Did you buy the right car?
Discussion
Here's something I thought of: Does your car meet your ACTUAL requirements perfectly?
No saying "My requirements are 400bhp, 80mpg, 500kg and £20".
Look at your car, if you had the same amount of money again (give or take 10%) would you have bought it?
From me:
Pug 205D.
I was looking for something cheap to run, REALLY economical, a bit of character, "modern classic" looking.
It cost me £700 with 46k on the clock and it's immaculate.
I'm really pleased. Hardly anything to go wrong. It's really fun to chuck around (even with its modest 60bhp!) I averaged 60mpg over the last tank, and have yet to average less than 55. And I think it looks great.
Before that I had a 1.2 8v clio. It wasn't that economical, was "fine" but pretty boring. Looked bloated and didn't really interest me. Just a tool for the job.
No saying "My requirements are 400bhp, 80mpg, 500kg and £20".
Look at your car, if you had the same amount of money again (give or take 10%) would you have bought it?
From me:
Pug 205D.
I was looking for something cheap to run, REALLY economical, a bit of character, "modern classic" looking.
It cost me £700 with 46k on the clock and it's immaculate.
I'm really pleased. Hardly anything to go wrong. It's really fun to chuck around (even with its modest 60bhp!) I averaged 60mpg over the last tank, and have yet to average less than 55. And I think it looks great.
Before that I had a 1.2 8v clio. It wasn't that economical, was "fine" but pretty boring. Looked bloated and didn't really interest me. Just a tool for the job.
Currently:
Smart Roadster Coupe - Requirements: fun, unusual, able to rag without losing my license, depreciation free. Ticks all boxes with the bonus of being incredibly cheap to run! So yes.
Classic Fiat 500 - Requirements: project, still able to get me round town, depreciation free. Mostly, but I've decided against the engine swap (or at least put it on hold) so I guess it failed the project point.
Ducati Monster 750 - Requirements: donor engine for the fiat above. Failed miserably, it's just too much fun so I'm keeping it
Smart Roadster Coupe - Requirements: fun, unusual, able to rag without losing my license, depreciation free. Ticks all boxes with the bonus of being incredibly cheap to run! So yes.
Classic Fiat 500 - Requirements: project, still able to get me round town, depreciation free. Mostly, but I've decided against the engine swap (or at least put it on hold) so I guess it failed the project point.
Ducati Monster 750 - Requirements: donor engine for the fiat above. Failed miserably, it's just too much fun so I'm keeping it
MG ZT Diesel £2200 - Perfect wafty daily, returns 50mpg, looks smart enough for work, means I pocket £200 of my car allowance a month.
MKI MX5 V-SPec £1200 - Love it, fun at weekends and sunny work days when I don't need the ZT for customer visits etc. Spent about anothe £500 on it on mods and it's now pretty much my perfect MX5.
MKII Golf GTI Track car £550. Lost count of what I've spent, probably nearing £3K but will be worth every penny when it's finished.
Nick
MKI MX5 V-SPec £1200 - Love it, fun at weekends and sunny work days when I don't need the ZT for customer visits etc. Spent about anothe £500 on it on mods and it's now pretty much my perfect MX5.
MKII Golf GTI Track car £550. Lost count of what I've spent, probably nearing £3K but will be worth every penny when it's finished.
Nick
1986 E30 325i Cabrio
Wanted a fun convertible with a bit of charisma/character that could still be used as a daily drive. Had it for 3 years and covered >30k miles. Has been to Cornwall, Scotland numerous times and even a Euro jaunt to Monaco and the Swiss Alps.
Most of the time I love it, however body is starting to suffer the harsh winters so need to decide whether to run it into the ground (which I feel a little bad about) or spend some proper cash and sort out the rust.
Happy with it though (classic car type niggles aside!)
Wanted a fun convertible with a bit of charisma/character that could still be used as a daily drive. Had it for 3 years and covered >30k miles. Has been to Cornwall, Scotland numerous times and even a Euro jaunt to Monaco and the Swiss Alps.
Most of the time I love it, however body is starting to suffer the harsh winters so need to decide whether to run it into the ground (which I feel a little bad about) or spend some proper cash and sort out the rust.
Happy with it though (classic car type niggles aside!)
