Better the Car You Know?

[Robert Leigh]

My last Ruby which I owned for 38 years was nearly replaced more than 30 years ago. We bought another fully restored and used either for a year or so, but sentiment won in the end and we sold the smart one. After about 25 years I decided to sell my well used vintage Riley 9 tourer having replaced it with a smart 1933 Lynx 2 door with disappearing hood. Two years later the Tourer came on the market and I immediately bought it back and sold the Lynx. Despite the mag letting me down on my collection journey with the Tourer I have no regrets. I know most things about the car, having rebuilt the engine and back axle myself, and if it starts raining heavily the hood goes up in seconds, unlike the Lynx which took forever. I am still working on the car, currently fitting modern oil seals on the back axle and curing other faults found while doing it. The car you know is definitely the one to keep, because knowing it means also knowing how to fix it which makes life easier. I should have learned by now; I was even buying cars back in the 1960s!