unrealistic expectations of the used car market???

[danlightbulb]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

Dont exaggerate. I have listened to all the previous advice i recieved hence why ive been looking for a saab 95.

anonymous said:

[redacted]

I have said before that the whole point of me changing my car is to get something better than i have now. The saab was suggested by many here as the car to go for so thats what im doing. Instead of having a go at me maybe realise that im only acting on the advice i have previously recieved here on this very forum.

Lets say for the sake of argument that you want an 04 onwards 200bhp+ large family car and you have 2k to spend. What would you buy right now if you had to make that choice?

Edited by danlightbulb on Monday 23 November 13:03

[danlightbulb]

Ghost91 said:

That's a lot of car for the money! Plenty left over for a decent service and away you go. Leather looks in good order.

Bet it's slightly too old for you or too purple though!!!!

I agree for £1100 it is good value. So, where is the newer version of said car with a bit less mileage and for £2k. That is what i want to buy. Do you get what im asking? I dont want to spend a grand. I want to spend 2 grand on something better!

[danlightbulb]

C70R said:

To be clear, you want:
- 2004 or newer
- Over 200bhp
- No galactic mileage
- Space for the family
- Reliable
- Looked-after
- Right interior colour

All of that for £2k? You're having a giraffe.

Im not having a giraffe i just keep missing out!
http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/SAAB-9-5-ESTATE-2-3T-AERO-...

Its got a few bodywork dings i can live with that! The base underneath has what i want i can work on the body over time as long as it isnt a total wreck. It sold before i could see it.

[danlightbulb]

C70R said:

But that's 2003, and with a list of stuff that wouldn't leave you much change from your £2k budget:
- Small rust bubble on rear wheel arch
- Various marks / dinks / scratches on body
- Small leak in windscreen washer bottle, new one included
- Alloys could do with a refurb
- A/C compressor bearings noisy when cold, replacement compressor included
- Alarm siren needs batteries changing, common problem. Batteries included

Not quite to spec, if truth be told.

It is 03 but facelift model. Yes but those faults are the seller being honest. Id like to have a go at bodywork things myself and changing a washer bottle cant be hard. It had scope for me to work on it and improve it without being a risky unreliable money pit.

I will go and see what vectras are around. A v6 though is probably out they are too thirsty.

Regarding the money situation. £500 bill wont break me no. I could choose to spend more but i dont want to spend more because i dont see it as good value.

[danlightbulb]

Ghost91 said:

steveo3002 said:

thats got a few years in it still

Not flashy enough for this bloke though unfortunately, he will hate it.

£1100 for a piece of junk 20 year old citroen...you lot are genuinely mad. Its no wonder used car prices are so high if you think that is worth the money. 'Future classic' is it? Yeah right.

steveo3002 said:

couple of m3 badges and a ageless irish number plate to make neighbors jealous

I don't know why you guys get the impression I just want the badge. I don't. I want something that looks how I want it to look and has the power to go with it. Something I will be proud to own and enjoy when I drive it. The age/mileage is just about where I consider an acceptable threshold to be in terms of repair risk.

C70R said:

danlightbulb said:

A v6 though is probably out they are too thirsty.

But you want 200bhp+ in a family car, and are looking at turbocharged Saabs?

Precisely why I'm looking at turbocharged Saabs! They have better economy than v6's due to them being 4 cylinders. When driven off boost I'll get a fairly normal mpg. When I want the power its there!

Farmer Geddon said:

First of all he said 2k was all he had, and if he bought a dog at full budget he would be knackered and unable to get to work/see his child.

Then he says he could afford more but is choosing not to due to saving a house deposit, but still unwilling to prioritise and buy the sensible option

Now he can easily afford a £500 fix.

I call bullst tbh. There's no shame in only having a 2k budget, but do yourself a favour and listen to some decent advice on this forum instead of wanting a 04 or newer specific spec example of an already rare car.

I haven't gone into detail of my financial situation because its not really relevant is it. All I have saved up is £2k. I do not want to spend more than this. I'm also saving for a house deposit. This is separate. I don't want to use any of that money on a car. I don't want to take out finance or a loan to increase what I can spend. I'm also continuing to save an emergency fund. If the car breaks down I can fix it, as long as its not something stupid like an engine rebuild. I'd rather not have to because I want a reliable car. If my car breaks down I can't get to work, probably like many people. If my car breaks down it messes up my picking up my kids at the weekend. My mondeo had a PAS failure a few months back which meant I couldn't see my kids that weekend and had to try and limp the car over to a garage to get it fixed. I don't want this!

