Discussion
I've always loved shedding, and have had some great fun over the years (especially pre scrappage) finding a banger to run around in for a year or two. My rules are simple; it has to have at least 6 months MOT with a vaguely acceptable MOT history, and it has to be sub £1k. I do rather enjoy the adventure element of shedding when trains etc are involved as well.
On Thursday I refreshed Gumtree only to see that a chap in Plymouth had a 2006 E91 320D for the princely sum of £700. A quick check showed it had MOT until July 2022 and the MOT history wasn't too bad with 186k on the clock. It looked battered in the photos though...proper battered but at that money I felt it worth a punt. A message was sent and an hour later I was on the train from Exeter to Keyham in Plymouth. The rough part of Plymouth to be precise. On the train I decided to do a little research and googled the seller's name and the street name; sure enough, multiple entries in the local court listings for various shenanigans.
The street was rough, with a waft of Cannabis the whole way down, rotting classics such as an Astra GSI and an early Octavia VRS covered the driveways, but soon enough I saw the seller. I try not to be judgemental, but there is a very popular thread on PH into which he would fit perfectly. I may be wrong, but I suspect he'd forgotten to pay someone for goods received, hence needing to shift the car quickly. The car had clearly been given a good kicking in the doors and the front bumper had a nifty cable tie repair. On the front were 2 style 138 E60 17" alloys, the originals I was assured were in the boot with punctures. I only noticed on getting home later, that each of the rear tyres also had a screw in the sidewall....he'd definitely upset somebody.
I handed over the cash and ran. The car had a quarter tank of diesel and averaged close to 60MPG on the run back to Exeter. Bodywork and tyres aside, the only faults I found on my return were that the motor for the air had gone, the rear wiper didn't work and the radio reception was a little crap. Paperwork showed a wadge of reciepts including a recent new battery. Full service history with plenty of main dealer stamps was a nice surprise, as was 2 keys with the original service key present as well. Arktis green with black leather interior that's in very good nick. I've now replaced all the tyres with (shock horror) part worns that look pretty much brand new to me.
But enough waffle I hear you say, where are the photos.
[url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/3TLkx7i8[/url][url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/82JUnpWb[/url]
On Thursday I refreshed Gumtree only to see that a chap in Plymouth had a 2006 E91 320D for the princely sum of £700. A quick check showed it had MOT until July 2022 and the MOT history wasn't too bad with 186k on the clock. It looked battered in the photos though...proper battered but at that money I felt it worth a punt. A message was sent and an hour later I was on the train from Exeter to Keyham in Plymouth. The rough part of Plymouth to be precise. On the train I decided to do a little research and googled the seller's name and the street name; sure enough, multiple entries in the local court listings for various shenanigans.
The street was rough, with a waft of Cannabis the whole way down, rotting classics such as an Astra GSI and an early Octavia VRS covered the driveways, but soon enough I saw the seller. I try not to be judgemental, but there is a very popular thread on PH into which he would fit perfectly. I may be wrong, but I suspect he'd forgotten to pay someone for goods received, hence needing to shift the car quickly. The car had clearly been given a good kicking in the doors and the front bumper had a nifty cable tie repair. On the front were 2 style 138 E60 17" alloys, the originals I was assured were in the boot with punctures. I only noticed on getting home later, that each of the rear tyres also had a screw in the sidewall....he'd definitely upset somebody.
I handed over the cash and ran. The car had a quarter tank of diesel and averaged close to 60MPG on the run back to Exeter. Bodywork and tyres aside, the only faults I found on my return were that the motor for the air had gone, the rear wiper didn't work and the radio reception was a little crap. Paperwork showed a wadge of reciepts including a recent new battery. Full service history with plenty of main dealer stamps was a nice surprise, as was 2 keys with the original service key present as well. Arktis green with black leather interior that's in very good nick. I've now replaced all the tyres with (shock horror) part worns that look pretty much brand new to me.
But enough waffle I hear you say, where are the photos.
