Okay, so I had to give up my dream car. What could be worse? Can you say “boredom?”
My next few cars were uneventful, although my wife didn’t think so in one case. First up after the Firebird was a 1978 Datsun B210. A very boring, white car with a tan interior. It was reliable but I had a problem with the carburetor. It would intermittently and unpredictably begin to surge and then slow down, in spite of a consistent application of my foot on the pedal on my part. On the plus side, it had air conditioning and an AM/FM cassette player. But it was just plain boring.
I only owned that car for a few years until I got married, at which time we bought a 1983 Toyota Tercel. At that time, I was working in New York City and commuted via train so technically we only needed one car.
Now, the Tercel was supposed to be my wife’s car. Note the term “supposed to be.” The Tercel was a 3-door (third-door being a hatchback) with a 5-speed manual transmission.
There were three things that went wrong with the Tercel:
- The carburetor kept breaking down to the point of no return. In spite of three rebuilds, it never did run right again.
- The clutch began to go. We couldn’t afford to replace the clutch, so we kept forging on.
- Last but certainly not least, my wife’s sanity almost went at the expense of the Tercel.
You see, my wife had never driven a car with a manual transmission. So I figured, Okay, I can save the money we would spend on a driving instructor and teach her myself. WRONG ANSWER.
One day after having given her about a dozen or so “lessons,” I received a frantic phone call at work. I was thinking that it had to be something bad. Well, my wife was okay (physically), but if I were standing next to her instead of being on the phone, I wouldn’t be writing this chapter right now.
She told me that the car “bucked” all the way to and from work on her first day of her new job. That was also the last time she was willing to drive the car.
So I took ownership of the Tercel and I proceeded to shop for another American car (thinking of course that my wife’s negative experience had to be related to the Tercel being a foreign car).
I drove to a local Ford dealership, looked at what they had in their used car lot and picked out a nice, sporty looking 1982 Mercury LN7. Now the LN7 is a cousin to the Ford EXP. You know, sporty looking but nothing sporty about it? It had all of 80 horsepower. Count ‘em, 80. However, since it was my wife’s car, and it was an automatic, we were both happy…for awhile until the troubles began.
You see, Ford designed their Mercury LN7 in a very interesting way. They positioned the fuel pump directly over the exhaust manifold. Besides being a fire hazard, what proceeded to happen not once, not twice, but three different times was fuel pump failure due to the seal drying out from the heat of the manifold. That problem, in and of itself, was probably enough to get rid of the car. Instead, I went back to the dealer to complain about this problem. They resolved the issue by mounting an electric fuel pump on the driver’s side firewall. Problem with that? Very noisy. I was beginning to get sick of this car.
My wife was willing to put up with the whining noise that the electric pump would constantly make upon acceleration. But what ensued was the icing on the cake.
At one point while I was driving the car which was rare since my daily driver was the Tercel. I soon noticed a transmission problem. The car would slip in and out of gear. Sure enough, I brought the car to a local AAMCO (sound familiar?) and the technician confirmed that the transmission needed to be rebuilt.
I tried selling the car back to the dealership, but they wouldn’t give me a good deal, in spite of the transmission expense that I just put into it. So I proceeded to write the CEO of Mercury a nice, long “spirited” letter. It was so long and spirited, I actually received a check in the mail for $2,500! That covered the cost of three fuel pumps and the transmission. It was now time to look for another car…
The Datsun & Toyota were once common cars in the UK til the rust monster got hold of them.Never knew about the Mercury til now but I saw it’s EXP relation a few times.I always thought the EXP was a very strange looking car despite being a Ford fan,the Mercury version isn’t much of an improvement in the looks department.
One of the best cars I ever bought was the Datsun 120Y station wagon called the B210 in the US.
I bought Dirrek (Dirrek – for Datsun) for the amount of forty Dutch Guilders ( $ 20 US at the time) in an auction with a few wheeler dealer guys who said I was a billionaire bidding that amount for the Datsun; and one guy offered me twenty for the hubcaps, so when Dirrek was mine I’d offered him the hubcaps.
I got one iginiton key(s) and got in the car and ‘t was dead.
DEAD – DEAD
OMG I thought this is my luck.
I got a battery from the company where I worked – which was in the same street- installed it and Dirrek started and its engine hummed like a bee.
My friends and I were all in British and Italian sportscars, my MGB was out of order and my Italian Mini Cooper Innocenti had its engine blown by me, so I needed transport.
Dirrek was a Deluxe, with an AM radio installed and tinted windows and no working doorlocks.
