2008 Agila b 1.0 6yr 6k challenge
Discussion
Boring content warning.
Can I tax, insure, maintain, MOT and fuel a car for £6,000 for 6 years? And part of the £6k budget involves buying it. (It doesn't really matter if I go over but will try and get as close as I can)
This will be a documentation of buying a car on a budget and how much things cost in reality with an update every few months for 6 years.
The vehicle will be used mainly for a work commute of two miles each way. ( I was cycling for the last 15 months but have stopped now )
I've bought a 2008 Agila 1.0 on 85k for £1290. It's cheap to run and buy. This car will do between 1000 and 2000 miles per year.
Here's a taste of what to expect. There will be no mods, it's just a white goods appliance.
November 2019
Car £1290
Taxi to collect car £15
Tax £30
Insurance £195 = £1530
December 2019
Fuel £45
Exhaust hangers for back box are free because I already had the 3.
ECP service kit, oil and filter, cabin filter, spark plugs, air filter £117
Tyres have seen better days £186 165/70/14 81t avon zt7 blackcircles
Exhaust hangers for centre pipe £3 for two.
There was no spare wheel or kit so they have been sourced
Space saver £34
Jack brace tow eye kit £18
Wheel clamp £8
All used= £411
Running total £1941.
Will be updated March 2020
Can I tax, insure, maintain, MOT and fuel a car for £6,000 for 6 years? And part of the £6k budget involves buying it. (It doesn't really matter if I go over but will try and get as close as I can)
This will be a documentation of buying a car on a budget and how much things cost in reality with an update every few months for 6 years.
The vehicle will be used mainly for a work commute of two miles each way. ( I was cycling for the last 15 months but have stopped now )
I've bought a 2008 Agila 1.0 on 85k for £1290. It's cheap to run and buy. This car will do between 1000 and 2000 miles per year.
Here's a taste of what to expect. There will be no mods, it's just a white goods appliance.
November 2019
Car £1290
Taxi to collect car £15
Tax £30
Insurance £195 = £1530
December 2019
Fuel £45
Exhaust hangers for back box are free because I already had the 3.
ECP service kit, oil and filter, cabin filter, spark plugs, air filter £117
Tyres have seen better days £186 165/70/14 81t avon zt7 blackcircles
Exhaust hangers for centre pipe £3 for two.
There was no spare wheel or kit so they have been sourced
Space saver £34
Jack brace tow eye kit £18
Wheel clamp £8
All used= £411
Running total £1941.
Will be updated March 2020
Edited by John is200sport on Friday 6th December 19:27
Yes. I've started saving for a house deposit 2 years ago and now buying one and will be paid off in 6 years hitting it very very hard.
The mini fleet I had before was -
2006 Lexus rx 350
2002 corolla t sport vvtli
2005 mr2 roadster.
Only the Rx 350 has been retained and will continue to do 90% of driving duties.
The agila thing is truly the worst car I've ever driven nevermind owed.
The lexus tax is £570 so to achieve my financial goals I needed tax of £30 or less.
It's just a sacrifice I have to make at the minute, I fancy some kind of hot hatch when I'm finished.
The mini fleet I had before was -
2006 Lexus rx 350
2002 corolla t sport vvtli
2005 mr2 roadster.
Only the Rx 350 has been retained and will continue to do 90% of driving duties.
The agila thing is truly the worst car I've ever driven nevermind owed.
The lexus tax is £570 so to achieve my financial goals I needed tax of £30 or less.
It's just a sacrifice I have to make at the minute, I fancy some kind of hot hatch when I'm finished.
rossub said:
Ok.... but do you have another ‘proper’ car to enjoy as well?
This is PH after all and 6 years of that as your only car sounds like a wasted 6 years to me!
Au contraire Rodney. Anyone can appreciate some 500hp v12 monster, but it takes a true enthusiast to appreciate the Aguila. This is PH after all and 6 years of that as your only car sounds like a wasted 6 years to me!
Looking forward to updates OP and fair play if this opens wider choices a few years down the line.
Why did you 'waste' budget on Avon tyres? I'd have stuck some Linglong Ditchfinders on it. You're only doing 50 miles a week. And a can of tyre foam and cheap pump is surely a better option than buying all that spare wheel paraphernalia?
