Model: Ligier Ambra GLX diesel
Year: 1999
Mileage: 21000
Tax: No
MOT: July 2012
Location: Norfolk
Price: 500
Additional Information:
Welcome to what may well be the least powerful car ever advertised on Retro Rides. This is a top-of-the-range Ligier Ambra GLX, powered by a throbbing two-cylinder 505cc Lombardini diesel engine, driving the front wheels through a variomatic-type CVT transmission.
I bought this because I've always fancied trying one since seeing similar vehicles pottering around rural France as a kid. The idea was to use it to commute the 15 miles to work and save on fuel bills, but it's quickly become obvious that it really isn't fast enough to cope with busy A-roads.
Being a GLX it is the top of the Ambra tree, and as such has electric windows, central locking, alloy wheels and leather seats. The engine starts easily, the transmission seems to work as it should, and to be fair for pottering around town it's fine - it gets off the line reasonably smartly so pulling out onto roundabouts etc. is not too much of a chore, but it is rather sluggish at higher speeds. Top speed on the flat seems to be around 45, although it takes a while to get there, so it's fine for the occasional bit of B-road pottering (I drove it 13 miles along local roads to a mate's the day after I bought it) but it really is best around town. I haven't had a chance to work out accurate MPG figures, but the consensus seems to be around 80-85mpg in normal use.
It's interesting to drive - obviously it's very light (kerb weight 396kg) so the steering is correspondingly light and very direct, but the brakes are surprisingly heavy for a modern car, not having any servo assistance. It's actually more stable than I thought it would be, and can be thrown around corners reasonably well. Ride is a bit bouncy, but no worse than you'd expect for something with such a short wheelbase. And obviously it turns on a sixpence. It is quite noisy though...
Overall it's in fairly good nick for its age - there's a scratch in the paint on the driver's door which could probably be largely removed with T-cut, there's a patch of primer on the corner of the front bumper, and there are some cracks in the plastic around the central bumper mounts (although these are not visible with the bonnet closed), but other than that it's all good. Seats are in good condition, and all the electrics seem to work OK. It's showing 21K on the clock, but I would imagine a very significant chunk of that was racked up whilst being A-framed so the engine has probably done far less than that.
It also comes with an A-frame which bolts onto a bar under the bumper and enables it to be towed behind a camper or whatever - being under 750kg GVW it can legally be towed unbraked. When I bought it I towed it home 100-odd miles behind a 2-litre Rover 75 - hardly the torquiest of vehicles - and I barely noticed it was there.
It's MoT'd until late July next year but it isn't taxed at the moment. I could deliver it on the A-frame within a reasonable distance if need be.
Here's some pictures:
Year: 1999
Mileage: 21000
Tax: No
MOT: July 2012
Location: Norfolk
Price: 500
Additional Information:
Welcome to what may well be the least powerful car ever advertised on Retro Rides. This is a top-of-the-range Ligier Ambra GLX, powered by a throbbing two-cylinder 505cc Lombardini diesel engine, driving the front wheels through a variomatic-type CVT transmission.
I bought this because I've always fancied trying one since seeing similar vehicles pottering around rural France as a kid. The idea was to use it to commute the 15 miles to work and save on fuel bills, but it's quickly become obvious that it really isn't fast enough to cope with busy A-roads.
Being a GLX it is the top of the Ambra tree, and as such has electric windows, central locking, alloy wheels and leather seats. The engine starts easily, the transmission seems to work as it should, and to be fair for pottering around town it's fine - it gets off the line reasonably smartly so pulling out onto roundabouts etc. is not too much of a chore, but it is rather sluggish at higher speeds. Top speed on the flat seems to be around 45, although it takes a while to get there, so it's fine for the occasional bit of B-road pottering (I drove it 13 miles along local roads to a mate's the day after I bought it) but it really is best around town. I haven't had a chance to work out accurate MPG figures, but the consensus seems to be around 80-85mpg in normal use.
It's interesting to drive - obviously it's very light (kerb weight 396kg) so the steering is correspondingly light and very direct, but the brakes are surprisingly heavy for a modern car, not having any servo assistance. It's actually more stable than I thought it would be, and can be thrown around corners reasonably well. Ride is a bit bouncy, but no worse than you'd expect for something with such a short wheelbase. And obviously it turns on a sixpence. It is quite noisy though...
Overall it's in fairly good nick for its age - there's a scratch in the paint on the driver's door which could probably be largely removed with T-cut, there's a patch of primer on the corner of the front bumper, and there are some cracks in the plastic around the central bumper mounts (although these are not visible with the bonnet closed), but other than that it's all good. Seats are in good condition, and all the electrics seem to work OK. It's showing 21K on the clock, but I would imagine a very significant chunk of that was racked up whilst being A-framed so the engine has probably done far less than that.
It also comes with an A-frame which bolts onto a bar under the bumper and enables it to be towed behind a camper or whatever - being under 750kg GVW it can legally be towed unbraked. When I bought it I towed it home 100-odd miles behind a 2-litre Rover 75 - hardly the torquiest of vehicles - and I barely noticed it was there.
It's MoT'd until late July next year but it isn't taxed at the moment. I could deliver it on the A-frame within a reasonable distance if need be.
Here's some pictures:
