Which Cheap to Run, Reliable Shed?
Discussion
Don't think you can be too fussy with specific makes and models at that budget.
Decide what type of car you want, sounds like the Mondeo type is ideal, and then find the best example. Sounds easy :-)
I would stick to petrol, alot less to go wrong and look in local papers and newsagent windows, always a bargain there.
Decide what type of car you want, sounds like the Mondeo type is ideal, and then find the best example. Sounds easy :-)
I would stick to petrol, alot less to go wrong and look in local papers and newsagent windows, always a bargain there.
as above stick a max price max mileage and any other restrictions in Autotrader then see what comes up at the bottom of the market you can either be buying a shed that's being ditched because there is one too many bills or a much loved vehicle that the owner is now in a position to replace.
trumptriple said:
Almera or Tino, I've had one of each and the Tino is very practical with good standard equipment. Cam chain engine, easy and cheap to service, tend not to have been abused.
Yeah, this is what I pushed my MiL into several years ago, and the be honest it's been totally faultless until last month. It then started missing under load and threw the engine management light on. It's the 1.5 Nissan engine, with what has transpired to be a Renault-sourced faulty timing chain, which stretches! Apaarently very common in the high 30k's mileage wise.Such a shame as it's ruined her opinion of Nissan, she steadfastly refuses to have another, as it's essentially scrap at 38k miles due to it's relatively low value and high cost to fix.
beko1987 said:
Citroen ZX. 1.9d will give you almost unparralelled fuel economy, and you won't care where you leave it parked!
I used to find my 1.9TD used less fuel than the 1.9D the garage would lend me when mine was in for a service, mainly because on the motorway I had to have my foot flat the floor the whole time to maintain somewhere near 70mph, while the TD would happily cruise along at 70+ with just a light touch on the throttle.Certainly cheap to run though, I did 100k miles in 3.5 years and it made me 9p/mile profit
As for reliability, until the radius arm bearings failed at 196k miles the only non consumables I'd had to change had been the power steering pump, brake ballancing valves, and horn.Has to be a Honda Civic Aerodeck!!
I did this last year. My current car was going to cost a small fortune to fix so got rid and decided to step into the shed world for once, did exactly this and looked around for some good recommendations, Honda's and Nissan Micra's were coming back on top by miles.
Did as suggested and bought an N reg Honda Civic, drove it for an entire year hassle free, cannot believe how reliable it was, basically a years free motoring and all it cost me (apart from purchase price which was a lot less than fixing my current one) was the tax for the year.
The VTECS are great engines and known for being reliable, estate too! As its an "Old" car its dropped into a slightly higher tax bracket (assuming emissions etc are not as good as new cars these days) and fuel usage is average, just over 400 miles out of a full take driven sensibly.
Well worth a look!
I did this last year. My current car was going to cost a small fortune to fix so got rid and decided to step into the shed world for once, did exactly this and looked around for some good recommendations, Honda's and Nissan Micra's were coming back on top by miles.
Did as suggested and bought an N reg Honda Civic, drove it for an entire year hassle free, cannot believe how reliable it was, basically a years free motoring and all it cost me (apart from purchase price which was a lot less than fixing my current one) was the tax for the year.
The VTECS are great engines and known for being reliable, estate too! As its an "Old" car its dropped into a slightly higher tax bracket (assuming emissions etc are not as good as new cars these days) and fuel usage is average, just over 400 miles out of a full take driven sensibly.
Well worth a look!
RizzoTheRat said:
beko1987 said:
Citroen ZX. 1.9d will give you almost unparralelled fuel economy, and you won't care where you leave it parked!
I used to find my 1.9TD used less fuel than the 1.9D the garage would lend me when mine was in for a service, mainly because on the motorway I had to have my foot flat the floor the whole time to maintain somewhere near 70mph, while the TD would happily cruise along at 70+ with just a light touch on the throttle.Certainly cheap to run though, I did 100k miles in 3.5 years and it made me 9p/mile profit
As for reliability, until the radius arm bearings failed at 196k miles the only non consumables I'd had to change had been the power steering pump, brake ballancing valves, and horn.eltax91 said:
Octavia TDi, ALL.... DAY..... LONG
agreed50+ mpg and sub £1k
edit to say mines a estate 495000 miles done its hammered but keeps plugging away 1.9td vw engine
parts are cheep
and you can leave it anywere not like anyones gonna nick it
Edited by Darbo on Friday 2nd August 14:07
curlie467 said:
Has your Mondeo been good to you? If it has and you know the car well then I would consider doing the repairs it needs.
You don't have to do it all at once, just bit by bit.
If it wasn't for the clutch I wouldn't even think about changing as it's not missed a beat in the 18mths or so I've had it. So I'm not going to rush in to changing before the MOT ends in September - if I can't find something before then I'll fix it. You don't have to do it all at once, just bit by bit.
Darbo said:
agreed
50+ mpg and sub £1k
edit to say mines a estate 495000 miles done its hammered but keeps plugging away 1.9td vw engine
parts are cheep
and you can leave it anywere not like anyones gonna nick it
Don't diesels have potential big issues with dual mass flywheels or something? 50+ mpg and sub £1k
edit to say mines a estate 495000 miles done its hammered but keeps plugging away 1.9td vw engine
parts are cheep
and you can leave it anywere not like anyones gonna nick it
Edited by Darbo on Friday 2nd August 14:07
Project C said:
curlie467 said:
Has your Mondeo been good to you? If it has and you know the car well then I would consider doing the repairs it needs.
You don't have to do it all at once, just bit by bit.
If it wasn't for the clutch I wouldn't even think about changing as it's not missed a beat in the 18mths or so I've had it. So I'm not going to rush in to changing before the MOT ends in September - if I can't find something before then I'll fix it. You don't have to do it all at once, just bit by bit.
That is what I tend to do with my cars.
Because sods law states that if you sell a car because of a knackered clutch you will replace it with one with a knackered clutch.
If you need an estate absolutely go for the Volvo V40
You can buy the petrol ones for buttons
Only significant common mechanical issue is a noisy VVT pulley
Bought my 1.8 a few months ago for £600 and its a brilliantly capable daily driver - not fast by any means but does absolutely everything I need it to do and returns 30mpg plus.
You can buy the petrol ones for buttons
Only significant common mechanical issue is a noisy VVT pulley
Bought my 1.8 a few months ago for £600 and its a brilliantly capable daily driver - not fast by any means but does absolutely everything I need it to do and returns 30mpg plus.
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