Constructed seemingly from a mixture of woodchip and old sellotape, this was my first car. It was kindly given to me by my sister in 1987, and on my first

drive in it I ran out of petrol on the M62; a fact sadly confirmed by the AA man when he poured in petrol from the can I had in the boot - a rescue

that cost me 75 quid and all my dignity. I used to have to park it facing downhill in order to be able to guarantee a start, and the police once caught

me breaking into it. The engine mounts finally sheared through on the M42 near the NEC, prompting yet another AA man to say "that's buggered, mate."