The Austin Seven v. the 747

   African landscape is one of vast open spaces.
A land of extremes.  Twelve hours of wall to wall sunshine every day; then come the rains.

My owner acquired a Great Dane;   the back seat was removed so that the dog could sit on the floor, and for a while we did have fun.

Living in the High Veldt of Africa extended my lifespan.   Cars do not rust there.  However, my fuel tank had rusted, in England.  Puffing up a hill one day, my engine faltered.  My owner cleaned the carburettor, then inspected the fuel tank, which looked like a piece of lace.  It was full of tiny holes.  At mid-day, it was very hot. We were all melting. Eventually, along came a smart Mercedes. My owner carried a tow rope, just in case. We were towed to the nearest garage. The driver of the Mercedes proceeded at a moderate speed, but to us, it seemed more like 160kph. The single track road climbed in and out of river valleys, across narrow low level bridges over which the river came when in spate. The road was tarred. but just nine feet wide, with gravel shoulders. I bounced along, like a rubber ball. We made it, to the main road. A new fuel pipe was fitted from an abandoned A30; that was a make of car, in the 1960s.  On other outings, my radiator boiled; my fuel tank was small and temperatures were usually above 30º celsius. You can understand why my adventures were limited.  Click on "Sea Voyage" to read about the corrugations, the bane of my life!

Life was easier, in town, but the capital was little bigger than a large village. As my people became busier, I was taken to a few rallies, then left in the car port.  I disgraced myself on long trips. The Great Dyke Pass is on the Great North Road, from Cairo to the Cape. One day I was too tired to tackle the gradient. I had to be towed,and was such a dead weight that the lead car only just made it, over the top of the pass!

The moral of this story is, go to Africa, if you do not want to rust. Unless you have a very dedicated owner, forget it!  How could I compete, with a Jumbo Jet? However, I was taxed and insured at a time when many classic cars were left in outhouses, rotting.  A few were even used as chicken houses!
 I wonder how many Austin Sevens have been legally on the road, for 37 years?
Can anyone beat my record?

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