Interesting shed.
Discussion
I am getting shot of my Type R as it is costing me a fortune to run and I have completely lost all interest in it. Once it is gone, I have decided to go down the shed route - no car loan, refuse to do expensive repairs, more freedom.
Requirements:
Thoughts so far include Mk1 MX5, MR2, MG ZS 180/200 (the saloon has side vents and an Impreza style spoiler!), some sort of big barge ... don't really know. My driving is a mix of motorway and trips across the Scottish countryside to various castles etc. I don't commute and only drive at the weekends, do around 8k a year but that is probably 300-500 or so a month with a couple of long trips (300-1000 miles) a year.
Requirements:
- £1500 or less. Cheaper the better.
- 12 month MOT and preferably not moon miles (unless excellent, excellent history and condition).
- Relatively reliable and relatively cheap parts (I never want to spend £478 for front discs, pads and a caliper, or £450 for a backbox, again).
- Small wheels - I don't want to spend £150 a corner on tyres.
- Interesting in some way or another. (RWD convertible? V6/8? Rare sight on our roads?).
- Petrol with a bit of poke (I moved to a Type R from a 1.8 Civic as I felt the 1.8 wasn't quite quick enough - it was 140bhp, but 140bhp in a much lighter car would probably be okay).
Thoughts so far include Mk1 MX5, MR2, MG ZS 180/200 (the saloon has side vents and an Impreza style spoiler!), some sort of big barge ... don't really know. My driving is a mix of motorway and trips across the Scottish countryside to various castles etc. I don't commute and only drive at the weekends, do around 8k a year but that is probably 300-500 or so a month with a couple of long trips (300-1000 miles) a year.
Edited by Integroo on Wednesday 31st January 10:21
Clio 172/182? Cheap consumables and generally more reliable than you may expect. Can be had from about £1500, sometimes cheaper buy may require a bit of work. They should still be cheap fixes though.
The two main expenses are the big cambelt job and the clutch. If you get one with those two recently done, it shouldn't cost you the earth to run and should also be an interesting little hot-hatch too.
The two main expenses are the big cambelt job and the clutch. If you get one with those two recently done, it shouldn't cost you the earth to run and should also be an interesting little hot-hatch too.
Probably not interested in another hot hatch based on a popular car - too common, not all that interesting (sorry!), unless they have something particularly interesting about them!. Also worried about finding a decent example - feel they are likely to have been ragged. If I was getting a small car, I would probably prefer a roadster than a hatch.
SpanishTony said:
You're going to have on-going costs as well, what about a cheap lease?
Nah, not interested in leasing. I am not totally against leasing, but I don't commute by car and seem to like to chop and change, so don't want to be stuck in a lease. I don't mind on-going costs, as long as they are (a) not as expensive as they have been with my Type R (£600 for tyres! £500 for a backbox!) and (b) not accompanied by a car loan. Integroo said:
Nah, not interested in leasing. I am not totally against leasing, but I don't commute by car and seem to like to chop and change, so don't want to be stuck in a lease. I don't mind on-going costs, as long as they are (a) not as expensive as they have been with my Type R (£600 for tyres! £500 for a backbox!) and (b) not accompanied by a car loan.
Fair dosAn "interesting" shed *could* cost as much to keep on the road as the type R....I ran a retro mitsubishi and it never broke down, but refreshing parts to keep it on the road wasn't exactly cheap motoring.
But if you want to minimise your maintenance costs, something like a 90s bargey lexus would probably fit the bill.
But if you want to minimise your maintenance costs, something like a 90s bargey lexus would probably fit the bill.
designforlife said:
An "interesting" shed *could* cost as much to keep on the road as the type R....I ran a retro mitsubishi and it never broke down, but refreshing parts to keep it on the road wasn't exactly cheap motoring.
But if you want to minimise your maintenance costs, something like a 90s bargey lexus would probably fit the bill.
Indeed. I am concerned that I end up having to pile money into something new. I am just so utterly fed up of the R I want rid. My bro runs an MX5 he bought for 1200 quid and it hasn't needed a penny spent on it in 10 months (few things he could fix, but nothing he cares about enough to fix). If I can find something where the parts etc. are relatively cheap I am okay with that (and also spending a few hundred quid fixing something would be much more palatable without also spending 262 a month on the car loan!). I think something newer than 2000 and a non-turbo petrol should help. Probably stay away from premium brands a la BMW/Merc. But if you want to minimise your maintenance costs, something like a 90s bargey lexus would probably fit the bill.
designforlife said:
steer clear of mx5s unless you've got a grand kicking about for rust repairs...a £1500 mx5 is gonna need some TLC in the arches/sills.
