The Joy of Running an Old Shed
Discussion
Well after ordering a complete injector leak off pipe kit for Mrs Bobbers Focus it threw up an electrical issue which we've had before and which cost a small fortune and took several weeks to sort out!! We've decided that it's just not worth throwing any more money at it, so once we've found a replacement we're going to scrap the car. 
dunc01965 said:
My son recently took his Dacia to the main dealer for a service. Its a 64 plate and he wanted a stamp in the book. They charged him £170. When he got it home he lifted the bonnet to find that it had the same air filter and same spark plugs. When he rang them they told him that if he wanted the plugs changing it would be an extra 60 notes.
So in essence they had changed the oil and filter. Another reason running a shed is great, get a set of tools and do it yourself for a fraction of the cost using quality parts and then you know it's been done properly. I keep the receipts for jobs that I have done, much better than a stamp in a book IMHO.
Depends on mileage - if they are irridium plugs that's a pretty good price. So in essence they had changed the oil and filter. Another reason running a shed is great, get a set of tools and do it yourself for a fraction of the cost using quality parts and then you know it's been done properly. I keep the receipts for jobs that I have done, much better than a stamp in a book IMHO.
Jaguar Steve makes the most sense for me in his posts. I've wasted money on cars in the past buying a badge and it made me feel good for a time but it's not for me any more. I love tinkering under the bonnet myself and having a car simple enough to carry out most of the work myself. I now just see a car as transport to get me from one place to another and nothing else and certainly won't be a slave to a car now. I don't even feel a pang of envy when I see someone in a new car now, in fact I just find so much freedom and peace of mind from not giving a stuff.
tomble22 said:
This one had a new clutch and DMF about 20,000 miles ago and feels fine at the moment.
My old Accord Tourer slipped a bit for most of the time i owned it (say 8,000 miles) but towards the end it stopped, that was the original clutch (car was on just under 200,000 miles).
My current Accord Tourer is on 177,000 and clutch is spot on, not sure if that one has been replaced though. Also remapped and copes with it fine.
I was quoted just under a grand on my first accord for the DMF & Clutch. The invoice for the Civic is £950 odd.
How's the new shed going Tom? Did you offload the Alfa? What about the Fiat is it down to 800 quid yet if so give me a shout. Please don't keep us in suspense any longer My old Accord Tourer slipped a bit for most of the time i owned it (say 8,000 miles) but towards the end it stopped, that was the original clutch (car was on just under 200,000 miles).
My current Accord Tourer is on 177,000 and clutch is spot on, not sure if that one has been replaced though. Also remapped and copes with it fine.
I was quoted just under a grand on my first accord for the DMF & Clutch. The invoice for the Civic is £950 odd.
Mk4 TDI That I’m trying to keep to an absolute minimum spend wise has just cost me £9.70
New thermostat and cabin filter I’ll collect later today
Bought a replacement rear axle and front subframe that have been refurbished and poly bushed for less than I can get the bushes for, a suspension and brake refresh will happen later in the year. Perhaps I’m being foolish spending on such things but I’m hoping to run this for a few years and miles. For the money I can’t think of cheaper hassle free motoring
New thermostat and cabin filter I’ll collect later today
Bought a replacement rear axle and front subframe that have been refurbished and poly bushed for less than I can get the bushes for, a suspension and brake refresh will happen later in the year. Perhaps I’m being foolish spending on such things but I’m hoping to run this for a few years and miles. For the money I can’t think of cheaper hassle free motoring
RAV4 is on the drive now after a 6 hour journey to collect yesterday. Seems to be in good form and drives nicely, Mrs is happy with it
After market alloys are carrying the wrong size tyres so speedo is a bit under but if we keep it long enough I'll get an OEM set off eBay. Going I swap the stereo out to a decent aftermarket one as requested by Wife
SAAB has gone to scrappy now and Citroen should go Wednesday...
After market alloys are carrying the wrong size tyres so speedo is a bit under but if we keep it long enough I'll get an OEM set off eBay. Going I swap the stereo out to a decent aftermarket one as requested by Wife
SAAB has gone to scrappy now and Citroen should go Wednesday...
dunc01965 said:
Just out of curiosity what is the longest anyone has kept the same sub £1000 shed?
Also what make of oil do you good people use when doing a service? I've stuck with Granvilles fully synthetic for the past 5 years, not had a problem, cheap enough and seems to do a good job.
Personal best is probably nearly 10 years out of a £400 poverty spec Renault 5. Serviced on a shoestring with whatever 20ltr bulk buy oil was cheapest on ebay and only got rid at space shuttle miles because it needed too much welding for another MOT. Also what make of oil do you good people use when doing a service? I've stuck with Granvilles fully synthetic for the past 5 years, not had a problem, cheap enough and seems to do a good job.
