Collecting Addicts Episode 57: Tribute to Marcello Gandini, Favourite TV Sleuth Car & Self-Servicing
What have you done this week in a car? If you've only been a passenger or a pedestrian, you can live vicariously through the many activities of our hosts. From touring the Cairngorms searching for the "GR Yaris" of Scotch Whisky, to car-spotting on foot with kids through Belgravia on the way to eating some Peking Duck, you should be inspired to do more with cars this week!
This and more on episode 57 of the Collecting Addicts podcast!
---
(00:00) Intro
(00:59) This week in cars
(23:32) Favourite TV sleuth
(37:29) Itches that need scratching
(48:27) Home servicing
(1:00:43) Funny motorway signs
(1:09:27) 2 car garage
(1:20:15) Driving tunes
---
About Collecting Addicts Podcast:
Collecting Addicts is one of the leading automotive podcast hosted by Chris Harris along with fellow addicts Edward Lovett, Manish Pandey, Neil Clifford and Chris Cooper.
This eclectic bunch of car addicts gather online weekly to discuss all things automotive, from the minutiae of best gloveboxes to the latest happenings in top-tier motorsport.
They answer burning questions from listeners, debate the best and worst from the car world over the decades, and make time for regular features including ‘Two Car Garage’ and ‘Driving Tunes’.
You've watched the podcast. Now shop the collection. Check our our new merch store to get your hands on our first Collecting Addicts Collections - shop.collectingcars.com/.
---
Looking to sell your collectible car and put it in front of a wide-reaching global audience? Enquire now: collectingcars.com/sell/
---
Follow Collecting Cars on:
Website - www.collectingcars.com
Instagram - / collectingcars
Twitter - / collectingcars_
Facebook - / collectingcarsltd
TikTok - / collectingcars
#collectingcars #chrisharris #podcast #collectingaddicts
2 car garage: You are a team principal with some questionable (but ultimately relatable) extracurricular pursuits. No budget, you're a legend after all; but due to recent PR setbacks, things are getting a bit hot and sticky around you. To throw everyone off your scent, you need at least one Mercedes, ideally two. But now that you're behaving, only the luscious curves of a 1960s automobile (when car design peaked) can still get you firing on all cylinders, if you know what I mean. You like them shapely and elegant, with extravagant, irresistible beauty that will have you passionately texting all night long. An exhaust that trembles when it's going is a must, as are locking wheel nuts. It must be a shape that you could tell without looking -- even if you were blindfolded and just had to stroke it in order to identify it, even if it causes scrotal recall. Love you five -- Cooper can have the 50s decade to pick from as well, go nuts
😊😊😊😊
I think even with their reported “setbacks”, I think they could still dig deep into the finances and justify a restomod Mercedes “Pagoda”, with a modern AMG engine underneath. Don’t forget, the wife also has a few quid after all 😉
The best KZhead channel for everyday people. Your advice has been a game changer for me and my family. Thank you!
Absolutely love it!!! I'll have to be financially stable in every sense before purchasing my first supercar. The best thing to do with your money is to invest rightly because money left saving will end up with no returns.
Absolutely, It's not just about owning a beautiful car but also understanding the market trends. Consulting a car investment specialist or a financial advisor with expertise in alternative investments can help navigate the complexities and ensure you make informed decisions.
No doubt being financially free and able to afford these luxuries cannot be overemphasized, making smart plans and setting up diversified investment portfolios is quite essential.
That sounds like an incredible choice! I'm intrigued as well and considering a similar move. Perhaps we should seek advice from a specialist in luxury car investments. Do you have any recommendations?
Our family got introduced to NATHAN TRAVIS COOK,a financial consultant about four years before my dad retired. That was what changed things, and I think my retirement income will be on the right track, luxury cars and trips
Wouldn’t be Friday without this lads. Morning all 👋🏻
Morning from Cambridge, UK
Luca’s biggest contribution to Ferrari road cars, was bringing back the front engined v12s. The 550, the 599 are a signature of his brilliance.
Yup. Remember when the press shat on them at the time also.
