News : AROnline has a new sister site

Keith Adams

Honest John Classics

For those close to me, today’s a very good day. My self-imposed 18-hour working days are over. For a wee while at least, as the project I’ve been beavering away on has finally gone live. Yes, the Honest John family now has a purpose-built site for lovers of old cars, Honest John Classics. It’s a very different proposition to AROnline, as it’s a general classic car website, with a blurry age bracket of 1950-1995, although there’s also be a fair bit of cross-over, too.

After all, we love our old cars on AROnline – and not necessarily British ones.

So, what I’m hoping is that you’ll all take a look around HJClassics and let me know what you think about it. Please bear in mind, it’s day one, and there’s still a fair bit of information to squeeze into it, most notably in the reviews section. There are other interesting bits and pieces worth looking at – and going back to. We’ve revisited the DVLA’s data on taxed and SORN’d cars to come up with some impressively easy to read survivor pages, and have also repackaged the AROnline archive pages for daily updates. You can also search for cars for sale, and ask Honest John for advice.

Needless to say, I’ll be rolling up my sleeves and doing my best to answer those questions, too.

For anyone who may wonder where that leaves AROnline, don’t worry at all. There’s clear blue water between the two, and room for both. If anything, the arrival of Honest John Classics cements AROnline‘s position within the family. I’ll be firmly in charge of both, too, so if you have any ideas, suggestions, criticisms or amendments, please contact me the usual way, and I’ll do my best to help.

Link: Welcome to Honest John Classics

Keith Adams

28 Comments

  1. Now, now, don’t be silly – I have never knowingly worn only one brand of baked beans!
    Check your masthead – AROnline.
    It would be easy enough to keep the AR site and include rivals as, well, ‘Rivals” but give those makes and makers the full and wonderful AR treatment in their own space.
    I’m not particularly interested in the Cavalier (drove a good one for many many years) or a Scimca, Alfa Romeo or anything else but I am endlessly fascinated by the greatest soap-opera (your words?) of them all.
    That’s why I keep coming back. AR! An increasing amount of content doesn’t even fit the belated ‘Made in Britain’ tag line. Give them their own space and cross-link.
    So much tidier.

  2. 1950 to 1995 are you mad? We all know there are no classic cars after 1975. Thought I get that in first.

  3. I’ll stick my two-pennorth in and say that I like the non-BR stuff, in fact I have very little interest in BL prior to the 1980s. I find the bus and truck articles stories interesting as well as the behind the scenes stories by Mike Humble et al. They all remind me of my youth in the 1980s, a period of time that seems so distant now (even more so with the passing away of Margaret Thatcher this week – not that I was particularly a fan of her but it really makes you realise how long ago the 80s actually were.)

    T’other site looks well too, Keith.

  4. As I have said else ware – great stuff Keith – well done for all your hard work.
    #6. – dig – your being deliberately controversial and clearly have forgotten almost every 50’s Alfa Romeo and Lancia.
    50’s Aprilias are selling for £35K as restoration projects and £70K for a car with history so I think someone appreciates them. An Aprilia with a racing parentage recently sold for £135K – I know because my son drove it back from Turin a few weeks ago.

  5. This is good news indeed. Will this mean our beloved ARO cannot now “outgrow” itself? I love how HJC looks and feels, and there’s lots of content I find interesting that I’ve already found! The 1950 to 1995 range is great, as there’s something for everyone.
    But damn you, now I’ll never get anything done! 😛

  6. Brilliant, more web stuff to keep me up till the wee hours 🙂 love the “how many survived” page – did you know there are twice as many Fiat 126 left than there are Montegos!?!? WTF?

  7. Nice one Keith!
    Great to see more car sites from you!
    Is this where in depth articles into the 18 and the BX will live?

  8. Pah, that’s not fair. You’ve corrected 3 so it reads properly!
    11 – Only one good point? Oh well, makes it all worth while. Thank you. I’d doff my cap buy 6 varieties of Bean would pour out.

  9. The survival figures are very interesting. Of course, they don’t take into account cars surviving outside the UK, which must skew the percentage survival rates.

    Also, in their P6 census the P6 Club has a very different set of figures to those on HJC:

    http://www.p6club.com/node/335

  10. An error in the article on the 850. It’s a common misconception, but Volvo never actually raced the T-5R in the BTCC. It was in fact just a highly tuned normally aspirated bottom of the range 2.0 litre that was in the saloon and estate touring cars between the 1994-1996 seasons.

  11. Excellent web site.
    I really like it.

    There is one question though, some car reviews do not have technical details yet some do.

    If (and its a big if) you get time could you update them ?
    Also probably not possible are you able to add tech specs of all car engine sizes for the model being reviewed ?

    Its probably a very hard problem as there is hardly any details on the web regarding older cars.

    Take the MKII astra for example, I can find out the 1.3l produced 75 bhp but not details of torque or average mpg.

    thanks any way on the new web site. very informative

  12. Hi Diddy,

    It’s a work in progress, and in the coming years I intend to get as much of that filled as possible. We’re still refining it, that’s for sure!

    P.S., Maximum torque of this car is 74lb ft at 4200rpm.

  13. Hi Keith

    Thanks for that. Nice engine that.

    I will keep popping on that site now and then.
    I have already had a good look at the reviews section.
    All of the old cars my dad used to have are quite interesting to read about.

  14. @24 – I agree, fantastic site.
    Your question about older cars technical specs – you only have to ask us oldies – I’ll have everything you need from 1895 to 1939.
    A Mk 2 what did you call it? – an Astra. Might be a bit too modern for me.

  15. Good job Keith, great to see the site evolving.

    Just purchased a 76 Spit here in the US as my hobby car!

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