Sir, I too had a Hillman Imp but unlike Les Williams’s (letter Mar 6), it did not sport an in-built shower. However, it did have an irritating habit of stopping unexpectedly. A motor mechanic told me that the thin plastic lining of the petrol tank had shredded, this being a common problem with the model. From time to time this would block the petrol flow to the engine. The solution, he said, was to buy a bicycle pump, disconnect the petrol lead from the engine and pump air into the tank, thus displacing the blockage. This worked every time. The Imp’s engine was at the rear and I was often spotted by curious passers-by with my pump. On the school run this caused great amusement to overtaking mothers and embarrassment to my three children.
Anne Bayliss
York