I'll probably end up driving it till eternity... I just don't think many other hatchbacks would be as fun without insane amounts of power and running costs. My daily driver needed to be; reliable, cheap to maintain, easy to work on, economical, practical.
Result = 2001 Avensis 2.0vvt-i......tick
My weekend/highdays+holidays car needed to be; a RHD, manual, Yank V8-engined musclecar.
Result = 2006 Monaro CV8........tick
The wife's car needed to be; of suitable 'managerial' quality (due to her car allowance), safe, practical.
Result = 2007 Jaguar S-type V8S......tick
Result = 2001 Avensis 2.0vvt-i......tick
My weekend/highdays+holidays car needed to be; a RHD, manual, Yank V8-engined musclecar.
Result = 2006 Monaro CV8........tick
The wife's car needed to be; of suitable 'managerial' quality (due to her car allowance), safe, practical.
Result = 2007 Jaguar S-type V8S......tick
Lets look at my last four cars.
Saab 9-3 - Wanted something a little bit different from the previous round of Golf and Pug 206. Didn't have a lot of money to spend. Paid £795, put 10000 miles on it, and always enjoyed driving it. Worked for me so I'd say yes.
Pug Partner Combi - A gift from my mother when her boyfriend became eligible for a motability vehicle and they decided to go out and get a Rav-4. Loved the diesel economy, that was the only redeemable feature on the vehicle for me though. Yes it was right, but I certainly wouldn't have went out to buy one.
MGF - Midlife crisis at 29, loved the car, loved driving it, loved the wind through my ever receeding hairline no matter the weather. Probably the best £1200 I ever spent, only ruined by head gasket failure and not having the funds to get the repair work done. Still sold on for £900 so was happy enough with that, although I won't lie, I wish I still had it.
MG ZT-T 190 - For £595 for a 52 plater I really can't complain. Eats the miles happily, is a vastly different beast to any previous car I've owned, looks smart in the work carpark and stands out from the sea of Audi A3's and BMW 1 series so many of my co-workers own. So yes, to the point where I have already decided this time next year when I look to replace I will be getting another one, just this time the saloon.
Saab 9-3 - Wanted something a little bit different from the previous round of Golf and Pug 206. Didn't have a lot of money to spend. Paid £795, put 10000 miles on it, and always enjoyed driving it. Worked for me so I'd say yes.
Pug Partner Combi - A gift from my mother when her boyfriend became eligible for a motability vehicle and they decided to go out and get a Rav-4. Loved the diesel economy, that was the only redeemable feature on the vehicle for me though. Yes it was right, but I certainly wouldn't have went out to buy one.
MGF - Midlife crisis at 29, loved the car, loved driving it, loved the wind through my ever receeding hairline no matter the weather. Probably the best £1200 I ever spent, only ruined by head gasket failure and not having the funds to get the repair work done. Still sold on for £900 so was happy enough with that, although I won't lie, I wish I still had it.
MG ZT-T 190 - For £595 for a 52 plater I really can't complain. Eats the miles happily, is a vastly different beast to any previous car I've owned, looks smart in the work carpark and stands out from the sea of Audi A3's and BMW 1 series so many of my co-workers own. So yes, to the point where I have already decided this time next year when I look to replace I will be getting another one, just this time the saloon.
I have a C4 Grand Picasso and I can't help thinking that maybe I should have bought a C6. Don't get me wrong the C4GP is a brilliant car and it ticks every box that we need it for, massive space, massive boot, comfy to drive and the 2 extra seats will come in handy when our 2nd child is born and we take family out, which we do every so often.
However I'm sure we could have got by just as well with the C6 and as nice as the C4GP is, the C6 is obviously in a different league. For the price we paid for the C4GP we could have got a rather nice C6 too.
However maybe it's a case of correctly following my head over my heart. The C6 doesn't have the 2 extra seats so there'd be no more taking the family out, all the engines are big and very thirsty and the majority are Diesel's and I don't do the mileage to justify a Diesel, the servicing is obviously going to be more expensive.
I might get a C6 once we've got the money's worth out of the C4GP and we planned to keep it for at least 5 years, I just hope there are still some decent newish C6's by then but I'm afraid I might struggle as they only sold 2 last year and this year have stopped selling them over here altogether.
