Captured at the Practical Classics Classic Car show at the NEC in October 2022, there were dozens of low-mileage and original cars but one, in particular, caught my eye. It was one of 20 cars on the Pride of Ownership stand, one of the showcase stands at the show.
A salesman had previously owned the car at Reynolds Motors Ford and somehow, he not only managed to keep the mileage down but also keep it in a condition which belies belief. It needed recommissioning after years of inactivity and was taken on by current owner Stephen Cheape in 2006, who after recovering from a severe illness got the car up to near perfection.
Fitted with the base high compression 957cc engine, this April 1981 car was the cheapest way into the Ford family at the time but you’d have to go without any form of cloth interior trim, clock or even carpets. Listed at £3,255, it was £300 more than the Mini 1000, but day to day it was a better car to live with.
