@mikecj My first also a 998cc Mini Cooper, navy & white, refor £250. Exported it to Ireland when you could retain UK reg, blew the head gasket overtaking an artic with an unnoticed trailer & graduated to a Fiat 124 with £400 I got from a Cooper petrol head who just wanted it for spares!!
The impact of railways in Ireland even affected the notion of time. Putting in place railway timetables was key to passing of the Time Act, 1880, establishing Dublin Mean Time across Ireland. Until then, Cork was 11 mins behind Dublin, while Belfast was 1 min 19 secs ahead.