When did you last see...

Commercials tend to have a hard life, and get scrapped when their usability as business-tools ceases. When did you last see a Mk.1 or Mk.2 Escort van?

Tax-exempt means pre-1973 - trying to find *any* commercials of that sort of age is really hard, unless you look to oddballs like motor-caravans or ice-cream vans.

Most of them lead a hard life, so are complete worn out... and all the decent ones have gone to the USA :-(

Keep a look on eBay, there's a fair few up been up on there over the last few months...

Seriously? That must lead to some confusion!

Will do. I've only just realised I want one (and have yet to persuade the other half), so haven't been looking all that intently.

Howard Rose wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:

Don't worry, all the decent Minis will return from the USA shortly,due to the ever decreasing percentage of their population that are actually able to fit into them.

I found one in a barn a couple of years ago, being used as a chainsaw cupboard, it had been there since 1985 and had done 49000 miles. Problem was the guy wanted £500 for it which was all I had at the time!

Unfortunately, further enquiries revealed that it had been sold - I missed a golden opportunity!!

Max

Not really since RHD is a hard sale here. My RHD Humber was occasioned only because an Australian who bought it in the UK and was going to bring it home after touring the US was forced into a change of plans. Norm (with three Britcars at the moment)

New steering rack and a bit of brake work and it's converted to LHD. No problem, only a few hours work :-)

Yup! Nearly all the MK1's have ended up over there too, hence the apparent shortage of good cars in the UK.

Plus, they're not really too fussed on originality, so all the nice original cars are now sporting 1300 Metro engines and Union Jack roofs... aaarrrggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.....

The ones on Ebay sell no matter what condition they are in and at what I'd consider too much money.

Mark S.

: It struck me recently that I could do with a back up classic for those : times when I'm halfway through replacing my Rotoflex couplings and find : the lower vertical link bolt seized and end up spending three days over : the job when all I originally set out to do was adjust the handbrake. : You've been there too, no doubt.

Unfortunately I sold my Reliant Rebel van a couple of weeks ago ... looks better than a Mini ( I think), solid chassis, non-rusting body, sweet wee engine ... and Herald front suspension!

Ian

...this evening, several of them. They were admittedly at a classic car show at Longbridge Deverill near Warminster.

They really do seem to have become very expensive, even the non-exempt ones. I'm sure they're still out there in barns, but as others have said, commercials lead a hard life, even the small ones. I crashed my Mini Van 4 times, eventually stuffing it terminally into a parked Toyota Carina in

-- Rarebits4classics .......just what you've been looking for

PO Box 1232 Calne Wiltshire SN11 8WA United Kingdom

I last saw a mini van this morning, its my daily drive!

Occasionally there are some for sale in the forum of the British Mini Van Club at

On 31 Jul 2003 the computer of "Pete M" spewed out:

I paid £65 for mine - an ex-water board '62 van in '69. It eventually rusted away but I still have some of its parts on my Mini Marcos. That was the best £65 I even spent, and was about all I had at the time.

Richard

I had 4 in the '60s and '70s as a second vehicle. And the most expensive cost 30 quid. When something went wrong that would cost more than a 'new' one I always kept all the good bits off the old one and then scrapped the rest. Of course you never thought such things would become rare and or collectable then. Old cars like this were simply old cars.

There's one in the North Wales Weekly News today.

Cheers John

-- address has tinmeat added, address is correct.