Monday 14th January 2013

The joy of Shed

Would you drive a £500 Peugeot over an M3 CSL? If it's winter and you're a Shedaholic you just might

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Shed Of The Week is an absolute PH institution, it goes without saying. Even though we just did. Man maths is another, and here we pick up the story of what happens when the two collide, a desire to protect a cherished 'proper car' from the ravages of winter kicks in with real force, and opportunity knocks in the shape of an unassuming, unloved and spectacularly cheap old Peugeot. Over to our Shedaholic...

£500's worth of winter motoring fun

"My name is Dave and I suffer from man maths. This cruel affliction means I can convince myself that owning an M3 CSL and an E36 M3 track car as my only transport, having nowhere to store them, and running two company cars used by my wife and sister is somehow affordable and justifiable.

"I lift share in the main, which means most days I travel in heated seat comfort aboard a Freelander with my only concerns being my driver's erratic overtaking and fear of traffic lights. But there's at least one day a week when I need to be under my own steam. Reaching November, and starting to think about how to get to work without wasting further miles on completely inappropriate cars on salty roads in the middle of winter, my condition meant I could see only one solution: buy another car.

Shed logic/man maths version of a 'bit of a clean'

"So I needed a simple plan to find a cheap car to run occasionally over winter, which should have meant a straightforward shopping list. Less than £1,500, cheap to run and, most importantly, comfortable. Trawling the classifieds threw up plenty of options and it's always fun to simply search on price rather than brand. My favourite bang for buck was probably a BMW E39 5 Series but the plethora of Astras and Focuses were just run of the mill and slightly dull. And reliable and cheap. And comfy enough. In other words, perfect.

"Enter man maths. This is how I've instead ended up spending £500 on an 18-year-old Mk1 Peugeot 306 Sedan STDT, in green, with 173,578 miles on the clock and need of a little TLC. With a full receipted history since 1994 it was perfectly logical to me that this car, which has been sitting at the bottom of a muddy carpark since March and my wife described as 'horrible', should be preferred to something more modern and reliable yet nearly as cheap.

What, you thought he was kidding about the beige?

"Having not even seen it pre-purchase I discovered upon picking it up that it was spectacularly dirty. Opening the door revealed a sea of beige covering everything, and I mean everything. Seats, doors, gear knob, the lot. I started to wonder if my logic had finally caught up with me. Was buying a very old and spectacularly uncool car to plod around in really the best decision?

"The answer has been a bit of a revelation. After a couple of journeys to work I started to take it all in. There's an unobstructed view out, it's not that wide and is easy to park, has great rear leg room, a big boot, delivers 52mpg, is nippy when needed and has wonderful, linear steering and neutral handling at the same time as delivering proper old-school ride comfort. Even the original Blaupunkt stereo is in full working order, including the remote stalk. The steering wheel may be a bit too near my knees, the clutch operates as an on/off switch and everybody else on the road feels some kind of compulsion to overtake me regardless how fast I'm going, but the fact is I just enjoy driving it.

It's no beauty but it is a beaut

"My realisation now is a modern incarnation of the old 306 could be the answer to the question of the family motor car. It's simply just what you need, completely without pretension and perfectly balances the appeal of frugality, practicality, comfort and mild eccentricity proving that firm ride and sporting promise don't always equal fun. In an age of congested roads and austerity it reignites the joy of motoring.

"So yes, a great decision and these days I'm a proud sufferer as I owe it all to man maths."

Though neglected, Dave's CSL is not up for sale... Meanwhile a £20 eBay bonnet, £8 indicators, full valet, set of tyres and DIY rear suspension rebuild later and his Peugeot is living the Shed dream.

 

 

[tomoleeds]

i know a few people who do the same in winter ,some are bmw owners,I buy a cheap 4x4 every winter,council dont plough side roads where i live,so need to get around in the snow.last year i bought 2 and sold a mitsibushi pinin to a bmw owner,his own car a brand new 3 series would not get him to his house in the snow.

[Bertrum]

I recently acquired a 2001 Volvo V40 estate for £560 with 3/4 of a tank 3months tax and MOT till sept '13.

Smells a bit of dog and has 145k on the clock. But it's a 2.0 and returns north of 40mpg...it's even silver.

Love sheds!

[JVaughan]

I love my shed ... 1999 406 Diesel estate, 188,000 miles and still returning late 50's mpg. cost me £800 2 years ago, and aside from tyres, she has not cost me anything.
Have to replace the discs and 2x calipers this year(£300) but hope she has another few years left in her

[JayUK91]

I've got my A4 Quattro on the road for it's second winter whilst the other car's in hibernation.

