Had a very pleasant surprise when I rang up my insurer (Direct Line) for a quote to transfer my insurance from my 10 year old Proton MPi saloon (insured fully comp with legal pretection) only to find that there would be no additional charge to transfer it on to a brand new Nissan Almera 1.5 Flare I am thinking of buying, as they are both the same group, There about 8 months remaining on the existing policy What a surprise! Think I will be staying with Direct Line then
Also Full retail price on the Almera is £12100 OTR and ive managed to secure a quote for £9200 OTR including metallic paint, from www.motorprovider.co.uk Guess they will be getting my business as well, seem to be a good bunch to deal with.
|
I'm not familiar with the model range.
What kind of spec is the 'Flare' ?
HJ reports motorpoint offering
> New Nissan Almera 1.5S 3-dr, a/c, CD: £6,999
www.honestjohn.co.uk/news/index.htm?news_id=1154
or click on the VW Beetle on right of screen.
|
|
The Flare is next to top spec, its an SVE minus sunroof and minus satnav but its got everything else climate control fogs. smart alloys, n-form computer console top spec trim etc
|
The Flare is next to top spec, its an SVE minus sunroof and minus satnav but its got everything else climate control fogs. smart alloys, n-form computer console top spec trim etc
I hope you don't mind me suggesting that you check the n-form thing carefully before buying.
I was a passenger in an Almera Tino recently with one of those n-form consoles, and played with it a bit, because I had never seen anything lke it.
It looked very neat at first, but when I'd played with it for a while, I realised that it was actually a much slower and more complicated way of adjusting the controls than the usual raft of buttons and switches and dials.
The friend who'd hired the car said that after a few thousand miles she reckoned it was downright dangerous, because she had to take her eyes off the road for so many of the minor adjustments which she could do blind on other cars.
For myself, I wouldn't buy a car with one of those things -- give me ordinary kobs and buttons any day! But YMMV, as the merkins say :)
Claire
|
Hmm... perhaps a genius here could answer a question re insurance.
I've just bought a second hand Citroen Xsara 1.9TD coupe (S-reg, £3995 with 3 year warranty :D) to replace my L-reg Astra - the Astra was Group 8 and the Citroen is group 6. Can I just get my insurance transferred to the Citroen? I haven't sold the Astra yet (listed in Autotrader today) - what do I do about road test insurance? Being 17 it's going to be kinda difficult to insure two cars at once, as the astra was setting me back £800 per year.
Thanks for your advice!
|
If the Astra is parked off the road, you may be able to get "laid up insurance" and be able to transfer the remaining insurance to the Xsara no problems.
Slightly off topic, but the Xsara is a great car, the 1.9TD will last longer than an ice age when treated well with frequent oil changes and coolant changes.
Enjoy it
Ben
|
Lovely car the Xsara Coupe. I wanted a 1.8 VTR, but they are so hard to find and even harder to find in non yellow :(
FWIW, the 1.9TD is Group 7, not 6.
|
Thanks for your advice - sadly, it is vomit-yellow! I rang around everywhere but couldn't find another colour in as good a condition or at the same price. I'm going to have to stop sniggering at people who drive gold cars now....
They might have moved it down - the dealer's book had it as group 6. Out of curiousity, as I don't get it until the end of the week (dealer giving it full service and MOT for free) will it hold it's own on the motorway? The Astra would happily sit at 80-85MPH, will I have to push this to get that? No big deal if I can't, I switched to a diesel because of the appalling MPG I got from the Astra. I worked out that with the improved fuel economy that the new car repayments are only costing me £3 per week more than I was already spending. :D
|
Cruising on the motorway your TD will compare more than favourably with the Ashtray (cough) I mean Astra.
Enjoy your car and let us know how you get on in the first week of ownership (always an eye-opener)
|
|
|
|
It'll easily hold its own on the Motorway. My Xantia does, and that has the same engine, so it can only be easier in a lighter car :)
|
Well, I got to collect my new(ish) Xsara today. Still not a huge fan of the colour, but I think it'll grow on me. First time I've driven something so powerful, too. I thought my 1.6 Astra had some go, but this is something else, especially when the turbo kicks in.
Got to go back to the dealer for an hour next week for them to put the steering wheel back on straight, as it's rotated slightly clockwise for some reason and is irritating having to hold the wheel slightly turned when going in a straight line. They'll fix it, unless it's something I can easily do myself, which I don't think it is!
So I'm very pleased with it, especially at the price. £3995.
|
Make sure the steering wheel is on crooked before letting them take it off and refit it in a different spline position, if the problem or maladjustment lies elsewhere, moving the steering wheel is worst practice botch job.
|
|
|
