Just recovering from the surprise of having my car written off for minor damage and so having no mode of transport.
Since Im working over the next 2 weeks at different sites Im to put it mildly -stuck!
Any ideas on a cheap banger that has the least chance of going wrong while I look out for another car!
I did see nutty_nissans car post on this forum that he bought for £160, a primera.
Have looked at ebay/autotrader nothing nearby.
Or would it be better to buy straight off auction since they the prices are low now??
Thanks for any suggestions.
|
Should be able to find one a little cheaper / tattier, but these are pretty bullet proof and the later ones galvernised so little chance of tin worm..
www.zfz.com/pictures/audi100.jpg
|
John
You say your car has been written off for minor damage.
Would you not be able to effect a temporary repair to keep you going until you found something else?
|
Hugo {P}
Hardly anything apart from a broken R front light cluster(can get it from the scrapyard) and a bent bonnet(opens and closes fine and which Im sure sitting on top for 5 minutes to flatten it out will make it look unnoticeable!) and a small crack on the bumper which was previously present!
Trouble is that Esure my current insurer will not insure written off cars.
Any ideas out of this.Feel its a shame really to loose this car for this minor damage.
|
Hmmm...
Discussion on this would probably justify a separate thread!
Have you discussed with Esure if there are any ways around this? Perhaps you could speak to a senior underwriter and explain the situation. After all, you could by a car that had been a total loss and not be aware of the fact (not that unlikely in view of the way you are looking to approach this). Maybe an engineer's report may persuade them otherwise.
Unless you've done this already.
|
|
Buy it from Esure,repair it and re-MOT it then insure for 3-party (RTA)only.The devil you know and all that.
|
Buy it from Esure,repair it and re-MOT it then insure for 3-party (RTA)only.The devil you know and all that.
Agree
|
Rent for a couple of weeks till you get time to find something decent. Bangers need to be sorted through carefully to find something decent. Your are unlikely to find a decent cheap car quickly.
If you need transport for your work you need reliable transport.
|
This may not apply to your situation, but . . .
A few years ago our car was written off in an accident (Again, no major damage). Our insurance provided us with a courtesy car, which had to be returned sharpish after the insurance co made the write-off decision. We were in a similar situation to you.
We took a day to test drive a few cars, chose one, and ordered it (we were buying new). The supplying garage had a rental arm and gave us a good deal on a few week's rental.
More interestingly, though, when the new car didn't arrive as quickly as hoped, they gave us, as a courtesy car, a 7 year old Primera they had taken in as a trade-in (&, obviously, didn't charge us.) If you are buying new, you might be able to get the supplying garage to do something similar.
|
Well courtesy car taken away today and Im dependant on public transport now!
Tried to get to speak to someone at Esure about buying it off them, only to be told-someone will ring you back...
And Im waiting for that.
I always thought that the insurance co provided you with a courtesy car, but this was from the workshop,partly sponsored by a takeaway.
In the last week as a result, got asked for the menu card on two occasions while sitting in the parked car!
Am I optimistic in thinking that I would get the Parkers valuation equivalent on this car from Esure?
|
I do not know why you lot always buy new cars, I have never owned a new car in my life and would not want one.
There are plenty of good second hand cars out there ,just look in the local paper.
True some may show a few problems but if they are expensive, i.e. more than the cars value, then get shot of it and buy another,you can only loose what you pay for it.
I never pay more than £500 for a car and am happier paying around £100.
For that I get about 6 months to 1 years motoring and excluding tax and insurance that is all i can loose.
Glen the skinflint
|
|
Perhaps some of us who drive on motorways/at night in remote areas want a new car because they are much more safe and reliable compared to a car that's worth £500?
|
good point bedfordrl
there is no way a new fiat/peugeout is more reliable than a 6 year old hyundai or nissan which can be picked up well under a grand.
|
good point bedfordrl
there is no way a new fiat/peugeout is more reliable than a 6 year old hyundai or nissan which can be picked up well under a grand.