Edited by dunc01965 on Friday 26th February 19:51
Edited by dunc01965 on Friday 26th February 19:52
Jaguar steve said:
dunc01965 said:
Just out of curiosity what is the longest anyone has kept the same sub £1000 shed?
Also what make of oil do you good people use when doing a service? I've stuck with Granvilles fully synthetic for the past 5 years, not had a problem, cheap enough and seems to do a good job.
Personal best is probably nearly 10 years out of a £400 poverty spec Renault 5. Serviced on a shoestring with whatever 20ltr bulk buy oil was cheapest on ebay and only got rid at space shuttle miles because it needed too much welding for another MOT. Also what make of oil do you good people use when doing a service? I've stuck with Granvilles fully synthetic for the past 5 years, not had a problem, cheap enough and seems to do a good job.
Edited by dunc01965 on Friday 26th February 19:51
Edited by dunc01965 on Friday 26th February 19:52
dunc01965 said:
Just out of curiosity what is the longest anyone has kept the same sub £1000 shed?
Also what make of oil do you good people use when doing a service? I've stuck with Granvilles fully synthetic for the past 5 years, not had a problem, cheap enough and seems to do a good job.
Currently still running a '99 Volvo S40 2.0 that I bought for £100 4 years ago.Also what make of oil do you good people use when doing a service? I've stuck with Granvilles fully synthetic for the past 5 years, not had a problem, cheap enough and seems to do a good job.
Edited by dunc01965 on Friday 26th February 19:51
Edited by dunc01965 on Friday 26th February 19:52
It's done about 40k miles in that time. Spent no more than £500 in total on it to get through last couple of MOTs.
Also been Cat D in summer of 2019 and I got £950 back and kept it.
Best car I've ever owned, it has never failed on me.
Edited by Mildlyinterestd on Sunday 28th February 18:32
dunc01965 said:
There seems to be an in built hatred on here of all things French and a love of all things German but all of the little French hatchbacks that I've had have been fine. Servicing is easy, parts are cheap and running costs minimal and as no fuss transportation that can be kept running for buttons they take some beating for a long life shed.
A friend of mine (who is on here but never posts and may or may not be reading!) did 20k a year in a 106 1.1 petrol for around 3 years I think all told. I just dug back through our old messages, he bought it for £700 and sold it for £600 
if I recall correctly a snapped throttle cable was the only time it ‘broke down’, otherwise just routine maintenance, timing belt etc (he was a mechanic, said it was the easiest one he ever did). I was passengered in it a couple of times, it was even pretty comfy for a tiny hatch.
300sl-24 said:
tomble22 said:
This one had a new clutch and DMF about 20,000 miles ago and feels fine at the moment.
My old Accord Tourer slipped a bit for most of the time i owned it (say 8,000 miles) but towards the end it stopped, that was the original clutch (car was on just under 200,000 miles).
My current Accord Tourer is on 177,000 and clutch is spot on, not sure if that one has been replaced though. Also remapped and copes with it fine.
I was quoted just under a grand on my first accord for the DMF & Clutch. The invoice for the Civic is £950 odd.
How's the new shed going Tom? Did you offload the Alfa? What about the Fiat is it down to 800 quid yet if so give me a shout. Please don't keep us in suspense any longer My old Accord Tourer slipped a bit for most of the time i owned it (say 8,000 miles) but towards the end it stopped, that was the original clutch (car was on just under 200,000 miles).
My current Accord Tourer is on 177,000 and clutch is spot on, not sure if that one has been replaced though. Also remapped and copes with it fine.
I was quoted just under a grand on my first accord for the DMF & Clutch. The invoice for the Civic is £950 odd.
The Alfa is indeed gone, thankfully, only lost £100 so thought myself lucky with that one really.
Panda went last week, great little car really, just a bit impractical for my future endeavours!
Civic.....well, it seems that new clutch it had some 25,000 miles ago must have been of the chocolate variety, as its now slipping in 4th, 5th and 6th under load.
Now, there is a tuning box under the bonnet which wasn't plugged in when I checked, but I wonder if when it was plugged in it cooked the clutch. Either that or the Honda clutches of this age are (I think) self adjusting, so it may just be a case that it needs to sort itself out. If not, I'm inclined to get it done, I have a mobile mechanic chap who I use who will do the change for £250, and the parts are circa £450, so I think it'll be worth it, given what i paid for it.
