When does it become bangernomics time?
Discussion
Family runaround, Fabia on an 02. Owned from new. full dealer history, about 45 k, can't remember exactly.
Runs well, clean and tidy inside and out, basically reliable.
MOT time is here, and it needs along with the big service, incl brake fluid change.
New front console bushes which are, to be fair, shagged. Long difficult job, quite common on this vehicle.
New front discs etc.
Which will mean a bill probably thick end of half the value of the vehicle.
Apart from a proper service every year and the usual consumables, this will be the first big bill.
But at what point do you stop trying to run the thing "properly" and shift to bangernomics mode?
Don't think quite there yet but....
Runs well, clean and tidy inside and out, basically reliable.
MOT time is here, and it needs along with the big service, incl brake fluid change.
New front console bushes which are, to be fair, shagged. Long difficult job, quite common on this vehicle.
New front discs etc.
Which will mean a bill probably thick end of half the value of the vehicle.
Apart from a proper service every year and the usual consumables, this will be the first big bill.
But at what point do you stop trying to run the thing "properly" and shift to bangernomics mode?
Don't think quite there yet but....
Console bushes are a cheap DIY job, £30 for a set of Powerflex nylon bushes (because they're easier to push in than the OE rubber ones!) I read all the horror stories before I did mine, was prepared for a nightmare job, but they went in with very little effort on my part... Rest of it is just basic servicing.
Servicing and discs are (for want of a better term) consumables. You could buy a brand new car and need to do those as a first job (I've just bought a car and 1st job was a new set of tyres).
If you still like the car and they are jobs that will stand the car in good health for a while then get it done.
If you still like the car and they are jobs that will stand the car in good health for a while then get it done.
The value of the vehicle is largely a red herring in IMHO. The 2 main questions I see are 1) is it likely that you could likely achieve the same "standard" of motoring looking forward for less money, and 2) would you rather pay more for a better "standard" of motoring.
Question 1 is quite hard to judge, because you need confidence in whether you are looking at a single big bill rather than the thin end of the wedge, and you also need to recognise that any car you replace it with may be about to have big bills. Note, the absolute value of the car doesn't matter; a 20K car is just as capable of stinging you with a £1k bill as a £1K car; and when you've paid that bill, the £20K car is still worth £20K and the £1K car is still worth £1K.... (and the following year the £20K car is worth £15K, the £1K car is worth £750....)
Question 1 is quite hard to judge, because you need confidence in whether you are looking at a single big bill rather than the thin end of the wedge, and you also need to recognise that any car you replace it with may be about to have big bills. Note, the absolute value of the car doesn't matter; a 20K car is just as capable of stinging you with a £1k bill as a £1K car; and when you've paid that bill, the £20K car is still worth £20K and the £1K car is still worth £1K.... (and the following year the £20K car is worth £15K, the £1K car is worth £750....)
How much to buy the same car with all these jobs done?
If it exceeds the cost of repair you get it fixed up and truck on for another year.
Shop around for garages. Ask friends for recommendations. I'd steer clear of main dealers at this end of the market. I run a 15 year old toyota and have only been to toyota for a part that I couldn't get elsewhere.
If it exceeds the cost of repair you get it fixed up and truck on for another year.
Shop around for garages. Ask friends for recommendations. I'd steer clear of main dealers at this end of the market. I run a 15 year old toyota and have only been to toyota for a part that I couldn't get elsewhere.
Mave said:
The value of the vehicle is largely a red herring in IMHO. The 2 main questions I see are 1) is it likely that you could likely achieve the same "standard" of motoring looking forward for less money, and 2) would you rather pay more for a better "standard" of motoring.
Question 1 is quite hard to judge, because you need confidence in whether you are looking at a single big bill rather than the thin end of the wedge, and you also need to recognise that any car you replace it with may be about to have big bills. Note, the absolute value of the car doesn't matter; a 20K car is just as capable of stinging you with a £1k bill as a £1K car; and when you've paid that bill, the £20K car is still worth £20K and the £1K car is still worth £1K.... (and the following year the £20K car is worth £15K, the £1K car is worth £750....)
This man is right. Question 1 is quite hard to judge, because you need confidence in whether you are looking at a single big bill rather than the thin end of the wedge, and you also need to recognise that any car you replace it with may be about to have big bills. Note, the absolute value of the car doesn't matter; a 20K car is just as capable of stinging you with a £1k bill as a £1K car; and when you've paid that bill, the £20K car is still worth £20K and the £1K car is still worth £1K.... (and the following year the £20K car is worth £15K, the £1K car is worth £750....)
And simple logic dictates that due to wear and tear, a £1k car is more likely to generate a £1k bill.
I think the other point is your mentality towards the car: does your attitude to spending on it fall into improve (hobby)/ maintain (reliable workhorse with life left in it) / let it slide (fix everything with duct tape, WD40 or cable ties and hail a cab from wherever it dies).
I spent more than I paid for my MX5 sorting the springs/shocks/geo/wheels/tyres - but considered it money well spent! Hang on, we are moving dangerously close to man-maths here
FIF - If the car is reliable and your motoring needs haven't changed (size, practicality, economy etc.) then keep it. As others have said, you'd run into the same/similar issues on another second-hand car sooner or later (most likely sooner).
