Everyday cars which are already starting to disappear

[Pothole]

Lester H said:

Sparkzz said:

W140 S Class I don't see many of on the roads. The odd w220 being used as a taxi but not a great deal around. Surprising really when they offer such car for the money.

Haven't seen a Fiat Cinquecento for a while either.

but l saw a Suzuki Cappcochino near Adel / Bramhope ( posh Leeds) this Wednesday.

Edited by Lester H on Sunday 1st January 19:20

No you didn't

Edited by Pothole on Friday 6th January 10:44

[sjabrown]

Sierras and Escorts almost gone from daily sight. Pug 106s going fast too, and almost all 205s (even the immortal diesels). Toyota Corollas seem to be thinning out.

Still a good number of K11 Micras on the roads round here, but quite a number of shells are being used up in the motorsport world - they make remarkably good rally cars!!

[davidc1]

Biker's Nemesis said:

Never see Cortina's anymore.

I saw an immaculate crusader last week!

[Tasmin200]

Here in the Scottish Borders I seem to have the oldest car, a 2002 Saab 9-3. Everyone has a leased car. Many in white...

I play the see who has an older car than me game every trip. I nearly always win.

[Lester H]

Pothole said:

Lester H said:

Sparkzz said:

W140 S Class I don't see many of on the roads. The odd w220 being used as a taxi but not a great deal around. Surprising really when they offer such car for the money.

Haven't seen a Fiat Cinquecento for a while either.

but l saw a Suzuki Cappcochino near Adel / Bramhope ( posh Leeds) this Wednesday.


Aye, where King Lane meets Eccup Moor Rd

Edited by Lester H on Sunday 1st January 19:20

No you didn't?

[battered]

TheAngryDog said:

wemorgan said:

TheAngryDog said:

Doesn't get you anything good though

Honda Civic is 9+23 £95+vat

Like I said, nothing good.

Yawn. It's a perfectly serviceable motor car for very little money. For most people (not here of course, we are all powerfully built company directors driving V8s) that car is very nice indeed, as small cars go. For your "nothing good" I'll raise that to whatever you DO consider to be good and point you at whoever it was on here recently suggesting that his neighbour who "only" had 2 domestic staff, 3 homes in desirable parts of the world and children in fee paying schools was "not especially wealthy". It's all relative.

Offers like this are one reason why old cars don't make sense when the big bills start rolling in and why family cars of the 90s are dying out. The UK VED policy is driving this too.

[Jimmy Recard]

I've just realised that all the Chrysler Neons have disappeared now

[Jimmy Recard]

battered said:

Yawn. It's a perfectly serviceable motor car for very little money. For most people (not here of course, we are all powerfully built company directors driving V8s) that car is very nice indeed, as small cars go. For your "nothing good" I'll raise that to whatever you DO consider to be good and point you at whoever it was on here recently suggesting that his neighbour who "only" had 2 domestic staff, 3 homes in desirable parts of the world and children in fee paying schools was "not especially wealthy". It's all relative.

Offers like this are one reason why old cars don't make sense when the big bills start rolling in and why family cars of the 90s are dying out. The UK VED policy is driving this too.

I don't think the VED does. It's cheaper than the majority of similar countries.

Even the 2006-2017 period is cheaper than most EU countries of similar wealth.

The fact that cars are cheaper in the first place and our used market is so competitive and weak - that's what drives it, I think. The new VED system from April 2017 is intended to try to combat it - higher VED for the earlier owners of the car and £140 for subsequent owners.

[Tempest_5]

Saw a Fiat Stilo the other day & realised I hadn't seen one for a while. Also haven't seen a Fiat Brava/Bravo for years. Saw my first Citroen BX estate for ages last week. Montego/Maestro recently anyone ?

Could it be that now that most manufacturers have more models to choose from there are less of each individual model on the road. I was looking at the number of different Ford models on Honest John & comparing that to the number in the 80's & it's over double ! We just had Fiesta, Escort, Cortina + P100, Granada, Capri & Transit when I were a lad, look at it now.

Another factor could be the cost/ease of repairing. In the old days you could keep an old Ford Pinto motor running for relative peanuts, now you have all the expensive electronic gubins to pay for on anything from the 90's onwards so maybe it's cheaper & easier to just get a newer car. The cost of petrol a few years back could have been a factor as well.

[aka_kerrly]

Jimmy Recard said:

I've just realised that all the Chrysler Neons have disappeared now

Good shout.

My mum's fella had one around 2005ish when it was 7 years old, it was only a few hundred quid car then but it died a strange death.

Driving along the motorway off to Goodwood and the dash display popped up a message saying "service soon" within barely 30seconds the cambelt snapped

[Meridius]

Lester H said:

plenty of 307s around. Despite silly electrical gremlins - sensors and things- they are strong heavy cars with good sturdy Diesel engines ( if serviced). With several trade links I can assure you Peugeot best survivors in " real life". Sadly, reputation depresses values of Fiat, Renaults and Pugs so they don' t always get the care they deserve. We have become very enthralled by the German brands in the UK and their middle-aged products are not " bombproof" and can sting you with some eye watering bills. Friend just repairing 3 series Alpina bumper/apron, seriously bodged previously ,and a mixture of steel and carbon fibre, said " The Source" wanted £ 3300 for a new one.