Bobby, We're already having trouble with "over familiarity" on this site. If you want to argue his point, something along the lines of what I've written below should suffice
Sorry to choose this post as an example but from time to time we all could do with looking at this a different way.
Hugo - BR Moderator
I disagree, especially whilst your doing high mileages. With a new car there is much less wear and tear on the moving parts, and you get a 3 year warranty that protects your pocket!
I would like to know on what your arguement is based, facts and figures, personal experience etc perhaps.
|
An update on the exchange price-generous valuation.
Have decided to accept the price offered by Esure for the car as it is a good amount and more than what I would get if I were to sell the car myself!
I imagine the job of an engineer valuator must be a particularly difficult one with endless arguments with customers regarding the write off price.
I was kept on hold for 20 minutes with the engineer in the background arguing heatedly in the background with a customer!
|
Bobby, We're already having trouble with "over familiarity" on this site.
Call me thick if you like, but what part of the post do you class as being over-familiar? And why is it inappropriate in this forum? I'd sooner see familiarity any day than the nasty remarks you occasionally get in some posts.
--
L'escargot.
|
L'Escargot,
Not sure if you saw my original post but I was querying on what basis DaveyUK could make such a sweeping, non factual based statement that a 6 year old Hyundai was categorically more reliable than a brand new Peugeot. Mods didn't like the way I said it and have changed it to what my thread is now saying.
|
Its based on fact form the motoring press and dealership world.
You do not buy a fiat/peugeot for reliability.
The only 2 reasons to buy a hyundai are price and reliability.
Whats more satisfying...
pay £7995 for a basic 1.4 peugeout 206 (still hard to get uch discount on them)
3 years later your car has lost 4 - 5.5 grand with say 70,000 miles on the clock.
buy a 51 plate hyundai accent gsi for £1150 the week at auction with 55k on the clock.
In 3 years time, it wont miss a beat - ok the wind will scratch the paint and it will be the most entertaining drive - but you wont mind to much if ur doing 95% motorway driving.
after 3 years it will be worth 500-600 quid. not much left to devalue.
i know which option i would choose, do choose and makes me very happy indeed - meaning i can afford to change car as often as i please, get the extension on the house and put more into my pension fund for gordon brown to steal.
im sorry - but it is poor stewardship of your money to buy a new car.
|
Davey, first of all let me remind you of your original point
"there is no way a new fiat/peugeout is more reliable than a 6 year old hyundai or nissan which can be picked up well under a grand."
What you have stated in your most recent post above does not, in any shape or form, back that point up. Yes, I understand where you are coming from and how you can pick up a used Hyundai and run it cheaply, as you can do with a lot of used cars, dare I say a 106 or 205? In fact was the 205 diesel not at one point voted the best used buy?
FWIW I totally agree with you re not buying a brand new car. However, again, this does not back up your statement that a 6 year old Hyundai is more reliable than a brand new Peugeot.
Finally if I was doing 95% motorway driving, a Hyundai accent would be way down my personal list of ideal cars to do this task.
|
im sorry - but it is poor stewardship of your money to buy a new car.
There is no need for you to apologise.
The majority of my cars were bought new. The money I used for each purchase was mine, and was not money that was in my "stewardship". My reasons for buying new cars are that it allows me to have the latest model with the accompanying latest technology and style, together with (and this is important to me) the options and the colour that I want.
--
L\'escargot.
|
good point bedfordrl there is no way a new fiat/peugeout is more reliable than a 6 year old hyundai or nissan which can be picked up well under a grand.
Perhaps on the reliability front, yes. I was suggesting that a car worth £500 will be less safe than a brand new version of the same model. Compare a 10 year old Astra with a brand new Astra. They both might get you from A-B equally as well, but I find it extremely hard to believe the two cars would hold up equally in any crash. You only have to see what happened with Renault Family to understand the value in driving a reasonably recent model.
|
|
I don't think I even briefly considered crash safety when mulling over possible car choices...
|
Compare a 10 year old Astra with a brand new Astra. They both might get you from A-B equally as well .......
