Should I downgrade?
Discussion
Hi there
Been wracking my brains as to whether downgrade from the MK5 Golf GTi i have to something cheaper to run and maintain. Im in two minds as to what to do so keen to hear some thoughts.
The situation is with in the next year or so I plan to go and retrain for a new career, will likely end up doing a 2 year foundation degree and work part time. i will need to get funds together to pay for any courses together having already graduated years ago.
I currently have a MK5 Golf Gti with a nice spec, - leather seats, upgraded apple play stereo, auto lights and wipers ect. i have had to replace quite a few parts over the fairly short time ive had it aswell as some interior items to keep it looking fresh. While its a lovely car it isnt the cheapest to run. Im also very conscious that parts on this car are not cheap, its currently sitting at 111,000 miles. If the Turbo, clutch, flywheel and rack let go then were looking at some very expensive repairs. Ive already had to replace the fuel pump, cambelt chain and tensioners costing a fair amount!
So im considering the alternatives, as I only use my car a few days a week now. I have been looking at cars around the £2k mark (maybe less if its a runaround?) which would be ideal for a cheap reliable car but are not completely mind numbing to drive.
Some ive considered so far are:
Suzuki Swift Sport 1.6 - Great car but pushing the budget a little, although high mileage ones look tidy still
EP2 Honda Civic Sport 1.6/ 2.0 Type S - Nice tidy examples in budget but hearing about issues with steering racks conking out?
Volvo c30 - Nice looking car but would have to 1.6 boggo spec to keep in budget, quite heavy cars for engine size
Honda Prelude 2.0 - Love these but finding a manual is very difficult
Toyota Corolla 1.6 - I dont know much about these but seem to have some nice examples within budget
Slightly wild card but - Lexus Is200 - Plenty in budget but not sure itd fit the criteria for parts, running costs ect.
Or is it best to stick with the devil you know and pray nothing goes wrong. While im aware that any used car can come with their own problems, id say all these ive come across are pretty simple cars that are reliable with no complicated mechanics.
Any thoughts would be great, especially from those who have had to do the same.
Been wracking my brains as to whether downgrade from the MK5 Golf GTi i have to something cheaper to run and maintain. Im in two minds as to what to do so keen to hear some thoughts.
The situation is with in the next year or so I plan to go and retrain for a new career, will likely end up doing a 2 year foundation degree and work part time. i will need to get funds together to pay for any courses together having already graduated years ago.
I currently have a MK5 Golf Gti with a nice spec, - leather seats, upgraded apple play stereo, auto lights and wipers ect. i have had to replace quite a few parts over the fairly short time ive had it aswell as some interior items to keep it looking fresh. While its a lovely car it isnt the cheapest to run. Im also very conscious that parts on this car are not cheap, its currently sitting at 111,000 miles. If the Turbo, clutch, flywheel and rack let go then were looking at some very expensive repairs. Ive already had to replace the fuel pump, cambelt chain and tensioners costing a fair amount!
So im considering the alternatives, as I only use my car a few days a week now. I have been looking at cars around the £2k mark (maybe less if its a runaround?) which would be ideal for a cheap reliable car but are not completely mind numbing to drive.
Some ive considered so far are:
Suzuki Swift Sport 1.6 - Great car but pushing the budget a little, although high mileage ones look tidy still
EP2 Honda Civic Sport 1.6/ 2.0 Type S - Nice tidy examples in budget but hearing about issues with steering racks conking out?
Volvo c30 - Nice looking car but would have to 1.6 boggo spec to keep in budget, quite heavy cars for engine size
Honda Prelude 2.0 - Love these but finding a manual is very difficult
Toyota Corolla 1.6 - I dont know much about these but seem to have some nice examples within budget
Slightly wild card but - Lexus Is200 - Plenty in budget but not sure itd fit the criteria for parts, running costs ect.
Or is it best to stick with the devil you know and pray nothing goes wrong. While im aware that any used car can come with their own problems, id say all these ive come across are pretty simple cars that are reliable with no complicated mechanics.
Any thoughts would be great, especially from those who have had to do the same.
Edited by Ads22 on Wednesday 7th November 12:20
All cars of a certain age will need work to maintain them, the Lexus is probably your best bet or a Toyota Celica, or an ST170 both are robust & you should be able to do a lot of the maintenance work yourself which should keep the running costs sensible.
Or a Mazda 3 Sport are worth a look, the bargain car at the moment is the 1.6 Alfa 147 they're robust a decent steer as well as being relatively newer than other cars in this price bracket & it won't cost you the earth to run:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Or a Mazda 3 Sport are worth a look, the bargain car at the moment is the 1.6 Alfa 147 they're robust a decent steer as well as being relatively newer than other cars in this price bracket & it won't cost you the earth to run:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
I recently did similar...got married this year and was struggling to justify the financial and practical sense of keeping an integra DC5 which really wasn't getting the use it should.
