Car "Quirks" Your Family Has/Had.

[mercrocker]

Despite spending much of the War clearing up after Hitler, my Grandfather didn't appear to have a particular beef with Germany - at any rate he was happy to drive a Beetle when he lived in the Netherlands. He did look into buying a Volkswagen when he came back home but although going to the dealer's he actually came back with a receipt for a new P6....

Two of his brothers both did Burma but didn't seem to be averse to Jap cars, the elder one emigrated to Brazil and ended up with a Toyota FJ whilst the other ditched a Princess 4 Litre R for a Datsun Cherry. Grandad himself handed in his last P6 against a 180B.

[Guest]

My uncle refused to have green cars. My father loved the Citroen DS, wouldn't have one because they were complicated, yet would work on ones belonging to customers. My grandfather's requirement for a car was that it had a big enough engine that would let him pull away whatever gear he had put it in.

[paulplom]

You should've just bought your grandfather an auto..

[captain_cal]

The only "quirk" my family has about cars is that we never fucking wash 'em, a quality* I have certainly inherited.

[DVee8]

My MiL won't have a green car or a yellow one. This has passed down to MrsV8 who also won't have a green car. Yellows ok though.
My stepfather was 30 years older than my mother, he was also a PoW on the river kwai. He refused to have anything from "the slanty eyed yellow bastards"
He bought Opel Kadett's. He did buy an X reg Bluebird this got wrote off one Sunday afternoon, when he was heading back from the club. By someone who was more pissed than he was.
He was most pissed off 30 years ago when I went to work for those SEYB's.

[Broccoli]

My Mum loves the colour green and has actually gone out of her way to own green cars.
When asked if they were unlucky, she would ramble on about what a load of old tosh. It made selling them used a little more challenging though. She’s the kind of ‘head screwed on person’ who would search out an X13 number plated car, to see if she could get a discount ‘on the car with the unlucky numberplate’.

The comments about Grandfathers in Burma, mine was there too.
His family originally emigrated from England to Canada, had my Grandfather and then came home to England when he was one.
Grandad got posted to Burma and wouldn’t talk about it, though my Grandmother said it had troubled him deeply.
After he retired, he decided he would go to Spain for a holiday, as he’d never been abroad since and it was thought some sun would do him good.
Initially, he couldn’t get a passport as he was told he wasn’t officially a ‘British Citizen’. Once it got sorted we teased him mercilessly, as he was never very easy with ‘Johnny Foreigner’, even those on his side…

[SiC]

My dad's side parents I don't really remember much car history except a clapped out Astra that we weren't allowed to ride in. Also used to leave the used engine oil containers by my parents garage and piss my dad off. They didn't have much money at all, so I guess ran whatever they could get affordable. My mum's side father was a generous fellow. He bought them a brand new Rover 100.
My dad's parents were absolutely smitten by it and ever so thankful. It's the only car I really remember (apart from a later Corsa C) and did many miles as a passenger. They didn't pass judgement on car brands, except my Nan detested the Japanese. She lost a brother on the Burma railway.

My mum's parents on the other hand were a bit better off. My grandfather owned a successful Scrapyard in Northampton. Bought off a Quaker family, he endeavoured to keep up their beliefs. Such as caring for staff that had problems, making sure things were fair and being an honest business man.

I know he used to always buy British, especially cars. I guess my mum rebelled as she had a succession of Fiats. However my grandfather had British right up to his order for an SD1 got substantially delayed. That was the final straw, the order was canceled and a Citroen CX was ordered instead. After that he predominantly had French cars. Usually a large Renault as the nice car and then a Vauxhall as his workhorse. Always Auto as didn't see the point in changing gears himself.

German cars, especially Mercedes were the vehicle of crooked scrapyard owners apparently. Far too flash for my grandad. Japanese was a massive no too.

A life long vegetarian, he'd go out of his way to ensure that it didn't have a leather interior. So much so, he would often not have a top spec as most only came with leather. Usually the model one below and then all the boxes ticked to give equivalent to top spec - usually ending up spending more.

My in-laws and especially mother in law subscribes to the notion that green cars are unlucky too. Also something about red cars being unreliable. Unfortunately my wife has picked up this bollocks too. So I've yet to have a green car. Morris Minor travellers are apparently exempt in her eyes though and can be green?

[I am not Diesel]

My Grandma always said green cars were unlucky. My Mrs has the misguided belief that you're more likely to have an accident in a red car.
I recently read you're more likely to have an accident in a black car.
I have vehicles that are green, red & black. Don't fancy my chances much.

[treehugger]

Most of the pillock new audis round here seem white.

[Guest]

You should've just bought your grandfather an auto..

Something safer was done, he had to surrender his licence.