No Budget Reviews (Ill-Advised Modifications Edition): 1985 Austin Maestro 1.6 Vanden Plas Manual

Google Form Link for ordering Mugs, Stickers and T-Shirts: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FA...
-One 1985 Austin Maestro 1.6 Vanden Plas Manual
-One Mobile Phone
-No Fancy Outfits
-No Obscure In-Jokes
-No DSLRs
-No Shotgun Microphones
-No Fluid Head Tripods
-No Idea about Exposure
-No Budget Whatsoever
It is time for the newest instalment in that beloved cinematic automotive KZbin experience where we film practical cars that can be bought for less than £1,000 in a manner befitting of their inexpensive value! This may go horribly wrong (and frequently does)...
This time, as we test a 1985 Austin Maestro 1.6 Vanden Plas Manual, we have to deal with a very leaky canvas roof, look at a terrible paint job, wonder about what has happened to the interior and drone on about very little of any importance at all. Nothing untoward, then...
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As an independent vehicle consultant, I take potential buyers through the whole car buying process from choosing a make and model to a vehicle handover and road tax. In addition to information on this service, I also have a selection of written and video reviews of cars that I have owned, hired, borrowed or have somehow come into my possession. Please use the Contact Me page on my website to get in touch, visit my Facebook page for latest updates and share this video if you like it! Thank you for watching.
Website: www.lloydvehicleconsulting.co.uk
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[@paulie-Gualtieri.]

The leather and wood door cappings appear to be in fairly good condition, it would be lovely to be restored, the whole car looks very solid.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

I think Patrick intends to fix the roof and the paintwork at some stage, sir, as well as tidying up a few other things.

[@TPerry2828]

I do love a Maestro, sir 💕 All parallel lines and boxy loveliness, you could hold a barn dance in one of these, soooo much space 😊 Thanks for that end-of-year treat! Best wishes for 2023 👍🏻

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Sir, I am glad that you enjoyed this little Maestro-shaped End of the Year treat! You could indeed hold a barn dance in one of these, the Montego Estate was even better in that respect.

[@scottishcarenthusiastsandtrain]

Nice to see a Maestro back on the Channel a VP as well. Got to love a digital dash. A excellent review as always Sir, wishing you all the best for 2023.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

We do like Vanden Plas badged cars on this channel, sir.... Patrick, who owns this one, is surprised I don't have one of my own yet. They aren't exactly common!

[@scottishcarenthusiastsandtrain]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting I can see you one day sir having a VP.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@scottishcarenthusiastsandtrain , could be a long time, sir....

[@seancooke7332]

For this Maestro to be solid for a car more than 30 years old shows that the engineering was quite good. It does blow the Mk3 Escort away for space and handling. Some young guys in the mid 1980s actually put spotlights and rear spoilers onto Maestro 1.3s because they were quite fast. Talking Dash stood the test of time when nobody thought that it would. It was a great car from a Company that everyone knew was strapped for cash.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Yes, much better handling than a Mark III Escort and much more interior space, although the interior quality was not always the best. Two Maestro Vanden Plas on the channel so far, and two working digital dashboards!

[@adamtoms2726]

What a gem, I think it'll be a lot nicer once the webasto is fixed or removed. But some interesting modifications, with the MG alloys etc. Thanks for another excellent video of the Miracle Maestro!

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Yes sir, it is an interesting car, it would certainly be a bit better if it didn't leak to the same extent.

[@mattw8332]

Ooh fantastic! This Maestro deserves some TLC, being a Vanden Plas. I've previously mentioned on Maestro videos in the past that my parents once owned an early MG 1600 with the ill fated R series engine in the late 1980s to 1990s, so the digital dashboard and trip computer are very familiar to me. While a newer 2.0 EFi would have been much more desirable, used examples of these were well outside of their budget. My dad traded it in for a Vauxhall Carlton CD in November 1993 when I was 16 years old. Had he decided to keep hold of the Maestro for another year to eighteen months, then I could have had a fairly sensible car to learn to drive in.

[@maestromontegometroappreci7287]

Will be getting some tlc soon as the weather is nice again

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Sir, the R-Series was not very good. Can never remember if they offered a free upgrade to the S-Series under warranty or not, but clearly the car your parents had still had its original engine. We look forward to some more TLC for the Vanden Plas!

[@badbooks476]

A MAESTRO VANDEN PLAS with WOOD & LEATHER interior, WOW Sir. What a survivor, wonderful electronic dash. Excellent that Patrick has saved it & will preserve it.

[@maestromontegometroappreci7287]

Thank you sir this car has been a brilliant old thing never let me down once

[@badbooks476]

@@maestromontegometroappreci7287 my Aunty had an A reg HLS new & I am sure it had a talking dash, I might be imagining things, but not digital like the VDP

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Only the MG and Vanden Plas models made before February 1986 had the digital dashboard, from what I understand. The extremely late HLS I have driven (registered January 1986), also owned by the same chap, had the standard old fashioned dash in it.