Have Astras not improved at all in the last ten years?
--
L\'escargot.
|
My previous car was an NCAP 2 1999 Nissan Almera in which I had an approximately 20-30 mph shunt into 5 other cars, reasonably low speed , airbags not deployed and minor damage to front of car.
However even with this I had low back and neck discomfort lasting <7days.
Which is one of the reasons why ,this time I went in for a 2001 Passat, ie large car with its better safety profile(NCAP 4).
In the long run, I think its better to spend more to be in a more securely protected environment.
Lifes too short to have even a minor injury let alone a broken bone!
|
> Finally if I was doing 95% motorway driving, a Hyundai accent would be way down my personal list of ideal cars to do this task.
In fairness though a 1.4 Pug 206 would be even further down my list (VERY uncomfortable).
The 1.6 petrol Accent is as capable on the motorway as any other 1.6. The 1.4 Peugeot is slower than the 1.3 Accent....
As for reliability, I'd say that the chances are that a brand-new Accent would be more reliable than a new say Peugeot 307 which has had its fair share of problems. But a 6-year-old? I doubt it. Any 6 year old car is going to have a fair-to-middling chance of something major going wrong and leaving you stranded. Reliable though Hyundais are I think it's expecting a bit much of a 6yo to be more reliable than a new car.
The Accent is very good value for money second-hand, criminally underrated as honest, dependable transport and you could do an awful lot worse for £1000 (such as the L-plate diesel 106 my brother bought a couple of years ago which was absolutely hopeless). But let's not get carried away here.
BTW I have a 5yo Accent and a 12yo Nissan Sunny. Both have been absolutely reliable over the last few years.
|
|
if u r to buy cheap n cheeerful from ebay, theres is a guy called film prop man, who sells all sorts for sensible prices, it is not me, no relation etc I have never met him, but surf cars constantly!!! Somwere in bucks I think
|
The gist of my arguement was that as I say i pay between £100 to £500 pounds for a car, most of you happily pay £5000-£15000 for a car that basically does the same as mine ,only more reliably.
What price reliability ?,is the fact that it will hopefully not break down worth £4500-£14500.
I will chug around and maybe break down once or twice and still be back tomorrow.
I think you are following the carrot held by the dealers.
Everyone has to rush off and buy the next new model car because their old one is old and they are told "dangerous", tosh if it gets you to work and you do not try to climb trees with then it is good enough,mind you if you did that then there would be less of your cast offs for me.
I know some one will say "but newer cars are safer" ,well so what,if paramount safety was my only desire in life then i would hide under my bed all day.
I know i am a minority,but size doesnt matter.
|
bedfordrl, I take a slightly different approach to cars, but it amounts to the same thing, namely I search out cars which have a good reputation but nonetheless depreciate rapidly, and buy them as new as possible after the bulk of the value has been stripped away. Then keep them until they drop.
Result is that I end up paying less than £500/year in depreciation, which equates to buying a £500 banger once a year. And as I know the cars inside out I have more faith in them.
This is changing though as I am using the Hyundai for work and have to say that I'll probably be spending £6000 next year for a car. I may even get a brand new run-out Almera depending on what deals are around (if they're £6000 I'll get one as I know it'll still be worth £3-4000 after 3 years, so it's still not costing me much).
|
The gist of my arguement was that as I say i pay between £100 to £500 pounds for a car, most of you happily pay £5000-£15000 for a car that basically does the same as mine ,only more reliably. What price reliability ?,is the fact that it will hopefully not break down worth £4500-£14500.
It isn't just reliability. It's how it makes you feel.
I love cars, I love owning cars, and like nothing more than sitting around polishing it etc etc. Do this with a £200 shed, it's still a £200 shed but you can be really proud of owning something bit more substantial.
And whilst both cars will get you from A to B, it will be more comfortable and generally much nicer to be in a newish car than an old banger.
