Wheel Nut:
In 1979, these were the lorries we were driving with great memories of them.
Can someone name me a decent British built W plate lorry during Maggies Tenure?
There are still some great ERF and Fodens out there but look what was offered by the other manufacturers.
SCANIA with a MERCEDES wheel trim on the front 
BIGRIG:
oldsid:
This was what was responsible for the decline of the British wagon
Witchipoo
+1
I was in the army during the Labour governments 70âs strike ridden tenure, I had to be a Binman, Fireman, Petrol Tanker Driver, Ambulance Driver, oh and try and stop some deluded Irishmen from blowing the â â â â out of the country, while being told we wouldnât get a wage rise as long as Labour were in power, God bless Maggie, she had more balls than a snooker table and she gave me a bit more money to let me get on with the job I was supposed to do. I canât understand how the working class have time after time backed a Labour party that causes chaos everytime they are in government with this latest howler topping the lot, Iâm no conservative but when are people going to open their eyes to Labour, the party that does absolutely nothing for the working man.
oldsid:
Wheel Nut:
curnock:
oldsid:
This was what was responsible for the decline of the British wagon
responsible for the decline of britain fullstop,and now sheâs got one of her offspring to come and finish off what she started !!! ggggggggggggggggggrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
Back on topic we were producing some very antiquated products in the motor industry by the late seventies. the bmc engine in the mini had been around since the A30 and morris minor virtually unchanged . The money save inresearch and development should have made them a fortune but it leaked out in the worst inneficiencies imaginable.
As you say, back on topic, yet you blame a lady from Grantham who was working as a chemist for the downfall of the motor industry 
Trade Unions caused the demise of Britain. They caused the closure of the motor manufacturing industries too.
Politics. What next? To save repetition, this lot ought to be on the âWhat went wrong?â thread. In answer to the original question: No, the âsmallâ Volvo range of the early â60s did not finish the British lorry industry, nor did any other foreign make. The British makersâ own failure to invest in design, tooling and marketing was what killed them, and it started not long after the War. By the time that little Volvo 4 wheeler made its way over the water, the disease was already terminal. Iâm off to the other thread, where I will be wearing my tin hat! viewtopic.php?f=35&t=77860
My own experiences include another factor in favour of European truck manufacturers and the demise of UK truck manufacturers.
During the 1970âs we entered the " Common Market " (pre-runner to E.U.) and there was great expansion in the transport industry during these strike ridden times into TIR European transport - it was the only way to keep busy and avoid bankruptcy - remember the three day week we had to contend with under labour strikes in UK ?
There was no back-up for UK trucks in Europe, whereas the Scania, Volvo & Mercedes marks had dealers and breakdown/repair facilities everywhere, usually with a 24 hour turn round on repairs to keep trucks running,(compare that to UK dealers) - UK truck makers were just not into " Europe " yet that was where the activity was !
Sorry - Yeah - I have posted this on the wrong thread
Itâs now on " What went wrong "
I have posted my views on âthe other threadâ too although it does read like fan worship for the ânewâ British motorbike industry 
Back to the question though, no, it wasnât the little Volvo that killed the British lorry, it was the British lorry that committed suicide because it felt bullied 
ERF had a good showing in France and Australia which the Europeans have failed to overtake until recently. Scania having a strong market share as long as they were built in Angers.
European dealers and breakdown services have been mentioned, although the market leader DAFAID havenât, until now. Manufacturers shared the R & D costs in the club of four, and the Maggie, DAF, Saviem and Volvo shared the same cab design. Renault and Ford did the same.
Wheel Nut:
Trade Unions caused the demise of Britain. They caused the closure of the motor manufacturing industries too.
Which part of the unionised British vehicle domestic and export manufacturing sector of the economy were you working in at the time 
to have reached that conclusion.The sad thing is that thereâs probably not that many workers employed in that sector of industry at the time left to defend themselves.
The strikes that took place were mostly,if not all,in regards to wage demands caused by price increases,which actually kept the economy afloat.Unlike after 1979 and since.
Getting too political on here, Yes that could be the first Volvo of that type in uk, but the first right hand drive F86 is well documented as T. Hutchison of Wark Northumberland 1967 & pics will have been posted on here & many magazine articles. The same wagon was restored & lives on in the Volvo museam. I myself started out on an F86 when I first got my Class 1 1974 & a good moter they were for the time quiet ,comfortable,reliable easy to drive & space for a Bunk, unlike the board across the engine in Leyland, Atki,ERF, etc etc. By the time British manufacturers got there arses into gear it was to late & the products were mainly infierior anyway, (& this is coming from a man who loved his sedatk Strato with eaton twin spillter & 410 â â â â â â â â â So maybe its not as political as some on here make out & quite probable that it was driver & owner driven.
thatcher became prime minister just before I left school, so I was to learn as I embarked on my working life that any plans and ambitions I had for my future were out of the window,and it was going to be a battle to just survive and pay my way any way I could, being so young at the time I didnât understand the long term implications of what was going on, the whole country let alone the truck building industry was never to recover from her onslaught,I know she didnât do it all by herself but thatâs no excuse she was the boss at the time, and it was what she said that went, thatâs in every prime ministerâs job description, so itâs no use people trying to make excuses for her, the old saying about hindsight comes to mind when I recall using my savings to go to Canada in the mid 80âs to look for a job driving which was my only ambition in life, not a lot to ask for really when you think about it now, this was before the oil boom there and many of the adverts for drivers had âonly Canadian nationals need applyâ added, and me with only limited experience at the time, so any chance of getting a job was slim at best, if Iâd have known what was to come in the UK in the long term iâd have settled for any kind of job there, brushing floors or peeling spuds or what ever, eventually the driving job would have come, hindsight like I said earlier.
