A car for a Yorkshireman!

JohnN

JohnN

Suspended / Banned
Messages
6,359
Name
John
Edit My Images
Yes
Hi all,

At some point I'll be upgrading my car - a 10 year old Peugeot 307 SW.

What I'm hoping to find is probably impossible, something cheap to buy, cheap to insure, cheat to run, passes MOT's (or has cheap parts and doesn't need the entire engine dismantling to do what should be simple work - like my old Citroen did!).
It'd need to have a decent boot too (I go camping with an six man tent and family), oh and is relatively comfy for the trips to see the mother in law in Scotland.

I very much doubt it but if such a miraculous vehicle exists I'm sure you good people will know as I know sod all about cars and wouldn't even have one were it not for work and days out.

Cheers,

John
 
I was gonna suggest a pug but see you already have one. Whats wrong with the current car then? Just too old?
Also how cheap is cheap? £4000? £8000?
What sort of car? Saloon? Hatch? People carrier? SUV?

Ford Focus TDCi?
Honda Civic/Jazz?
Skoda Octavia?
Seat Leon?

The trouble with 90% of cars these days being front wheel drive is that getting at the clutch etc to replace it is always going to be more complex than on the old rear wheel drive cars. ( I know BMW and some other modern cars are still rear wheel drive for the pedants reading)
 
Nothing really, just a bit old and to my shame I just don't trust it, mostly because I had a really bad citearn (I never can spell that!) and have tarred this poor car with the same brush.

Cheap for me would be no more than £4000, this car was the most expensive I'd bought and it cost £2500.

I guess car wise I don't mind as long as its big enough for the family but not so big I can't park it.
 
Last edited:
A Ford Focus Estate would meet most of your wish list and be in your budget. The diesel is the cheapest version to run in terms of mpg, but they hold their price better than the petrols so it's a trade off. I've had two petrol 1.8 Focuses on the past, both were really reliable and quite cheap to run. The first one I had for 9 years, it only ever needed tyres, brake pads and a set of front discs in all that time, plus regular servicing of course. It was still on the original battery, clutch and exhaust when I sold it. If they do go wrong Ford parts are cheap and plentiful of course.

Go for at least the Zetec version and you get aircon, electric windows and mirrors and heated windscreen (which is brilliant btw, I guarantee you'll love it on frosty mornings).
 
No point running a huge car when you don't need it. Focus is a good shout, stick a large roofbox on when you need more space.
 
I forgot to say, don't be tempted by the 1.4 petrol Focus. They're underpowered for the size of the car and you have to work the engine quite hard, which kills the mpg. The 1.6 is the smallest engine worth having.
 
Cheers all, with regard to the Zetec, which models are higher (or where can I find out?)
 
JohnN said:
Cheers all, with regard to the Zetec, which models are higher (or where can I find out?)
Click to expand...
For £4k price range you may well be able to find a Ghia or Titanium. Just look on ebay or Autotrader, see what comes up for your money. If you find a Ford car you like the look of and want a more in depth run down of what features it has fitted, type the registration number (providing it is the original registration number) or the VIN if you have it in here https://www.etis.ford.com/vehicleRegSelector.do;jsessionid=0655A2AAF6CE05A1A5957E775FCA3A2F.fcvas509
Other than give details when the car was 1st registered it should also list all the features fitted, including any optional extras that were ordered by the original owner.
 
JohnN said:
Cheers all, with regard to the Zetec, which models are higher (or where can I find out?)
Click to expand...
As above, Ghia and Titanium models are higher spec than Zetecs. Tbh, there's not not a huge difference between these and the Zetec really. I had a Ghia as my last Focus and the main differences were minimal...think it had electric rear windows, a trip computer, better stereo, plusher seats and a bit of "wood" trim on the dash (which looked rather like plastic to me!).
 
another one for ford here ,i run a 2.0ltr 115bhp mondeo hatchback ,cheap to buy ,cheap to service and repair ,built like a tank drives like a jag (same chassis) and i get a average of 56mpg (egr valve taken out) and 45mpg towing our caravan ,if you need more room the estates cost a bit more to buy but are enormous inside
 
Ex police car ford focus estate 1.8 d £2500

Fully serviced and it top condition mecnicaly but bodywork, paint chipped from stickers, had issues.

Had to put a radio in it and cover 4 holes from the roof lights.


Never looked back :)
 
Where on earth would you get an ex-police car from?

I do hear they look after them very well though.

EDIT: I found somewhere - they do look very good, high mileage as you'd expect but otherwise very nice
 
Last edited:
Another vote for Ford Mondeo MK3 2.0 115bhp diesel, mine cost £950 and I've put 40,000 miles on in almost 2yrs with very little running costs above the norm.

The 115 sits in a low-ish tax band, £11 a month or so. Mine is doing 55-60mpg too.

Not a fashionable choice but they do offer extremely good value for money.
 
Proper Yorkshireman car;
original.jpg


:coat: :exit:
 

Attachments

  • upload_2015-8-5_16-18-8.jpeg
    upload_2015-8-5_16-18-8.jpeg
    5.8 KB · Views: 2
Last edited:
stumeech said:
Another vote for Ford Mondeo MK3 2.0 115bhp diesel, mine cost £950 and I've put 40,000 miles on in almost 2yrs with very little running costs above the norm.

The 115 sits in a low-ish tax band, £11 a month or so. Mine is doing 55-60mpg too.

