What got you into Mokes?

[TasTyger]

This is one of TasTyger's ideas when the white wine has kicked in... :wink:  :wink:

Is there an underlying personality that denotes a moke owner !! What is life!! What is death!!

Seriously though, what sets a moke owner apart from the rest?? There must be some spark that lurks within us all that calls us to the shape, the "being' that is a moke !!

In my own respect I've been something of a loner, a dreamer, interested in things such as genealogy, sci-fi, archery, edged weaponry and of cause mokes, but why that combination??

What are other peoples likes and dislkes and what "deep down" drew them to the moke??

Psych 101 is about to begin...    :lol:  :lol:

TasTyger

[Jack]

Insanity was what got me into a Moke after all these years TasTyger...  :shock:

[TasTyger]

I've got a feeling that this is going to be the general tone from anyone answering to this post Jack....      :wink:  :wink:  :wink:

Lay on MacDuff... ...


TasTyger :wink:  :wink:

[Terry]

Tasty,

I think you need to slowdown on the grapes :-)

I got into mokes originally because the requirement of a small vehicle to stick in a motorhome.

What has kept me in Mokes though is quite different and although I do not claim insainity, I can't say all my decisions have been based on good logical judgement either. But I owe a lot to the people who have helped me over the years and the friends I have made.

To me the Moke provides a blank canvas in the form of a motor vehicle which you can do with just about whatever you like. I think every Moke reflects the owners personality as it is such a basic vehicle to which you can mould into whatever you want it to be.

I am a private person by nature and I don't like the sheep mentality so I like to do things a little different, not tp draw attention, which I don't like, but just because I want to push my own boudaries. If you can relate to standing on the desk each time you watch Dead Poets Society, then you might understand me.

I don't want people to come up to me and say "I thought i saw you in your moke the other day." I like to make my Mokes very unique so people know they saw me in my Moke. I tend to shy away from the dime a dozen red, Blue, White and Yellow Californian look :-)  

Somebody made a comment ion on here the other day about the type of people on Ausmini and the Moke owners he has met and I tend to agree with him. However like the Mini has gone through its resurgence in popularity about 10 years ago and different type of owner now dominates the Mini clubs, the Moke is just beginning its own popularity explosion and so we too are attracting a different demographic of owners.

When I joined the MOA it was a lot smaller in numbers but i got involved with the right people who instilled certain values and unwritten rules about  being a good 'Moke Citizen'. These days those values are still there, but much more diluted amongst the newer owners and that seems to be following the patternof the mini owners.

I don't think you are going to find a particular type of person owns a Moke, the Moke is such a versatile little car it can suit such a cross section of people as we are seeing by the interest in the Muster.

Now I need a drink....and I don't drink :-)

Terry

[Andrew]

What got me was the open top, wind in the hair. A simple little car, proven with time. (and I thought cheep way of getting a convertable)

The car seems to have a romantic attraction for people. Many say how they once had a friend / neighbour etc who had a Moke - and they love them (and wish they had one)

For me - my personality - a little off center - a wicked sence of humour, with a passiona for fun & family. I like to be a little bit diffrent from the crowd.  Dont mind to get my hands dirty., and enjoy a challenge.

Not  sure if this is the sought after response, but I am sober and have not got on the creative juice just at the moment

[AWDmoke]

What got me was the open top, wind in the hair. A simple little car, proven with time. (and I thought cheep way of getting a convertable)

The car seems to have a romantic attraction for people. Many say how they once had a friend / neighbour etc who had a Moke - and they love them (and wish they had one)

For me - my personality - a little off center - a wicked sence of humour, with a passiona for fun & family. I like to be a little bit diffrent from the crowd.  Dont mind to get my hands dirty., and enjoy a challenge.

Not  sure if this is the sought after response, but I am sober and have not got on the creative juice just at the moment

Hit the nail right on the head!
Plus I'm crap at panelbeating & like being able to press up new panels to whatever dimensions I need  

[TasTyger]

MAN...I've got to stop crushing my own grapes  :oops:  :oops:  :lol:  :lol: When the jungle juice flows I hardly know what I'm writing. Time to install a deadman switch on the computer..... :!:  :!:

TasTyger  :lol:  :lol:

[tainted]

Ithink I inherited my insanity, even to the point that after I got my license I rolled one, still not sure how, 2-1/2 times. This being the case would generally be enough to scare mast people away, but within 6 weeks I'd brought a Moke, 16 years ago next week! And still running strong.

