Fast Marina Magazine

Hello every one i dont want to come on her and make my first posting a negitive one, ive been looking to buy a marina,but it seems to me unless i have a mk1 marina or a tc one at that that no one seems interested in the other cars such as the later cars and itals.
myself and my son went to view a really nice late model coupe of e-bay,in the midlands,but we were out bided buy a guy who wanted the shell for his mk i car,and the engine was going to a minor.
i think that this is really a bad thing,surely as a club,shoudnt all cars be vauled the same???? but as a persons who has looked on the forum for some time with out responding i felt i must say some thing,the marina gets a bad enough resopnse from the public look at top gear to prove this!!!! as it is without the club seemingly making one car more desierable than another and members KILLING off other cars to keep these going.
Why has this happened,and on car has become more vauled than others,in the 1970's my brother had a tc saloon car,and sorry to say this it was not that great and drank petrol,when he got a later 1700 it was faster and better trimed and dint use anywhwre near the fuelthe tc did,but for some reason these seem the cars to have,please dont think i'm having a go but this is putting me off getting a marina as i dont like the old fashioned dash and old styling otf the earlier cars,and the fact they dont drive as good.but i know its each to there own.
I listen to russ on the radio.and like the baneter he has howie the dj,about marinas,he must be the biggest asset to the club for recruitment you have,and to be truthful has got me interested in the cars,but this devide is putting me off,
Sorry to be a grumpy old man at 40 but if this is not the case let me know,i understand this thread might get taken off the forum,but thank for reading it once again.

Allthe best Dave

Hi Dave,

Some interesting things in your posting. There is more than one Marina/Ital club represented on this forum - it was set up for all Marina and Ital owners worldwide not just one club. I don't think that it is any club that is prejudiced towards Mk1s and TCs neccessarily, just that as with most cars, the early ones and the perceived higher performance cars are the versions that many people want. That's not to say that there's anything wrong with the later cars, in fact as you say model for model the later cars tend to handle better, are more economic and have better trim and options.

I can only speak about the Morris Marina Owners Club, but at their National meeting each year the club has the same number of prizes for each model type (Mk1,2,3 & Ital). The very early cars tend to be sought after due to scarcity and the fact that they will be Tax Free.

If you met a guy who was breaking a runner to reshell an early car and using the running gear in a Minor, he would in my opinion be far from the standard Marina enthusiast.

You may find that part of the impression that you have been getting has been due to the fact that many (but not all) of the more voluable members of this forum have MK1s and so that's what they are interested and want to discuss. Within the MMOC there is a small but fanatical section who are devoted to the Ital, Mk2s & Mk3s have a following also, but as their survival rate has been lower, there are fewer of those about and in consequence fewer owners to sing their praises. I guess the thing is that you buy the car that you want for your own reasons and then look for like minded individuals.

For myself, I bought a Mk1 because to go classic rallying the car needed to be manufactured prior to 1975 to fall into the Post Historic category - the fact that I never got to go rallying is a separate issue.

Speaking as one of the moderators, I don't find anything that you have said offensive or worthy of blocking, in fact it made me think about my own postings.

Anyone else have any comments?

Hi Dave and welcome to the forum please don't feel bad about your observations because you have got it pretty much spot on in my opinion, I like yourself am a big fan of the later cars having owned a mk3 marina an ital and I now have 2 mk2s one an 1800 coupe and one a 1300 saloon, I think the tc's are overated but i'm not a big fan of the 1700's either, but as you point out it's down to personal taste and my love of the marina is based on my memories as a kid and the cars my grandad's had which were a mk2 saloon and a mk3 1300 coupe for other people/owners it's the earlier cars that appeal as it's what they had/grew up with, what we all need to do is to stick together and enjoy our cars and be proud of them no matter what model or spec they are. the earlier models do seem to be more desirable and hence more expensive so if I were you I would go for a late marina(mk3) or an ital and i'm sure you will be very pleased with it as at the end of the day it's your choice.

good luck
stu

I dont agree with this divide you mention as most people in the club get along well and we all have different types and models ! In fact if you ask the majority of the people who post on here they all have normally more than one Marina anyway ! I for one have a number of different types and models and each has its personality and trait that is better than the other ! Its down to personal taste at the end of the day and as long as the cars are looked after and cherished by their owners i couldnt care less if its an ital or a mk1 !
Btw ... as a family we own a TC coupe , Ital SLX , Mk3 van , Ital pickup , Mk1 1300 saloon and a Mk1 1300 coupe ! I'd say that was pretty diverse and if i had the time and money it would probably be more ! As for my personal favorite Marina i'd have to go with the Mk2 saloon ! Les better watch out !

