Project creep - again!

UK67

CCCUK Member
Fed up with creaky front suspension mainly over speed bumps. Changing the control arm bushes looked like an easy job so ordered a set of Energy Performance poly bushes.
I fitted the bushes but then removed them again to :-
Have the control arms powder coated
Replace the upper and lower ball joints
Replace all 4 steering rod ends
Fit new front shocks
The major cost was the powder coating at £80 but all the components are so reasonably priced I though why not and I now have an as new front suspension :)
 

Nassau65

CCCUK Member
Me to, especially as it was 3 dollars to a pound in those days and shipping was 200. What a nice Christmas present that would have been in 1967.
 

Nassau65

CCCUK Member
It must have been a shock to many American car buyers in 1982 when a Corvette was $20k. An unheard of figure usually reserved for Cadillac and Lincoln models.
 

Roscobbc

Moderator
1967 - average annual salary in UK would have been about £1000 to perhaps £1300 (per year!). So one of these cars would have been about 3.5 times the typical working mans annual salary to buy a Vette (so maybe the equivalent of £75K to £90K in 'todays'money? with 'Hire Purchace' the only form of credit even the deposit would have been perhaps today equivalent of at least £35K (if my calc's are correct). One then has to think about import costs etc and perhaps more importantly the implications of then current operative UK Purchase Tax which was far more punitive than our current VAT. A few years later when the UK changed over from the old Pounds, Shillings and Pence to the current metric currency pampant inflation would take over and the 'working man' eventually recieved salaries more in line with inflation. Something I remember from my very early working days was that 5 shillings (in 'old' money - 25p today) was often referred to as being a 'Dollar' - 4 dollars to a pound in the early 60's amazingly. Amazing to think that an average American pay packet was enough to buy themselves a decent car at that time for less than the equivalent in many cars of a years salary.........
 

Nassau65

CCCUK Member
Those prices were in Dollars, not pounds, so 3000usd would have been £1000 Uk pounds. Dads new 1970 impala fully loaded with the exception of A/C was £2200 from Lendrums.
 

Nassau65

CCCUK Member
Yes, 5 bob was always referred to as a dollar. During the 1960’s a college student with a part time job, could afford a nice used Corvette especially if it was financed. They had it too cheap for too long. This covered all things, housing, food, transport, especially fuel. I remember petrol was 12 cents a gallon in 1970.
 

Nassau65

CCCUK Member
I think easy finance was the key to American purchases of all things, be it houses, household goods and especially finance. It was so easy to get and repay. I found this out first hand as being English living in the UK, was still able to mortgage a property and finance vehicles in the US without ANY problem what so ever.
 

Roscobbc

Moderator
Those prices were in Dollars, not pounds, so 3000usd would have been £1000 Uk pounds. Dads new 1970 impala fully loaded with the exception of A/C was £2200 from Lendrums.
Yeah - I got my period £/$ exchange rate 'ass about face' - irrespective that £2200 Impala was quite a significant outlay 'in the day' - seems to recall just a few years earlier the last of the Mark 2 Jags were about £1800 or so, with E Types a few hundred pounds more.......I can recall the Mark 1 Granada when new being more expensive than the last of the E Type Jags.......strange times!
 

Nassau65

CCCUK Member
I can remember the list price of the last E-types was £3300, dad did some haggling and got it for £2800. They were considered old hat by then, and the new jag the XJS was due to launch.
 
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