What out of any of this is a problem? Where have I said I can 'easily afford' £500 fixes? Like anyone, if I needed to repair the car I'd find the money. That doesn't mean I want to accept a high risk of that being necessary does it. Out of my savings I have some allocated for a house and some allocated for a car. I don't want to spend more. I'd rather not spend less if it means settling for something older. I just want to spend what I have allocated. If I do this, it doesn't mess up any of my future plans for a house or anything else because I have already built all that into my budget along with my other costs.

Edited by danlightbulb on Monday 23 November 19:21

[danlightbulb]

technodup said:

ou're looking at 10-15 year old cars, they are ALL a risk. Any second hand car is a risk, and at £2k more risky than most.

I run a high risk now with a 12 year old 192k miles car worth £500.

If I buy a 2004-2006 120k miles car worth £2000 I have reduced my risk, all things being equal.

A car that is worth £2000 should be a few years newer and lower mileage than mine which is worth £500 because there is a 4x price difference.

Are these not sensible assumptions?

Saabs are renowned for reliability and ability to go to high mileages as well as any Jap stuff are they not? If this is not true then it contradicts what I have previously been told here.

[danlightbulb]

There are 41,000 used cars on autotrader for 2k maximum. Of these, only 1100 are petrol estates. Within 50 miles of where I live, only 165. The choice is rubbish.

[danlightbulb]

B69 2AQ.

This looks nice 73 miles away Honda Accord 98k miles 2003 reg. http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

I'm not sure I need such a large estate though. The Saab 9-3 estate I drove the other day had a nice sized boot but I felt the cabin was cramped.

[danlightbulb]

CorvetteConvert said:

Hard to argue with this. Too many people want; a reliable car, which is fun and doesn't need any repairs and which will carry a load and etc etc etc ... but want to pay the price of a major service and some tyres for many cars, to buy it!
Borrow some money and get a decent car, not a shed.

I did look into having a loan and spending around £8k on a car. I still felt the choice was poor. The cars were still bland, just newer bland. So I backtracked on to older models again, which I think is the right thing to do. I really don't want to get in major debt for a car at this point.

I don't mind something which needs the odd repair as long as its not something major like engine problems that will see me off the road.

The Mazda that tonker posted above is nice. I could live with the car just fine but I just want more power. Plus its dealer again isn't it, so I'm paying a markup for that.

[danlightbulb]

Thanks all for the suggestions and links I'll go and have a good look through them now.

[danlightbulb]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

Guys how would you do this? Go and see it and make an offer in person, or make an offer over the phone because if he won't budge there is no point going to see it?

[danlightbulb]

confused_buyer said:

That Accord looks fantastic by the way if it stacks up. It almost looks too cheap. If it is legit and nice you should snap their hands off but be quick.

The 2.4 Type-S is a fantastically under rated car and so, so much better than the 2.0. You've found the Unicorn you've spent months searching for so go and buy it.

I'm tempted by it myself.

It is nice. Saab is cheaper for me to insure though by about £130 a year. The Accord is similar to insure as a 9-5 aero for me but not silly money so all is good. Hopefully I'll get to look at them both.

[danlightbulb]

Contacted Honda seller first thing this morning. Already sold.

[danlightbulb]

Ghost91 said:

Let's be honest Devil, we all know why he's dismissing certain cars.

If you followed his previous threads he only wanted something with a premium badge as an 'upgrade' to the mondeo, so was looking at old 5 series, Audi's, because they had the image.

He's the typical leased boggo diesel audi candidate....

No im not a leased boggo diesel audi candidate. That is not what im after AT ALL. you have totally misunderstood my previous posts if you think that.

I do want something better than my mondeo yes. By better i mean something that looks sporty and has some power to go with it. At the same time it still needs to be a family workhorse.

The 'image' you speak of is not me wanting to impress the family next door or the guy at work. I want to own something that I MYSELF will enjoy owning and think that it is special by ticking MY OWN taste boxes. Some people like the classic car look, some like the sports convertables. I like the large sports saloon / sports estate look. My perfect car would probably be an RS6 avant or an m5 touring. Yes i already know i dont have the budget for anything near this. The saabs were the next best thing in my price bracket - or so i thought.