Not a fashionable choice but they do offer extremely good value for money.
Click to expand...
Another Mk3 Mondeo vote. I had a late Mk3 Mondeo ST TDCi.
post-25623-0-62209600-1307212613.jpg

was capable of 50-55mpg on mixed driving and over 60mpg for motorway cruising. The boot is capable of swallowing a lot too if you don't fancy going for an estate which will obviously swallow a lot more.
 
no idea how I managed to forget the Mondeo, my two best mates have had one at one time or another and I recall the boot being huge!
 
Sorry, but there hasn't been a car built yet that would satisfy a Yorkshireman. Load capacity of a small bus, more MPG than a Prius and the ability to park in a space that a Smart car would struggle with. :exit::)

A vote here for the Citroen C4 Grand Picasso. Not a great car but does most things pretty averagely, roomy and can still get 50+ MPG.
 
uhg... I have history with that company, most expensive car ever, the mere thought of it make me hope its rotting and Lancashire!
 
Derek_W said:
A vote here for the Citroen C4 Grand Picasso. Not a great car but does most things pretty averagely, roomy and can still get 50+ MPG.
Click to expand...
My only experience of them and previous Picassos is getting stuck behind them as they cause tailbacks on the A12 as they struggle to overtake a lorry. Mind you it may only be the silver ones as they are the ones I seem to encounter at least twice every time I drive on the A12. :(
 
Now there's a car I'd like. You could swagger down the street if you owned that. No road tax, no petrol, feeds off the verge and when it was clapped out you could sell the cab for scrap and eat the ox. Win, Win situation!

nilagin said:
My only experience of them and previous Picassos is getting stuck behind them as they cause tailbacks on the A12 as they struggle to overtake a lorry. Mind you it may only be the silver ones as they are the ones I seem to encounter at least twice every time I drive on the A12. :(
Click to expand...
I have to say I had both versions found them quite nippy. The turbo was dodgy on the first one but even if I'd had to replace it the car would have still been good value for money. The clever owner sells before all the problems start but I've never been that lucky.
 
daugirdas said:
Anything VW / Audi or BMW thats not the smallest model.
Click to expand...
had a Golf a few years ago and it was the most unreliable car I ever had, the turbo went, the intercooler hoses split, catalytic convertor split in half, the window fell out, indicator relay packed up,brake light switch went (nightmare to change), air conditioning packed up (£300) ,anti roll bar bushes rotted , drop links ,as well as £500 for a cambelt changing because its buried in the bowels of the engine. the car was 6 years old when I bought it and i had it 3 years and was glad to see the back of it because it was starting to make a funny noise from the gearbox.
 
lol, I'm banned from driving an Audi - my wife tells me I'm already a grumpy sod and thats before I get an Audi, apparently then I'd be a full on arse!
 
chris954 said:
the turbo went, the intercooler hoses split, catalytic convertor split in half, the window fell out, indicator relay packed up,brake light switch went (nightmare to change), air conditioning packed up (£300) ,anti roll bar bushes rotted , drop links ,as well as £500 for a cambelt changing
Click to expand...
I hope the second journey went better! :ROFLMAO:
 
Why not a nice new Dacia duster. A little bit more capital but run it longer as it is new and the total cost of ownership can be even lower.
 
dejongj said:
Why not a new Dacia duster. A little bit more capital but run it longer as it is new and the total cost of ownership can be even lower.
Click to expand...
Removed that 4 letter word for you.
 
Well you guys can make fun of it, it is having pretty good write ups and is excellent value for money. No I wouldn't buy one myself, but then again I'm not a Yorkshireman, I happily overpay for my German machines...
 
It maybe "excellent value for money" in terms of the list price,, but in terms of finance a local dealer is offering one at £592 deposit and £179 per month. I (Yes I know I get an employee discount) can get a new Focus for £179 deposit and £179 per month, an inexpensive German machine. ;)
 
Last edited:
And
dejongj said:
Well you guys can make fun of it, it is having pretty good write ups and is excellent value for money. No I wouldn't buy one myself, but then again I'm not a Yorkshireman, I happily overpay for my German machines...
Click to expand...
And who could forget that dutch classic the rubber band powered Daf ? Although the trucks not bad if often referred to as a daft ruck :D
 
nilagin said:
It maybe "excellent value for money" in terms of the list price,, but in terms of finance a local dealer is offering one at £592 deposit and £179 per month. I (Yes I know I get an employee discount) can get a new Focus for £179 deposit and £179 per month, an inexpensive German machine. ;)
Click to expand...

I've always found that it is much better to just buy outright 'cheap' cars, the financing deals don't make sense....It is something to look at on a case by case basis, as taking my Golf R as an example, the capital investment doesn't make sense when you can lease one without employee discount for £179/month. To me it all depends...

But anyway, apologies to the OP as it is out of budget I was merely attempting to highlight that when looking at the total cost of ownership it could be better value to buy new....But one has to do their own sums and weigh up your personal priorities in live.
 
Cobra said:
And

And who could forget that dutch classic the rubber band powered Daf ? Although the trucks not bad if often referred to as a daft ruck :D
Click to expand...
Hey the Van Doorne's transmission is brilliant! I loved it paired to a 3.5l V6 petrol, it was so smooth and it is brilliant to not have gear changes, just set the rotations per minute and the car keeps going....In either direction :eek:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top