All The Cars I’ve Ever Bought

Used car addict Keith looks back at his best – and worst – classic buys. This week, a former Practical Classics project car that turned out to be one heck of a fun steer

Citroën AX GT

WHY DID YOU WANT ONE?

I spent the 1980s lusting after one hot hatch or another and although the Citroën AX GT was never considered a premier league player, it was respected among those who value lightness. Remember the advertising tagline? ‘Built like Rocky Marciano,’ the TV advert said, boasting of its 120bhp-per-tonne powerto-weight ratio and giant-killing performance. That had quite an effect on me at the time, so as a keen new member of the Practical Classics team, I was happy to get its rather downtrodden-looking AX GT project car back on the road. It was super-early in the production run, so it wore factory steel wheels and had no rear spoiler. Did I need it? No. Did I want it? Hell yes!

WAS IT A JOY – OR A NIGHTMARE – TO LIVE WITH?

I was commuting to Peterborough in a very nice Vauxhall Cavalier Sports Hatch 2000 GLS at the time and really had no need of another classic in my life. Man maths were the problem – I concluded that the 28mpg average fuel consumption of my Cav’ just wasn’t good enough, and that was all the justification I needed to let the AX in. I also needed to put a new cylinder head gasket and cambelt on it and give it a thorough service before getting it MoT’d. Luckily, I had access to the PC workshop, and the expertise of John Simpson and Fuzz Townshend. The head gasket job was actually quite nice, with the TU engine being a joy to work on, especially removing its lightweight cylinder head. Jobs jobbed, getting it MoT’d was straightforward and before I knew it, the AX was looking good as a daily. Except that reliability was a miss – a front wheel bearing collapsed on the journey home, and it felt like every new journey resulted in something else failing. In the end, I got bored of putting it right every journey, sold it to a mate, and thought I’d put it out of my mind.

WHAT’S YOUR ABIDING MEMORY OF IT?

It was sublime when it was running – really, really wonderful. The throttle and steering response was like you would never believe, while the performance was full of nervous energy and exciting when you tickled the carburettor’s second choke. I remember how easily it kept up with my Saab 900 T16 S Aero, and how it zipped around the country lanes near where I lived like a comfortable Mini Cooper. These moments were all too rare, though, hence me selling it. But like a bad holiday where you only remember the good bits, I soon found myself yearning for another. So much so that I procrastinated when my mate offered it back to me and my son pounced and bought it. He should have seen the signs – it blew its head gasket on the M25 on the way home and chewed through a couple more before he sold it on to Top Gear’s Chris Harris before he was Top Gear’s Chris Harris. As far as I know, he still has it.

WHAT ARE YOUR TOP TIPS FOR BUYING ONE?

They don’t rust much on the outside, but like all good French cars of this era, they do underneath. Check the inner and outer sills as well as the inner arches and wings and anything hidden under its body kit. Ensure that any performance upgrades have been done correctly and that any crash damage has been repaired properly. Check that the interior is in one piece – parts availability is poor – and finally, make sure that the TU engine is reliable and has a good history. Oh, and be prepared to pay good money for a nice one…