I miss the car but I don't regret selling up, paid off a good £6k worth of debt and have enough leftover to buy something cheaper but interesting.
I know I can get something else a bit more pokey further down the line when I'm in a better financial position, i was hesitant about letting the DC5 go, but on reflection it was definately the right call.
I've put a deposit down on something JDM and quirky, which should be fun to own, just in a very different way to the DC5.
So i say, if the numbers make sense, better to let it go.
I miss the car but I don't regret selling up, paid off a good £6k worth of debt and have enough leftover to buy something cheaper but interesting.
I know I can get something else a bit more pokey further down the line when I'm in a better financial position, i was hesitant about letting the DC5 go, but on reflection it was definately the right call.
I've put a deposit down on something JDM and quirky, which should be fun to own, just in a very different way to the DC5.
So i say, if the numbers make sense, better to let it go.
If it were me, I'd stick with what I knew. Any older car is likely to need work doing over a period of ownership and the upside of your Golf is that you already own and know the car. With something else - even if it is a Lexus or a Honda - everything's an unknown quantity. You will have limited idea of how well it's been treated up to the point you buy it. And less forward visibility on how much it's likely to cost you during a period when you'll be on a reduced income.
So, yeah, I'd probably keep it. But - here's the caveat - the best way to do this would be to stop guessing what might go wrong and praying it doesn't, and start planning in some proactive maintenance now, while you're still on a higher salary. Get it future-proofed a bit, if you will. Can you get it looked at by a specialist - ideally a well-regarded indie, not a VW dealer - and get some advice on how long you've got on those items you mention? Then you can look at planning in getting any critical stuff sorted over the next few months while you're still earning more. Phase the costs a bit.
I mean, I hear you when you say that a Golf GTI is pricey to maintain. And it might be that it is, in fact, uneconomical to keep it. But mights and maybes don't keep cars going. That's why I reckon you need more information. If you've got more foresight from an expert opinion over how much it's likely to cost you, it's easier to do the sums around what it would cost to keep it versus chopping it in.
So, yeah, I'd probably keep it. But - here's the caveat - the best way to do this would be to stop guessing what might go wrong and praying it doesn't, and start planning in some proactive maintenance now, while you're still on a higher salary. Get it future-proofed a bit, if you will. Can you get it looked at by a specialist - ideally a well-regarded indie, not a VW dealer - and get some advice on how long you've got on those items you mention? Then you can look at planning in getting any critical stuff sorted over the next few months while you're still earning more. Phase the costs a bit.
I mean, I hear you when you say that a Golf GTI is pricey to maintain. And it might be that it is, in fact, uneconomical to keep it. But mights and maybes don't keep cars going. That's why I reckon you need more information. If you've got more foresight from an expert opinion over how much it's likely to cost you, it's easier to do the sums around what it would cost to keep it versus chopping it in.
I'd stick with the golf along the lines of the devil you know. you'll likely loose money on the sale of it plus the money you've spent on it, and on top of that take on the risk of the unknown with a cheap car. Lets face it any old car around the 2k mark is going to be relatively old and need work of some sort, you may be able to put it off while you retrain but you could also do that with the golf.
And i guess the other important question is, do you own it outright?
Would it free up capital? cut down on a monthly loan repayment? Pay off debt?
Any car you replace it with will probably broadly cost a similar amount to maintain...but if you have cash tied in the car that you want to free up, then selling makes a lot of sense.
if you are selling just to minimise running costs, then sticking with the golf makes more sense...better the devil you know as has been said.
Would it free up capital? cut down on a monthly loan repayment? Pay off debt?
Any car you replace it with will probably broadly cost a similar amount to maintain...but if you have cash tied in the car that you want to free up, then selling makes a lot of sense.
if you are selling just to minimise running costs, then sticking with the golf makes more sense...better the devil you know as has been said.
designforlife said:
And i guess the other important question is, do you own it outright?
Would it free up capital? cut down on a monthly loan repayment? Pay off debt?
Any car you replace it with will probably broadly cost a similar amount to maintain...but if you have cash tied in the car that you want to free up, then selling makes a lot of sense.
if you are selling just to minimise running costs, then sticking with the golf makes more sense...better the devil you know as has been said.
I do own the car - albeit with a small amount of a bank loan i used to purchase it. I feel that most of the stuff that could potentially let go wouldnt cost much less on a cheaper car. Air Con unts, Steering racks, (especially electric!) and clutches all seem to cost broadly the sameive discovered.Would it free up capital? cut down on a monthly loan repayment? Pay off debt?