You started off well, but you've taken your eye off the ball a bit.
You started off well, but you've taken your eye off the ball a bit.
I bought the Avon tyres because they were £46.56 each and I like Avon tyres. The cheapest fitted on Blackcircles were £37.90 value choice and felt less than £10 per corner difference was acceptable given the fact they will be the only tyres I will buy for it in maximum 12k mileage over 6 years. The spare wheel was decent value as I don't like spray cans and pumps etc.
Both nearside tyres were an MOT advisory last time so really needed doing.
To add, the difference in tyres were avon c/fuel b/wet 69db and value were f for fuel rating c for wet stopping and 71db.
Given the agila is a terrible noisy thing and handles poorly I thought it was a sensible price sacrifice.
Both nearside tyres were an MOT advisory last time so really needed doing.
To add, the difference in tyres were avon c/fuel b/wet 69db and value were f for fuel rating c for wet stopping and 71db.
Given the agila is a terrible noisy thing and handles poorly I thought it was a sensible price sacrifice.
Edited by Agila b 6yr 6k challenge on Sunday 8th December 12:10
Tyre Smoke said:
Why did you 'waste' budget on Avon tyres? I'd have stuck some Linglong Ditchfinders on it. You're only doing 50 miles a week.
In small tyre sizes, the actual cost difference between really rubbish and really good tyres is minimal, and putting cheap s
te on any car is a bad idea.Regards the Lexus.
I bought it in April 2017 for £4500 on 56k. It has the Mark Levinson headunit and remote tailgate.
I fitted a new coil pack £136 from toyota,
New avon zx7 £430 blackcircles.
New discs and pads all round from ecp £400 brembos.
DIY servicing.
It's now on 73k and been fantastic.
I'll definitely buy another at some point.
Good points about the 350 engine is it's a timing chain and 272bhp.
Downsides £570 tax per year and I average 17mpg normally and on a run 24-26mpg depending on traffic.
I bought it in April 2017 for £4500 on 56k. It has the Mark Levinson headunit and remote tailgate.
I fitted a new coil pack £136 from toyota,
New avon zx7 £430 blackcircles.
New discs and pads all round from ecp £400 brembos.
DIY servicing.
It's now on 73k and been fantastic.
I'll definitely buy another at some point.
Good points about the 350 engine is it's a timing chain and 272bhp.
Downsides £570 tax per year and I average 17mpg normally and on a run 24-26mpg depending on traffic.
InitialDave said:
Tyre Smoke said:
Why did you 'waste' budget on Avon tyres? I'd have stuck some Linglong Ditchfinders on it. You're only doing 50 miles a week.
In small tyre sizes, the actual cost difference between really rubbish and really good tyres is minimal, and putting cheap ste on any car is a bad idea.No disrespect intended to the OP, but I'm not actually sure this is even a challenge - you're only going to use it for 1000 - 2000 miles a year?
We currently have a 2005 MK2 Focus 2.0L Petrol as our 'donkey' - it's the car that does everything we ask of it.
This is not a record of the actual costs to the penny, but just some rough working to give you an idea of our spend to date - I've multiplied any regular costs to keep the maths straightforward, obviously there is some variance on a yearly basis but unless there is some major catastrophe, it'll be a minor difference each time;
Car cost = £1000, bought just over 3 years ago.
Cost to pickup and bring home = £20-ish.
Current Yearly Insurance = £225 (current, but hasn't really changed each year) x3 = £705
Current Tax = £235 (current rate) , x3 to keep it simple = £675
2 new tyres - Goodyear EfficientGrip, 2x at £65 each, fitted = £130
MOT @ Mr Clutch = £26 per year, x3 = £78
Service (sparkplugs, oil, oil filter, wiper blades, screenwash, cabin filter, air filter) = £100 (ish). Labour was my own time.
Pagid Brake pads, rear = £25-ish. Labour was my own time.
Fuel, currently around 130p per litre, 50L tank, roughly 400 miles per tank. Roughly 20,000 miles driven so far. £3250.
Rough total to date= £5983.
By far, the biggest cost has been fuel, and this is doing 20,000 miles versus the 6,000-12,000 you might do and that's running a 2.0L Petrol.
