I'm more than a tad fed-up with all these videos'hasn't started in 20, 30 even73yrs, will it start? Some easi-start or similar and away it goes, I can leave mine for 35mins and it won't start. Engines were much simpler in the past and electrics more straightforward if they were going to run they would, it would take a mechanical failure to take them off the road and no can of spray could fix it.Also cars were more of an investment not the throw away society we have today so there would have been a greater incentive to fix them.
To quote Mr Meldrew, I don't believe it.

Old cars were notoriously bad for not starting. Points, condenser, damp HT leads or carb issues, old cars were horrifically unreliable, and every morning you would see someone struggling to get to work! And this was when these cars were new, or nearly new.

My 60's & 70's Minis, a Marina TC, Volvo 144 would all let me down and ALL needed welding. I then bought a Ford Cortina, which before it was seven years old, and with just 45K was rotten beyond economical repair, it had also munched through two camshafts and several alternators! I vowed to never buy another Ford after that car!

In my experience cars, late 80's on, started to become significantly more reliable and much more rot tolerant. From 1986 I ran three Audi's in succession and took each to well beyond 100K miles (210K on my 80 16V sport). All these cars required maintenance and had failures but considering the miles it was never really unexpected, and I don't ever recall being stranded with a car failing to start!

Our Alfa and Fiat years were a little more interesting and recovery was needed several times (Alfa's and once with the Coupé - coolant hose behind the motor). The Fiat coupé undertook several long road trips across Europe with only one issue in all those trips. I suffered a coil pack failure whilst doing silly speeds on the autobahn heading for Kiel and Norway. In recent years only one of my cars has failed to Start. My Alfa 166 would sometimes mess about when it was hot, which was eventually found to be a timing sensor. Our Grande Punto never failed but once past 100K miles it did used to enjoy telling you it was not happy

Back in Audi's in recent years and they have never failed to start, even after several days sat idle. They all take in their stride the 50+ mile commute, munching the miles and requiring little maintenance beyond servicing.

Today most cars at 10-years-old are in fabulous condition. Many cars at 20-years-old are also still in great condition too, needing at worst minor work to keep them on the road.

I take your point, but if they were that bad all those years ago why would they start now after all these years? I never said they were more reliable, just simpler and easier to fix, most could service and maintain them without a degree in astro physics. Cars nowadays are more reliable but how often can you fix them without specialist equipment how many components can be repaired without replacement? I can remember rewiring dynamos nowadays you can't get motors apart.

Don’t want to sound like I’m sitting on the fence here but I do get both points. I remember back in the 60s the village street where I grew up the Ford cars (for some reason Ford was the chosen one) trying to start with their lean burn carburettor and the 70s as well. As said cars were easier to work on, and if you kept on top of things it was OK. Usual sight at the weekend men working on their cars in the street.

When I was serving my time in the early 70s the garage had a service ramp/booth “old Broon” was the chap who serviced the cars. There were some cars in their fifties and sixties and with a service the underneath was sprayed with a mixture of paraffin and oil. Cars that had this done regularly were like new underneath. Not all places had this, but, not all wanted this, so realistically clean and rusty motors were on the roads.

On a slightly different note, I certainly would not like to be in an accident in an old car. I remember watching on television, a brand new car being crashed, then a three year old car. The difference was an eye opener, far worse damage on the three year old car at only a few years older. I shudder to think what a much older car would be.

It seemed to me that there were only Ford, Vauxhall or what became BL in those days, 'foreign' cars were viewed with a degree of suspicion and being too complicated. My first car was a Ford, dreadful thing never started when it was hot and rust holes big enough to put feet through. Bikes were similarly bad I had 2 Triumphs both rubbish, curiously they and old Fords are now 'classics' and worth a fortune when they never were any good! I wonder if this taps into nostalgia for a simpler time when you could tinker with things? Probably just memory loss!

Ford Escort Mk 1 starting procedure.

Open door, put packed lunch on seat.
Pick up mat and hammer.
Put mat in road.
Kneel on mat, hold onto wheel arch with one hand.
Reach under car and tap starter motor sharply.

Stand up, throw mat and hammer into car.
Get in, turn key, go to work.