We hated Japanese cars, but soon we found out that Dirrek would simply do the job, Dirrek’s gearbox was a smooth as a baby bottom when changing gears but most impressive, Dirrek never had a bad temper, Dirrek always started and did its thing.
Soon Dirrek, being a wagon was used to haul Jaguar engines and Alfa Romeo gearboxes by friends, we had hired a large workshop to work on our cars.
Soon we all started to get a soft spot for Dirrek, Dirrek being humble, topping him up with used oil from other cars, never in need of sparkplugs, Dirrek and his totally dented body was a miracle of loyalty.
Kids in the neighbourhood covered Dirrek in stickers and even rough taxi drivers would give you way when Dirreks orange dented body was seen in a crossing, they did not like to risk their Mercedes bodies.
I once push started a guy when his car refused to start when we were waiting for the bridge to open on the highway.
He raised his hand as a thank you, but left with a big dent Dirrek made in his rear bumper !
Dirrek jump started my Dad’s 2200 HLS Princess and the neighbours 1800 Princess in winter time as I had to jumpstart many cars in the neighbourhood.
Dirrek died when one friend, drunk, drove Dirrek through a solid brick wall.
I miss Dirrek, I miss the nice hum of his engine, his buttersmooth gearchange and his dented body and the simplicity of cars like that.
Humble cars are the best IMHO !
Rammstein.
I agree 100% Just bought a 1999 Skoda Felicia. base model.
No power steering..no electrics..just 5 on the floor and a chain drive camshaft 1.3 litres.
Unfortunately the gearbox ain’t as smooth as your Datsun’s..at least not beforethe engine warms.
But it’s good basic car..
I recognize that Tercel!
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/a-second-chance-christmas-on-the-loneliest-highway-in-america/
Hopefully the next stop is at a Honda dealer. That’s what my parents did in the late 80s, dad got a 85 Accord & mom got a 85 CRX.
From my experiences with the B210/210 Datsuns and the Tercel, these always struck me as “make do” cars, even when they were brand new. Upholstery that looked as thin and colorful as toilet paper and dashboards that looked like they would crumple if they got wet did not inspire pride or confidence. The Mercury Lynx and LN-7 TRIED to make you think they were a step (or even two steps) above those Japanese “entry level” sedans. I liked the idea of a “sporty” Escort/Lynx coupe, but the execution left much to be desired. My family had 5 or 6 Escorts over the years, not being mechanically minded, no one had a problem with the fuel pump. Instead, our family broke timing belts and destroyed clutches.
I owned a 1982 EXP. I wanted an LN7, but low inventory, coupled with my ever-snooty LINCOLN-mercury dealer led me to the Ford. Impeccable workmanship, inside and out. Terrific handling with the Michelin TRX suspension, including the Escort’s IRS. On the down side, my fuel pump failed also–on the expressway with an 18 wheeler behind me! Also, 2 recalls: AC (“Do not use–Fire Hazard”) and door striker plates (“doors can burst open in an accident “) I thought it was 70HP? Anyway, it felt like 40… The LN7 had the bubble hatchback (better cargo area) full-width taillamps, and blackout headlamp bezels. When the LN7 was cancelled, the EXP got the bubble. 1983’s added a color-keyed dash. These twins had the lowest CO drag at their introduction. I traded on a 1983 AMC Spirit GT, last of the line. Exact opposite: average workmanship and handling, but loaded; including Vacuum guage, moonroof, factory foglamps, and a 210HP Six. Also, opposite? 100% reliable and No recalls. Moral to the story: The EXP was my first NEW car. I felt so betrayed, I never bought a FoMoCo again. But, after 33 years, I am willing to give them a try. Trouble is, Merc and Thunderbird are gone…
I almost got an 84 Tercel , but got the Mitsubishi Dodge Colt instead, and that turned out to be a good car with my excellent 47 mpg hwy. not EPA. Traded that in for a Toyota pickup when we got our 2 dogs, so we could keep them separate from us. But I missed the economy of a small car. So when one of our dogs died, I got a 96 Tercel, and that turned out to be a very reliable car. 42 mpg hwy. They had switched to fuel injection, so there were no carburetor problems like the 80s Tercels.
I am realizing only now how brilliant I turned out to be by avoiding cheap new/late model cars and sticking with elderly but pampered American stuff from the 60s/early 70s. These stories about 80s economy cars are always so grim.
I was about to chime in with the same thought. Fortunately, the Mal-aise-ibu (trademark pending) ran like a champ until it was 15 years old and died of terminal rust.
These stories about 80s economy cars are always so grim.
