Lada Riva

Background - or, How Did I End Up With This? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I originally learned to drive in Oregon. I learned to drive an automatic transmission, and the test was ridiculously easy (just drive for a bit, really). I never owned a car in the States, and rarely drove. I moved to the UK. Being either sensible or a coward, depending on your point of view, I decided to start from scratch. After all, cars here are by and large manual transmissions...you drive on the left side of the road...roundabouts - all these things scared me. I passed my test after two instructors (the first died...but I wasn't driving at the time) ...  Read the complete review

This is the first opinion I've written of cars I haven't owned, or driven properly. But I feel nostalgic reading other people's reviews of these Russian relics, so I have been moved to put finger to keyboard, as it were. When I was growing up, my parents were (and still are) amazingly tight with their money. Not towards me or my brother, just in terms of spending on themselves. My dad has always had company cars, but after my little brother came along my mum needed some transport to ferry the family around, for short distances. We always had the backup of the old man's Avenger/Marina/Cortina/Ital/Sierra for longer trips. Now, sensible ...  Read the complete review

It's the Summer of 1991. In a small village in North West Kent, a young man named Iain is nearing his 17th birthday and immensely looking forward to learning how to drive, as most of his friends live a long way away, public transport is appalling and his parents refuse to pick him up from a nightclub 20 miles from home at 3am. Iain's father, who I'll call Dave, as that's what his parents called him, is preparing to buy his son a second hand car to assist him in his learning how to drive, knowing how excited Iain is about the prospect. Little spins round the car park at the local Asda on a Sunday for now, and on the roads between lessons once ...  Read the complete review

My first car was a Lada Riva - it was a lovely distinctive beige colour - fashion cred nil points! My sister got a Lada at the same time - but hers was an estate (I was a little envious). However, my Lada was reliable and got me about. I remember the steering was extremely heavy - a bit like driving a tank - my arm muscles developed nicely. Other down sides to having a Lada were the obvious lack of cred. At the time I worked with young people. I remember I had some small blue cushions on the back seat (from my boyfriends scrapped Honda). If I gave any young men a lift in my car - if they dared to get in - they would hide their faces behind the cushions., ...  Read the complete review

Oh dear, oh dear...I once had a shiny red Lada Riva estate. Estate - that was the good bit. Being a gigging musician I could fit loads of stuff in the boot and everywhere else. I?m afraid, although it was really well maintained I just lost count of the number of times the AA had to be called either to get me started or to get me moving again. When enough had become enough in late 1998, I thought OK Ill sell it and get about a grand. A grand for a k-reg car - no problem. It went for 300 pounds to a bloke with a flatbed truck who took it away to Jamaica of all places. This was because it could be mended out there by any Rasta with a spanner (and I quote!). ...  Read the complete review