Left-hookers. Let’s go there. It’s a wonderful place. There are vehicles available only in that format and others that are cheaper because of it. The driving experience is obviously unique and, once you get used to it, rather enjoyable. For those who have never considered sitting on the wrong side of the cabin, here are a few for your consideration.
A great place to start would be with a prime piece of Americana in the fantastically plastic shape of a Chevrolet Corvette. I found a 1999 C5 with 5.7 litres, so this is budget supercar stuff, and all for £16k. It has done 66,000 miles, but there aren’t too many details apart from a full service history and the fact that it’s rather silver. Interestingly, one of this model’s claims to fame is that it featured in a motoring magazine in 2006. I didn’t realise there were any others…
Fancy a nearly new Fiat 124? I didn’t think I did, but I chanced across an 11,000-mile example that could be mine for £8750. It looks like a recent import from Italy, and goodness knows how it survived without rusting to powder, but there you have it. Two owners and unrestored, apparently. A Lada 1500 without the baggage and with far better handling.
How about a BMW M5? Obviously. Did they make an E34 Touring? Well yes they did, and there was even a Nürburgring Edition. Just 891 were made, and I found number 677. There was a ton of history, including some recent fettling, such as restored star alloys and a new battery to make it worth £31,900. Very honestly, there was reference to a previous owner paying to fix the head gasket. This M5 isn’t cheap, but it’s unlikely to lose a fortune, and your chances of finding another will always be slim.
Goodness me this is fun, but if your budget doesn’t stretch to a German V8, let’s go back to America and get ourselves a Ford Crown Victoria. It’s one of those cop interceptor cars, and I found a 2009 example from Maryland with 119k miles and a year’s MOT for £6995.
Am I spoiling you with too many V8s? Instead, how about a Renault Kangoo? This would deliver the full rural France experience if you prised one or all of the hubcaps off this Expression model, powered by a 1.5-litre diesel unit. This 2007 MPV had a modest 60k miles and is up for £2995. It’s more practical and better value than some of those Brazilian Volkswagen T2 campers that are also on the left-hand-drive list at comfortably over £10k.
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LHD in the UK is justified if you prefer to vomit on the sidewalk
I used to drive LHD cars in the UK for years, back when we used to cross to Europe frequently and they were dramatically cheaper than the equivalent in the UK.
Yes, overtaking can be tricky: it helps to have a co-pilot. Otoh, parking usually puts you on the pavement side which helps when unloading kids, etc..
In this day and age I wonder whether there's a kit to solve the visibility problem: a forward-facing camera mounted on the O/S mirror feeding a screen stuck to the dash?
LHD is alright, insurance and changing headlamps aside, until you come to overtake the vehicle in front.