Any car you replace it with will probably broadly cost a similar amount to maintain...but if you have cash tied in the car that you want to free up, then selling makes a lot of sense.
if you are selling just to minimise running costs, then sticking with the golf makes more sense...better the devil you know as has been said.
It would be the quirks of that specific model that bother me such as turbo, engine components ect that could sting me. In my eyes VW doesnt seem the best for reliability which is what is attracting me to Hondas mainly.
Im trying to not be caught up in sentiment towards it but i fear im dealing with a time bomb waiting to go off at the worst time. Or am i being irrational. Its a shame as it does come across as a looked after car in a good condition - and those Golfs really do seem to cover all bases!. And if i did sell up, am I just exchanging one set of things that need doing for another. My gripe also is it is not the most economical to run and does owning a 'GTi' really make sense for me.
Mr Tidy]ds22 said:
cambelt chain
Surely it has a belt or a chain?
I'd just keep it - how much cash are you likely to release from a GTi with 111K miles?
Strangely the AXX engine has both. Chain for one cam and belt for other cam. I really dont know what advantage of this was. Thankfully both have been replaced when the fuel cam and pump were replaced. It wasnt cheap!Edited by Ads22 on Wednesday 7th November 12:20
[/quoteEitherv]Surely it has a belt or a chain?
I'd just keep it - how much cash are you likely to release from a GTi with 111K miles?
if you aren't going to release more than a couple of grand by selling up, i would say keep it. Any new used car is gonna swallow at least a few hundred in the first year of ownership getting bits and pieces done.
Any used car has the potential to go expensively wrong at any time, it comes with the territory.
Hondas are reliable, but the parts prices are pretty painful.
Any used car has the potential to go expensively wrong at any time, it comes with the territory.
Hondas are reliable, but the parts prices are pretty painful.
KomodoWagon said:
If it were me, I'd stick with what I knew. Any older car is likely to need work doing over a period of ownership and the upside of your Golf is that you already own and know the car. With something else - even if it is a Lexus or a Honda - everything's an unknown quantity. You will have limited idea of how well it's been treated up to the point you buy it. And less forward visibility on how much it's likely to cost you during a period when you'll be on a reduced income.
So, yeah, I'd probably keep it. But - here's the caveat - the best way to do this would be to stop guessing what might go wrong and praying it doesn't, and start planning in some proactive maintenance now, while you're still on a higher salary. Get it future-proofed a bit, if you will. Can you get it looked at by a specialist - ideally a well-regarded indie, not a VW dealer - and get some advice on how long you've got on those items you mention? Then you can look at planning in getting any critical stuff sorted over the next few months while you're still earning more. Phase the costs a bit.
I mean, I hear you when you say that a Golf GTI is pricey to maintain. And it might be that it is, in fact, uneconomical to keep it. But mights and maybes don't keep cars going. That's why I reckon you need more information. If you've got more foresight from an expert opinion over how much it's likely to cost you, it's easier to do the sums around what it would cost to keep it versus chopping it in.
Thats some sound advice and i actually plan to get one to have a good look next week. I know my shock absorbers will need doing but also want to know potential big items that could be looming....So, yeah, I'd probably keep it. But - here's the caveat - the best way to do this would be to stop guessing what might go wrong and praying it doesn't, and start planning in some proactive maintenance now, while you're still on a higher salary. Get it future-proofed a bit, if you will. Can you get it looked at by a specialist - ideally a well-regarded indie, not a VW dealer - and get some advice on how long you've got on those items you mention? Then you can look at planning in getting any critical stuff sorted over the next few months while you're still earning more. Phase the costs a bit.
I mean, I hear you when you say that a Golf GTI is pricey to maintain. And it might be that it is, in fact, uneconomical to keep it. But mights and maybes don't keep cars going. That's why I reckon you need more information. If you've got more foresight from an expert opinion over how much it's likely to cost you, it's easier to do the sums around what it would cost to keep it versus chopping it in.
Main fears id say are Turbo, Clutch, DMF, Rack and just making sure its running effeciently. If those appear sound then id be happy to keep things going and deal with anything that goes unless absolutely necessary.
For fun and cheap to buy and run I've never had better than the 3 MR2 roadsters I've owned. As long as you don't need more than 2 seats, don't need a boot and don't have to drive at speed/long distance in any really bad weather they are great. Dead easy to fix, cheap to maintain. Warm hatch performance and good economy for an old car.
The only expensive items to watch for buying are oil burners (try to get a facelift) and rusty sub frames.
The only expensive items to watch for buying are oil burners (try to get a facelift) and rusty sub frames.
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