Vauxhall Viva HB
The curvy all-new HB Viva was a huge improvement when compared to its boxy predecessor and although this stylish Vauxhall sold in huge numbers, survivors equalling the condition of our feature car are now very rare
A rare survivor from the days of big hair and flares that turns heads everywhere.
I f you wish to keep a low profile on the roads of Oxfordshire, a 1970 last- ofthe-line Viva SL is not the ideal car. Throughout the day, a succession of older motorists performed double-takes on seeing a Vauxhall that is now rarer than a Bugatti while younger drivers were visibly curious and a few more seasoned onlookers seemed to recognise it as ‘the Rodney Bewes car from Whatever Happened to The Likely Lads?’.
Such reactions were quite understandable, for when the HB replaced the Viva HA in September 1966, the styling instantly made its chief rival, the Anglia 105E, look like a throwback to the Teddy Boy era by comparison. Ford dealers became very worried, as the launch of the Escort was over a year away while Luton was now offering a lightweight saloon that looked as up-to-the-minute as an episode of 'The Saint'.
The HB was the second Vauxhall to adopt the ‘Coke bottle’ flared flanks of the period – the Cresta PC of 1965 was the first – and its looks were certainly in complete contrast to its faintly utilitarian
predecessor. A brilliant 1966 cinema commercial had Patrick ‘ Voice Over King’ Allen constantly intoning the words ‘Jet smooth – whisper quiet!’ to emphasise the message that here was jet age motoring for the price of a Morris 1100. Anyone occupying the 1/ 9d seats at the Southampton ABC would have been mesmerised by the sight of a moderately groovy young couple speeding along a country lane in their ‘All- New Viva by Vauxhall’.
Asides from being one of the most attractive British cars of the decade, the new Viva also boasted a new suspension layout and an enlarged engine. The boot could accommodate any amount of sample’s cases and the dashboard reflected the HB’s air of scaled-down Americana. Motor magazine praised ‘the extremely light controls’ and found that ‘the gearchange is one of the best there is’, while Autocar thought the Viva ‘quite outstanding in what it can do’ asides from the heating system’.
The initial line-up consisted of the Standard (with not a lot as standard), the De Luxe (heater and windscreen washers) and for the up and coming young
executive, the SL. A distinctive radiator grille, Ambla upholstery, a faux woodgrain facia and more elaborate rear seats proclaimed the status of the last-mentioned Viva to residents of outer suburbia. With all versions, Vauxhall claimed that the HB ‘cradles your wife and three kids in comfort’; the ‘Sixties really were a very long time ago.
By 1968, the Viva range had expanded to 26 models (see below), and it was now a ubiquitous sight as a company car and a ‘first car’ for many Britons, as well as serving with many driving schools. Films and newsreels of the late ‘Sixties illustrate the popularity of the HB, but by the ‘ Eighties their ranks were diminishing. Today, they are less encountered than a watchable episode of Casualty, which is just one reason why the SL four- door owned by Cyril Ruddock continually turns heads.
This Monza Red Viva was discovered by Cyril some twenty years ago. ‘I’m a heating engineer by trade and came by the Viva when I was working on a boiler The lady of the house knew that I also worked on the VW Beetles owned by my daughters and so when I completed the job, she asked me if I would like to see a 'classic car' in the garage’. The vehicle in question was a 1970 Viva SL that had been retired for the past seven years: "there was a carpet across the bonnet with a cat sat on top of it! Oddly, the tyres were still pumped up, but I found out that this task was regularly carried out by the boy next door".
Naturally, Mr Ruddock bought the Vauxhall and the next 18 months saw the ‘T- cutting of the metal’. Publicity of the era made much of the Viva’s ‘Magic Mirror’ acrylic paint finish and rust proofing but, as Cyril remarks, ‘I heard that the bodies were stored outside before going through the paint shop’. At the end of the lengthy process, ‘a friend resprayed it in the correct colour’ and the Viva looked a million pounds, as opposed to the original asking price of £844.
Cyril finds his Viva “smooth and comfortable to drive, although my next job is to have the driver’s seat re-stitched. I might also add an ‘SL’ coach line to the exterior”, replied Cyril when asked what the next jobs on the car were going to be. As a late model, this HB comes with the decadent luxury of a two-speed heater fan and the original owner apparently spent an additional £17 5s on a heated rear window.
One extra that the SL does lack though, is front disc brakes. These were only standard on the GT, the '90' and the 1600 but this does not mar Cyril’s enjoyment of one of Britain’s most exclusive Vauxhalls.
Luton’s boast that ‘you drive at peace in a smooth silent world of your own’ was slightly over the top but the Viva was a refined and well-sorted car.
When the HC succeeded the HB in October 1970, it marked the end of an era. The latter belonged to a world of T Rex discs, flared trousers and chartered accountants (unwisely) adopting a Jason King hairstyle while the former hailed from a time when Simon Dee represented the zenith of affordable hipness to your average quantity surveyor. Over the past ten years, the Viva GT has featured in the classic press while its less expensive – and betterselling – stablemates have been largely overlooked.
And so, it would not be an exaggeration to say that the
Ruddock four- door SL is social history on wheels. From the wonderfully fake ‘wood’ in the cabin to just how cramped the back seat feels and the way in which the needles creeps rightwards along the strip speedometer. Above all, that transmission whine can instantly bring back the past – and that is an attribute that is beyond price for any classic.