Had your dilemma with the family '04 Fabia 1.9tdi hack last month. Useful, practical car worth £2.5K with 50k miles on the clock but needed £1225 in maintenance (new brakes front/rear, brake fluid flush, timing belt kit, water pump, water temp sensor, cam sensor, coolant flush, 4 new decent tyres & a full service). Feel it's money well spent as we will be keeping it for some time.
We inherited this car from an elderly relative and it came with a thick sheaf of 'servicing' invoices but apart from oil & filter changes very little proper maintenance had been done. The coolant and the brake fluid had never been changed in 10 yrs, the brakes were a mess and the tyres were Linglong Ditchfinders with 2 different varieties front and rear.
Had your dilemma with the family '04 Fabia 1.9tdi hack last month. Useful, practical car worth £2.5K with 50k miles on the clock but needed £1225 in maintenance (new brakes front/rear, brake fluid flush, timing belt kit, water pump, water temp sensor, cam sensor, coolant flush, 4 new decent tyres & a full service). Feel it's money well spent as we will be keeping it for some time.
We inherited this car from an elderly relative and it came with a thick sheaf of 'servicing' invoices but apart from oil & filter changes very little proper maintenance had been done. The coolant and the brake fluid had never been changed in 10 yrs, the brakes were a mess and the tyres were Linglong Ditchfinders with 2 different varieties front and rear.
My sister has got a P reg Polo she got for free from my gran. Its only done 40k, and is generally in good nick bar some arch rust. Its worth 4-500 quid at best, but we paid 500 odd quid for a service last year (needed a few bits, never had a cambelt so that got done, just stuff that needed to be done). Why did we pay that much? Because we would never find a car in such good order mechanically for that 500 quid. This car will keep her throughout uni and beyond I have no doubt. If you want to keep the car spend the money its worth it in my opinion.
Well first of all thanks for all the advice and comments which were much appreciated.
Secondly all now sorted. The bill was a bit more than hoped for but significantly less than feared, so we'll call that a draw.
Also the MOT through first time ïwith no advisories so we'll call that a win.
Plus the mileage is bit less than I thought.
Now it seems most people are of the same opinion as me. It's essentially a third vehicle of known history and maintenance record.
Imho it's the perfect vehicle for the use asked. Namely short journey 5 or 10 miles then left in a public / supermarket / station car park. The driver will come back to it, sometimes 11pm or 6am and expect it to fire up and get home reliably. Which it does, week in week out. Plus the knowledge that you're leaving a vehicle only worth £1500 tops to the ravages of car park numpties.
Yes it would be nice to have ABS or air con but more stuff to go wrong.
So it's a keeper really. Hope that the other drivers agree as I am the one who drives it by far the least but the one lleast bothered by image etc.
Mrs Fif was hanging her nose over a Yeti this morning it was noted however. Have to kick that into touch.
Secondly all now sorted. The bill was a bit more than hoped for but significantly less than feared, so we'll call that a draw.
Also the MOT through first time ïwith no advisories so we'll call that a win.
Plus the mileage is bit less than I thought.
Now it seems most people are of the same opinion as me. It's essentially a third vehicle of known history and maintenance record.
Imho it's the perfect vehicle for the use asked. Namely short journey 5 or 10 miles then left in a public / supermarket / station car park. The driver will come back to it, sometimes 11pm or 6am and expect it to fire up and get home reliably. Which it does, week in week out. Plus the knowledge that you're leaving a vehicle only worth £1500 tops to the ravages of car park numpties.
Yes it would be nice to have ABS or air con but more stuff to go wrong.
So it's a keeper really. Hope that the other drivers agree as I am the one who drives it by far the least but the one lleast bothered by image etc.
Mrs Fif was hanging her nose over a Yeti this morning it was noted however. Have to kick that into touch.
FiF said:
Imho it's the perfect vehicle for the use asked. Namely short journey 5 or 10 miles then left in a public / supermarket / station car park. The driver will come back to it, sometimes 11pm or 6am and expect it to fire up and get home reliably. Which it does, week in week out. Plus the knowledge that you're leaving a vehocle only worth £1500 tops to the ravages of car park numpties.
Yes it would be nice to have ABS or air con but more stuff to go wrong.
Glad it got sorted, but at 12 years old I would have personally not visited the main dealer with it in years.
Thanks to VAG platform sharing OE bits are cheap and easily available from ECP and German Swedish & French. There's nothing strange or unusual about it the Fabia, so you're not going to need to tap into specific VAG knowledge to keep it running sweetly. Find a good back street garage, they're not a short-cut to the scrap yard, but sometimes it's worth giving them a steer about what you want them to do - keep it nice, or just scrape from MOT to MOT.
Thanks to VAG platform sharing OE bits are cheap and easily available from ECP and German Swedish & French. There's nothing strange or unusual about it the Fabia, so you're not going to need to tap into specific VAG knowledge to keep it running sweetly. Find a good back street garage, they're not a short-cut to the scrap yard, but sometimes it's worth giving them a steer about what you want them to do - keep it nice, or just scrape from MOT to MOT.
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