|
In nine months I have had my Rover 218 sld Turbo diesel, I have covered 19,000 miles, yes there are a few niggles, but generally well pleased, passed MOT first time. Cost £775. I have spent £200 for a new cambelt and changed the water pump at the same time. Only maintenance that is done is a DIY Oil service every 5k. Anything else will be done as needed.
|
Firstly go to the AA and get full relay membership. Others might be cheaper, but only an AA man will come back to fit a new part 3 days after his first diagnostic visit. Others will tell you its time for a new car, in my experience.
Treat it as disposable, so spend as little on it as you can. You'll have to knock £100 off for the value of the AA membership anyway.
Make sure it's got near enough 12 months MOT, as that's what's going to kill your car if the cambelt doesn't. A recent service doesn't add anything to the cost of the vehicle, but it does to its value to you.
Take a friend who knows what to look for: non near-illegal tyres is an obvious starter, closely followed by an exhaust with 12 months life left in it (don't forget the front pipe). Mileage is irrelevant provided it doesn't smoke horribly, though a car sold with 12 months MOT & recent service is likely to be one owner from new and so a shopping car.
Don't waste your money on an HP check.
When you've got it, think hard about putting on brand new electrical bits (rotor arm, HT cables, possibly a battery, spark plugs).
(Optional next bit, depending on how cheap your car is and how poor you are: Have the brakes checked and then don't dream of servicing it at all. Ever. Except to change the plugs. It probably uses enough oil that you don't need to change it anyway... Cam belt - if you paid less than 200 quid for the car, don't bother changing it. the worst that happens is that when it fails the AA will take you home from the other side of Britain and save you lots of petrol. Chances are it won't fail. If you paid £500 and have no evidence of its being changed, then change it.)
Finally, if you've had the AA out 5 times during the year, join the RAC for a bit - you don't want to get a bad name...
Then what sort of car? At this age you get VW lemons and Skoda peaches, so it really doesn't matter. I'd recommend something of which there are lots (e.g. Cavalier, Fiesta). Then when it dies, you can buy another exactly the same and transfer the decent bits (particularly the new bits you bought as recommended earlier) straight over.
Learn about scrap yards and non-original parts.
Try having a look at this great site I found for a few ideas. bangernomics.tripod.com and then think whether what you actually fancy is one of those bargain barges...
|
|
yo uwont go too far wrong with a late Nissan Micra mk1 (just before the bubble)
|
I have an old Proton MPI
saloon, dead cheap to buy very reliable mitsubishi mechanicals and its flown 3 MOT's without any work needing to be done, its a 1.5 with 82k miles and has never broken down and ive spent a tiny amount on it in the near 4 years ive had it. no image, low insurance but pseudo-japanese reliability,
|
If you're trying the auction route, go to one of the bigger sites, that have main dealer 'Branded' sections.
You'll find a good choice of fairly genuine cars, with reasonable chance of getting the nearest thing to a bargain, if you're not too fussy!
Lots of OK cars, pretty well looked after, owner didn't want hassle of selling private, that sort of thing.
The best ones are where the owner has been spending lots of odd amounts on a battery here, a tyre there, MoT repair last month & then get 'one more thing' & I'm selling it!! You get that sorted & they've saved you a fair few £$£$£ Quite often you'll find a wad of bills,totalling MUCH more than you've paid for it,in cars at this price range!!
VB
|
My advice is pretty much the same as everyone else's. Don't buy anything overly trendy (as much as it can be in this price range), like a Mini or a 106 because they'll be heaps to get below the threshhold. Don't buy a car that doesn't do what you want it to do, and don't think you have to sacrifice all modern comforts and safety features. At the very minimum, expect a five speed box, and you should be able to get an airbag, power steering, electric windows and central locking - though there is a school of thought that says that these just mean more things to go wrong.
An N reg Escort will be a good one at this money only if bought at auction. However, assuming your only requirement of a car is that it should get you from A to B reliably, in comfort, don't be fussy about the particular model, but be very fussy about condition, performance, practicality and possibly specification.
|
I recently sold a G reg Sierra Sapphire for £550. For a 14 yr car that was a lot of money. However, I think I would have been lucky to replace it for 3 times that amount. 2 litre auto, leather, ac, all electrics, heated front screen etc. I owned it for three yrs with no trouble except general wear and tear (& minimal maintenance). Of course, it could have died the next day.
My point is, there are certainly bargains to be had. Don't judge by image or reputation. If it's been looked after cosmetically - it's probably OK mechanically also (SWMBO's philosophy, yet to be proved wrong in our house). Best to go for an "old mans car" than anything more sexy.
|
It's all good advice above. There is no single answer.
I'd be tempted to get down the auctions to have a look at what's available. Don't buy on the 1st visit though!
Also scan the classifieds for late 80s/early 90s Japanese cars with FSH. These are likely to be cared for and reliable. In my local paper today was a 1990 Mazda 323 with FSH for £700. Just 58k miles too.
The most recent bit of engineering in your price range is likely to be the Mondeo and a high mileage example with history would be worth a peek.
Finally, don't be afraid to be fussy. £750 will get you more car now than at any time in history. I spent a tenth of that and got a good 'un!
|
You want a Citroen ZX! Take your pick-1.4i petrol, 1.9d, or pokey 1.9td. I've seen 'P', 'R' reg models going for less than £750 (1.4is, the 1.9tds tend to command a bit more).
They look ok (matter of opionion I suppose!), they handle very well, they are cheap to run with very few reliability probs esp the 1.4i and 1.9 na diesel, insurance is quite cheap not quite as low as equivalent 306. For less than £750 you can one with kit like electric front windows, passenger mirror, immobiliser, airbag (driver only) electric sunroof at least central if not remote locking.
Unless you've got something seriously against french cars or citroens they have got to be one of the best used cars available.
|
|
Agree 100% with the above regarding the ZX, owned one for two years and did not cost me a penny. Probably the most rust resistant car of its era and class compared to the Escort and Astra opposition.
|
Agreed, ZX's are great as bangers when you're not bothered about looks, and the cheaper-to-insure 306's tend to be £1000+ still to buy.
How about a J-K reg Cavalier CDX or similar? Very cheap with lots of bits - yes more to break but when the whole car costs £500 what does it matter that the passenger electric window breaks after a week!
|
It doesn't matter at all, as long as it is shut when it happens!
Agree with the sentiment that Cavaliers offer good value for money - my issue with a 2.0 16v version is that it is quite expensive to insure, which may be a drawback for Indy.
My advice would be to purchase a car with some known history - at £750 there is always a chance of problems. If you know who owned it previously, and how it was treated / serviced, that is worth far more than looking for a specific car type...
Jono
|
|