Bodywork aside they're fairly cheap to maintain, but sorting the sills runs at about £400 a side, and will need doing every few years.
£800 every two or three years wouldn't be all that depressing! Bodywork aside they're fairly cheap to maintain, but sorting the sills runs at about £400 a side, and will need doing every few years.
A bit different to the things you've mentioned, and definitely coming from a biased perspective (I own one), but I think a 4.0 Jeep Cherokee might fulfil some of those criteria.
Responses in order:
Responses in order:
- Regularly available for under £1500
- Thirsty, so most haven't done massive miles.
- Reliable drivetrain and cheap parts - brake discs available for about £60, pads £30, exhaust ~£80
- 15" wheels with decent tires (not ditchfinders) available for £70
- RWD, straight-6, not loads of them about.
- 190hp is pokey for what it is. Gets sideways very easily.
along with the rest...I owned a mk2 mx5 for 6 years and was knee deep in the scene. They're not bad cars, but
-the calipers seize for a past-time, i went through 5 or 6 on the car
-slave cylinders like to fail
-rust, as mentioned
-they tend to leak, winter can be a bit grim
other than that, pretty reliable, and parts are cheap, but chasing the rust repairs isn't. unless you have whole sections cut out and things treated properly (which isn't cheap), it always comes back...depends how comfortable you are spending more than the car is worth keeping the rust at bay.
I got fed up of pouring money into a car over the years that i knew was worth sod all...and they aren't exactly quick in a straight line. Handle well though.
-the calipers seize for a past-time, i went through 5 or 6 on the car
-slave cylinders like to fail
-rust, as mentioned
-they tend to leak, winter can be a bit grim
other than that, pretty reliable, and parts are cheap, but chasing the rust repairs isn't. unless you have whole sections cut out and things treated properly (which isn't cheap), it always comes back...depends how comfortable you are spending more than the car is worth keeping the rust at bay.
I got fed up of pouring money into a car over the years that i knew was worth sod all...and they aren't exactly quick in a straight line. Handle well though.
Brynjaminjones said:
A bit different to the things you've mentioned, and definitely coming from a biased perspective (I own one), but I think a 4.0 Jeep Cherokee might fulfil some of those criteria.
Responses in order:
Actually might be quite fun, and my girlfriend would be delighted (she hates the R and loves 4x4s!). Only three on Autotrader though, £2,989, £4,995 and £4,995! Responses in order:
- Regularly available for under £1500
- Thirsty, so most haven't done massive miles.
- Reliable drivetrain and cheap parts - brake discs available for about £60, pads £30, exhaust ~£80
- 15" wheels with decent tires (not ditchfinders) available for £70
- RWD, straight-6, not loads of them about.
- 190hp is pokey for what it is. Gets sideways very easily.
designforlife said:
steer clear of mx5s unless you've got a grand kicking about for rust repairs...a £1500 mx5 is gonna might or might not need some TLC in the arches/sills.
Bodywork aside they're fairly cheap to maintain, but sorting the sills runs at about £400 a side, and will need doing every fewyears decades.
Lets not over-egg the pudding!Bodywork aside they're fairly cheap to maintain, but sorting the sills runs at about £400 a side, and will need doing every few
Integroo said:
Actually might be quite fun, and my girlfriend would be delighted (she hates the R and loves 4x4s!). Only three on Autotrader though, £2,989, £4,995 and £4,995!
Yeah, AutoTrader prices for these are daft and those ones have been for sale for months. I helped a friend pick up a lovely 1998 earlier this month for £1100 and they pop up on eBay frequently for that kind of price. 
Brynjaminjones said:
Integroo said:
Actually might be quite fun, and my girlfriend would be delighted (she hates the R and loves 4x4s!). Only three on Autotrader though, £2,989, £4,995 and £4,995!
Yeah, AutoTrader prices for these are daft and those ones have been for sale for months. I helped a friend pick up a lovely 1998 earlier this month for £1100 and they pop up on eBay frequently for that kind of price. Bargains are generally everywhere except AutoTrader.
I think interesting sheds could arguably be a bit of an oxymoron. I think it's the reason why i'm probably not gonna get a cheap Clio 172/182 myself, unfortunately. I'd like to have a bit of backup money just in case and i reckon i'd end up spending lots of money on the car cosmetically and growing fond.
Why not just get a shed? Something like an old Yaris that should prove pretty much unbreakable. You could even get a T Sport variant for not alot.
Why not just get a shed? Something like an old Yaris that should prove pretty much unbreakable. You could even get a T Sport variant for not alot.
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