Do PHers still practice bangernomics?
Discussion
I'd love to do bangernomics but simple fact is I've a small family and live in the country. I love tinkering at cars, love older quirky cars but I need as reliable a car as possible that is as efficient as possible because we don't have much spare cash. I find the enjoyment of fixing something at 11 o'clock on a Tuesday night when I have to be in work for 7.30 the next morning greatly reduces the enjoyment.
It's a great pastime for maybe someone who is single or retired, but unfortunately today's lifestyle (premium of time, spare cash etc not fashion, I couldn't care less about that) makes it very hard to enjoy things like that.
It's a great pastime for maybe someone who is single or retired, but unfortunately today's lifestyle (premium of time, spare cash etc not fashion, I couldn't care less about that) makes it very hard to enjoy things like that.
Yes. Yes I do. Bought a BMW 328ci for £800. Fitted new suspension, brakes and other bits and MOT'd it. Now done almost 3,000 miles since and it's been absolutely faultless. May need a rear wheel bearing soon though. All in, including the purchase of the car I'm probably in to it about £1,200. New suspension and brakes came with the car though, which is handy.
I stopped bangernomics when I had had to swap a 206 axle on my drive, on my own in November.
Local garages weren't interested at all and while it was a fairly easy job and not a lot in parts it was a stress.
If I had space for a backup shed then I would go back to doing it as I like sorting problems but it is not fun taking your only daily car to bits on a rainy Saturday in winter knowing it has to be back together and fixed by Monday!
Local garages weren't interested at all and while it was a fairly easy job and not a lot in parts it was a stress.
If I had space for a backup shed then I would go back to doing it as I like sorting problems but it is not fun taking your only daily car to bits on a rainy Saturday in winter knowing it has to be back together and fixed by Monday!
Very much so.
Bought my current 1998 V70 a couple of years back for a banger rally to Rome which it breezed and despite saying I'd bin it off on our return, it's just too good at what it does so it's still here some 30k miles later including a few European jaunts. A few other things have come and gone in that time but the Volvo remains and I'm now at the stage where I simply can't bear to part with it - yes it's a bit tired looking and does 17mpg on my 1.5 mile commute but I don't really care. I just throw crap in it, leave it anywhere, stand on it, use it to knock down trees and it never protests. I did splash out on four winter tyres last year and this year it had new (second hand) front struts and a couple of minor repairs like a replacement centre section from the breakers for a fiver and a couple of lower arms. MOT is looming in a couple of weeks but I refuse to give up on it... somebody could hand me an RS6 tomorrow and I'd still keep the Volvo and probably drive it more too. Costs me £40 a month to tax and insure, owes me nothing. It's ace card is that it's totally invisible, can carry a ton of crap and yet will still give a few things a fright...
I might go home and wash it now!
Bought my current 1998 V70 a couple of years back for a banger rally to Rome which it breezed and despite saying I'd bin it off on our return, it's just too good at what it does so it's still here some 30k miles later including a few European jaunts. A few other things have come and gone in that time but the Volvo remains and I'm now at the stage where I simply can't bear to part with it - yes it's a bit tired looking and does 17mpg on my 1.5 mile commute but I don't really care. I just throw crap in it, leave it anywhere, stand on it, use it to knock down trees and it never protests. I did splash out on four winter tyres last year and this year it had new (second hand) front struts and a couple of minor repairs like a replacement centre section from the breakers for a fiver and a couple of lower arms. MOT is looming in a couple of weeks but I refuse to give up on it... somebody could hand me an RS6 tomorrow and I'd still keep the Volvo and probably drive it more too. Costs me £40 a month to tax and insure, owes me nothing. It's ace card is that it's totally invisible, can carry a ton of crap and yet will still give a few things a fright...
I might go home and wash it now!
As I posted on a different thread, have just bought a 2002 Toyota Avensis vermont for £650, 31000 miles and one owner from new, it's spotless and would happily drive it anywhere without a worry. May change the tyres as they've been on since leaving the factory. Was found on facebook.
Beanbob said:
I'm getting quotes of £500+ for a Nissan Micra!
Have you shopped around off of the usual comparison sites?. I insured my bangernomics / dog / tip run second car an '02 plate Fiesta 1.4 ghia with Hastings Direct last year with no no claims for £250 fully comp (limited mileage & no commuting), just renewed again now with 1yrs ncb for approx the same price.Always loved bangernomics, nothing more pleasing than realising your car has cost you a fraction of your annual beer expenditure to own and run!
Currently running a diesel 2003 Audi A6 estate which has 170k on the clock is treated badly and does all our heavy work and long journeys - it just keeps on trucking and has all the barge-like comfort I need for long motorway journeys. I'm time poor so I must admit that when it (very infrequently) needs work done it goes to the local mechanic but only ever to have scrapyard replacement parts fitted.