It's the same reason why, when away from home, I stay in a hotel rather than pitch a tent beside the road.
|
if u r to buy cheap n cheeerful from ebay, theres is a guy called film prop man, who sells all sorts for sensible prices, it is not me, no relation etc I have never met him, but surf cars constantly!!! Somwere in bucks I think
Yes i've seen him on ebay not long a go selling a few classics & future classics! He based in the Aylesbury area i think.
--
Its not what you drive, its how you drive it! :-)
|
|
My next door neighbour had a 10 yr old astra, got written off when a woman driver crossed lanes, insurers gave him a courtesy car a 2005 model astra, i asked him what was it like and he replied not as good to drive than his old motor
|
|
Tell your neighbour to get into his 10 year old Astra and drive to Malaga. The tell him to do it in the new one. Compare how he/she feels afterwards and then ask if they still think the new one is inferior.
|
I also own a 50 year old bedford and would love to drive it to Malaga.
I did not say that i thought newer cars are inferior,just that i do not see the point in rushing out to buy the latest model that comes out,which will do exactly the same as your current car just with maybe a few more knobs to twiddle.
|
In fairness to safety.
the hyundai accent and 99% of all pacific rim cars are woeful when it comes to safety.
I was in one once and we where pulling upto park, driver was distracted and hita lampost at under 10 miles an hour. we sort of stuck to it - the front proection bar hasd snapped where it has a hole to hold up the grille and the car was a write off.
On antoher car - and yes ive done the same thing at a slightly faster speed in a toyota corolla - i excaped with a slight dent in the bonnet and requiring a new bumper.
Hyundais are miles behind when it comes to safety - but more scarrey - the chinese are even further behind.
if u had a frontal crash in an accent even the latest mark 3 model - u would be seriously hurt if not fatal.
the car is a tin box - although its a reliable tin box. And while reliability is my greatest need - dare i say it a bit more than safety - i will continue to buy koreans finest white goods for pocket money and rn them into the ground.
on the subject of new cars - if i wanted a new city car - i would look no further than the hyundai getz.
4 star safety and a 5 year warranty. - cant whack it - not having to worry bout your car for 5 years!
|
The previous Accent was woeful for safety, but having said that it's a 12-year-old design now and was a cheap car at the time so that is hardly surprising.
The newer one is an unknown quantity. It's never been tested in Europe but has had a good rating in the US and Australia -- 5 stars in the US, in fact. I'm not so sure that the safety on this car is so bad -- 3 stars by Euro standards maybe, making it on-par with cars of say 1997 vintage, which is reasonable as a 2001 car costs the same as a 97 car from other makes.
The Getz is actually very good for safety -- until very recently no supermini scored better than a 4 for safety. And the new Hyundai Sonata has been judged one of the safest cars on US roads. I don't think it can simply be said that Korean cars are bad for safety -- as in all other areas they are improving rapidly, and frankly some older-design Euroboxes (Saxo anyone?) are just as bad if not worse for safety.
Finally, I think it's insulting to lump Hyundais and Kias of the last few years in with other "Pacific Rim" cars like Protons and Peroduas. They're an order of magnitude better.
|
My local Kia dealer is selling new Picantos for £4999,that has to be good value for a surprisingly good car.I dont know the details,but you can finance them for £99 down and insurance for £99,i really like the Picanto as 'white goods motoring'.
|
Crumbs. Given the choice of a 150k 10-12 year old Audi A6/100 - or A4/80, which will cost you between £100 and £1000, and a brand new Vauxhall, Ford, Renault, Hyundry (or whatever those horrid cars are called), there's no choice for me.
I know which will cost me less, which will be no less reliable, and which will - most importantly - give me more comfortable driving.
Modern cars don't break down. Whatever the car is, however old it is. Unless they're Alfas or Fiats or new Mercs.
Yup, full of sweeping statements*, but the idea that an 'old car' is unsafe and unreliable is a marketing coup by the New Car pushers.
