Some automotive faults and quirks are so well known that they plague the legacy of the cars themselves. Broach the subject of apex seals with a Mazda RX-8 owner and you will get a filthy look.
Any mention of IMS bearings will get you struck off the 996 Porsche 911 Owners Club’s Christmas card list. And anyone with a P38 Range Rover visibly shivers when they hear ‘air suspension’.
But spare a thought for the poor Matra-Simca Bagheera owner who can’t fathom why their brake pads are rattling and has resorted to fabricating a wedge to keep them in place on the move.
A frustrating bodge, for sure, and it’s not like anyone on Twitter or Instagram would be much use if you put the call out for advice.
Step forward Matrasport.dk, your one-stop shop for all information on everything produced by one of France’s most-missed manufacturers.
Murena, 530, Bagheera, Rancho and even Djet: they’re all well represented and, as is often the way with communities built around obscenely niche automobiles, everyone here seems absolutely lovely.
Our fella with the jingling calipers, for example, now knows that he’s missing a set of ‘anti-rattle springs’, thanks to an oft-circulated document referred to by forum users in reverential tones as ‘Roy’s guide’. Panic over.
There are similar digital communities for owners of the Bond Bug, Triumph Acclaim and Datsun 120Y, and I even stumbled across a forum concerning Dutton kit cars. Good news if you have, erm… a dent in the hull of your Surf?
Of course, many of these websites have now spawned – and been superseded by – dedicated Facebook pages, providing owners with instant and unfettered access to an army of like-minded enthusiasts, hopefully with the knowledge they seek and definitely all holders of a common goal: to keep an endangered species alive.