550 defo
Hated the 550 when they came out and now can't stop looking at them
Having watched the Bentley Chauffeur vid in the week, my love and admiration for Neil Clifford has increased even more. Now I need to go spend a day at Haynes Motor Museum. Love it
Still my favourite podcast. When I describe it to friends not yet in the know, I say that it's like you've nipped into your local pub for a swift one - a quiet moment. You're setup on a stool at the bar. Behind you are a group of friends, clearly good friends. Who all enjoy a shared passion in cars. You slowly enjoy your pint, whilst earwigging on the hilarious banter on the table behind you. Please keep it coming. Two Car Garage: You're a forty something father of two, happily married and living outside London. You live in an alternate reality where Porsche were swallowed up and destroyed by VW ☹. And Renault were not smart enough to revive the Alpine brand and grace us with the A110. You find yourself with a not insignificant but not ridiculous windfall of £100,000 that doesn't have to go on a holiday or the mortgage. It's your first chance to be selfish. The family cars are in need of replacing but you now only need one to 'service' the kids (still on booster seats) The other can be a toy and only have two seats if you like, but must not break the bank when the annual service comes around. Perhaps your answer can pontificate on the idea of which brand would have occupied the vacuum left by Porsches absence. 1. Family car 2. A sports car, to enjoy, but also that is capable of daily use if required. Point to consider: You do not have a garage - only a 2-3 car drive way ps. Manish - the 456 at Hanger 136 looks attractive, but won't you regret not having the Daytona Blue, and correct wheels?
My Dad had his 60th @ The Haynes Motor Museum...and they very kindly left the RED room open for us ...which was very nice..so if you can picture me, and guests wandering around freely with a glass of champers studying Alfa's, Ferrari's and many many more gorgeous red cars from yesteryear. What a fantastic place and what a fantastic family the Haynes' are :) Thanks for another superb pod chaps. Justin
Good morning from Berlin .All ready for another hour or so of interesting talk from five characters.
Guys many of us still service and maintain our own cars. Changing a car battery is still simple, you just need a £30 code reader to install a replacement battery, Great podcast
I have to agree with Chris, that lever on the BMW seat / rocker button is a really good thing. I’ve never experienced a better seat than in a BMW. Love the podcast, it’s costing me a fortune in bad life choices. ❤
A car failing, being quickly/easily fixed by you, and continuing your trip is much better than a car not breaking down in the first place.
Columbo would drive a Peugeot 307CC in which the roof would get stuck half way open. No doubt he could antagonize the perp by asking him to help close it! Great podcast guys.
Re nose picking. I was at the traffic lights in Melbourne ,Australia 47 years ago. There was an outrageous DJ called Ric Melbourne who was popular at the time. He suddenly urged everyone stopped at traffic lights to look at the person in the car next to them. He predicted they would be picking their nose! The guy next to me looked at me as I turned to look at him. He was picking his nose. I laughed at him. Unfortunately he laughed at me at the same time as I also had lost a finger up my probiscus as well. We both realised our shared stupidity in the same next moment and laughed again at our own embarrassing dual action and Ric Melbourne's prescient and outrageous prediction.
I love this chat among friends. I still have a timing light, dwell meter, and feeler gauge to gap points and spark plugs. Why keep that stuff? I smile when I open that drawer in one of my toolboxes when I remember the days when I owned an air-cooled VW Beetle. My kids will never experience that.
This podcast just shows there is not enough car stuff on tv !! Brilliant, Manish should definitely be the next James Bond !! Too cool for school
Brilliant.. this gets funnier every week 😂
I'm with Manish, I built an Acorn Atom from a kit and programming games was great fun, but also rebuilding old 2 stoke motorcycles and giving them a home brew porting job was great too and lead to greasy fingernails ever since
Gandini is one of my favourite designers, not all of his vehicles were home runs as he worked on conventional commuter cars, under a limited budget and time constraints. But a lot of his work at Bertone design firm is just magic and wish I could be a fly on the wall design buddy of his to see the design work come to life. A Lancia Stratos in York Green and gold rims is dope and cannot turn down a Lamborghini Miura in any colour combination and love everything about the Countach as a child born in the late 80s to know of its final versions in my upbringing and love the odd Italian retro coolness of the Espada. He designed the prototypes for the Diablo + Cizeta-Moroder V16T and so many others. The Bugatti EB 110 in blue exterior/grey interior was one of my first model cars my dad bought me as a child in my collection of 1:18 scale supercars and saw a full carbon fiber body version at the 2019 LA AutoShow (Staples Center) and needed a good long moment to study it to tell friends to wait to absorb all the details in the flesh to be amazed + Renault 5 Turbo to infuse some passion towards the French. He will always live on as an incredible automotive designer that sparked ideas in so many people of what a car could/should become.
As usual fantastic. Thoroughly enjoyed it. And may it continue.
