity V6 ever produced.

Thats what Wiki says

[Crazy Life]

You could be right Crazy Life. How many would you say survive?

toyota produced about 15000 cars & as of now only half of that survives. besides this is the car that gave the gullwing idea to the mclaren f1. afaik only 10-15cars in sri lanka,correct me if I'm wrong.

[LaZyBoY]

Early 90's Lexus LS400 - luxo cruiser with a world beating options list (for it's time) + a rock solid V8

[The Don]

For Future Classics I just thought of the Mitsu FTO. Amazing how I've not seen one for ages...... I've read a few good reviews but never had the pleasure of driving one myself. Can anyone tell me what they are like to drive?

I had the pleasure of driving an FTO for a little while as a friend of mine owned one. It was a 1996 GR manual sadly not the fabled GPX. The 2L puts down quite a grunt particularly in the lower gears and it feels very stable in speeds over 100mph. It corners well and though its a front wheel drive you don't really get a lot of under-steer so Mitsubishi has done a pretty good job with the chassis. The engine was reasonably economical for what it was, the V6 very smooth and cheap to maintain. To be honest it was an easy car to live with and the only problem he had with it was the tappet noise common with Mitsubishi engines after a while which we resolved using Forte top end treatment.

[The Don]

toyota produced about 15000 cars & as of now only half of that survives. besides this is the car that gave the gullwing idea to the mclaren f1. afaik only 10-15cars in sri lanka,correct me if I'm wrong.

Gullwing doors existed before the Sera..........

[Crazy Life]

Gullwing doors existed before the Sera..........

yes gullwing doors existed before sera,what I meant was Gordon Murray has got the inspiration for the design of the doors from the sera.

[MasterDon]

yes gullwing doors existed before sera,what I meant was Gordon Murray has got the inspiration for the design of the doors from the sera.

Highly unlikely...There were more noteworthy cars that came way before that sported gullwings..Merc 300SL and the DeLorean DMC12 come to mind.Its more likely that Murray copied some minor technical aspect of it and the Sera fanboys exaggerated the rest.

[Crazy Life]

Highly unlikely...There were more noteworthy cars that came way before that sported gullwings..Merc 300SL and the DeLorean DMC12 come to mind.Its more likely that Murray copied some minor technical aspect of it and the Sera fanboys exaggerated the rest.

obviously there were noteworthy cars that came with gullwing doors.

http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/Community/Car-Magazines-Blogs/Tim-Pollard-Blog2/Twelve-things-you-may-not-know-about-the-McLaren-F1/

according to that Murray have seen a sera & he got the idea about the doors,

however my original post was about the sera being a future classic,with limited number of production & pretty much half of that survives now. that is why I thought it should be a classic.

[GTAm]

Can't argue with Gordon.

5) Choosing dihedral doors was a central part of the F1's drama - and the inspiration came from a Toyota Sera parked near Murray's house. 'I drove past it everyday,' he remembers. 'Eventually we borrowed a Sera and the design started from there. The final design was fixed with Bruce Mackintosh and myself late one night when we mocked up the doors in a wireframe on the seating buck. It was necessary to remove part of the roof and part of the floor to give the driver access to the central seat so a conventional door wouldn’t work.'

I did not know the term "dihedral doors" too and that's the correct description for that kind of door. Many of us usually tend to generalize lots of things and call all swing-up doors Gull wings. That's a good discovery Crazy Life.

[GTAm]

There's one on the classifieds right now

http://www.autolanka...ad.asp?ID=90195

Interesting ad' Supra . "If ready only call me...." never seen that term before. I'm certainly not ready to live with the "red" plasticky interior. Either straight to the upholsterer or darker sunglasses for me and the passenger.

[GTAm]

toyota produced about 15000 cars & as of now only half of that survives. besides this is the car that gave the gullwing idea to the mclaren f1. afaik only 10-15cars in sri lanka,correct me if I'm wrong.

Yes 15k produced. Can't find how many survive. Wiki even mentions Sri Lanka as a market where they were exported to. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Sera

Also noticed that the Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 was the first with car with dihedral doors. Hmm you learn something new everyday.

There is a UK forum but I can't find the number of survivors on "How many Left"

http://www.omicron.uk.com/sera/forum/index.php?act=idx

[GTAm]

Early 90's Lexus LS400 - luxo cruiser with a world beating options list (for it's time) + a rock solid V8

True but I've seen just one in SL. So cannot consider it for this.

[GTAm]

Early 90's Lexus LS400 - luxo cruiser with a world beating options list (for it's time) + a rock solid V8

True but I've seen just one in SL. So cannot consider it for this.