Cracking car and I will genuinely miss it when it eventually dies.
Currently running a diesel 2003 Audi A6 estate which has 170k on the clock is treated badly and does all our heavy work and long journeys - it just keeps on trucking and has all the barge-like comfort I need for long motorway journeys. I'm time poor so I must admit that when it (very infrequently) needs work done it goes to the local mechanic but only ever to have scrapyard replacement parts fitted.
Cracking car and I will genuinely miss it when it eventually dies.
veccy208 said:
I'd love to do bangernomics but simple fact is I've a small family and live in the country. I love tinkering at cars, love older quirky cars but I need as reliable a car as possible that is as efficient as possible because we don't have much spare cash. I find the enjoyment of fixing something at 11 o'clock on a Tuesday night when I have to be in work for 7.30 the next morning greatly reduces the enjoyment.
It's a great pastime for maybe someone who is single or retired, but unfortunately today's lifestyle (premium of time, spare cash etc not fashion, I couldn't care less about that) makes it very hard to enjoy things like that.
In my experience this doesn't happen.It's a great pastime for maybe someone who is single or retired, but unfortunately today's lifestyle (premium of time, spare cash etc not fashion, I couldn't care less about that) makes it very hard to enjoy things like that.
I also live in the country and the cars i've had , have never got me to work etc they just use more fuel than a modern car.
To answer the question, yes.
I'm on my 25th car and all except 4 of them have been well under £1,000. Many under £500. Three have even been been free.
My current car was by far the most expensive at £2,000.....and i actually already long to go back to having a < £500 car!
I get real satisfaction in driving around something very, very cheap and seeing how it goes. Then breaking even or even making a few ££ on selling.
I've probably had a bit of luck over the years as i've had no disasters and only a couple of costly things. I'd never spend more to fix than the car cost me, for example.
For a time i was also able to get trade-ins at work which were all priced very well, which helped with the break even thing.
But yes.....love my bangernomics.
I'm on my 25th car and all except 4 of them have been well under £1,000. Many under £500. Three have even been been free.
My current car was by far the most expensive at £2,000.....and i actually already long to go back to having a < £500 car!
I get real satisfaction in driving around something very, very cheap and seeing how it goes. Then breaking even or even making a few ££ on selling.
I've probably had a bit of luck over the years as i've had no disasters and only a couple of costly things. I'd never spend more to fix than the car cost me, for example.
For a time i was also able to get trade-ins at work which were all priced very well, which helped with the break even thing.
But yes.....love my bangernomics.
Guy at work is leaving and after a shed
Ok it needs a sars mask and a big pack of industrial surface wipes before you could get in and not die but what a lot of car for the money
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Volvo-S80-2-4-D5-SE-Lux-...
Ok it needs a sars mask and a big pack of industrial surface wipes before you could get in and not die but what a lot of car for the money
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Volvo-S80-2-4-D5-SE-Lux-...
I have a Volkswagen Golf GT TDI and it is great to have a car you don’t care about. Since owning it, someone has put a dent in the door by opening their car door into the side of it; and while I find it annoying that someone can be so careless, I don’t care about the dent. Alternatively, if that had been either of my other cars, I would have been irate.
It also saves me money. I bought the car for £500 at the start of the year, because 15MPG in my Supra was becoming a ridiculous expense; although it was fun receiving lots of fuel vouchers from Shell.
I have spent £330 on it thus far including: an oil and filter change; a new hub and wheel bearing; front brake discs and pads; a new tyre; and an MOT. The tax is £245 for the year and the insurance didn’t cost anything to add to an existing multicar policy.
I have done 10,000 miles in eight months, at an average of 48MPG, meaning I have spent £1088.52 on fuel. The Supra over the same distance would have cost me £3633.84, resulting in a saving of £2545.62!
If I take into account the original cost of the car and upkeep so far at £1075, I would still be £1470.32 up!
If I were to sell the car now, it would be worth circa £800, plus a refund of £81 from the DVLA, meaning I would be £2351.32 up in total. Even if I gave the bleeding thing away, I would still be up.
I have also had the benefit of another car to use, meaning when my Trans Am was having tubular exhaust manifolds fitted recently, or currently, while my Supra is waiting to have new brake discs, pads and fluid, plus new tyres fitted, I have the use of another car.
I love bangernomics, but despite this, after 10,000 miles and eight months of ownership I am very bored with it, and am trying to work out whether I could sell it and replace it with something like an EP3 Civic Type R without going back to spending huge amounts on fuel every month.
The trouble is I end up driving the Golf a lot more than either of my other cars, and before where I use to enjoy my work commute in the Supra and previous BMWs, Civic Type Rs, and the like. It is now extremely boring, the only highlight being a half decent radio to listen to.