It's not meant to be a 'boastful' post, more just to say 'unless something goes horribly wrong, or fuel and insurance costs escalate massively, you'll be fine'.
We currently have a 2005 MK2 Focus 2.0L Petrol as our 'donkey' - it's the car that does everything we ask of it.
This is not a record of the actual costs to the penny, but just some rough working to give you an idea of our spend to date - I've multiplied any regular costs to keep the maths straightforward, obviously there is some variance on a yearly basis but unless there is some major catastrophe, it'll be a minor difference each time;
Car cost = £1000, bought just over 3 years ago.
Cost to pickup and bring home = £20-ish.
Current Yearly Insurance = £225 (current, but hasn't really changed each year) x3 = £705
Current Tax = £235 (current rate) , x3 to keep it simple = £675
2 new tyres - Goodyear EfficientGrip, 2x at £65 each, fitted = £130
MOT @ Mr Clutch = £26 per year, x3 = £78
Service (sparkplugs, oil, oil filter, wiper blades, screenwash, cabin filter, air filter) = £100 (ish). Labour was my own time.
Pagid Brake pads, rear = £25-ish. Labour was my own time.
Fuel, currently around 130p per litre, 50L tank, roughly 400 miles per tank. Roughly 20,000 miles driven so far. £3250.
Rough total to date= £5983.
By far, the biggest cost has been fuel, and this is doing 20,000 miles versus the 6,000-12,000 you might do and that's running a 2.0L Petrol.
It's not meant to be a 'boastful' post, more just to say 'unless something goes horribly wrong, or fuel and insurance costs escalate massively, you'll be fine'.
Yes. The mortgage will be done between 5-6 years. I have a very good salary compared to the mortgage amount and have sacrificed an awful lot over the last two years and will continue to do so.
I've been doing overtime over the last two years a lot and even cycling to work to avoid car costs. I sold my corolla daily snotter and my mr2.
Taking food to work and basically living a very frugal life. That lifestyle isn't for everyone I accept.
It's an incredibly tough 7 years to achieve this and I'm 2 years into it.
Hence the horrendous agila 6 year project.
I've been doing overtime over the last two years a lot and even cycling to work to avoid car costs. I sold my corolla daily snotter and my mr2.
Taking food to work and basically living a very frugal life. That lifestyle isn't for everyone I accept.
It's an incredibly tough 7 years to achieve this and I'm 2 years into it.
Hence the horrendous agila 6 year project.
smellypoo said:
No disrespect intended to the OP, but I'm not actually sure this is even a challenge - you're only going to use it for 1000 - 2000 miles a year?
We currently have a 2005 MK2 Focus 2.0L Petrol as our 'donkey' - it's the car that does everything we ask of it.
This is not a record of the actual costs to the penny, but just some rough working to give you an idea of our spend to date - I've multiplied any regular costs to keep the maths straightforward, obviously there is some variance on a yearly basis but unless there is some major catastrophe, it'll be a minor difference each time;
Car cost = £1000, bought just over 3 years ago.
Cost to pickup and bring home = £20-ish.
Current Yearly Insurance = £225 (current, but hasn't really changed each year) x3 = £705
Current Tax = £235 (current rate) , x3 to keep it simple = £675
2 new tyres - Goodyear EfficientGrip, 2x at £65 each, fitted = £130
MOT @ Mr Clutch = £26 per year, x3 = £78
Service (sparkplugs, oil, oil filter, wiper blades, screenwash, cabin filter, air filter) = £100 (ish). Labour was my own time.
Pagid Brake pads, rear = £25-ish. Labour was my own time.
Fuel, currently around 130p per litre, 50L tank, roughly 400 miles per tank. Roughly 20,000 miles driven so far. £3250.
Rough total to date= £5983.
By far, the biggest cost has been fuel, and this is doing 20,000 miles versus the 6,000-12,000 you might do and that's running a 2.0L Petrol.
It's not meant to be a 'boastful' post, more just to say 'unless something goes horribly wrong, or fuel and insurance costs escalate massively, you'll be fine'.
Thanks. That was another option I was considering. We currently have a 2005 MK2 Focus 2.0L Petrol as our 'donkey' - it's the car that does everything we ask of it.