Jim you hang with the wrong people. My 85 Mazda GLC, bought new, was brilliant. The electronic feedback carb worked even better than the manual choke Weber in the LeCar. Both were a revelation compared to the flooding. starving, stalling, stumbling, gas swilling, carbon blowing POS 78 Zephyr. A spritz of carb cleaner from time to time and a tank of Amoco gas and it ran nearly as well as the injected 98 Civic. Zero issues, nothing but routine maintenance, until it was 10 years old.
When I did get a new sled in 98, I would have bought another little Mazda without giving anything else a thought, but Mazda didn’t make small hatchbacks anymore. Just stupid, useless, sedans.
Fugly little cars those 120y Datsuns I bought a pale yellow example in Moonah Hobart for apple season transport having been unable to get ferry bookings for either my EH holden or my mate’s XF ford we made do with a cheap heap, it did 5,000 kms in 6 weeks maintenance consisted of discarding the clogged air filter and adjusting the points and one puncture repair other than that it never missed a beat and got thrashed all over Tassie good little car.
Here in rust-free Southern California, I still see B210s regulary offered for sale on Craigslist, and even see the odd survivor chugging around now and then. Some of them look semi-restored. By contrast, those early Tercels have all but vanished.
When I was attending auto shop classes at El Camino college in the late 80s and early 90s, there was a guy named George who was in charge of the tool crib in the body shop class. He owned two B210s- a base model hatchback in dark green, and a “Honey Bee” notchback coupe in boogersnot yellow.
George had impaired motor skills, a slightly spacey personality, and a severe speech impediment- all caused by head injuries sustained in a bad car wreck a few years previously. He didn’t let that stop him though. He repainted and detailed both his Datsuns and they looked stunning. And then he promptly trashed them both.
Am I remembering correctly? My brother had one of those Tercels (within a few years anyway) and IIRC it had an inline four, and of all things a CHAIN drive to rotate the engine output 90 degrees for the FWD setup. So it’s very much like a lawnmower or a bicycle.
The B210 was (thankfully) one of the last weird Datsuns (think F-10, 610, 710, etc). Never understood how someone could chose it over a Corolla….
Kudos on surviving your LN7. My brother, readying to buy his first new car in the late 80’s, skipped over the Mustang to get a re-introduced 1988.5 EXP, with the flush Euro lights and bubble back from the defunct LN7. What a POS. Slow, hateful, unreliable….but it looked good.
Slow economy cars all three, and it sounds like the ownership experience was less than stellar. But in the case of the B210 and the LN7, at least they *looked* interesting.
The B210’s particular brand of interesting was probably seen as closer to “ugly” in the 80’s and 90’s, but in retrospect they were one of the later examples of 70’s “Japanese weirdo” styling that have a certain retro charm today.
My family had an ’83 Escort from 1988 to 1993, with what I’m assuming would be the same engine as your ’82 LN7. I’m not sure if the fuel pump had issues but I do remember it was one of a very few cars that we’ve owned where the engine completely grenaded. Broken timing belt at around 115K, game over. Though in retrospect not too terrible for a car bought as cheap transportation, served its purpose well enough.
… was one of a very few cars that we’ve owned where the engine completely grenaded. Broken timing belt at around 115K, game over.
iirc, the service interval for the belt in early Escorts was 60K. A coworker of mine had a 96, which had the 1.9L version of the 1.6 the early Escorts had, with the 60K service interval. Never had the belt changed, and it broke somewhere north of 100,000. He was lucky, no engine damage. The shop got the crank and cam back in synch, slipped on a new belt, and he was on his way. He finally let go of that Escort when the trans died, no drive to the wheels, a bit north of 200,000.
iirc the service interval for early Hyundais was 60K as well. A coworker’s late 80s Excel went to something like 180,000, before the original belt broke, pistons kissed the valves and he went car shopping, for another Hyundai.
Found out Carfax has a free service where you can review the service record of your car, as reported to Carfax. I sold my Aunt’s 98 Civic in 2008. I punched in the VIN for that car and found it is now in Iowa, still going strong. At the oil change last January, it had 210,000 on the clock.
This thread is a like a trip in time for me. Thanks, Ed!
Drove a ’78 B210, among other things, for driver’s ed. Thought it was awesome. First automatic I’d ever driven. So easy.
First new car I ever bought was an ’85 Tercel. Just like the gold one in the pic, only silver.
Total stripper. No ac, 4-speed, vinyl interior throughout, crank windows, etc. Had a radio installed only after I got my first salaried job.
It was a real step up for me (and my ‘ex). : )
Bullet-proof, too.