It also saves me money. I bought the car for £500 at the start of the year, because 15MPG in my Supra was becoming a ridiculous expense; although it was fun receiving lots of fuel vouchers from Shell.
I have spent £330 on it thus far including: an oil and filter change; a new hub and wheel bearing; front brake discs and pads; a new tyre; and an MOT. The tax is £245 for the year and the insurance didn’t cost anything to add to an existing multicar policy.
I have done 10,000 miles in eight months, at an average of 48MPG, meaning I have spent £1088.52 on fuel. The Supra over the same distance would have cost me £3633.84, resulting in a saving of £2545.62!
If I take into account the original cost of the car and upkeep so far at £1075, I would still be £1470.32 up!
If I were to sell the car now, it would be worth circa £800, plus a refund of £81 from the DVLA, meaning I would be £2351.32 up in total. Even if I gave the bleeding thing away, I would still be up.
I have also had the benefit of another car to use, meaning when my Trans Am was having tubular exhaust manifolds fitted recently, or currently, while my Supra is waiting to have new brake discs, pads and fluid, plus new tyres fitted, I have the use of another car.
I love bangernomics, but despite this, after 10,000 miles and eight months of ownership I am very bored with it, and am trying to work out whether I could sell it and replace it with something like an EP3 Civic Type R without going back to spending huge amounts on fuel every month.
The trouble is I end up driving the Golf a lot more than either of my other cars, and before where I use to enjoy my work commute in the Supra and previous BMWs, Civic Type Rs, and the like. It is now extremely boring, the only highlight being a half decent radio to listen to.
Beanbob said:
Where do you find cars so cheap? I might be being very fussy, but I can't usually see anything half decent for less than £600 or so, unless it has interstellar mileage or clearly has a major and possibly expensive fault/s.
Friend of mine is selling a Fiat Cinquecento at the moment. I think it is a facelift version but it only has 40,000 miles or so and a full years MOT. I think he’s happy to accept £400. Little bargain if you’re after something basic and very cheap. Yep, I'm shedding away happily at the moment in a 2004 Saab 9-3 1.8t Vector.
It has nice cold climate control and a hilariously over-engineered cupholder. It's quick enough, safe enough and quiet enough for me to get around in without any worry. I also like the way it looks and handles.
800 quid and I reckon it was a bargain at that price.
It has nice cold climate control and a hilariously over-engineered cupholder. It's quick enough, safe enough and quiet enough for me to get around in without any worry. I also like the way it looks and handles.
800 quid and I reckon it was a bargain at that price.
Beanbob said:
I used to be a member of the PH forums many years ago under a different username that I now forget. At the time, there seemed to be a deluge of 'bangernomics' threads. Has this now fallen out of fashion? Do many other PHers practice this excellent form of motoring?
Yep. A whole thread devoted to it... and about to enter its third volume.https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
JakeT said:
Yes. Yes I do. Bought a BMW 328ci for £800. Fitted new suspension, brakes and other bits and MOT'd it. Now done almost 3,000 miles since and it's been absolutely faultless. May need a rear wheel bearing soon though. All in, including the purchase of the car I'm probably in to it about £1,200. New suspension and brakes came with the car though, which is handy.
My daily driver. Love it. it's done 170k and is starting to show its age but goes like stink and drives well. Quite a lot of rust coming out on it, CD changer jammed so I took it out, sunroof motor burnt out, a/c doesn't work, OBC button on stalk packed up. MOT Friday. Can't bring myself to get rid, such an elegant design. Engine feels as if it will go forever, but rust will see it scrapped before 200k I suspect.Have been a big fan of bangernomics for 12 years now.
Currently got a Saxo VTR which had been looked after and wasn't much of a gamble for £700 nearly three years ago. Breezed through two MOTs with no advisories - not sure it'll be the same this time but I've done 50,000 miles in it so it hardly owes me anything. Huge fun.
Not sure I could run something gutless/not fun though. The point of my bangernomics is that when I get in the special car it still feels special, but I still want my daily snotbox to give me a bit of fun. I ran an Integrale as a daily nearly 20 years ago and was stunned how such a great driver's car stopped feeling special very quickly when I was using it daily.
Have thought about spending a bit more on something newer, or leasing, but I like being different and having something a bit retro.
Currently got a Saxo VTR which had been looked after and wasn't much of a gamble for £700 nearly three years ago. Breezed through two MOTs with no advisories - not sure it'll be the same this time but I've done 50,000 miles in it so it hardly owes me anything. Huge fun.
Not sure I could run something gutless/not fun though. The point of my bangernomics is that when I get in the special car it still feels special, but I still want my daily snotbox to give me a bit of fun. I ran an Integrale as a daily nearly 20 years ago and was stunned how such a great driver's car stopped feeling special very quickly when I was using it daily.
Have thought about spending a bit more on something newer, or leasing, but I like being different and having something a bit retro.
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