But remember insanity is not a diesease, it's an adventure.

[Jack]

But remember insanity is not a diesease, it's an adventure.

Woohooo, I am not insane then, just adventurous....   :wink:

Andrew, the wind in the hair bit sounded ok for me as well, unfortunatly it's more like the wind in hair of my eyebrows for me now...  :wink:

I tend to shy away from the dime a dozen red, Blue, White and Yellow Californian look  

I resemble that remark Terry...  :roll:

[Kinga]

OK, here is my story.

Some 10 years ago when I moved out of home it was time to get a set of wheels.  At that stage, Jeep Wranglers  (not a Jeep  :!: :oops: ) started coming out and I wanted one but their cost was way above what I earned then.  Next one down the preference list was a Toyota Land Cruiser (40 Series) but still too expensive (like I needed one around the town, anyway!).  Downsizing continued to a Suzuki Sierra (still above my budget) and eventually – BANG  :shock:  – I saw a Moke and it was love at first sight   .  I bought a non-going Moke, got myself involved in a restoration project that eventually flopped and I ended up selling it without ever having driven it.  So it started with a Jeep and ended with a passion for Mokes.

Life’s commitments prevented me from buying another one till earlier this year but I never stopped “pining” for one, just like the "Norwigian Blue" in the Monty Python skit.  Why?  Because to me, the Moke is not a mode of transport, it’s a lifestyle, it’s about being unconventional.  I love open spaces and can’t stand confinement of any sort – here comes the Moke with no doors and no roof (hence I would never have a hard top on the Moke).  You just hop in and out – no locks, no windows to wind up (in summer, I often drive my Barina with ALL four windows down as a poor imitation of a Moke   ).  I’m not a creature of comfort either, and I enjoy being out in the elements and so the wind, the noise and the shake, rattle and roll that Mokes specialises in are right up my alley.  

In addition, the Moke is a little paradox that challenges perceptions as to what turns heads - it stands out in the crowd but does so in such an unassuming way (talking standard here).  I mean, it doesn’t have to be red, hot, fast, sleek and expensive to make a statement.

I like the fact that I have an off-beat car but I also want to make it different to the other Mokes so decided to paint it a vibrant magenta, strike-me-down kind of colour (no reds, whites, yellows etc for me, either) so people can say “the pink Moke” and, hopefully, there is only one such colour Moke, and it’s mine.

So for me it’s the sense of freedom, fun and adventure.  It’s being unconventional.  “It’s the vibe of it”       .

And Tas, though I don't drink myself, nothing wrong with a few grapes, you know - "the truth comes out when the SPIRIT goes in"  

[mokemark]

For me it is the ability to cruise the great ocean rd with the top down. Looking for waves and knowing that even the bmw and porsche drivers take a side way glance.

Also the fact that i can cruise all day on $20 fuel.




 :lol:

[Mr Spotlights]

I started at about age 15. My brother was working at a Petrol Station and a lady brought in a Moke she wanted to sell. He bought it for $350 and eventually it made its way to me. We had heaps of fun in that little car and spent almost no money on it.

By the time I was 23 I moved from Brisbane to Canberra so had to sell my then 3 Mokes (one a rare export model). Whilst in Canberra the bug struck again when I picked up a 1981 Galv body Californian with genuine roll cage and all the extras. I stripped it with the plan to completely restore it however due to a nasty split up with my then Fiance I sold it for just $500  :cry:

When I moved back up from Canberra I actually seriously looked at buying a Moke hire business in North QLD with 14 Mokes situated at Servos' around Mackay and Townsville, but this deal fell through.

About 2 years ago my brother spotted a 1978 Californian in the trading post. I beat many others to it and that started the fever again with me now owning 8 in total.

Its the fact that no matter where you go you always get a look and a smile from kids who love the oversized toy, to teens and young adults who think they are very cool, and by the older folk who recall forgoten memories seeing the might little machines.

I will never be free of these and even if I was a millionaire I would still own a few.