Old Nail,
You should tell your neighbour to chop down these ugly conifers .

For the rest : I also hate waiting, and my Mrs. tells me the same : "Wait and see, everything will turn out well!"
And to be honest , often she is right.
But I know the feeling , waiting is giving yourself in the hands of the unknown, while as you act , you have your fate in your own hands . If it works out well , you are pleased with yourself and if it does n't it is you you have to blame, but in any case you have done it yourself.
I think that is the problem with youth nowerdays, they just wait until something wil happen, and the have not the spirit to take their future in their own hands. And that makes politicians so powerful.

I value all opinions on this as I'm one of the best in the world at justifying my own preference - to myself, rather than being objective. The reason behind my current naughty thoughts as mentioned is the rising price of 2cv's.

Like so many before me I got into A series vehicles due to their quirkyness, and of course because they were cheap. The bug then bit and they became a passion, but I've also been a long time 'proper' classic car fan too, I've had lots of 'em. Having seen what happened to the values of micro-cars like the Isetta, or the Heinkell trojan I know that the properties (I'll not say qualities) of being basic, cheap, flimsy, and underpowered won't prevent 2cv's from attaining further cult status, and thus becoming ever more expensive.

Two things make me want to act and neither of them are even remotely connected to a sensible decision. Firstly, this is the only time I have ever had just one car. In happier times I have owned as many as seven different classics at one time, as well as a modern for everyday use. Having sold my Passat estate last year the 2cv has been my sole mode of transport, the recent winter use and general wear and tear have taken their toll, and I have become paranoid about rust. I have lost what was for me one of the most attractive qualities of 2cv ownership - the shrug of the shoulders.

"New dent?" <shrug> "That rust is coming through again Pete." <shrug>-it's a 2cv.

So when I think of nearly two tons of seductively thick 1950's gauge steel sitting on a forth-bridge like chassis, I begin to go all nostalgic. I want to polish and fettle, not cut and weld, and increasingly I want to mind my own business and not be part of something bigger, I realise I've past being a joiner of things which is why I let go of my 2cv membership this year.

Finally, and this is perhaps the bigger picture as I see it, there is very little time left in which to enjoy our fossil fuelled follies. For the first time ever, I see a real and increasing danger for old vehicles. Petrol is the most expensive it has ever been, and with just 40 years worth of oil remaining the climate change brigade will soon ramp up their game for the introduction of electric vehicles and greater taxes. Within the next ten years I predict there will be huge changes in the cost of motoring, and ten years isn't very long really, so there's a also sense of 'do it now while you still can' emerging.

I'm seeing the tip of a very ugly iceberg, and I suppose I want to use an old car to do what my neighbours conifers are doing do for him, to help block out the present and pretend it's not happening.

C'EST LA VIE

Oh Contaire - C'est la Mort.
Anyway I've now been told what we're doing after Mrs. Nail sneakily read my last post while I was away admiring those comfy looking shoes that you see in the Saturday supplements. And that's another thing - there's definitely something wrong when comfy shoes from a Saturday supplement begin to have an appeal... it'll be elastic waistband trousers catching my eye next, in beige if I'm not careful, or those huge fluffy slippers that you put both feet into to watch TV.

I seem to have woken up as a real grumpy cuss this morning... Excellent!

Never really thought of the 2cv as a "proper classic", like you say. Suppose it isn't as cult as the mini or beetle, but it's been around too long to be a proper classic. Most people on the continent, of a certain age anyway, don't look twice at them, and if they do I suspect it's because they either had one or remember them, loathe them, or simply because it looks funny; not particularly because it is a classic. If I wanted a classic car I'd be looking more at stuff from the 50s and 60s like that Standard. I think I've realised that I'm not right into that really, unless it was something really REALLY nice. I kid myself sometimes thinking how nice a traction or ds would be, but just end up thinking why do I actually want one? I don't have a 2cv cos it's a "classic" for weekends. 602 4 LIFE, or until petrol runs out, and then I'll have to fit an electric motor, or something.
ps if I wasn't a skint student I'd have your 2cv anyday

Me too, I'd love a ripple bonnet or an AZAM......

C'est la Mort?
La Mort?
Je ne crois pas

Two men looked from prison bars
One saw mud
The other saw stars

taken from a poetry book i had when i was a kid and despite being old and cynical i have always tried to live this simple tenet

At what age are you old and cynical??
My granddad was 82 and he said:"I am not old, the devil is old"!

They are a classic car, a 20th century design icon, and just because they were a proletarian type of vehicle, the French version of the beetle/morris minor/lada does not make them any less of a classic.. the difference is they are a practical classic- apart from watching for rot they are still a viable useable car where many other classics appear to be a pain in the arse or expensive to run. IMO.

Ps..you could always soak its vulnerable bits in Morris Ankor wax..good stuff!

I'm with Ben on this one. They're viable, serviceable, still cheap to run (thanks to ecas, ebay and the community of other users) and still loads of fun!

(Would still love a DS, mind... if only I was rich.)