Is old really best as banger survives yet another MOT?

As her faithful car seems intent on seeing out a few more months, Fiona ponders whether age comes before beauty in motoring

The old ones are the best ones. Or so the chief says. My old banger has just been in for its annual MOT and, remarkably, the thing has passed. It is a veteran battle bus and I am not hopeful. Indeed, I turn up at the garage half hoping to have an excuse to buy a new model.

But no. “She’ll see you through another year,” the mechanic says cheerfully as he hands over the key.

So my faithful Subaru Forester may see me through another winter. And why not? It is a comfortable enough car.

But when I take a good look, dents and all, I start to wonder: is this really a suitable vehicle for someone in my position to be driving about in?

Whatever that lowly position is, of course…

Back at MacGregor Towers, I venture for an opinion.

“Oh, you don’t want anything new,” the chief says blithely. “As long as it gets from a to b, who’s caring?”

Not him, obviously. Then again this is the man who is currently swanning around the country in the latest Land Rover Discovery. His mode of transport is all gleam and go.

It has Bluetooth and heated seats and there is a button to press in case of breakdown. Which, considering what it cost, is highly unlikely.

True, mine does have central locking. But there is no built-in sat nav. Plus, I notice the electric window is starting to play up.

No, his shiny green vehicle is as far removed from my shabby black plodder as you can get.

“Age is stylish,” the MacGregor says encouragingly. And I suppose that is good as far as our relationship goes.

Yet the fact is, folk can judge you by what you roll up in.

Indeed, a recent survey suggests that more than half of us think a smart car makes its driver more attractive.

Let’s face it, some cars are hot and some are not. And some cars are cleaner than others.

Maybe it is all those dogs we cart around. Or, in some parts of the country, there might even be the odd sheep or two squashed into the back.

We once met a woman who transported a dead donkey in her car.

The poor thing had died in a field and she was taking it home to give it a decent burial.

But back to things mature. With age

Let’s face it, some cars are hot and some are not. And some cars are cleaner than others

comes mileage and my car currently has 150,000 on the clock.

It is a dizzying number and I worry about it. Until I read of someone who knocks my driving into a cocked hat.

This American schoolteacher has clocked three million miles in a red Volvo that he bought back in 1966.

Now, that’s an advert, if there ever was one. And it shows that, yes, the old ones are the best ones.

Until, of course, you see me and my Subaru by the side of the road waiting for the car breakdown services to arrive…

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