Wonderful, respectful tribute to Marcello Gandini amongst the usual, fun banter. Don't stop.
About 20yrs ago, the Haynes museum ran an enthusiast club where you got free entry and special events were organised for us. They'd bring a selection of cars out for passenger rides on the test track and the A303. Been for rides in their Viper, Countach, countless British and American classics and even the XJ220. The Jaguar was on the A303 and a very spirited drive!
Is it me or is Mr Clifford looking more and more like Jonathan King ? Great podcast as ever
That is my favorite Scotch, amazing!!
I absolutely love this podcast!! My new favourite weekly thing to listen to when I walk the dog in a Saturday morning! Thanks Chaps!
You guys are the group of friends everyone wants ❤
Gandini also designed the Autobianchi A112 , which in Abarth guise was the first hot hatch long before the Golf GTI.
I do all the servicing on my 2016 Golf R. The oil change takes about half an hour with no special tools. I’ve done the Haldex 4wd oil, the dsg gearbox oil and the front and rear transfer box oils that VW say are sealed for life. I’ve also done discs and pads. If you want to change the battery you just need a £20 obd reader and a phone app. You guys just have too much money 😉
Totally agree re £10k boxster. I had a 2.7 986 with hard top and it was so so sweet a drive. And practical. Brilliant.
Hearing Neil wanting a TVR, just makes me like him even more. Having owned a Griff 500 for 5 years, it was a joy to drive. Minor niggles only, sounds lovely, great A and B road cruiser. I commend anyone keen, to get one. Reasonably priced for the performance as well. Sold mine only to scratch a T350 itch.
….did that itch turn into a rash? 😉
excellent episode as per usual chaps
Micheal Jayson who voiced the BX Gandini ad passed away only 7 weeks ago. Great podcast as always, a highlight of the week. Thoroughly enjoyed the Bentley Mulsanne film earlier in the week too.
Sisters of Mercy, Chris!....Its in my car now - I play it a lot. Jeez, Patricia Morrison....right up there with Helena Bonham-Carter as sexy goths. Love The Cure, The Cult ( 'she sells sanctuary' for example), and Bauhaus. Look out a great double album called ' The Dark side of the 80's' Some fantastic tracks for the car.
I find it funny when someone says remember them, etc. I've never forgotten them. I've been to see The Cure. Sisters, and Bauhaus all within the last few years, and still listen to them all regularly.😁
Great fun! Neil kills me with some of his comments 😂😂😂
I like the Manish itch. I have a Triumph GT6 (Dark Blue) bought new for my mother in 1972. Been in the family ever since. Just about to have it recommissioned to put on the road. It has been fully restored twice and I have an itch to use it to go the 1.5 miles to my tennis club (via a Fète,) in central London. No ULEZ. No MOT No Tax. Just insurance.
Great episode chaps.
When there was fuel protests in the early 00s, our local Esso ran out of fuel and just replaced the three prices on the forecourt sign to EAT POO PIE.
Brilliant once again I think these boys could read us the dictionary and we would still listen and enjoy it. Definitely 5 guys I would love to have a coffee with.
Happy Friday! Loved the recent Bentley vid lads
You guys have really made me feel old today with you guys talking about old stuff 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Another new shiny episode of my favourite KZhead channel. HAPPY FRIDAY.
Luther had a 7 series Volvo before that....equally shitty! Chris H, Andrew Golby (an ex colleague of yours from the Haymarket days) works at Haynes now....digitising the manuals I think.
Double fun-fact that Neil's stories made me think of: a long time ago I did my school work experience at the Haynes Motor Museum. It mostly involved polishing cars (it was bloody great!), but also the guy I worked for I remember having one of those Fiat X1-9s in the burgundy with the faux BBS wheels! Small world...
That "only this laptop can service this car" is entirely theater. If the diagnostic system is truly stuck in a specific operating system then there's nothing stopping McLaren from virtualizing a desktop to that OS to run their system from a modern laptop. It's pure theater to look more impressive than it is.
It is not just the software but the interface card used to talk to the car over an HDLC protocol and the non conforming way the software talks to the card makes it impossible to virtualise. Which is why we wrote OLDtronics Monitor so these cars can live on for some time to come.
Cliffords delivery in particular but not uniquely had me in stitches
Props to Neil for remembering Hazell from the 80's. Written by ex England football manager Terry Venables. Great theme tune too sang by the fabulous and powerful voice of Maggie Bell. Very niche.