____________________
* and I wouldn't even recognise a Hyundry, let alone have I ever sat in one, but it sounds horrid
|
Oh yes, and the notion that a brand new Astra is 'safer' than a 10 year old Audi 100 is risible.
Your hyundry collapsed in an accident, dalglish? That just shows that it has effective crumple zones.
|
The "safety" tests need to be taken with a pinch of salt.
Crash into a wall at 20mph in almost any car(ie round town), and you'll walk away.
Crash at 60-70mph (motorway speed allowing for slowing down) and they'll be scraping you off the road regardless of what you drive.
The NCAP tests are very narrow, and there is evidence that some manufacturers are building cars to pass tests rather than actually be safe.
Put it this way; I'd rather be in a 7yo Volvo than a brand-new Laguna in a high-speed crash.
|
Put it this way; I'd rather be in a 7yo Volvo than a brand-new Laguna in a high-speed crash.
Think we know someone who will disagree with you on that one....
|
I think if I were going to crash, it would be a nice Volvo S60 or S80 that I would choose, built by a cimpany who have been designing safer cars than the competition for years.
Unfortunately I don't have the funds to buy a decent S60 (with non-wornout suspension), and if the truth be known I think the S80 is dull, so I tend to take the middle ground and would opt for Mondeo for it's mix of handling and class average safety.
Blue
|
I do not know why you lot always buy new cars, I have never owned a new car in my life and would not want one. There are plenty of good second hand cars out there ,just look in the local paper. True some may show a few problems but if they are expensive, i.e. more than the cars value, then get shot of it and buy another,you can only loose what you pay for it. I never pay more than £500 for a car and am happier paying around £100. For that I get about 6 months to 1 years motoring and excluding tax and insurance that is all i can loose. Glen the skinflint
>>
Perhaps we can afford to, want to and choose to?
|
Top ten used cars under £1000 cars.msn.co.uk/CarNews/Top101kApr05/Default.asp?MS...8 -- L\'escargot.
???
Is this the "ten <£1000 cars most likely to leave a huge hole in your pocket?"
All these cars are worth a lot when in perfect condition, even when very old. At £1000 they'll have the shirt off your back.
|
>> Top ten used cars under £1000 cars.msn.co.uk/CarNews/Top101kApr05/Default.asp?MS...8 >> -- >> L\'escargot. >> ??? Is this the "ten <£1000 cars most likely to leave a huge hole in your pocket?" All these cars are worth a lot when in perfect condition, even when very old. At £1000 they'll have the shirt off your back.
Agree, they're having a laugh with those.
|
I do not know why you lot always buy new cars, I have never owned a new car in my life and would not want one. There are plenty of good second hand cars out there ,just look in the local paper. True some may show a few problems but if they are expensive, i.e. more than the cars value, then get shot of it and buy another,you can only loose what you pay for it. I never pay more than £500 for a car and am happier paying around £100. For that I get about 6 months to 1 years motoring and excluding tax and insurance that is all i can loose. Glen the skinflint
Kiss of death to your social status and your bird pulling ability!
--
L\'escargot.
|
I've never played "keeping ahead of the Jones'es".
I suppose i was lucky with the missus when it came to "pulling" her, i did not know there was a leak in my Land Rover roof on the passenger side until she told me.
|
People seem to talk a lot about eBay bargains, but it seems to me to be a case of 'right place, right time', or more importantly 'seller has no idea how to write an auction'.
A couple of weeks ago I picked up a 1987 Vauxhall Belmont 1.8 GLSi for £51 (why do I attract old GM landfill?). OK, not the most desirable car in the world, but one elderly owner from new until August last year and 58k miles. However, this was predominantly because the seller wrote a minimally-worded advert. One months' MOT as bought, but needed only a new tailpipe (£22) and a small plate welding on the end of each sill to pass a new one. That cost £100. So, cheap motoring (although I don't use this car every day in fairness) for another year. But, if you're in a hurry, might be better to look at your local paper or FreeADS. Stick to something that's unfashionable and beloved by old people and you won't go far wrong.
|
