My two cents

Our '71 164E is basically fine. She's a 'slow in fast out' sort of a beast with great response on the throttle. Enter a corner on the right line at the right speed and carve-on - throttle off opens the line and throttle on tightens it up nicely. Getting it all in balance is important - i've found out that there comes a point where steering on the throttle bites back and you go gardening.

Like most cars of the vintage and earlier, you don't want to be hacking through the bend with multiple steering inputs - or having to tidy things up late because you got the entrance wrong. This said, however, when you get it right the 164 can be a satisfying and surprisingly quick tourer. Ours is running on 205/65's which, while compromising the ride quality slightly, made a big difference to the handling.

i've had lots of vehicles from the '60's and '70's - mainly Alfas, BMWs, Mk II Jag etc, and i'm as happy in the big Ov as i've been in any of them. Certainly, it's not as quick point to point as, say, the early '70's GTV's i've had were, but i'm in no rush now and the satisfaction of stringing together a series of corners well still holds. If you want ponderous, we've just inherited a 1962 Humber Super Snipe. What a f'd up tub of lard that thing is.

Regards

b & l
New Zealand