- the 'handlebars' had all the controls on, and were 'push-pull' to turn! (can't remember which way was which)
- Early cars were Villiers 2-stroke powered. Later ones were Steyr-Puch 650 flat-twin, (like the Haflinger engine)
- Vauxhall Viva HB - BMC 1100 Mk1 - Morris 1000 Traveller
Auntie Rose's AC Invacar
My aunt proudly trying out her new AC Invacar, 1975...
These were a strict single-seater, supplied by the British government
to the disabled........ affectionately (?) known as 'spaz chariots'
by the youth of the day and rendered obsolete in the late '80s by
the 'Motability' scheme, which gave government grants for converted
automatic Metros and suchlike which were perceived to have less social
stigma.
Not long into her motoring career, she was stopped by the police for
taking my Grandmother shopping squeezed in beside the single seat.
The coppers were surprised to find a nun and her mother, and let her
off (but made gran walk!!)
and yes... it's the same AC of Cobra fame!!
Comments and faves
montanaman1, Gene Hunt, monkey knuts, skittzitilby, and 18 other people added this photo to their favorites.
Sherlock77 (James) (68 months ago | reply)
Great car... Great photo... I love little microcars, and I I know of the AC Invacar...
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Period Photographs of Transportation (pre-1980), and we'd love to have your photo added to the group.
ƒliçkrwåy (68 months ago | reply)
A great nostalgic photo. I have a humorous nuns calendar in my hall this year and this almost fits!
montanaman1 (68 months ago | reply)
I have an ad for the Mk II in my photostream.
Lawrence Peregrine-Trousers (68 months ago | reply)
Thanks for the comments.. Rose expired in the '80s but loved her little invacar and would be pleased to see this pic up on the typewriter/telly thing as she may well have called a PC!
Cheers!
Martin van Duijn (68 months ago | reply)
Now that's a photo we would like to see at our Car memories and guesses group!
Martin van Duijn (68 months ago | reply)
I don't get it. A nun and her mother. But I see two nuns.
But weren't there AC's like this one that could legally carry two people?
In Holland disabled people got grants for these automatic beauties:
Lawrence Peregrine-Trousers (68 months ago | reply)
Hi Martin.. That's my aunt in the driving seat.. I don't know who the other nun is! Ma superior maybe?
Certainly not grandma... (nuns don't usually reproduce!)
There may have been similar ACs for two people (AC Petite?) but these invalid carriages were only licensed for one in Britain. The police tale is true!
Dafs I fully approve of.... I remember them being quite popular in '70s Britain, not many left now though!
I was pleased to spot a Daf 33 van in use for flower delivery in Amsterdam 2004.
skittzitilby (67 months ago | reply)
i so remember these
used to be lots of them around in the 70's.
was a lady called Mrs Newby near us who used to have one
thanks for the reminder
The Big Jiggety (66 months ago | reply)
As I said earlier, very nice, sweet, quirky shot.
mrrobertwade (wadey) (65 months ago | reply)
The Daf dealers was at Rising Bridge near Accrington. Yes the Police were always telling the drivers of the invalid cars off for trying to carry stowaways.
Lawrence Peregrine-Trousers (65 months ago | reply)
Was that Smith & O' Sullivan? I always remember them as a FIAT dealer in the '70s but, now you say it, Daf rigs a bell too.
Ange Halle (65 months ago | reply)
wonderfully ironic ! very british ?
abriwin (65 months ago | reply)
Lawrence,
some totally irreverent facts but ;)
My Dad had a Daf van which was great to drive with it's odd automatic transmission, belt driven I believe,
as to auntie/Sister Rose she reminds me of a friend I had in West London for a number of years Sister Sally O'Sullivan,
Sister Sally did not drive an Invacar (to my knowledge) but would have been entitled to.
get the connections :)
ps
Invacars were apparently rather unstable and had the nasty habit (particularly when driven by a nun:) of tipping over if cornered too fast!
Gene Hunt (65 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Older pics of Manchester, and we'd love to have your photo added to the group.
I remember these AC Invacars very well, if I had MY way these would be brought back onto the streets of Greater Manchester and all over the UK!
1hr photo (64 months ago | reply)
They went up like a torch, though. I remember seeing a burnt out Invacar - just a triangular chassis with a wheel at each corner...
Pew Pew Pew! Lasers! (64 months ago | reply)
Excellent. I remember these, you really don't want to know what we called them when we were kids.
There used to be a scrapyard full of them, on Sion Street in Radcliffe. There must have been 20 of them piled high, in the eighties.
nightfire620 [deleted] (60 months ago | reply)
Invacar and a leg calliper - Sights of the 70`s indeed!
Lawrence Peregrine-Trousers (57 months ago | reply)
Indeed nightfire... the first I heard of the word 'calliper' was Rosie's leg.. when later I learnt about disc brakes the word seemed a bit strange in its new context!
mrrobertwade (wadey) (57 months ago | reply)
and you don't see as many "built up" shoes now or people with scarves wrapped round their heads after a visit to the Dentists. The Good Old Days.
the new trail of tears (56 months ago | reply)
We called 'em SpazWags short for Spaz wagon I suppose....
Aaron Gee (55 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called AC Cars, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
morrisoxford61 [deleted] (54 months ago | reply)
THEY were made by invacar of thundersley in Essex the same firm that made greevesmotorcycles
they were owned by the government and when you had finished with them they had to be returned
due to safety regulations they should all have been destroyed
you cannot get an MOT on one now
mrrobertwade (wadey) (54 months ago | reply)
Did they do a "Trials" version?
Lawrence Peregrine-Trousers (54 months ago | reply)
M. Oxford.. The Thundersley was a slightly different shape to this AC version (a bit 'squarer' generally). There were several manufacturers in the '60s and '70s, concurrently making Invacars for the government, building individual designs, but with identical layout and basic dimensions such as wheelbase and track, door height, driving controls etc to government spec.
Aaron Gee (54 months ago | reply)
M.oxford these cars were made by AC.
plbvn (52 months ago | reply)
I used to work on these at my dads garage in Newcross brings back many happy memories. They were hard to drive as they differed a lot the controls were different depending on the persons disabilty.
Dave Ferrie (51 months ago | reply)
Haha this is amazing
mrrobertwade (wadey) (51 months ago | reply)
He passed me in it the other day, I hadn't realised he had inherited it
Lawrence Peregrine-Trousers (50 months ago | reply)
I wish!!! It would be cool transport for the recession!!!
Manual Everything (40 months ago | reply)
The slight stoop to make sure they're in frame, the steadying hand on the shoulder as if to say "Control that excitement!" and the small gathering on the steps in the background watching the photo being taken just made my day.
I'd be even more chuffed to hear if there was a pack of Spangles in the glovebox, but I suspect that the space might not have been available as the driver would have to pack 2 pairs of gloves in a vehicle such as this - one to start the journey off, the other to don later when the 1st pair became wringing wet thanks to sweaty palmed excitement from being at the helm of such a thrilling machine.
Patricksmercy (35 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Catholic Hospitals, Schools and buildings, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
This photo was invited and added to the Catholic Hospitals, Schools and buildings group.
This photo was invited and added to the microcars + bubblecars group.
Lawrence Peregrine-Trousers (25 months ago | reply)
My friend JJ has just bought one!!! Pics to follow at some point..
abriwin (25 months ago | reply)
The machine or the nun?
chasgould (24 months ago | reply)
The Invacar had handlebars were steered counterintuitively, so pushing thevright bar forward, caused a left turn, and visa versa. The throttle was on the right handgrip like a motorcycle, but you had to push both handlebars down towards the floor to activate the brakes. Once you got used to it, everything was fine until you entered a roundabout, and then you tended to steer towards the curb. Then youbwould instinctually start to stomp on the floor looking for the brake pedal, which was not there, because the brakes are on the handlebars. So, if you were not disabled before you drove the Invacar, it was likely that you would be after driving it!
chasgould (24 months ago | reply)
I found one here In the states from a British woman who had her Invacar certified to import to the USA. It has a DOT compliance plaque on it and I had a ride in it tonight with not one, but two stowaways, my daughter and her friend. The reason that you saw twenty piled up at the boneyard is that the UK government ordered all of them to be crushed and sadly, most were. They would not even allow the auto museums to buy them, as they feared being sued because the Steyr Puch proprietary engines were too fast for the relatively unstable three wheeler, which tended to tip over and kill or mame people.
chasgould (24 months ago | reply)
One last comment. once you start dating nuns, it is difficult to get out of the habit!
abriwin (24 months ago | reply)
Notta, lotta people know that LOL.
Actually I was friendly with with one for about 6 years and eventually I got the impression that I was marked for conversion.