I really liked the accord. It was sharply designed and sporty looking whilst being a good sized family car. Its sold. How long now before another of equivalent spec and price becomes available.

In the meantime i keep looking and i keep asking questions, because there will most likely be something i havent considered just like when someone suggested the honda in this thread. Thats why im here, thats why i keep asking questions. Im looking for help and advice. Its been 9 years since i last bought a car and ive never had anything sporty before. Despite all my research im still unfamiliar with what i can and cant get for the money i have

I am trying to reign in my expectations but at the end of the day if i look at a car and dont like it then i dont like it. I dont need a car right now this second but i want a new car that i will enjoy owning.

The advice i have recieved over my multiple threads has been invaluable to me. Genuinely. Every time i have learnt from it and adjusted my strategy. I know i have a rigid viewpoint on things i just know what i like and anything else isnt worth the switch to me.

Edited by danlightbulb on Tuesday 24th November 13:08

[danlightbulb]

Trexthedinosaur said:

If you last changed car 9(!) years ago, how long are you planning to keep this car?

If you are again planning for 9 years, then a £2,000 car I would assume is going to run into some sort of expensive trouble within that time frame.

At least 5 years. Hence why i want to get it right first time.

Ive had to spend a not inconsiderable amount to keep the mondeo running over the years. DMF, 2x pas pumps, steering rack, various suspension components, brake lines, exhausts, sensors, replacement seat belt, couple of windscreens, wheel bearings on all 4 corners, cv joints, track rods, couple of batteries. All the usual stuff id expect over 9 years and 190k miles but some of them were big bills. Luckily ive never had any direct engine issues.

[danlightbulb]

lord trumpton said:

This thread has gone on far too long.

OP - you sound like a nightmare buyer to me; you want the moon on a stick for £2k I

I'll wager you would be a nightmare to deal with and the type who would throw a deal away over the seller not chipping £50 off.

Why not just keep the Mondeo and move on with life?

For what it is worth, I asked what I needed to spend given my spec list, over on another forum. I was told that I can get what I want for £2k and that I should look at Saabs. Saab's are also consistently recommended on this forum. That's why I was looking at them to start with as it was a car I hadn't even considered initially.

Now the Honda has been identified as a good buy, and as that recent one showed I can get what I want for £2k. I don't think the budget is unreasonable, but there are mixed views on this. Some have said I need to spend more, others have said I just need to wait for the right car and pounce on it fast. I do think the market is overpriced - but I can't do anything about that either - other than not being a sheep and joining in with the bubble.

I wouldn't throw a deal away over £50 no. If the right car came along and it was £50 more than I wanted to spend that would be insignificant. However I imagine it is very easy with car buying to keep thinking 'well I'll just push the budget a little higher, a little higher, just £200 more, just £300 more' etc. And all of a sudden I'm spending £3k or £4k not the £2k I originally wanted to. That's why I'm trying not to let my budget creep up to £2500 at the moment which it could easily do given what is out there.

If I was desperate for a car I'd have to relax my spec list or increase my budget but I'm thankfully not in that position. It is easy to get carried away looking for a car and get obsessive over it, which is what I have been doing. Although I need to think more objectively about what I can get, I'm still fairly rigid on my spec list. Its only because I'm not desperate for a car I think and would probably change in an instant if my car blew up tomorrow.

I appreciate everyone's participation on the thread.

[danlightbulb]

swisstoni said:

Course, I remember the days when he wanted chunky tyres and seven seats.

...ah those were happier times...

[danlightbulb]

CorvetteConvert said:

So what have you chosen OP?

I'm going to contact another Honda Accord Estate seller tomorrow. This one has higher mileage (130k) but looks in good condition and has good service history according to the advert, and its under budget. MOT history looks good, but what does this mean:

Advisory notice item(s)
nearside Headlamp has a product on the lens but not seriously reducing light output (1.7.5a)

[danlightbulb]

Ghost91 said:

Trexthedinosaur said:

The mind boggles; if you would have spent more in the first place ....

Why are you so restricted to £2,0000 yet willing to spend the above on spares.

To be fair that's over 9 years! It's not too bad going really!

Yeah 9 years ive owned it. It was 3 years old when i bought it, on 93k miles and cost me £6k.

[danlightbulb]

egor110 said:

Define sporty/performance.

Being pushed back into my seat when i put my foot down. Even if i do have to lift off at 50mph.