My name is Albert, I'm 29 years old, from Barcelona.
Although my professional background has nothing to do with mechanics, I'm a chemist, I've been fascinated by vintage machinery for as long as I can remember. Before I was old enough to drive, I was already collecting and running small live steam engines, and I've always been drawn to the engineering, craftsmanship and aesthetics of pre-war vehicles.
When I was 16 till 19, I spent a few summers working in England and, with almost my very first paycheck, I made what was either a brilliant or terrible decision depending on how you look at it, I bought a 1957 Austin A35 on eBay without even seeing it in person.
As many of you will already be guessing, reality turned out to be somewhat different from the advertisement. What followed was a six-year restoration project
The original plan was to do the minimum necessary to get it on the road. Then I found some rust. Then some more rust. Then another component that "might as well be fixed while I'm here". Before long, the project had completely taken over.
In the end I restored virtually everything myself. Engine rebuild, gearbox work, brakes, suspension, electrics, bodywork, welding and fabrication. I started with very little practical experience and learned almost everything along the way. Looking back, I probably spent several times the value of the car in parts, tools and "while I'm at it" decisions, but I wouldn't change the experience for anything.
One of the things that made that project possible was the Austin A30/A35 Owners Club forum. I'm a member there, and the knowledge, generosity and willingness to help from fellow enthusiasts was incredible. Whenever I got stuck, somebody had already faced the same problem twenty years earlier and was willing to share their experience.
That experience gave me a huge appreciation for British classic vehicle clubs and forums, and it's one of the reasons I'm introducing myself here. While restoring the Austin, I always had another interest in the background, specially vintage motorcycles, particularly British pre-war machines.
The problem was that I didn't have a motorcycle licence. Now I finally do
For years my dream vehicle was actually an Austin Seven. I still love them and may eventually own one someday. However, having already gone through one complete car restoration, I'm not quite ready to start another large-scale project. Also I'm not quite sure it could cope with nowadays traffic, which is one of the main reasons i went for an A35 instead.
A motorcycle seems like a more manageable undertaking in terms of space, complexity and logistics, while still offering everything I enjoy: mechanical understanding, historical engineering and hands-on maintenance. This is what has brought me to Ariel!
I've looked at BSA, Norton and several other brands, but I keep finding myself drawn back to Ariel. Part of it is undoubtedly the styling, but part of it is also the company's history.
Professionally, I work in innovation, helping organisations identify new opportunities, technologies and ways of thinking. Because of that, I've always been fascinated by companies that were willing to challenge established ideas and take engineering risks.
Perhaps this is an oversimplification, but when I read about Norton, much of the story revolves around racing success and competition heritage. Ariel seems to have built a reputation for engineering creativity and technical innovation, whether through adopting unconventional ideas, supporting ambitious designs, or simply being willing to do things differently, and that aspect resonates strongly with me.
At the moment I'm trying to understand which Ariel models would make the most sense for me, and I'd greatly appreciate guidance from those with more experience. My priorities are probably a little different from someone looking for a museum piece.
First, I'd like a motorcycle that can cope reasonably well with modern riding conditions. I don't intend to commute through Barcelona traffic, but I would like to enjoy secondary roads and longer touring rides. My father lives around 200 km from Barcelona in a mountainous area, and I'd love to be able to make journeys of that sort occasionally.
Second, reliability and robustness matter to me. As I've started researching different models, I've come across discussions about aluminium heads, model-specific weaknesses, durability differences and various engineering quirks. I'd be very interested to hear which pre-war Ariels are generally considered the most dependable and practical to own.
Third, and perhaps most importantly, parts availability.
One of the reasons Ariel appeals to me is that the owners' community appears to be active and organised, particularly regarding technical support and reproduction parts. That is a huge factor for me.
My experience with the Austin taught me that even when parts support is generally excellent, there are always a handful of obscure components that become incredibly difficult to find. Usually it isn't the major mechanical items that cause trouble, it's the small brackets, castings, fittings or model-specific pieces that suddenly become impossible to source.
Because of that, one of the things I'd really like to understand before buying is what those "unobtainable" Ariel parts are. Which components should I pay special attention to when inspecting a bike? Which missing or damaged parts should immediately raise a red flag?
I should also mention that, unlike when I restored the Austin, importing parts from the UK has become considerably more expensive and complicated since Brexit. During the Austin restoration I had pallets, crates and parcels arriving from Britain on a regular basis. Today the economics are quite different. That doesn't stop me buying a British motorcycle, but it does make me much more cautious about taking on a machine that will require extensive sourcing of hard-to-find components.
In many ways, I think I'm looking for the opposite of both extremes. I'm not searching for a museum-quality showpiece that I'm afraid to ride, but neither am I looking for a basket-case restoration project. Ideally, I'd love to find an older restoration or a well-maintained machine with honest patina and history behind it. A motorcycle that has already lived a life.
My philosophy with classics has always been to preserve originality wherever possible while making sensible improvements when reliability genuinely benefits from them. For example, on my Austin I fitted electronic ignition, not because I wanted to modernise the car, but because the original distributor components were beyond saving and the upgrade was visually almost indistinguishable while making the car significantly more dependable.
I take exactly the same approach with motorcycles. A few scratches, some age-related wear and the occasional rust spot don't bother me at all. In fact, I often prefer them. What matters to me is authenticity, mechanical integrity and the confidence to actually use the machine.
Another question I have concerns engine size.Many of the pre-war Ariels that interest me seem to be either 350cc or 500cc machines. My instinct currently leans towards the 500cc models, partly because of the hilly roads where my father lives and partly because I'd like the option of occasionally carrying a passenger. My partner enjoys motorcycles too, and while I appreciate that these machines were designed in a very different era, I'd be interested to hear real-world opinions from owners.
How significant is the difference between a 350 and a 500 in everyday use? Is the extra torque worthwhile for touring? Are there reliability, vibration or maintenance trade-offs between the two?
I also wonder how these motorcycles generally cope with modern ethanol-blended fuels, and whether overheating is something owners need to think about during long summer rides in warmer climates such as southern Europe.
At this stage, I'm still very much in the learning phase. Before buying anything, my intention is to spend a good amount of time reading, researching and understanding the different models properly. I've already started collecting a few books on British motorcycles and Ariel history, and I plan to spend quite a while learning before making any decisions.
So perhaps my final questions are these:
* Which pre-war Ariel models would you recommend for someone who intends to ride rather than simply display the bike?
* Which models have the best parts availability and club support?
* Which difficult-to-find components should I pay close attention to when inspecting a motorcycle?
* What are the most common mistakes first-time Ariel buyers make?
* Are there particular dealers, auctions, clubs or marketplaces that you would recommend?
* And finally, are there any "must-read" threads, articles or technical resources on this forum that every prospective Ariel owner should study before buying their first machine?
Please i don't expect to get answers to all of this questions in this post!! Its just a share of my thoughts, I would appreciate if you could point me out to some threads that can help me with any of the above.
I am in no hurry to buy. I'd rather spend six months learning and buy the right motorcycle than buy the wrong one next week.
Thank you for having me here and best regards,
