2009 UK car scrappage scheme

[anonymous-user]

Documents were released a few years ago regarding the scheme and also which cars were scrapped.

This is a list of some of the cars destroyed and remember they all had to be road worthy and have a MOT.

Audi Quattro 20V
BMW 2002
Morgan 4/4
Triumph Dolomite Sprint
9 x Triumph Spitfires
101 in total Porsches 924, 944 and 928
731 Jaguars
3x Peugeot 505 GTI
Ford RS Escort and Fiesta Turbos
Honda Integra R
550 Classic Mini’s

What are the thoughts now about such schemes?

[Nickbrapp]

To the people that scrapped those cars? They more than likely didn’t care about the car they scrapped and were happy with their new one.

People who like those cars and see them as classics? Most likely they’re annoyed anyone could scrap such a thing.

But what if someone who scrapped a old jag used it to buy a new limited edition car that was even more
Special?

[MrGTI6]

It really does make for depressing reading when you delve deeper into the numbers and figures.

Oh well, at least there are now plenty of 59-plate Hyundais about instead...

[Hoofy]

Wonder if those who scrapped their "banger" for £1k have seen how much they could have sold it for in 2022?

[Cold]

[bloomen]

You can have a MoT and a car that moves and still have a piece of unserviceable junk requiring thousands to keep going.

But some people just aren't v sentimental.

[stogbandard]

The idea being at the time to scrap “polluting” vehicles for more efficient and cleaner vehicles….many of which are falling foul of clean air zones. The irony!

I find the whole idea of scrappage schemes hugely wasteful. We get told to follow the rules of the waste hierarchy - reuse, repurpose, recycle etc. So why does this go out the window with a preference for scrapping cars that would have had years and many miles left in them? Early scrappage is a waste of embodied resources.

With clean air being such an issue in urban areas, rather than a policy for scrapping, would it be better to for a scheme that bought these vehicles and sold them on to people who would appreciate a cheap but decent run around in the more rural parts - where air quality is not an issue? Or is that too sensible?

[Captain Raymond Holt]

What’s the definition of road worthy

I’ve had cars with MoT in the past which have been completely fked!

[DriveClive]

My dad used this scheme , okay it was a clapped out Renault Clio , nothing special, but it was absolutely knackered as in leaking from everywhere , carpets mouldy , electrics screwed , engine intermittently cut out and randomly wouldn’t start at all on some days. But it had an mot and he just about managed to get it to the garage. My point being all of those cars you’ve listed could have easily had the potential to be in this same state as my dads Clio. I’d argue that the amount of work and cost to repair any of those cars on the list if they were even half as close to the state of the Clio , still wouldn’t have paid off today. We’re not exactly talking Ferrari dinos or Bugatti eb110’s are we?

[Mr Tidy]

stogbandard said:

? Or is that too sensible?

Definitely!

It just seems such a waste of what were then Sheds, but some would now be worth far more that the Kias people scrapped them for.

[sjg]

The scheme was only worth £2k off a new car so if they were worth much more than that they'd have just sold instead. Even with the current secondhand price craziness and inflation there's 87 Jaguars under £2k on Autotrader, mostly as knackered, neglected or with expensive work needed as the ones "lost" to the scrappage scheme.

There were well over a million classic Minis sold in the UK so 550 lost to the scrappage scheme is a tiny fraction of those simply lost to accidents, rust or other failures.

Lots of cars considered to be classics now weren't particularly rare at the time, but once they go through the attrition of neglect and undesirability they are rare - so only the few well looked after ones (or ones with big money spent to save) are still around to be worth something.

[Baldchap]

There was a good thread here a bit back where someone posted all the exotica scrapped.

Dann shame.

[Second Best]

One of the SLs that was scrapped belonged to a colleague of mine. He'd gone through a divorce and the ex-wife was given the house and contents, including his pristine 1980s SL. Ex-wifey just saw an old Mercedes so she scrapped it, for £2000, and bought herself a Vauxhall of some sort. He was heartbroken when he found out his SL was scrapped, but then found it amusing when ex-wifey had nothing but trouble with her Vauxhall, complained to a friend and was told that she'd effectively scrapped a £15-20k car for £2k. Nowadays those cars are knocking on for £50k. He now finds it hilarious.

[Jaybee1981]

Second Best said:

One of the SLs that was scrapped belonged to a colleague of mine. He'd gone through a divorce and the ex-wife was given the house and contents, including his pristine 1980s SL. Ex-wifey just saw an old Mercedes so she scrapped it, for £2000, and bought herself a Vauxhall of some sort. He was heartbroken when he found out his SL was scrapped, but then found it amusing when ex-wifey had nothing but trouble with her Vauxhall, complained to a friend and was told that she'd effectively scrapped a £15-20k car for £2k. Nowadays those cars are knocking on for £50k. He now finds it hilarious.

Why wouldnt the dealer just offer her 3k part ex instead then make bank?

[The spinner of plates]

Jaybee1981 said:

Second Best said:

One of the SLs that was scrapped belonged to a colleague of mine. He'd gone through a divorce and the ex-wife was given the house and contents, including his pristine 1980s SL. Ex-wifey just saw an old Mercedes so she scrapped it, for £2000, and bought herself a Vauxhall of some sort. He was heartbroken when he found out his SL was scrapped, but then found it amusing when ex-wifey had nothing but trouble with her Vauxhall, complained to a friend and was told that she'd effectively scrapped a £15-20k car for £2k. Nowadays those cars are knocking on for £50k. He now finds it hilarious.

Why wouldnt the dealer just offer her 3k part ex instead then make bank?

Exactly.
It’s the dealer who had to tick the scrappage scheme box.

[Truckosaurus]

Were dealers under an obligation to scrap anything worth more 2k? If the scrapper was truly worth what the Mercedes was in the example above, why would they just offer them 3k off the new car and then sell the Merc for 10k?

[vikingaero]

I wonder how many were actually scrapped? Did the scheme state they had to be crushed or could they be stripped for parts?

For example, the Invacars. They were ordered to be destroyed, but many ended up in a field in complete condition down south somewhere.

[Alorotom]

Reads bad but the vast majority of those cars were not in great shape and certainly weren’t cherished. They simply wouldn’t have made it to today if the scheme hadn’t existed.

[Unreal]

They weren't expensive then so if you wanted one it was easy to get the car. If you've become dewy eyed since then, that's life. We're not talking about an extinction event.

[Giulia Jon]

vikingaero said:

I wonder how many were actually scrapped? Did the scheme state they had to be crushed or could they be stripped for parts?

For example, the Invacars. They were ordered to be destroyed, but many ended up in a field in complete condition down south somewhere.

You might have the dates all wrong for the Invacars , they were in a compound in Beddington Surrey in the 1980s.

The compound was cleared years before 2009 scrappage happened .