Buttonless keys, ignition barrels, screeching fan belts and lumpy idles – all things retro enthusiasts adore. Jonathan Bryce heads to the Retro Rides festival at Goodwood and checks out their machines
AUDI 80 AVANT DIESEL
When it was bought for £900, this 80 immediately broke down, but owner Martin Tiffin has since spent £15,000 on the car, giving it RS2 front bumpers and a 1.9-litre TDI diesel engine that has accumulated 300,000 miles during his ownership. Tiffin now loves his Audi so much that he has framed pictures of it and, when asked if he would sell it for something ULEZ-compliant, he simply replied: “I’d just convert it to electric.”
VOLVO 850 T5-R
We took Volvo UK’s immaculate 850 to Retro Rides as both our transport and to show our support for the immaculate, five-cylinder, 236bhp estate with a turbocharger the size of Latvia.
PORSCHE 944 S2
This 944 S2 isn’t upgraded. It doesn’t have a V10 engine hiding under its undisturbed bonnet, or coilovers from Bilstein. It doesn’t even have a custom exhaust. But it is as clean as when it left the factory, with millpond-smooth bodywork, gleaming alloy wheels and an exhaust with no trace of soot.
LANCIA FLAVIA
Current owner Steve Thoma found this car on eBay as a non-runner after it had been sitting neglected for years, with the engine distinctly absent. But Thoma, who has had 16 Lancias, understood how to make it shine again, giving it a thorough respray in its original colour and a new 91bhp 1.8-litre engine.
OPEL MONZA GSE
Here’s an immaculate 1982 Monza GSE with the same 3.0-litre straight six as the Carlton GSi. It’s also one of the last pre-facelift cars produced.
FORD ESCORT AA VAN
This is not about to come and rescue you, but it’s a very good (and road-legal) impression of the real thing, thanks to ‘Audi Vegas’ yellow paint and some original decals. It’s a 1990 Mk4 Escort van made to look like a Mk3, sharing its front and rear bumpers and its dashboard, with a 1.9-litre PD130 diesel engine.
MERCEDES E36 AMG
Produced in 1995, this E36 is one of four C124s registered in the UK. Making the cut for our round-up purely for its mafioso aura, this 272bhp coupé is a subtly flared demonstration of taste.
CHEVROLET IMPALA LOWRIDER
A hopping, skipping and jumping Chevrolet Impala was always going to attract our attention. Underneath, its chas
