The Aesthete does his penance

I have paid for all my sins with a weekend of torment in the shed. The lack of soft trim parts for the Alfetta GTV has seen desperate efforts to reclaim waterlogged  door cards by peeling the heat formed vinyl trim off the rotten backing panels and gluing them to newly fashioned boards. This involved many trips into Mitre 10 as different ways of bonding the whole sorry mess were trialled and found wanting. Old fashioned pop rivets worked better than an expensive fibreglass repair kit as the Alfa trim pieces were coated in some sort of 'waterproof' substance that rejected all forms of glue and resin. Photographs will follow but after I have recovered from another bout of solvent abuse.

1967 Vanden Plas Princess 1100. The charm of these pompous little cars is enough to elide the fact that they were owned by terrible old tories, anyone with any sense being perfectly happy with an Austin. French polished burr walnut and 2cwt of sound deadening distracted from the parent car's many quirks and they still have an air of Cotswolds country retreats and willowy girls called Cynthia.

For: A sherry before dinner? Splendid.
Against: Riles the old Marxists but maybe that is a good thing.
Investment potential: 5/10. Yes, that is right.

1970 Renault 16 TS. The groundbreaking five door 16 created a new class of family car that could be used in as many ways as the driver desired. Extraordinarily composed on the road with a lively alloy engine as used in the Lotus Europa and a superb column shift, it was comfortable as only a French car can be. You can surprise those unfamiliar with the model by pointing out that car has two different wheelbases as the torsion bars for the rear suspension are offset. It could only be better if it was a TX with the square Cibie lights, tinted glass and sunroof. Grwwllll.

For: Characterful and elegant.
Against: Getting very rear now, as Tradme vendors are fond of saying.
Investment potential: 4/10 as 2K is a bit of a snip for what you are getting.

1955 Ford Thunderbird. Early Thunderbirds in right hand drive are unusual enough and this one looks like if has been used and enjoyed rather than being parked permanently in some collector's horde. The lack of latter day improvement extends to the six volt electrics, a Ford oddity that no doubt stems from that old fascist Henry not wanting to waste extra volts on the great unwashed.

For: The face that launched a thousand Ferraris.
Against: You can only have it if you use it.
Investment potential: 3/10. Undervalued now but no-one is rushing to buy this one.

1957 Daimler Century. This takes the Aesthete back to his youth when a weekend car buying expedition often concluded with the purchase of a moribund Daimler Century. Replacing broken second gear bands became something of a habit but they had 100 hp engines and a wonderful dashboard, and could usually be dragged away for less than $200. The brakes need attention on this one. A doddle as only the fronts were hydraulic, the rear end operated by ropes, wires and pulleys.

For: Does not look like it has been holding a collapsed shed up, as many were.
Against: Not a lot of information in the listing.
Investment potential: 2/10: It is a fair price if the rest of the car is a nice as the front.

1951 Pontiac Chieftain. Don't mess with Mr In-between is the Aesthete's rubric if you fancy an old American car but this tastefully modified Pontiac offers a modern driving experience with decent brakes and handling, matched to wholly innocent Driving Miss Daisy looks. The vendor seems like a sensible chap and, with two door Pontiac Chieftains lacking a fanatic following, clearly likes the car for what it does.

For: A cruiser that can take the bends.
Against: Quite a lot of money for something nobody particularly desires.
Investment potential: 1/10 but perhaps a good buy if you don't care about the image.

On some faraway beach...

1958 Alfa Romeo 1900 Super. Pause for a moment and join me in gloating over the details of tbis magnificent Alfa Romeo saloon. The company was still in post-war recovery and the 1900 marked a point where the bespoke glories of the 1930s were present in the new mass produced models. The image of the door pockets alone is enough to make me regret that I have wasted so much money on lesser cars over the years and will now be deprived of this.

For: A sports saloon in the real sense.
Against: I will hear nothing said against this car.
Investment potential: 0/10, sadly once you have got it here for the thick end of 80K.