Yep, I just sold my 997.2 GT3 RS (because it was too fast and too accomplished) and bought a pristine 986 Boxster 2.5 ! It really is 95% of the car for 10% of the price. Frankly, on the road, it's actually more fun and more satisfying, because you have to work for the speed and then work to maintain said speed round corners. Very happy indeed.
E12 M535i, BLUE CORDUROY Recaro seats. Just the best 😍
Love the TVR references. The Griffith is exceptional, however look at the later Wedges with a Salisbury diff, much different to the Sierra rear end.
The 12 inch of left to my own devices was amazing
Being a fellow eczema survivor! , I’m impressed with your knowledge of creams, there’s always a new cream out there to try lol
In the Morse books he drove a Lancia, Colin Dexter later edited the books to tie in with the tv show.
Agree with Neil's comments about using your Haynes manual to do work on your own car. Back in the 80's with my first car, that was the only way I could afford one and keep it on the road. Some of my fondest memories are working on my Ford Escort in a terraced road in Portsmouth. I spent so much money in Halfords and the local car spare shops, not to mention the scrapyards like Bunnys and Silverlake for spare parts. Happy Days.
NE Scotland getting some love. Big hitters with the Lecht and Glenshee to the elbow. Search out the Cabrach best drivers road or the Cairn O’Mount, scenic with plenty of places to stop for food and drinks. Might have an Aboyne Ford connection on the Merc….
Another great episode chaps, cheers 🍻 I do wonder what some of the modern sleuths would drive. Especially Jim Rockford, he did love a Pontiac coupe, obviously not an option now. Maybe he had to go upmarket, and he’s still making repayments on a 2014 Cadillac CTS coupe, which has been modified to look like the V8 but actually it’s the 6 Cylinder, because he’s still living in an RV 😉
Stag ,self opening doors, exciting!
Vera drives a beautiful old Defender
Remember Manish that Luca daily drove a F355 Spider for some time. I love those images of him in that special car.
Ceramic coating is only as good as its application. 😀👍
Surprised none of you guys went for a spot of Jason King (Jensen Interceptor).😂
Nothing better than horace goes skiing
Mr Cooper and I gave the same answer on the speed awareness course. Those things are a very sad reflection of the average member of society.
The advert was perfect. I'd have have a Citroen Bx 1.9 gti 16v phase 2 in graphite grey and then a countach
Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio is my itch
Wiper failure is common in the mini countryman (F60) as well, another BMW product. I drove back from south of France in a tropical downpour, with no wipers, last summer. Rainex saved the day.
Regarding what Neil was talking about rain X what we’ve done on our Cars is head of the windscreen ceramic coated and that is really good for the car
While Miura is beautiful, it’s a collection of quite a few old ideas. Basic shape is a GT40, adapted to a transverse engine. A lot of the detailing is from Corvair Testudo. IMHO Carabo was Gandini’s most influental design and Countach the greatest production car that he designed. Amazing body of work. One of the greatest car designers ever.
For a road trip I recommend the full Star Wars suite on a decent surround sound system, by any philharmonic orchestra!
You can change the battery on your Boxster, Neil 😂
If I want to listen to a bunch of people sitting around talking I can just listen to the voices in my head...
Oh there was absolutely no need to shine a light on the E30 cab like that! Some people are already looking 😅
Other than bending a gold Uracco in half around a telegraph pole, my Dad's claim to faim was flipping a Triumph Stag on it's roof in the middle of a town center! He then jumped out and told the Police my Mum was driving 😂
The best sleuth car has to be Campion’s 1934 Lagonda 16/80 Special Six S-Type T7
Braemar is lovely, as is the Fife Arms. They usually have a couple of hotel cars parked in the little cobbled twin spaces at the front door of the hotel with Fife Arms logos on. A Defender and I think they have some sort of Bristol, or Rover or Jag, or something of that ilk, maybe only gets used in the sunmer. My car club has done a few organised drives via Glen Shee, the Lecht (as mentioned). No better place to drive.
Years ago there was a story of a local truck driver here sitting in traffic down south somewhere outside a solicitors office, where the poor lassie inside was sitting picking her nose, so he picked up the phone, waiting for her to answer and told her to stop it 🤣
Was just away to say, bet that’s the Aboyne garage he’s referring to 👌.
I itched my car need .... E46 M3 Coupe SMG (2004 facelift). On reflection, i should have tried a manual, but i wanted paddles. Terrible on hill starts and a useless handbrake that never holds the car on any sort of slope. And it was the colour I wanted, silver grey (as I couldnt find a techno violet one).
