Car Dilemma

You mentioned getting a cheap £500 car to run for a year but there's a 2004 Accord 2.0 with 181K miles Executive (fully loaded) for £995 and you'll get a lot longer from that. The 7th Gen were built in Japan and very reliable (I had a 2005 2.4 version and not a thing went wrong) plus there's loads of 3rd party parts available anyway for the regular stuff like arms, droplinks, bushes etc that will go on any car but they really do last and the big stuff such as engine, clutch and gearbox related are solid.

For an old, used car there's not much else other than Honda that I'd look at due to the reliability. But each to their own experiences.
 
Go out to your missus car when it is stone cold and undo the radiator cap/coolant reservoir cap quickly. Does it hiss and blow off some pressure? If so that could indicate exhaust gases getting into the coolant from a failed head gasket.

Also, does it struggle to start? Again if it does could indicate head gasket failure.

If no to both of these investigate the oil cooler in my opinion...
 
Craig_85 said:
Go out to your missus car when it is stone cold and undo the radiator cap/coolant reservoir cap quickly. Does it hiss and blow off some pressure? If so that could indicate exhaust gases getting into the coolant from a failed head gasket.

Also, does it struggle to start? Again if it does could indicate head gasket failure.

If no to both of these investigate the oil cooler in my opinion...
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I'll give that a try :)

It starts really easily & drives absolutely fine so fingers crossed!
 
RichardtheSane said:
The surprising thing is bar any major failures replacing those components as they reach end of life is generally still cheaper than the monthly cost of financing something.
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Exactly, financing something when funds are tight is a shortcut to misery. You only ever get poorer with finance and with a kid on the way it isn't something I would even contemplate. The bonus being that without monthly credit outgoings you end up richer as the spare cash starts to build and soon you find yourself with a safety net for something else, it's a wonderful feeling the first time that happens :)
 
I am retired and drive very few miles not much less than your wife.
I bought a P reg toyota camry 2.2 manual, about 10 years ago for £ 1300 It still has under 90k on the clock. It is big comfortable and highly reliable.
I have had the cam belt replaced twice (per the book) and replaced the tyres allround then nothing else except annual service and mot.

Depreciation cost is miniscule and Mpg at about32 on such a low mileage is neither here nor there. I have never needed to add oil between services.

That to me is comfortable safe and low cost motoring, in a car that originally cost the prior owner over £ 25,000
 
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srichards said:
Old toyotas are indestructible!
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A workmate had an early Avensis from new, used oil like it was going out of fashion. Took it to the dealers and was told they all do it.
 
nilagin said:
A workmate had an early Avensis from new, used oil like it was going out of fashion. Took it to the dealers and was told they all do it.
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That seems to be a problem with a number of more modern toyotas from 2007 onward. But neither my daughter nor her husband have had a problem with any of theirs including a camery, a rav 4, and a hybrid Lexus. On the other hand his newerJag seem to spend its life being fixed.
 
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Terrywoodenpic said:
That seems to be a problem with a number of more modern toyotas from 2007 onward. But neither my dayghter nor her husband have had a problem with any of theirs including a camery, a rav 4, and a hybrid Lexus. On the other hand his newerJag seem to spend its life being fixed.
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Shame the early models went on sale in 1997 and his was a 99 model. Two years in and still producing cars burning excessive oil isn't a very good track record.
 
Russ77 said:
I did consider a lease car but.....

A small car isn't going to be too practical with 2 small children and the paraphernalia that goes with them :LOL:

If I had the lease car it's likely to cost a little more due to the mileage I do plus I don't have a lump sump to put down as a deposit.
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Modern expectations , in the 60s and 70s cars were MUCH smaller , there aren't many modern cars that can't get 2 adults and 2 kids in ,if it's a second car as long as it can fit a pram in the boot what else does she need on a daily basis that wouldn't fit in somewhere

Lings cars lease a Citroen C1 for £400 deposit and £130 a month , bottom line is if you can't afford £35 a week you shouldn't be running 2 cars because a banger can easily cost that if you pick a dud
 
wack61 said:
Modern expectations , in the 60s and 70s cars were MUCH smaller , there aren't many modern cars that can't get 2 adults and 2 kids in ,if it's a second car as long as it can fit a pram in the boot what else does she need on a daily basis that wouldn't fit in somewhere

Lings cars lease a Citroen C1 for £400 deposit and £130 a month , bottom line is if you can't afford £35 a week you shouldn't be running 2 cars because a banger can easily cost that if you pick a dud
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We have got a little more disposable income than that but I don't want to be eating into funds that maybe required elsewhere, we have spoken about dropping to one car but it's not viable long-term, trust me if we could make do with one car we'd be doing it :lol:
 
I know what you mean, about 3 cars ago I had a focus diesel, bought it cheap with a blocked DPF, got it fixed for £400, ran around in it for 6 months, no problems, sold it for what it cost me more or less = free motoring

the guy who bought it ended up using the same garage as me , about 6 months later I saw it in there and asked how it was going.

you got out of that just in time, it's had a power steering rack and electric pump, clutch & flywheel , and now it's in for a new engine as it's started knocking

this was a 56 plate focus 1.6 diesel which at the time was 7 years old.
 
nilagin said:
Shame the early models went on sale in 1997 and his was a 99 model. Two years in and still producing cars burning excessive oil isn't a very good track record.
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High compression engines burn oil at the least pretence

I once had a track prepared hilman imp with shaved head and twin carbs and about everything else done to to squeeze out the tast drop of power.
At top revs the enging head bolts stretched and oil went everwhere.

it did no so much burn oil as bathe in it.
 
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Terrywoodenpic said:
High compression engines burn oil at the least pretence

I once had a track prepared hilman imp with shaved head and twin carbs and about everything else done to to squeeze out the tast drop of power.
At top revs the enging head bolts stretched and oil went everwhere.

it did no so much burn oil as bathe in it.
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Just looked up the petrol engines available in the 1st gen Avensis and none appear to be high compression engines.
You won't get much more high compression than a diesel and none of mine used oil.
 
Old Etonians reunion, who can turn up in the worst car
 
Well it looks like the oil cooler replacement isn't going to break the bank too much..... £87+VAT for the part and I believe it's only a 30-60 minute job to fit.... fingers crossed that does the trick!
 
Nice when a car gives you a smaller bill than you expected! Savour it :)
 
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