[@maestromontegometroappreci7287]

@@badbooks476 it could be possible it did have it as it option for the hls spec models

[@stevecoinitin7521]

In 1995 I bought an 87 S series 1.6 VP in blue/grey 2 two-tone paint. Had it 2.5 years and put 30,000 miles on it. It never mist a beat. Engine was a little oil leaky, but never got worse. Was a great drive and pulled nicely in 3rd. Only issue with these was the front door outers seemed to peel away from the inner at the base. The tailgate was so heavy, hardly surprising the struts failed after awhile. I often thought the Maestro was what the Allegro aspired to nearly be until design cost cutting and what an Allegro mk2 might have been.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Yes, tailgate strut failure is really common with these. The S-Series does suffer from head gasket leaks from time to time, I have driven four Maestros with the 1.6 now. One of my grandfather's Maestros was two tone blue and grey like your Vanden Plas, but I think it was a Mayfair.

[@E92M3Guy]

I love the way the voice states it's function like "time" but it doesn't say what the time actually is . Presumably they did not have the chip capacity to store 24 hours worth of time data on it . An old work colleague from the eighties , bought a 2 year old montego vanden Plas , kept it for 3 years and part ex'd it for a rover sterling, good times.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Yes, I have filmed a Montego Vanden Plas on the channel and it was absolutely fantastic. The talking dashboard is almost entirely useless, but brilliant at the same time!

[@markonmotoring]

Another bargain survivor. It would be nice to see this brought back to its former glory being a VP spec but that really would be a labour of love considering how much body work would need to be done. For now at least it's on the road and being driven just as was always intended.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Yes, it's one of the first Maestros Patrick ever bought (he has five others, I think), so he has a special attachment to this one. Gearbox aside (a lot of them are a bit vague and sloppy like this), this one actually drives really well, it does need a fair bit of cosmetic work, but that is not much of a surprise...

[@mickles1975]

That's not a fog light switch, Mr Lloyd. That's the barbecue switch. It's a shame about the Webasto roof. They're very cool.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

It's possibly the worst installation of a Webasto Roof I have ever seen, sir, sadly.

[@paullonghurst1390]

What a wonderful car, love it to bits

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

It needs some work, but it was a lot of fun, thank you for watching!

[@owensteele1645]

More posh digital-dash Maestro action. Non-digital early instrument clusters were also used in some Range Rover Classics of the same era. Seeing how nuts mk3 Escort and to a lesser extent mk2 Astra prices have become, these Maestros won't be No Budget Reviews money for long. And I never knew the 1.6 gearbox came from Volkswagen, I thought all the 5-speeds were Honda-sourced, so thanks for telling me. Which Volkswagens also used it? Also, I hope you and your family had a lovely, peaceful Christmas, and all the best for New Year.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

No, only the 2.0 Maestros and Montegos had the PG1 Honda-designed gearbox, the others had the Volkswagen gearbox from the Golf/Polo (I believe). Maestros are quite rare now, although values are not particularly high for the ordinary ones at the moment. There was indeed a much simpler version of the early Maestro dashboard available.

[@glennduers6148]

Happy new year when it comes to you your family and subscribers 😁👍

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Thank you very much indeed, Glenn! Happy New Year to you as well.

[@dominicjackson2498]

Splendid review of a fine vehicle sir. Of course a beige leather interior would have been better but then again who’s complaining at this age and price point?! Very best wishes to you and yours for 2023 and may your channel and its extremely interesting content continue to grow!

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Happy New Year to you as well, sir! We would prefer a beige leather interior, but we can always wait for another one to come along which has one, can't we?

[@tz6414]

Lovely item, seems good condition and would be very useful with very little work. I would see if it can be modified to mg1600 engine spec to give it a bit more urge. Then it would be rather fun to nip about in. Interested to hear about escort mk3 handling, I had a mk3 1.3 and mk4 1.6 and they seemed to handle very well, never ever got into any issues with them despite driving the wheels off them as a 20 year old.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Yes, needs the sunroof removing and a metal panel welding on its place, a new paintjob and a few interior and exterior bits, but it is quite solid, and the engine pulls very well. Having driven a Mark III Escort on the channel in 2020, I can tell you that Maestros definitely do handle a bit better.

[@zzhughesd]

Even now cannot believe the digi voice dash. And I thought I was spoilt with my new to me ten years plus old Tempra SW Derv back c.1999

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

I am afraid that the Maestro beat the Tempra by some seven years in terms of the digital dash, sir...

[@zzhughesd]

@@lloydvehicleconsulting mental chicken oriental. Never knew

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

@@zzhughesd , the Maestro digi dash was not a success.

[@Rich.Aardvark]

My father had a B reg red 1.6 R series auto. He got it cheap because of the engine change. Unfortunately it didn't have the talking dash and I couldn't live out my Micheal knight fantasies.

[@Rich.Aardvark]

Do I remember correctly, did the kind lady remind you if you had not clunk clicked every trip?

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

The automatic Vanden Plas models are VERY heavy to drive if they do not have power steering. Yes, the kind lady does tell you to put your seat belt on!

[@zzhughesd]

Chrome mirrors back middle 80’s? We’re they standard ??

[@mattw8332]

I think they probably were standard, maybe to set the Vanden Plas apart from the rest of the range.

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Yes, standard on the Vanden Plas at the time, although the later Mayfairs (available from early 1986) also had the chrome mirror caps.

[@nickyboy.]

3rd

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

Very good, sir!

[@zzhughesd]

Chrome mirrors back middle 80’s? We’re they standard ??

[@maestromontegometroappreci7287]

On the Vanden Plas they were

[@zzhughesd]

@@maestromontegometroappreci7287 should know. Look at them every NEC classic annually last 10 years

[@lloydvehicleconsulting]

We do like the chrome mirrors on the Mayfair and Vanden Plas....