[GTAm]

I had the pleasure of driving an FTO for a little while as a friend of mine owned one. It was a 1996 GR manual sadly not the fabled GPX. The 2L puts down quite a grunt particularly in the lower gears and it feels very stable in speeds over 100mph. It corners well and though its a front wheel drive you don't really get a lot of under-steer so Mitsubishi has done a pretty good job with the chassis. The engine was reasonably economical for what it was, the V6 very smooth and cheap to maintain. To be honest it was an easy car to live with and the only problem he had with it was the tappet noise common with Mitsubishi engines after a while which we resolved using Forte top end treatment.

Thanks Don. Yes I've read that the fwd chassis was very good.

[Crazy Life]

Yes 15k produced. Can't find how many survive. Wiki even mentions Sri Lanka as a market where they were exported to. http://en.wikipedia....iki/Toyota_Sera

Also noticed that the Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 was the first with car with dihedral doors. Hmm you learn something new everyday.

There is a UK forum but I can't find the number of survivors on "How many Left"

http://www.omicron.u...dex.php?act=idx

Sera was made as a JDM/domestic market vehicle,but it came to few countries like you mentioned.

[JadeyBlitzen]

How come nobody mentioned the datsun 510? Now that's definitely rare and mechanically interesting enough to be a classic.

Also, what about untouched series land rovers? I find them more charismatic than the defender and the ones that are pretending to be defenders. Even the original range rover has good potential but I think way too many had be ruined with neglect and unnecessary upgrades. Haven't seen one worth saving in ages.

[Gummybr]

How come nobody mentioned the datsun 510? Now that's definitely rare and mechanically interesting enough to be a classic.

Also, what about untouched series land rovers? I find them more charismatic than the defender and the ones that are pretending to be defenders. Even the original range rover has good potential but I think way too many had be ruined with neglect and unnecessary upgrades. Haven't seen one worth saving in ages.

GTAm mentioned the 510 earlier. Series 1 has classic status. Range Rover Classic yes maybe.

[Kavvz]

For Future Classics I just thought of the Mitsu FTO. Amazing how I've not seen one for ages...... I've read a few good reviews but never had the pleasure of driving one myself. Can anyone tell me what they are like to drive?

There's an guy in advertising who used to have one. Haven't been around those digs in a while; but if he still has it 'Ripper' would probably able to wrangle a drive for you....?

[The Don]

Thanks Don. Yes I've read that the fwd chassis was very good.

It is pretty good for what it is. It's quite wide and flat so has a very stable feel to it. Whether it's a classic or will be one I'm not sure. I wonder if somebody has had the pleasure of driving the GTO it's bigger cousin.

I do feel that the MX5 and the S2000 are little gems of cars as well, particularly compared to their German counterparts the Z3 and the Boxter. Not sure about the SLK.....

[GTAm]

How come nobody mentioned the datsun 510? Now that's definitely rare and mechanically interesting enough to be a classic.

Also, what about untouched series land rovers? I find them more charismatic than the defender and the ones that are pretending to be defenders. Even the original range rover has good potential but I think way too many had be ruined with neglect and unnecessary upgrades. Haven't seen one worth saving in ages.

Yes as Gummy pointed out the 510 is on the list and was one of my first contenders. Land Rovers are sought after already by collectors. Ser1 and 2 are in high demand.

[GTAm]

GTAm mentioned the 510 earlier. Series 1 has classic status. Range Rover Classic yes maybe.

Love the 2 door Range Rover Classic. Most have had the undesirable heart transplant though....

[GTAm]

It is pretty good for what it is. It's quite wide and flat so has a very stable feel to it. Whether it's a classic or will be one I'm not sure. I wonder if somebody has had the pleasure of driving the GTO it's bigger cousin.

I do feel that the MX5 and the S2000 are little gems of cars as well, particularly compared to their German counterparts the Z3 and the Boxter. Not sure about the SLK.....

The GTO was not able to gain favorable reviews compared to the FTO as a drivers car. I recall that contemporary road tests said that the GTO had too much electronics numbing the driving experience. And besides more importantly I think there is just one GTO in SL?

Don, the MX5 and the S2000 are definite classics and already recognized, here as well. But imo the Boxter is the diamond out there. I don't like the look but it remains the best car I have ever driven, and a car that won almost every group test it competed in even very late in its life cycle. It will definitely be a classic, no doubt about that. But only the moneyed people would be able to afford one in SL.

The SLK is no where near in terms on driving. It's a pose mobile imo. Not driven the current model but have done both previous ones. From what I notice Sri Lankan classic "big wigs" tend to have a heavy bias towards Mercedes (and British cars), so you will see SLKs go into collections.

Never driven a Z3, but from the reviews I don't think I'm missing much.