All this hatred for maggie yet none about bloody brown who was worse than maggie knew how to be,o dont mind listening to criticism but please balance it
LB76:
All this hatred for maggie yet none about bloody brown who was worse than maggie knew how to be,o dont mind listening to criticism but please balance it
He wasnât in power as long as Maggie.Blair was worse then Brown and Cameron is catching up fast.He will finish the country off 
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I remember as a kid in the early 70s of strikes sitting in the dark miners holding the country to ransome and a spineless Harold Wilson giving in .Enter Maggie to try and sort the mess out Yes she made mistakes but her ideas were honourable.All the people who lived in council estates had the chance to buy their own homes most did she also encouraged people to start their own businesses many did .She stood firm with miners and went toe to toe with Scargill who did more damage to the mining industry than she ever did.Today we have Cameron who is trying to clean up Blair (whos wife became a multi millionaire through the human rights law)and Browns mess .Ive got my hard hat on in anticipation of the backlash
ramone:
I remember as a kid in the early70s of strikes sitting in the dark miners holding the country to ransome and a spineless Harold Wilson giving in .Enter Maggie to try and sort the mess out Yes she made mistakes but her ideas were honourable.All the people who lived in council estates had the chance to buy their own homes most did she also encouraged people to start their own businesses many did .She stood firm with miners and went toe to toe with Scargill who did more damage to the mining industry than she ever did.Today we have Cameron who is trying to clean up Blair (whos wife became a multi millionaire through the human rights law)and Browns mess .Ive got my hard hat on in anticipation of the backlash
You wonât get any flak from me.
ramone:
I remember as a kid in the early70s of strikes sitting in the dark miners holding the country to ransome and a spineless Harold Wilson giving in .Enter Maggie to try and sort the mess out Yes she made mistakes but her ideas were honourable.All the people who lived in council estates had the chance to buy their own homes most did she also encouraged people to start their own businesses many did .She stood firm with miners and went toe to toe with Scargill who did more damage to the mining industry than she ever did.Today we have Cameron who is trying to clean up Blair (whos wife became a multi millionaire through the human rights law)and Browns mess .Ive got my hard hat on in anticipation of the backlash
It was Edward Heath that was Prime Minister during the miners strikes of 1972 and 1974 and Jame Callaghan in office during the winter of discontent in 1979.Harold Wilson wasnât in office during a miners strike.I blame Thatcher and Blair for running this country down with Cameron taking it into deeper trouble.
Donât forget the blessed icon of socialism Anthony Wedgewood-Benn who wrecked Triumph and then forced through the BMC - Leyland merger against the wishes of Stokes.
However, what finished the British lorry was sheer lousy British management which alienated the workforce and spent whatever profits there were on themselves ignoring product development and quality control. Who remembers the Leyland fixed head engines? Even if they didnât bankrupt the company they certainly wrecked itâs reputation and fleet owners deserted the unreliable poorly built retro rubbish that Leyland group, Atkinson (yes they were guilty of producing draughty uncomfortable cabs with outdated power trains), Seddon Atkins et al were churning out for the sophisticated machines from the continent. What would you rather drive, a Marathon or a 110?
Jazzandy:
Donât forget the blessed icon of socialism Anthony Wedgewood-Benn who wrecked Triumph and then forced through the BMC - Leyland merger against the wishes of Stokes.However, what finished the British lorry was sheer lousy British management which alienated the workforce and spent whatever profits there were on themselves ignoring product development and quality control. Who remembers the Leyland fixed head engines? Even if they didnât bankrupt the company they certainly wrecked itâs reputation and fleet owners deserted the unreliable poorly built retro rubbish that Leyland group, Atkinson (yes they were guilty of producing draughty uncomfortable cabs with outdated power trains), Seddon Atkins et al were churning out for the sophisticated machines from the continent. What would you rather drive, a Marathon or a 110?
I read that Stokes wanted to close AEC as early as 1968
Dave the Renegade:
ramone:
I remember as a kid in the early70s of strikes sitting in the dark miners holding the country to ransome and a spineless Harold Wilson giving in .Enter Maggie to try and sort the mess out Yes she made mistakes but her ideas were honourable.All the people who lived in council estates had the chance to buy their own homes most did she also encouraged people to start their own businesses many did .She stood firm with miners and went toe to toe with Scargill who did more damage to the mining industry than she ever did.Today we have Cameron who is trying to clean up Blair (whos wife became a multi millionaire through the human rights law)and Browns mess .Ive got my hard hat on in anticipation of the backlashIt was Edward Heath that was Prime Minister during the miners strikes of 1972 and 1974 and Jame Callaghan in office during the winter of discontent in 1979.Harold Wilson wasnât in office during a miners strike.I blame Thatcher and Blair for running this country down with Cameron taking it into deeper trouble.
What would you suggest Cameron does ,carry on spending money we havent got just like the government he followed? Last week the uproar of the RBS boss receiving ÂŁ1 million bonus , and milliband demanding he shouldn`t take it.Whether he should have taken it or not it was part of his t&cs when he took the job if he reached his targets.The RBS has a committee who run the bank and are responsible for all decisions ,now who put this committe in place yep Labour. Just think of the uproar you would have if other workers from different sectors were denied what they were promised if they worked hard and hit their targets.The amount is obscene but its what the committee promised before he took the job.Do you think he will stick around ? I my opinion most MPs are the same , they â â â â in different pots but they are all linked into 1 big cespit.The only time you never hear them argue in parliment is when it comes to them agreeing to their self imposed annual pay rises
Edward Heath was a brilliant musician and accomplished yachtsman, but a bloody hapless conservative leader. He signed us up to the EEC and Decimal Currency. Oh, and he sacked Enoch!