And to add a bit of hope in opposition to the downer, I went to the scrapyard last weekend and picked up a parcel shelf, radio/climate screen, interior speaker cover, exterior handle and a few other bits for £7!!
And I spent a bit of time declouding the headlights this weekend!!
It's a keeper!!
JDB96 said:
dunc01965 said:
There seems to be an in built hatred on here of all things French and a love of all things German but all of the little French hatchbacks that I've had have been fine. Servicing is easy, parts are cheap and running costs minimal and as no fuss transportation that can be kept running for buttons they take some beating for a long life shed.
A friend of mine (who is on here but never posts and may or may not be reading!) did 20k a year in a 106 1.1 petrol for around 3 years I think all told. I just dug back through our old messages, he bought it for £700 and sold it for £600 if I recall correctly a snapped throttle cable was the only time it ‘broke down’, otherwise just routine maintenance, timing belt etc (he was a mechanic, said it was the easiest one he ever did). I was passengered in it a couple of times, it was even pretty comfy for a tiny hatch.
I've had dozens of cheap French cars and vans going right back to Renault 12s and 18s in the early '80s. In all that time and hundreds of thousands of miles I've had just three roadside breakdowns - a ignition coil and two snapped clutch cables.
I've had one headgasket fail that was on its way out anyway and the odd wheel bearing and driveshaft go but despite using them hard as family workhorses and running them all on a shoestring that's it.
The complete lack of social status and prestige and zero fkucks given that surrounds older French cars is a significant bonus too.
tomble22 said:
Hi Ray,
The Alfa is indeed gone, thankfully, only lost £100 so thought myself lucky with that one really.
Panda went last week, great little car really, just a bit impractical for my future endeavours!
Civic.....well, it seems that new clutch it had some 25,000 miles ago must have been of the chocolate variety, as its now slipping in 4th, 5th and 6th under load.
Now, there is a tuning box under the bonnet which wasn't plugged in when I checked, but I wonder if when it was plugged in it cooked the clutch. Either that or the Honda clutches of this age are (I think) self adjusting, so it may just be a case that it needs to sort itself out. If not, I'm inclined to get it done, I have a mobile mechanic chap who I use who will do the change for £250, and the parts are circa £450, so I think it'll be worth it, given what i paid for it.
And to add a bit of hope in opposition to the downer, I went to the scrapyard last weekend and picked up a parcel shelf, radio/climate screen, interior speaker cover, exterior handle and a few other bits for £7!!
And I spent a bit of time declouding the headlights this weekend!!
It's a keeper!!
Excellent news on the Alfa Tom, I did wonder how you would fare, thankfully it seems that you did not get badly burned there. The Panda going was a given really, I have a small hankering for one as a winter commuter car and will look for a cheap one throughout the summer.The Alfa is indeed gone, thankfully, only lost £100 so thought myself lucky with that one really.
Panda went last week, great little car really, just a bit impractical for my future endeavours!
Civic.....well, it seems that new clutch it had some 25,000 miles ago must have been of the chocolate variety, as its now slipping in 4th, 5th and 6th under load.
Now, there is a tuning box under the bonnet which wasn't plugged in when I checked, but I wonder if when it was plugged in it cooked the clutch. Either that or the Honda clutches of this age are (I think) self adjusting, so it may just be a case that it needs to sort itself out. If not, I'm inclined to get it done, I have a mobile mechanic chap who I use who will do the change for £250, and the parts are circa £450, so I think it'll be worth it, given what i paid for it.
And to add a bit of hope in opposition to the downer, I went to the scrapyard last weekend and picked up a parcel shelf, radio/climate screen, interior speaker cover, exterior handle and a few other bits for £7!!
And I spent a bit of time declouding the headlights this weekend!!
It's a keeper!!
It's a real shame about the clutch in the Honda, that car would have been a real steal other than that. Let us know how it goes there, but I don't think that you can beat a cheap Jap shed.
In terms of the Panda, if I could afford/had space to keep three cars I would have kept it, such a great little car that really goes back to the essence of driving, high revving, great gear change and steering, and a real little experience.
Says it all, that a chap. messaged me. on Facebook and said 'I'm just in the area and I've heard the reputation of the Panda, can I pop by and have a look'. Within 20 minutes he was in love with it and bought it there and then for the asking price!
Still doesn't beat my love for the Mk5 GTI, but it's up there!
Says it all, that a chap. messaged me. on Facebook and said 'I'm just in the area and I've heard the reputation of the Panda, can I pop by and have a look'. Within 20 minutes he was in love with it and bought it there and then for the asking price!
Still doesn't beat my love for the Mk5 GTI, but it's up there!
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