Anyone who says the Allegros are shit cars doesn't really know much about cars. They are badly informed saying things like if you Jack the car up the window fills out. They are extremely reliable cars with fantastic suspension.
What an absolutely fantastic car and a brilliant restoration. I've always thought that the Allegro 3 - and the Estate - were really beautiful cars. Wish I could afford to buy it! Great video.
Fab car and what a great restoration. The Allegro suffered from the general " British Leyland bashing" of the British gutter press, which carried on right through the BL, Austin Rover, and MG Rover years. Roy Haynes got the idea for the Marina door handles that were fitted to the Allegro and quite a few other cars from the AMC AMX, from which he borrowed other styling ideas such as the wrap around rear lights, rear window shape, C piller angle and curve for the fastback shape of the Marina Coupe.
Much better cars than anyone gave them credit for and the last ones did look pretty cool. That'll be a reasonably quick thing too, 1500cc engine on twin carbs. Enough to worry some XR3 drivers back when it was new.
Loved the video, friends had these models, but I am a Marina / Ital fellow. I often muse, "If only BL had super rust proofed their cars......" Ah well. Thanks and peace be unto you.
It's funny how so many people dissed the Allegro on the grounds of it's appearance and yet Audi came out with a car that looks a lot like an Allegro and everyone buys them. The e series engines weren't class leading but they were very capable. It's just a shame that people didn't see the appeal of the Allegro at the time and we might still have a car industry. I admit that I didn't much like the look of them when they were still around but they were still good cars. There was an old boy who used to live across the road from me who won an Allegro in the pools and he had it from about 75/76 and he moved away in 1990. He even still had it when he moved. I think my only criticism of them would be that the primary drive gearing between the engine and gearbox lost a bit of engine power through friction. But they st had reasonable economy and performance.
Is that really your only criticism? That's not bad then! I presume you have the same criticism for the Mini, 1100/1300, 1800, Princess/Ambassador, etc? Pretty much every FWD BL car? I'm not really too fussed if the, (guesstimating) 60bhp is reduced to, I guess 55bhp or even 50bhp. IMHO the fact those transfer gears chewed through engine casings is more worrying. But all engines have their foibles I suppose.😊😊
@@DirtyLittleRabbit66 Yes, that is pretty much my only real criticism. Maybe add to that list the manufacturing defects that led to problems. But yes, I was aware that every bmc/bl front wheel drive car until the maestro had that arrangement. That's if you discount Triumph of course who became part of bl and had their own front wheel drive system for a while but Leyland didn't continue it. Mind you, bl weren't unique in having transmission failures. Ford and Vauxhall often ate gearboxes as well, particularly higher power Vauxhall vivas and firenzas. Nothing is perfect as they say :)
I was about 7 years old when the Allegro came out, ones I remember most were the estate, but still today I don't know they made it 3 door. Great video again Paul, and this guy deserves a medal for turning this car around.
I had an immaculate really low mileage 1977 example back in the late 80’s in Poo Brown and what a fantastic car…, it never let me down and thinking back, It was a better car in every way possible apart from the rifle like gear change of a Ford Escort….It really didn’t deserve the reputation it got.
Love the Allegro 3 those twin head lamps and sill covers look cool . Had a 1980 Est back in the day went all over in it. Great vid and nice to see one in such great condition . (:
My dad called it the should've been a hatchback car. Lovely job, massive credit to him 👍 always liked em particularly the estates. Neighbour had one in chocolate brown not the squits brown 💩
Couldn’t help thinking of Eric Olthwaite in Ripping Yarns when Andy was going on about repainting everything in Satin Black including the wiper arms. “Black pudding’s very black today mother. Even the white bits are black !” “Oh shut up Eric yer boring little tit !”
Oh, an Allegro 3 - that car looks fantastic. By that point Leyland had got the car the way it should really have been at launch, even the looks, and I like the dashboard update on the 3. (The estate still looked a bit hearse-like, but so what...)
The 1500 did not need two carburettors: the HS4 carb that was fitted to the 1300 was good for 90hp according to David Vizard. My own highly modified 1300 could out-perform a 2.0 Capri and I only had a single HS4
I had an orange 1979 one as my first car. When i put it for its MOT the guy asked if i bought it from a Reverend? I said why you ask? He said because its Holy.
@@ryanwilliams6526 No. Unfortunately definitely the product of Nissan’s European Design Centre in West London, along with the now garish and overstyled Qashquai. Both much more successful and popular than the Almera and Tino which were straightforward conventional equivalents.
How do you know when your car wasn't built with the "best" parts ?? When the lug nut covers get brittle and disintegrate.... It looks like it's pregnant. But the paint is better than it was from the factory.
A lot of cars under BL could have been great but the name British Leyland was a bad start. Management arrogance, incompetence and jealousies, trade union stupidity and media bashing the cars all helped in killing off the British car industry. Ironically when you look at the Allegro next to the Ford Ka and the Vauxhall Adam I wonder what all the tittering was for regarding its styling. Yes, the Allegro design went through the usual accountants knife before production but in comparison to the latter two cars is better looking and has a better name.