Love driving my shed, but not so much the 24mpg of a 2.6 V6

[JapFreak786]

Not exactly a shed but I drive my Civic VEi around daily, 1.5 eco engine giving me about 35mpg (never calculated it) and cost me and my brother £300 each to buy since we share it, and bring the M5 out when I feel like it

[Cheese Mechanic]

Clean a shed? Bad form , I'd say.

Historically, I've only cleaned mine every other year, whether it need it or not.

I've long abandoned such profiligacy and it must be 3 or 4 years since it saw any kind of cometic attention. Heck,
its got thing growing out of it now, greener that any of these silly electric cars!

Peugeot 306 diesel estate, 120k , and still does 50+ mpg, crucially *fsh*. Probably why its been so good over the past 12 years.

[CYMR0]

I had one of those ... Cat C write off, £495 nearly seven years ago, in turquoise but not as posh and therefore had a black interior and steel wheels (because it was only an SRDT).

I have to say, it is probably the best car I've ever owned, by some margin.

I never saw 52mpg out of it though... I think it was overboosted though because it went like stink, or at least felt like it did.

[SimonSaid]

Charming article and resulting thread here. Those of us who cherish our cars that bit too much and panic after every stonechip and pothole jolt can only look on in envy at those who drive in total relaxation, knowing that even a total loss is less than the cost of a laptop, and aesthetic disturbances have long-since become an irrelevance. Kudos to you, humble Shedders.

[StoatInACoat]

My first car was a K reg one of these with the same green exterior/cack interior colour combo but without the boot and a 1.4 petrol. Still miss it now for its simplicity. We currently have a diseasel one for the missus and it just goes on and on.

[BlackPorker]

Excellent! Chap after my own heart... I have a 12 year old Alfa 156 SW that I shed about in and an E60 M5 (currently stored for winter) as my PHer ride.

Love both of them!

[RichTBiscuit]

That Valet by Mr Tipper at Perfection Valet will have cost more than the car!!!

Minus shed points there unfortunately

[Sam1990]

As much as I'd love to keep my MR2 off the road during the winter, shedding is still not a viable option due to insurance costs. Still looking at £500+ for a policy, unless of course the car could be insured from Nov-Feb on a short-term policy at a decent price. Not something I've looked into seriously yet.

[big_boz]

Cheese Mechanic said:

Clean a shed? Bad form , I'd say.

[twosaabs]

Never quite got over the beige interior in mine. Very European. Ideal in the summer months though when everyone else's steering wheel is too hot to touch from baking in the sun all day.

[Targarama]

I think there is plenty more sheddage out there I'd prefer. 1 day a week, so who cares about economy? I helped my Brother buy a 1996 Volvo 850 2.5 Estate in early December. 11 months MOT, 5 months tax. 107,000 miles and has run perfectly for the past 1,000 miles he's put on it (actually he's fallen in love with Volvos and now wants a C70 Coupe but that is another discussion).

Cost? £550. It was only 2 miles from home as well so minimal acquisition cost. I recommend people do a 'distance' search on Autotrader and see what sheddage is around the corner from them!

[ukaskew]

How does insurance work for those of us with bog standard policies? Even at 30 years old with 12 years NCD, no points and living in a very safe area a second car (no matter how cheap, or crap) appears to be ridiculously expensive to put on the road for a few months per year.

[Roastie ITR]

Here is my first effort into winter shedding so that I can take the VX220 & Integra Type R off the road over winter



It's a GTI with only 84k miles, 4 new Pierelli P6000's & over £2k of receipts for the last 2 years.

Obviously it has rusty arches and a cracked rear bumper, but it is an old Ford

Oh and it only cost £400.

[BlackPorker]

ukaskew said:

How does insurance work for those of us with bog standard policies? Even at 30 years old with 12 years NCD, no points and living in a very safe area a second car (no matter how cheap, or crap) appears to be ridiculously expensive to put on the road for a few months per year.

Go for classic insurance and they'll usually mirror your NCB to the second car if you limit the mileage (say to 6,000 miles per annum).

It doesn't have to be a classic... I've got "classic" insurance on my E60 M5.

[M666 EVO]

I have always tried to run two cars so the Lancia can be stored away during the chilly winter months

However my everyday drive is not really a shed, it's an XJR. I might need to rethink that if and when it snows!!

[bqf]

My main car is an E55 AMG, but during the winter I have a subashed Legacy Outback. 10 years old, 90k miles, and so dirty it stains your jacket if you even look at it. I've had it three years and never washed it. It has a huge quantity of interior detritus that makes it look like a set from Wall-E.

Immensely liberating - park it wherever, never any worries about car park dents - and when it goes bang I will bury it and move on.

It's shed-tastic.