Cant remember when I last saw 307, maybe I just dont notice them. Agree about UK being enthralled by German cars though, VW, Audi, BMW everywhere, especially so with the introduction of 1 Series, A1, MINI and the rise in reputation of SEATs, if they count. And the rest will be in a Ford/Vauxhall crossing off the calendar until they are in a German car.

[battered]

Meridius said:

And the rest will be in a Ford/Vauxhall crossing off the calendar until they are in a German car.

Without knowing that in many cases they already are! RHD Fiestas are apparently all made in Germany, so are any number of Vauxhall/Opels, and so on. But a VW Polo is better made because it's made in Germany.

[Meridius]

battered said:

Without knowing that in many cases they already are! RHD Fiestas are apparently all made in Germany, so are any number of Vauxhall/Opels, and so on. But a VW Polo is better made because it's made in Germany.

Yeah but do all their mates know its German?

[Levin]

Renault Lagunas, Scenics and Espaces have gotten a bit thin on the ground haven't they?

[Hrimfaxi]

The Mk4 Fiesta, they're pretty thin on the ground my way.

[TooMany2cvs]

tannhauser said:

Timfy said:

I don't know, all but one of my cars have been pre 51, my current (admittedly cheap because I'm skint) box is on an X plate and theres loads of older cars around here (Gloucestershire)

It's cars like early puntos, Mk4 Fiestas, early Mondeos etc that seem to have vanished, I suppose the scrappage schemes and ease of financing newer cars now has killed them off.

TooMany2cvs said:

Scrappage schemes? The only that's been run in the UK finished nearly seven years ago.
Ease of financing? If financing is so easy, why are you running round in an old, cheap car? Because you're skint. So are a lot of people - why aren't they also running around in similarly old, cheap cars?

All I see everywhere is new cars, either on the never never or lease undoubtedly. Skint or not, does not come into the equation it seems.

TooMany2cvs said:

51-plate cars are now 15 years old. The average age of a car scrapped in the UK in 2015 was 13.9yrs. Yes, that is skewed by early write-offs, but it's also skewed the other way by the much greater age of the smaller number of older cars that are scrapped. The average age of a vehicle on UK roads has increased from 6.8 years in 2003 to 7.8 last year - so the average car is actually older than it was, but they're still not lasting as long as the time since the old prefix plates were discontinued.
https://www.smmt.co.uk/industry-topics/sustainabil...

I'm sure this is bks. It seems a five year old car is regarded as old by the plebs nowadays.

One of us clearly lives in a very unrepresentative area.

[ClaphamGT3]

sjabrown said:

Sierras and Escorts almost gone from daily sight. Pug 106s going fast too, and almost all 205s (even the immortal diesels). Toyota Corollas seem to be thinning out.

Still a good number of K11 Micras on the roads round here, but quite a number of shells are being used up in the motorsport world - they make remarkably good rally cars!!

I was actually thinking that it is remarkable how many 205s you DO see on the road, bearing in mind they have been out of production for well over twenty years now

[ClaphamGT3]

BigBen said:

Sparkzz said:

W140 S Class I don't see many of on the roads. The odd w220 being used as a taxi but not a great deal around. Surprising really when they offer such car for the money.

Many W140s went abroad, I sold mine to a chap who flew in from the Ukraine then drove it back.

Ben

W124/140/220/123 Mercedes have been massively depleted in the UK by this, as were Mk2 Golfs, Peugeot NA diesels (particularly 305/505s but plenty of 405s too) and old Toyotas

[Spitfire2]

Balmoral said:

Daewoos of all types. When was the last time anyone saw an Espero, let alone a Nubira or a Leganza? Even the Lanos and Matiz are now rare, yet at one time in the late nineties 1 in 20 new cars was a Daewoo.

Saw an Espero yesterday. Ratty one in Central Madrid. So no real rust problems.

[greenarrow]

Meridius said:

Lester H said:

plenty of 307s around. Despite silly electrical gremlins - sensors and things- they are strong heavy cars with good sturdy Diesel engines ( if serviced). With several trade links I can assure you Peugeot best survivors in " real life". Sadly, reputation depresses values of Fiat, Renaults and Pugs so they don' t always get the care they deserve. We have become very enthralled by the German brands in the UK and their middle-aged products are not " bombproof" and can sting you with some eye watering bills. Friend just repairing 3 series Alpina bumper/apron, seriously bodged previously ,and a mixture of steel and carbon fibre, said " The Source" wanted £ 3300 for a new one.

Cant remember when I last saw 307, maybe I just dont notice them. Agree about UK being enthralled by German cars though, VW, Audi, BMW everywhere, especially so with the introduction of 1 Series, A1, MINI and the rise in reputation of SEATs, if they count. And the rest will be in a Ford/Vauxhall crossing off the calendar until they are in a German car.

Plenty of 307s still about...ditto Picassos and Citroen C4s....the HDI engine is very robust if serviced well. I remember Honest John saying he rated it better than the lauded VAG PD TDI engine back in the day and the French cars, aside from dodgy electrics don't seem to have many what I call "terminal" issues, such as the N47 BMW timing chain issue, the PD VAG injector issue which required a wholesale recall, or the many other expensive problems that you find if you check out the Honest John site or other internet tools.

But yes in the UK we seem to forgive the german brands pretty fair to middling reliability at best, whereas PSA and FIAT are always damned as being problematic.