If you have ever wondered why Britain no longer has a car industry, then you might get a few clues from this Austin Allegro road test that featured in Motor Transport in the mid-1970s. Yes I know it’s not a commercial vehicle, but since it appeared in MT’s Car Fleet Management supplement I reckon it warrants a place on this blog.

In the three years it was on the fleet the following went wrong:

9,600 miles – knocking gearbox – stripped and gears replaced
11,700 miles – alternator failed
12,000 miles – radio burnt out as it had been connected the wrong way around.
20,000 miles – water leaks into boot at rate of 2 inches per hour, and BL is never able to cure the problem.
21,000 miles – windscreen washer motor failed
22,000 miles – indicator lever fell off
23,000 miles – complete new exhaust system fitted
25,000 miles – interior light falls off
25,500 miles – gearbox knocking, caused by loose bolt
28,000 miles – new brakes throughout
36,000 miles – second exhaust system fitted
37,000 miles – alternator re-aligned
37,300 miles - fourth fan belt fitted
45,000 miles – radiator cap fires off on M4
49,000 miles – second alternator fails
49,000 miles - new brakes throughout
49,000 miles – second set of Michelin tyres fitted
50,000 miles – new gearbox fitted
50,000 miles – new clutch fitted
50,000 miles – engine valves replaced
50,000 miles – constant velocity joints about to fail

And here are a few quotes from the test that I particularly enjoyed:
“The boot is fine for floating boats in, but not much fun for the rep who has to keep samples in the boot”.
“We serviced the car a little more than the manufacturer recommendation, in that it went to our company garage every 3,000 miles”.
“As a front-line fleet car the Allegro’s life should have been limited to about 40,000 miles.”
“Apart from these minor troubles, the car has been behaving itself very well.”

According to the DVLA website this particular car was scrapped in 1983, when it was just nine years old. I’m surprised it lasted this long.