However I'm sure we could have got by just as well with the C6 and as nice as the C4GP is, the C6 is obviously in a different league. For the price we paid for the C4GP we could have got a rather nice C6 too.
However maybe it's a case of correctly following my head over my heart. The C6 doesn't have the 2 extra seats so there'd be no more taking the family out, all the engines are big and very thirsty and the majority are Diesel's and I don't do the mileage to justify a Diesel, the servicing is obviously going to be more expensive.
I might get a C6 once we've got the money's worth out of the C4GP and we planned to keep it for at least 5 years, I just hope there are still some decent newish C6's by then but I'm afraid I might struggle as they only sold 2 last year and this year have stopped selling them over here altogether.
Almost. Facelift Alfa 156 JTS.
What I want doesn't exist, at least in this country - namely a 2.5 V6 facelift. Yes, I could have ported the front end over or bought one of the few imports - saw one recently. It's not enough to make the change now - better the devil you know, and I have a lovely example of my type.
No regrets about not buying a GTA as I couldn't afford to keep it in sufficient health.
What I want doesn't exist, at least in this country - namely a 2.5 V6 facelift. Yes, I could have ported the front end over or bought one of the few imports - saw one recently. It's not enough to make the change now - better the devil you know, and I have a lovely example of my type.
No regrets about not buying a GTA as I couldn't afford to keep it in sufficient health.
E36 318is - sensible, cheap, reliable, reasonably economical commuter able to do 400 miles per week but can still be fun and engaging to drive when the situations right.
Result - currently on 135k miles and has been all of the above (that's if 36mpg is reasonable) and it only cost me £1200
XC90 D5 - 7 seater, reliable, mpg not major issue, not a MPV able to tow a 1500kg caravan
Result - only had it a month but its been ok up to now, towing for the first time next week but I can't see a problem with it doing that well.
Result - currently on 135k miles and has been all of the above (that's if 36mpg is reasonable) and it only cost me £1200
XC90 D5 - 7 seater, reliable, mpg not major issue, not a MPV able to tow a 1500kg caravan
Result - only had it a month but its been ok up to now, towing for the first time next week but I can't see a problem with it doing that well.
My requirements were simple, had to have VTEC again, had to be white and had to be a DC5 Integra 
A better example of this were my requirements for when I had my Civic Type R. I wanted something that was around the 200bhp mark, had supportive, comfortable and good looking seats, fun to drive and plenty of scope for any modifications I might require.
A better example of this were my requirements for when I had my Civic Type R. I wanted something that was around the 200bhp mark, had supportive, comfortable and good looking seats, fun to drive and plenty of scope for any modifications I might require.
I think my current line up is pretty good (the cost of running the TVR when it's back together aside), but I've definitely made mistakes in the past.
Prior to the Chimaera I had an ex-race Caterham, and while I'm really, really glad I've experienced Seven ownership, it wasn't the right car for me at the time.
I sold my thoroughly well sorted TVR S3 because I wanted something more track focused, and even as I handed the keys over I wondered if I was making a mistake. Nonetheless, I stuck to my guns and found the Caterham. Another good example as it turned out, and it certainly lived up to expectations on the track or on a deserted B-road. But around that time I suddenly began to have a lot less time and money for track days and Sunday afternoon blasts.
I needed something that could be incorporated into weekends away or business trips to get more use out of it and the Caterham was just a bit too hardcore. With unpadded seats, track suspension, a very close ratio gearbox, no roof and next to no luggage capacity it just wasn't cut out for touring.
In short, I should have stuck with the TVR.
Prior to the Chimaera I had an ex-race Caterham, and while I'm really, really glad I've experienced Seven ownership, it wasn't the right car for me at the time.
I sold my thoroughly well sorted TVR S3 because I wanted something more track focused, and even as I handed the keys over I wondered if I was making a mistake. Nonetheless, I stuck to my guns and found the Caterham. Another good example as it turned out, and it certainly lived up to expectations on the track or on a deserted B-road. But around that time I suddenly began to have a lot less time and money for track days and Sunday afternoon blasts.
I needed something that could be incorporated into weekends away or business trips to get more use out of it and the Caterham was just a bit too hardcore. With unpadded seats, track suspension, a very close ratio gearbox, no roof and next to no luggage capacity it just wasn't cut out for touring.
In short, I should have stuck with the TVR.
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