Always loved the Stag. Haven't fixes been developed for the troublesome V8?
With those BMW seats the whole point is you're not supposed to lean it back if you want a correct driving position. Only a few bit back from its totally forward position is where you want to be.
1:02:20 Chris Cooper talking about what he'd do for road sign messages sound just like Stephen Fry doing the audio book for The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
I'm going to get my wife to watch this again with me just to watch the confusion in her face. She just won't understand the joy it gives me that there are other people that feel the same about cars as me and why on a much more limited budget I'm always looking at the next itch to scratch
2 car garage. Recent back surgery. Northern California. Six foot, one, approaching 50-years old. No kids. No need for 4 seats. Have an Elantra N and C7 both manual to trade in. Will probably need automatics now. One-hour commute each way to work and within driving range of Highway 1 and also Sierra Nevada roads. At least one should be track-capable for Sonoma and Monterey track days and the other good for knocking off repeat 8-hour days on cross-country road trips. Total budget $40k on-top of trade-in values of existing cars.
How could you get Reliant 'Robin 'wrong on a Petrol Head channel? ....OMG!
Chris sitting on my shelf in the garage is a spare wiper linkage for you BMW ,I'm in Stoke bishop if you would like it it's yours.
I stepped off a curb in Bologna when the lights went red and a friend grabbed my coat and pulled me back, he said ‘in Italy a Red Light is optional to stop’ 😂
2 colours in the Gran Finale - Mica Red and Mica Blue and they were run-out models so F or G plate 😉
you obviously NEED my E30 325i, fully restored from bare shell and it’s an Alpina C2, for sale.
The late Terry Venables, one of the best english football managers was the co-creator of Hazell.
Anyone else listen to this whilst scrolling Autotrader??
Since listening to this i spent 35k on a silly car too
I’d love to hear you discuss this; why are motorcycles as niche a hobby as they are? The stated goal of a lot of enthusiasts is something cheap, quick, engaging, where there is a sense of community, that they can repair and maintain at home. There is no price point at which a car offers better than a motorcycle on any of these. For a grand you can get a decent, reliable, working bike with MOT which will be fun. I’m not convinced you can get many cars that even have MOT for a thousand quid anymore that don’t have some serious issues. I love cars and I’ve owned plenty of (admittedly older, low end) sports cars and the feeling from all of these well regarded drivers cars is that they’re unfocused, compromised and expensive to run and maintain in comparison to the bikes I’ve run with them and I’m not running exotic bikes. I’d pitch a 90s cb500 against Neil’s porsche anyday.
Lovejoy and his Morris minor cab
Lovejoy, Morris minor with wolf racer wheels
Plenty of us still service and repair our own cars. Most of us with any sense don’t buy our filters, etc from Halfords because there is this thing called the internet where everything costs less and you can get decent gear 😂 Yes, you need to have kept up with technology in order to deal with all the tech in modern cars, but repairing most things is still exactly as it was. An oil change still happens the same way it did on cars from 50 years ago
Fun fact - Morse had a Lancia in the books 😉
1:11:33 Refused to claim the Miura, which he did design, but loved that he designed the Espada and claimed that. So weird
I have a Quattroporte S!! Get in
3:06 Because he was green with envy (towards everyone with green cars, cars with proper gearboxes, people with cars which weren't designed poorly by nearly bankrupt companies on a shoestring budget).
I went to the boarding school in Bruton.
What's your favourite High Level Brake Light and did you you know the E-pace doesn't have one or at lest the two ive seen this week didnt? As for self servicing, i miss it. I suppose i could service my M140i, but it doesn't have a dipstick (other than me driving it) and has an electronic service book! I do however, still replace brakes as it still has a proper handbrake. But cars are just to technical and the battery is case in point. My old 123D ate 2 batteries but lucky enough you could use Carly to reset etc. Watching the likes of Matt Armstrong and Chris Slix where EVERYTHING is coded to the car is just mental including headlights, i mean WTAF! Gone are the days of replacing your wheel bearings on your 82 XR2 on boxing day. However, M539 Restorations shows you can still fettle but that's on older BMW's.
Each of you pick 2 cars that both either follow the edgy/angular design language or the rounded/swoopy design language. One daily usable car, one sunny sunday drive car.
Tell Neil that you can get Rainx screen wash from Halfords.... works pretty well for me..... you lot must be doing something wrong, which wouldn't surprise me 😅