THE opportunity for a burst of true nostalgia when road-testing cars is very much at a premium in this hi-tech age but, just occasionally, the chance to turn back the clock does arise.
A recent road test found me in the company of the latest version of the MG TF and, seated facing that leather-clad steering wheel encircling the legendary octagonal MG badge, my mind was swiftly whisked back to those days when the open road really was open.
Not, I might add, back to the Roaring Twenties, the decade when MG first showed off its octagon badging on the Super Sports Morris 14/28 in May 1924.
But back to the Swinging Sixties and a ride in a friend's MGB, a swish sports job which looked very much ahead of its time on that day in 1964 and which was to grace more than half a million driveways between 1962 and 1980.
This month, MG celebrates 80 years of car production so it was an opportune moment to test drive the TF, the UK's best-selling sports car.
The TF offers three K Series petrol engine options each mated to a five-speed manual gearbox - the 1.6-litre 115bhp, 1.8-litre 135bhp and the range-topping 1.8-litre VVC 160bhp.
A 1.8-litre, 120bhp power source linked to a six-speed Stepspeed clutchless manual via Grand Prix-style steering wheel buttons - which also operates as a full automatic - is also available.
The test car was the flagship TF 160 powered by the 1.8-litre VVC engine, which announces its presence in time-honoured sports car fashion with a rich growl emanating from behind you via twin stainless steel exhaust pipes.
This K Series engine delivers everything it says on the box, the 160bhp punching you through the 0-60mph sprint in under seven seconds, en route to a top speed, where legally allowable, of 137mph.
It's torquey, too, providing genuine sports car exhilaration and making overtaking moves shorter and, consequently, safer.
Mounted on 16-inch, 11-spoke alloys, the TF rewards the driver with pin-sharp handling when linking together a series of twisty bits.
Driving enjoyment is standard-fit on this two-seater roadster - the classic mid-engined, rear-wheel drive set-up feels extremely well connected with the hardtop below.
It responds precisely via its speed sensitive power steering, well set-up chassis and extremely positive front brakes, to deliver true driver satisfaction.
Downshift a couple of notches on the box as you approach a bend and the sharp turn-in allows you to sweep through supremely smoothly in one move as you line up the next part of the chicane.
The interior is as sporty as they come. Ensconced in figure-hugging sports seats, you grip the business like tiller surrounded by white-faced dials on the dash and an aluminium-topped gearshift.
In the kit department, you do get electric windows, remote central locking and a Kenwood sound system with single-slot CD, although, surprisingly in a performance car, the provision of a passenger airbag will add £275 to your bill and ABS braking £550.
Nostalgia is all well and good in its place and in today's world where electronic wizardry has been effectively employed for lifting the lid on most cabriolets, I didn't particularly having to cope with the rather fiddly velcro and zip fastenings to put the top down.
But apart from this, the TF, with its signature side air inlets and distinctive four-slot nose with octagon badging, fully justifies the title of the World's Most Beautiful Cabriolet which it won last year in Italy.
FAST FACTS
MG TF 1.8 160
Price: £20,345
Mechanical: 160bhp, 1,796cc, 4cyl petrol engine driving rear wheels via 5-spd manual gearbox
Max Speed: 137mph
0-60mph: 6.9 secs
Combined mpg: 37.6
Insurance Group: 16
CO2 emissions: 179g/km
BiK rating: 21%
Warranty: 3yrs/ 60,000 miles; 6yrs paint; 6 yrs anti-rust