Practically Classics Forum

mrtotty wrote:It is wonderful to see these cars being preserved.
I had a university friend who drove a black one in New Zealand. There, there was a special black or silver edition called the Princess R with the two-litre engine and manual or automatic transmission. This particular one was automatic and I remember it as very refined in its day and possessed of quite good performance.

The UK got special black ones too, but very few of them and I'm not 100% on the UK versions' names. A real shame there weren't more, especially with the satisfactory O-series motor and the Borg-Warner transmission where the sump ought to have been. However, I never could fathom out how they didn't use the AP 4 speed hot-shifter trans in these instead of the more conventional (purely automatic) BW device. That - and a return to Hydrolastic for longevity - would have made an already better than average car exceptionally fine to drive.

Mind you, black vs Vermillion or Flamenco. No contest, one of the oranges every time on a '70s motor, even if our old place couldn't flog those to the funeral trade so easily.

JPB wrote: The UK got special black ones too, but very few of them and I'm not 100% on the UK versions' names.

The Special Six Automatic. Available only in black with the E6 engine. They were made as a stop-gap while BL sorted out driveshaft problems on the manual cars.

Thanks for the nice comments, sadly my work is done with this car and it's time to move it on as I have two Wedges already and my wife says enough is enough! A shame because it really is a lovely car to drive and look at. So it's now for sale on ebay. Having seen a Morris Marina advertised for £7500 (yes, £7500!) in a magazine last week I think this is a bargain.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... 0733460545

Kev.

Hi there, realise this is an old post but its so good to see someone looking after these old cars, and I'm pretty amazed you can still get parts for them, can't remember the last time I saw one out and about on the road!

My earliest memories are of travelling around in my parents Princess's and they seemed pretty old then! We had a 2 Litre in sand glow and a 1.7 litre in silver. I checked with my dad and the number plates were ABA 910T and PHG 133X respectively, would love to know where they are now. I know when we finally let go of the 1.7 litre it was in pretty poor shape (think we got £95 off the volvo that followed!) and I remember seeing in advertised for £50 some time later. Think I saw it about a little while after, hopefully it's been restored, always wonder if I'll see it again.

I'd imagine it's these cars that gave me the bug for old BL stuff though still not owned a Princess and as I've just set up my own business it's unlikely I'll have one for a while now . I saw the price it went for on Ebay fully restored but whats the going rate for one in the condition it started in? I'm poor but I've got lots of time and I'd rate my welding as being well up to the job.

Looking amazing!

nice job mate ,I allways liked princess's when I was a kid