bulldog5046 said:

yes i been looking at getting one

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theres so much to say......

J333EVO said:

So if you have a Mk1 UNO keep hold of it is a slowly disappearing car.

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*Chas wonders if his 20 year old Uno will still be solid metal by the time he gets back home in October...*

Unos are weird, because some rusted to bits like no tomorrow, while some kept off rust for ages. Patchy quality control and variable steel quality methinks. I've definitely noticed that early mk1's ('83 - '85) dissolved before your eyes, yet some of the later mk1's ('86 to '89) lasted very well (other than the door bottoms!) The exception seems to be the turbos, and one theory is that the extra power/ torque flexes the shell more leading to cracking seams allowing water ingress and hence rust. Probably explains why some of the base models didn't rust much while the turbos did.

Also of note is that the early mk2's seemed to be bad for rust (see Duncs Turbo re-shell!) Even base model mk2's rusted far worse than later mk1's, yet the last few years of the mk2 they seemed better. Door bottoms were a definite weak point though on all years, and it took me ages to find some for mine that weren't rotting merrilly away.

Worth bearing in mind that Unos were cheap cars, and cheap cars tend to get run into the ground and don't have much care or money lavished on them when they get older. Much like the Skoda Estelle/ Rapid, which were actually quite solid little cars.

A Porsche 924, though little more than a VW/ Audi parts bin special (wasn't it originally meant to have a VW badge?) is seen as a sports car with Porsche heritage therefore it tends to get looked after more and also restored, hence a greater percentage still being left on the road.

Someone mentioned the mk3/ 4 Escort, and that was a model I remember being terrible for rust. Yet some of the mk3 Ghias stayed in remarkably good shape, while the lower models (XR3's included) rusted terribly. With the Fords, it all depended on where they were built, as I'm fairly sure that the mk3 Ghias were made in Germany and the other models were built elsewhere. The same applied to the Capri, as the German Capris (2.8 injections and some of the other variations) were always better built than the lower end models built in the UK.

This is similar to the mk1 Cavalier/ Opel Ascona. The Cavaliers were built in either Luton or somewhere in Belgium, while the Ascona (Cavalier with a different nose) was built in Germany. The Asconas always lasted better than the equivilent Cavaliers.

One car I'm surprised to NOT see in that list is the Vauxhall Nova. That was a poorly built car that rusted badly and you hardly see ANY left on the roads now. They were built in Spain and were shockingly assembled! Then they were shockingly 'modified' by the Chavs and thrashed within an inch of their lives...

Either way, my little old mk1 Uno 45S is probably rarer than a Uno turbo! I'm going to hold on to it because I still love it to bits :slayer:

I reckon you can subtract 1 Uno Mk1 from that list. I destroyed one not just to get a few minor parts. Got towed and crushed as far as I know; transferred to the guy who took it away rather than scrapped.

Just thought. The last mk1 Uno rolled off the production line in 1989, making the newest mk1's 17 years old. The average life span of a car used to be about 12 years old, so the fact that there are still quite a number on the roads is a testament to their design. I mean, how many 'G' registered or earlier Novas do you still see? Mk2 Astras? Mk2 Cavaliers? Mk4 Escorts? Mk2 Fiestas (there used to be zillions of XR2's, but I can't remember the last time I saw one!)

Hell, even the mk3 Cavaliers and the last of the Sierras seem to be disappearing fast! Maybe that's no bad thing really

Mk3 XR3i was built in germany as well as the UK, there were different specs for the european ones than the uk which included things like pop-out rear windows (erm actually I think that was the only difference). Some German ones made it over as RHD cars, I'm not sure about the MK4s... MK5/6 escorts are much worse for rust than the MK3/4 range IMO.

Alex said:

Mk3 XR3i was built in germany as well as the UK, there were different specs for the european ones than the uk which included things like pop-out rear windows (erm actually I think that was the only difference). Some German ones made it over as RHD cars, I'm not sure about the MK4s... MK5/6 escorts are much worse for rust than the MK3/4 range IMO.

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I don't know much about the mk5/6 Escorts as I'd lost interest in Fords by then.

I do remember a friend of mine buying an immaculate 2 year old mk4 Escort L on a 'D' plate (1987) in 1989. Only two years old and low mileage, about 25K from what I can remember. At 4 years old, and I'm not kidding, EVERY panels was rusting, some very badly. The rust was coming from UNDER the paint, so it wasn't due to stone chipping or lack of maintenance as he was one of those that washed his car every week. It ended up looking like a 10 year old 70's Fiat! He p/ex'd it for another Escort mk4 (the fool!), though this one was a 'G' registerd Ghia which seemed to be much better built.

In contrast, I had a 1982 Ford Cortina Ghia from 1994 to 1998, and though it did start to rust eventually at 16 years old it was in 10 times better condition than my friend's 4 year old Escort.

And they say Fiats rust badly! Me, I wouldn't touch a mid/ late 80's Ford with a barge-pole, unless it had a Cosworth badge on the back

745 Marinas left eh? Most of 'em live in my town - Ashford Middx where the Morris Marina goes to die!