I have no prejudice, my car is a MK1 but it was the only one around here I could find/afford (I'm 16). I was getting a MK2 but that got stolen
There's no way an older car could drive more quietly and more comfortably and a later car, as developments are made (like the Ital's shock absorbers) however early cars will always be sought after. This goes for any classic car sadly, this is why pre 73 VW Campers, Beetles and Minis appear on ebay totally beyond repair but with people bidding as they are tax exempt and they can use the VIN and V5 to illegaly make their later car tax exempt.
I wish I could meet this other 'enthusiast', breaking good condition later cars for earlier cars makes us just as bad as the Minor owners we moan about.

If you get a later car, I think everyone on here wont be prejudice towards you, I certainly wont be!

:? Sorry Dave, but i don`t know where you are getting all this negative feeling from, certainly not the club i started all those years ago! , we all have personal preferences as you say, and we all have a bit of inter mark banter now and again, but it is purely in a fun way, no malice is ever intended, i have known russell for over 20 years and we have been "sparring" over mk1 and mk3 cars since we met, but we always agree that the Marina is great in all it`s guises as long as someone loves it.
You may well be getting negative vibes from past postings that are really just a bit of fun between old friends, please don`t take us too seriously.
So go out there and grab yourself a Marina or Ital, no matter what model it is, you will be welcome in any of the clubs on this Forum i`m sure.
Frank.

at the end of the day a marina is a marina, all be it a bumper change here and an interior revamp there. I've had a mk1 coupe for 6 years and love it, I also had an ital up until 2 years ago and that was a great car also. I am currently getting my tc jubilee restored at the moment and i cant comment on the tc scenarios as i have never driven one, to be honest i only bought the tc cause i liked the colour. So good luck with what you buy as im sure you'll enjoy driving it.

i own, drive and love a mk3 1700L, to be honest you like the car you like and you should never take anyones opinion as gospel, you have a mind yourself, and you clearly prefer the later marinas, there are others like you out there, including myself.

Really it is just a case of everyone being entitled to their opinion, mine is that the mk3 is the best and that everytime i climb in to the old girl, a big grin erupts as i stick two fingers up to the rest of the driving community.

Buy a marina and enjoy it. Doesnt matter which one you drive be it 1,2,3 or ital, its all the same in the end. we are here for a common cause, to keep the flame alive and to make sure one the most important cars in BL's history does not disappear!

HI mate,

You're welcome on here as far as I'm concerned.
It was between an LE and a TC when I went looking.
We owned an LE when new. But when I saw my TC I was hooked ,
However I'll need to pay tax on it when up and running so I cant say it swayed my vote.
As long as you like what YOU want is more important to me.
If you really want to feel real heat join the Jaguar owners club and be sent up cleaning chimneys,
if you dont have a concours XK120. I joined and went to one meeting with my Mk2 and got totally ignored by the
toffs in cravats!!! I was so disgusted I sold it a month later.
Far far friendlier here I can assure you.

Tony

Hi Dave,

This is the MORRIS MARINA Owners Club, not the mk1/ TC owners club.
If you love a particular model, that's great. I have a TC coupe, but would agree that the 1300/1700 engines are smoother and possibly more refined.
To me, the only thing that may make the mk1 more desirable is age and tax exemption

All the best, Dave B.

:shock: :shock: Blimey :shock: :shock:

They really should be more careful when they hand out those day release passes :roll:

Pont.skins is referring to a reply that I have deleted by new member 'alanwright'. The content and the personal attacks on several forum members made in the posting, left me with no alternative but to delete the reply and ban the new member.

Hi Chris,

I read it earlier and wondered why he hadn't attended school.

Is this the sort of filth you got after Clarksons outburst.

Brian

Hi Brian

Similar, but this was more pointed at certain named people some who use the forum and some that don't, this cannot be allowed.

What a shame, we may be devoid of snobbery like Jag and Capri clubs but there's always some that spoil it.