This is not a record of the actual costs to the penny, but just some rough working to give you an idea of our spend to date - I've multiplied any regular costs to keep the maths straightforward, obviously there is some variance on a yearly basis but unless there is some major catastrophe, it'll be a minor difference each time;
Car cost = £1000, bought just over 3 years ago.
Cost to pickup and bring home = £20-ish.
Current Yearly Insurance = £225 (current, but hasn't really changed each year) x3 = £705
Current Tax = £235 (current rate) , x3 to keep it simple = £675
2 new tyres - Goodyear EfficientGrip, 2x at £65 each, fitted = £130
MOT @ Mr Clutch = £26 per year, x3 = £78
Service (sparkplugs, oil, oil filter, wiper blades, screenwash, cabin filter, air filter) = £100 (ish). Labour was my own time.
Pagid Brake pads, rear = £25-ish. Labour was my own time.
Fuel, currently around 130p per litre, 50L tank, roughly 400 miles per tank. Roughly 20,000 miles driven so far. £3250.
Rough total to date= £5983.
By far, the biggest cost has been fuel, and this is doing 20,000 miles versus the 6,000-12,000 you might do and that's running a 2.0L Petrol.
It's not meant to be a 'boastful' post, more just to say 'unless something goes horribly wrong, or fuel and insurance costs escalate massively, you'll be fine'.
My maths were buying the car £1290 is £215 per year over 6 years.
Tax and insurance @ £250
Mot, repair/servicing @ £150
Fuel 6 times at £50 @ £300
Car @ £215.
That's a total of £915 per year.
I should be able to do it like you say but we'll see if the car throws up any big bills etc. Plus the resale value of the car would off set any expenditure.
Agila b 6yr 6k challenge said:
Yes. The mortgage will be done between 5-6 years. I have a very good salary compared to the mortgage amount and have sacrificed an awful lot over the last two years and will continue to do so.
I've been doing overtime over the last two years a lot and even cycling to work to avoid car costs. I sold my corolla daily snotter and my mr2.
Taking food to work and basically living a very frugal life. That lifestyle isn't for everyone I accept.
It's an incredibly tough 7 years to achieve this and I'm 2 years into it.
Hence the horrendous agila 6 year project.
I totally respect the goal of paying off the mortgage and your focus and determination to achieving that goal. I genuinely hope you do it, as I'm sure it'll be a relief to be mortgage free and able to use that chunk of your income (that would otherwise go towards the mortgage) for the stuff you really want to do. I've been doing overtime over the last two years a lot and even cycling to work to avoid car costs. I sold my corolla daily snotter and my mr2.
Taking food to work and basically living a very frugal life. That lifestyle isn't for everyone I accept.
It's an incredibly tough 7 years to achieve this and I'm 2 years into it.
Hence the horrendous agila 6 year project.
Just remember, you really don't have to be miserable while doing it - in fact, <insert ferris bueller quote here>
Home made sarnies are brilliant, you get the best quality bread and fillings at a fraction of the cost of a packaged thing from Pret. Last night's leftovers, pasta, salads, soups - none of that is expensive and sorting out your own lunches nothing to be ashamed of, nor is living frugally. We live in a world where image (increasingly) appears to be everything - but it really isn't.
Cycling to work is also a cheaper way to keep fit than using the bikes at the gym, or having a 'Peloton' at home.
Tyre Smoke said:
What you're actually saying is he wasted his money buying the Aguila in the first place, and should have tried to do the same in his Lexus, but keep the additional spend to less than £6k
Not really - it's entirely his choice - I'm merely putting forward that for under £6k total, it should be relatively easy. I do concede that the Agila wouldn't have been my first choice if I were trying to do the same and you're right in that I'd probably have just used the vehicles already at my disposal for such a low mileage.
That aside, I hope that sticking up the calcs from my experience will provide some encouragement that the £6k goal is achievable (and is quite far from being unrealistic).
I like the spirit of this thread. I'm sort of doing the same with my daily Golf. 18 months in to ownership and I've spent over £3k... I've got a costs spreadsheet running that gives me my totals, monthly average expenditure since a bought the car, pence per mile etc. Happy to share a screen shot here if you like. I've not included tax, insurance or fuel though... maybe I should update to include that. I like keeping track of my costs and after running an incredibly cheap Puma I'm aiming at around 3p per mile before I'm satisfied with this motor!
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