Let me ask you a question: Have you got a car?

 

I own a small car: it's a Nissan Micra. I bought her seven years ago from a local car dealer¹ here in London. Although I have been the owner of a Toyota Corolla, a Nissan Sunny and a Honda Accord², this little Micra is most special. It felt like love at first sight - the moment I saw her, I knew I had to buy her.

 

She wasn't cheap, in fact, quite pricey at £1,200 for a car that was already 13 years old, but I have no regrets, she is a lovely reliable car and she has never let me down. I do not drive every day: I am a typical Sunday driver, which means I do most of my driving at the weekends. Over the last seven years I have only driven 9,500 miles, whereas³ many drivers in the UK do around 12,000 miles per year.

 

Time passes quickly and my car will soon be 20 years old. Does that mean it is becoming a 'classic car'?

 

Here in the UK there are many classic car enthusiasts⁴: these people own old cars and they spend many hours cleaning, polishing and renovating⁵ their beloved cars. A good friend of mine has a classic sports car but he has not driven it for many years - it spends most of the time in his garage. The car is a beautiful 1970 Lotus. It has been re-sprayed and now looks fantastic. He says it's a labour of love and he has promised to take me for a drive.

 

Really old cars, from the 1920s and earlier, are called vintage cars. They look very different to modern cars; the drivers sit very high up - and many of them do not have a roof. A lot of vintage car owners meet up for the traditional London to Brighton run. This is a 60-mile route from the centre of London down to the Brighton coast.

 

I saw some of the cars last year as they left London. Many of the drivers were wearing traditional clothing, reflecting a particular period of British history. Watching the cars go by was a wonderful spectacle⁶ and I'll join the onlookers⁷ again later this year. I hope it isn't raining, not just because I will get wet, but because many of the poor drivers have no protection.

 

Sadly, my little Micra isn't considered a classic yet. However, if I look after her well enough for long enough, maybe in another 30 years she will qualify⁸ as a classic item.

 

What cars do you like? I would be very interested to learn if anyone has a classic car and how much you love to cherish⁹ it. It's nice to own a new car but there is something very special about owning a classic car and keeping it going year after year.

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