Paul Wager gets behind the wheel of a timewarp MGB with less than 5k on the clock

Sometimes it’s the everyday classics that really catch your eye – and this 1977 Viva estate just such a car. So few of Vauxhall’s Seventies workhorses were carefully preserved, but preserved this one has been – and it’s a credit to its one and only owner. The car was laid up from 1995 until last year but, was obviously stored properly since the bodywork is in excellent condition, as is the interior.

The HC comes from an era where General Motors’ Vauxhall arm was producing very much scaled down versions of its US products and on its Rostyle wheels the transatlantic theme is very much in evidence in the car’s swoopy quad-lamped styling, even if the 1.3-litre four-pot motor is very much more Luton than Detroit.

The 59bhp pushrod is an eager unit and is mated to a delightfully light and precise short-throw gearchange, which is more pleasant to use than many brand new cars today. It drives much as you’d expect a 21,000-mile car to drive, which is to say pretty much like new.

FACT FILE

ENGINE: 1256cc, 4 cyl OHV
POWER: 59bhp
TOP SPEED: 82mph
0-60 MPH: 20.5 secs
CONSUMPTION: 33mpg
MOT: 12 MONTHS
GEARBOX: 4-spd man

FOR SALE AT: Thornfalcon Classics, Somerset
TEL: 01823 444500
WEB:  www.thornfalconclassics.com

To read the complete road test see the February 2011 issue of Classic Car Mart - back issues available here