Cheap years driving to work?
Discussion
Hi guys
Just worked out how much I spend on fuel and tax for my MR2 per year (£2900 and my commute isn't even that far).
I've been looking at economical cars for once and the 320d stands out (£20 Road tax and "up to 80mpg"). I would save roughly £1900 which is a huge amount but I have heard it isn't the most exciting car to drive. The 320d is pretty much top of my price range and I haven't factored in the insurance, service costs etc as well.
I don't want to spend money I'm not going to get back. That's what attracted me to the mr2 in the first place because of it's low/non-existent depreciation and cheap insurance. What would you guys recommend? I want something fun that I can chuck around on private roads but has very low running costs and depreciation.
Thanks
Just worked out how much I spend on fuel and tax for my MR2 per year (£2900 and my commute isn't even that far).
I've been looking at economical cars for once and the 320d stands out (£20 Road tax and "up to 80mpg"). I would save roughly £1900 which is a huge amount but I have heard it isn't the most exciting car to drive. The 320d is pretty much top of my price range and I haven't factored in the insurance, service costs etc as well.
I don't want to spend money I'm not going to get back. That's what attracted me to the mr2 in the first place because of it's low/non-existent depreciation and cheap insurance. What would you guys recommend? I want something fun that I can chuck around on private roads but has very low running costs and depreciation.
Thanks
ambuletz said:
take your CBT (around £150).
get a 125cc bike (£2000 new)
£15 to tax a year
100mpg
bike fun.
Yep I'm just gonna get a bike. I want a full bike licence at some point in my life so I may as well get 2 years done now and save some money. get a 125cc bike (£2000 new)
£15 to tax a year
100mpg
bike fun.
Just gonna get a cheapish YBR and ride that around.
My MR2 is a '92 model so I'll be able to get it on a limited miles classic policy to save some ££.
J4CKO said:
How short is a short commute that uses nearly three grands worth of fuel, ok that included the tax but even so, I run a V8 5.5 Merc on my short commute, I put, generally, one tank a month in it, I do work from home sometimes and cycle in a bit, but even if I didnt I still couldnt spend that much eacily.
If you want super cheap, get a Citroen C1 or some other tiny thing, 45 to 50 mpg and will go forever, older, cheaper diesels save money until the next big bill, with something like a C1, kill the engine, (unlikely) just get another one for £250 off Ebay and fit it, it wont be much fun though.
45-50mpg ain't worth driving a C1 lmaoIf you want super cheap, get a Citroen C1 or some other tiny thing, 45 to 50 mpg and will go forever, older, cheaper diesels save money until the next big bill, with something like a C1, kill the engine, (unlikely) just get another one for £250 off Ebay and fit it, it wont be much fun though.
Willy Nilly said:
How far is your commute?
What type of roads?
Do you have to carry anything?
Could you use a bicycle?
About 16 mile each way but then I also factored in everything else. I spend on average £50 a week.What type of roads?
Do you have to carry anything?
Could you use a bicycle?
A mile or some of broads and an a road but never got caught in any traffic.
Don't carry anything other than the usual.
I wouldn't ever ride a bicycle on the road I don't think they're fast enough to be safe around countryside roads
ZX10R NIN said:
I'm not talking about supersports motorcycles but even a 34bhp commuter bike will be good enough on country roads give really good fuel economy.
https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=...
125 is fast enough I was talking about pushbikeshttps://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=...
Edited by ZX10R NIN on Monday 26th September 08:17
battered said:
That looks like a lot of fun. What is it, about 250?
As you say, 34bhp is enough. Good for about 100mph flat out, which is fast enough for most people, most of the time. Fast enough to land you in court, too.
I can understand people not wanting to use a bicycle on UK roads. I do, it's not ideal. There is a big educational job to do on UK drivers before they learn to treat bicycle users as other than second class citizens.
I think that's a 370 linked but I'm not sure. As you say, 34bhp is enough. Good for about 100mph flat out, which is fast enough for most people, most of the time. Fast enough to land you in court, too.
I can understand people not wanting to use a bicycle on UK roads. I do, it's not ideal. There is a big educational job to do on UK drivers before they learn to treat bicycle users as other than second class citizens.
The major gripe I have with (push) bikes is that if somebody goes around a corner with low/no visibility at 60+ there's no time to stop for somebody on a bike if they're going dead slow.
Same issue with horses. They're not safe on today's roads.
hairykrishna said:
What sort of MR2 are you running? I commute 50 miles each way in my Mk3 and I'm getting 35-40mpg without trying.
80 miles for 50 quid sounds appalling.
I don't get 80 miles from £50. I get around 300 to a tank which costs me 50ish. It averages at 30mpg+/- for a 1992 (Mk2 Rev2). 80 miles for 50 quid sounds appalling.
CaptainSlow said:
390.
Depending on your age you may want something bigger if you've gone to the cost of getting your bike licence. However, anything over a 125 won't save you much money when testing and consumables are taken into account.
If 50-60 mph will keep you up with the traffic a 125 bike or scoot will be fine. Just be aware 125 headlights are bad so dark country roads in the wet can be scary.
I'm 23 in January. Depending on your age you may want something bigger if you've gone to the cost of getting your bike licence. However, anything over a 125 won't save you much money when testing and consumables are taken into account.
If 50-60 mph will keep you up with the traffic a 125 bike or scoot will be fine. Just be aware 125 headlights are bad so dark country roads in the wet can be scary.
If I wanted something bigger than 125 right now I would have to do my cbt and direct access (still restricted but faster). Then I'd have to take another test once I hit 24 to get my full license. I'm going to get a cbt first for a while and then go for the full unrestricted license at 24.
Thanks for the advice about the lights. I'll just upgrade the bulbs so I'm more noticeable in the daytime as well.
I'm pretty sure most people have been in a situation where if something was in the middle of the road, or there was a slow cyclist around the corner, they wouldn't have been able to stop.
I'm not saying cars have free reign of the roads but accidents happen all the time and if you're on a bike you haven't got much of a chance.
I'll stick to the trails thanks
I'm not saying cars have free reign of the roads but accidents happen all the time and if you're on a bike you haven't got much of a chance.
I'll stick to the trails thanks
J4CKO said:
As for the MPG not being worth driving a C1, you have a small, fairly economical sportscar and looking to make a saving, that requires either a diesel or a small petrol.
I got 37mpg out of my Clio 182 sometimes so to me 45mpg isn't substantial enough. I know what you're saying though. Pretty set on getting a bike so thanks for all your suggestions
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