[url]|https://thumbsnap.com/3TLkx7i8[/url][url]|https://thumbsnap.com/82JUnpWb[/url]
I mean for £700 it looks worth the money. Would probably look for a few doors and a wing on eBay in colour. The protective metal bar of a trolley cover at a local Sainburys blew off into two the doors on my Audi, managed to get two doors in colour for £80, a good wash and a mop polish and you wouldn't know the difference.
sutoka said:
I mean for £700 it looks worth the money. Would probably look for a few doors and a wing on eBay in colour. The protective metal bar of a trolley cover at a local Sainburys blew off into two the doors on my Audi, managed to get two doors in colour for £80, a good wash and a mop polish and you wouldn't know the difference.
I had an E92 in Arktis and its a rare, shortlived colour. Its a kind of silver grey with hints of blue or green in different lighting conditions and recorded as Green on the V5. Would be amazed if you could find doors for an E91 in colour.Looks a bargain to just run as it is.
An absolute steal for that money! That will be an M47 and it looks like you narrowly escaped them adding a DPF…my 06 M47 has one (also with straight out exhaust, incidentally).
Probably worth blanking the swirl flaps if they haven’t been done already, and replacing the crankcase breather while you’re there.
Probably worth blanking the swirl flaps if they haven’t been done already, and replacing the crankcase breather while you’re there.
JDB96 said:
An absolute steal for that money! That will be an M47 and it looks like you narrowly escaped them adding a DPF…my 06 M47 has one (also with straight out exhaust, incidentally).
Probably worth blanking the swirl flaps if they haven’t been done already, and replacing the crankcase breather while you’re there.
My 07 E91 with the M47 has no DPF, strange that there were 06 models with them fitted, must just be lucky I guess.Probably worth blanking the swirl flaps if they haven’t been done already, and replacing the crankcase breather while you’re there.
Thanks for the replies and useful info. A busy month or so since I picked it up and forgot to update this. My dad had a stoma fitted a few days after I picked this up so I've covered about 1000 miles in 4 weeks going back and forth helping him out. The car's been brilliant and not missed a beat and having something with more than 2 seats has been essential.
Other than the blower, rear wiper and remote central locking everything seems to work. Wondering if the battery might be on it's why out given the faults; something I'll check in due course. Allegedly it had a recent new battery, but something I'll have a look at anyway.
Had a headlight go which led to the interesting access in the wheel arch for changing them, but actually pretty pain free which was a pleasant surprise. Also treated it to a replacement gear knob as that was the only thing showing the 186k and the top had slipped making it dig in when changing gear.
Sold my MX5 yesterday so feeling far too grown up with a diesel estate car and nothing stupid to throw around. Inevitably I'll end up buying another in the week before Christmas.
Other than the blower, rear wiper and remote central locking everything seems to work. Wondering if the battery might be on it's why out given the faults; something I'll check in due course. Allegedly it had a recent new battery, but something I'll have a look at anyway.
Had a headlight go which led to the interesting access in the wheel arch for changing them, but actually pretty pain free which was a pleasant surprise. Also treated it to a replacement gear knob as that was the only thing showing the 186k and the top had slipped making it dig in when changing gear.
Sold my MX5 yesterday so feeling far too grown up with a diesel estate car and nothing stupid to throw around. Inevitably I'll end up buying another in the week before Christmas.
Jonmx said:
Other than the blower, rear wiper and remote central locking everything seems to work.
I have an E91 and have suffered some of these things.- There is a recall for the cable to the blower I think. Maybe that's related?
- The spindle of the rear wiper seizes up in the glass. I managed to free mine up with some pliers, after removing some trim.
- The central locking not working is the diversity antenna in the rear spoiler. I got a replacement and fitted it, but the central locking had started working again before it arrived. I have a spare one that worked when I tested it last (a couple of years ago). You're welcome to it for the cost of posting if you like?
I have a 56 E91 with approx 182000 miles on it.
With the rear wiper lift the glass lid and see if the arm rotates freely. If not remove the internal trim and the arm can be removed and the spindle cleaned up, had to do that a couple of times.
The wires in the boot lid hinge break and can effect the central locking and also the boot cover sliding up when you open the glass lid/boot lid.
Keep up the oil changes, I'm on my third turbo.
If your patient, and don't mind a scrape, the front bulbs can be changed by reaching through the bonnet.
Otherwise it's been a great car for the last 10 years.
Jon
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