Looking for a new car? GOOD TIP...

[AnOther]

We've never bought new, and short of a megga lottery win would never consider it either, a mugs game IMO but each to their own of course [;-)]

All our cars, mostly Sierras then VW's, have been run well up into the 200k bracket before replacement and invariably been sold on as runners with decent or new MOT's.

The 6k which Mel proudly saved on HIS new car is actually about the same amount as we have ever spent on one and that is the one we have now [8-|]

 

[mint]

If we are now allowed to digress to makes of car on this thread, then I have to say I find the Far Eastern makes very good value and very dependable.

We used to have Mercs and Volvos (before we became impoverished OAPs) and then we bought a Toyota Carina.  The OH was so pleased with it that we then bought a Toyota Corolla for me.

Then OH bought a Mazda 626 and I bought a Hyundai.

Now, we have bought a Mazda Premacy (in fact, got to hear about it on this very forum), second-hand from a garage in Saintes and we think it's a great car.

We were going to buy new through the route described by Mel but when we compared prices and value for money, there was no competition.

And now that I see how the French treat their cars (generally speaking, of course), I am glad ours is not a new car and we do not have to worry about someone denting the sides of our car in the supermarket car park.[:D]

[tigerfeet]

Now this is getting interesting , we have always had cheap cars but now as we are getting older I have just got an SLK  (7 yr old ) as a final treat our other is a KA.

[AnOther]

[quote user="tigerfeet"]...I have just got an SLK  (7 yr old ) as a final treat our other is a KA.[/quote]I'm assuming there was supposed to be a comma in there somewhere because I don't think many would consider a KA as a treat [6] [Www]

[trees 2]

Taste, Mel? Nowt to do with taste, it's down to experiences[:P]

We've had three Citroens: A ZX Volcane TD, which we both liked, and which was billed as "the first diesel hot hatch". Quite why, I dunno, since it had EXACTLY the same engine, gearbox and suspension as the lower models[8-)]

Then we bought a Xantia, which was unreliable and nowhere near as nice to drive, nor as quick. Eventually the wife parked it upside down in a field[;-)] Still not sure if that was her comment on the car, or just a lady-driver thing[;-)][;-)]

My dad had stopped driving at that time, so we bought his Xantia off him as a cheap option at the time.

Again, it has proved to be unreliable, dear parts, dear servicing and NO-ONE except a Citroen dealer will touch the suspension in the UK and then you're into £80 an hour[:@]

Citroen UK have been useless, refusing to rectify what they KNEW to be a build fault, because my dad had laid up the car undriven for a year, and missed a service.

Meanwhile, our other car, Japanese, never puts a foot wrong, parts when needed come from Japan, and still cost less than the Citroen equivalent.

[Russethouse]

We have used the same guy for our cars for over 20 years, yes he is Citroen trained mechanic, but he certainly doesn't charge £80 per hour - when the car needs a service or MOT he comes and picks it up, and brings it back when its done. When we wanted to get rid of the Espace he took it and came back with the Citroen Picasso for us to try (we'd previously researched what we wanted) - we liked it and kept it, we see him on an annual basis now, when the MOT is due.

We saw him a lot more frequently with the Espace, an experience I would only repeat if I won the lottery.......boy, was that high maintenance....

[gosub]

"Again, it has proved to be unreliable, dear parts, dear servicing and

NO-ONE except a Citroen dealer will touch the suspension in the UK and

then you're into £80 an hour"

There is nothing mystical about Citroen suspensions and I would have liked that sort of money when I used to do repairs on them. The only thing I didn't like about the Xantia right and drive models was replacing the clutch cable plastic link on the clutch pedal.

[Polremy]

Wont hear a word against citroens. Our 2cv is now 22 years old and has just an annual service with a few tweaks. this year it cost roughly 100 euros at our citroen garage. it passed its controle technique and the annual insurance came to 150 euros. plus we have breakdown cover for 10 euros a year.

now, that is cost efficient driving.

one of the many plus points is that nobody will ask us to drive to an airport two hours away to pick them up!!

strictly a good weather car i know but it suits us.

cant be bothered with capital letters this time of night. sorry.

[AnOther]

Good for you Polremy.

Rip out all the addons and ultimately you're left with a box on 4 wheels which gets you from A to B after which everything else is optional [Www]

Ever stopped to wonder why the fuel consumption of the average mid sized petrol car still hovers around the 30 mark which is roughly where it's been for the past 30 years or so [blink]

 

[Bob T]

I used to have a 2CV in the UK and being an engineer, I used to keep an accurate check of fuel consumption. Mine was used for normal driving and not just for pleasure. The car used an average of 39 mpg over about 18 months. I now drive a 4X4 with all the bells and whistles and 140 bhp (compared to 32 for the 2CV), and guess what, the 4X4 averages 42 mpg using diesel.

I know which I'd rather drive.

[trees 2]

[quote user="gosub"]"Again, it has proved to be unreliable, dear parts, dear servicing and

NO-ONE except a Citroen dealer will touch the suspension in the UK and

then you're into £80 an hour"

There is nothing mystical about Citroen suspensions and I would have liked that sort of money when I used to do repairs on them. The only thing I didn't like about the Xantia right and drive models was replacing the clutch cable plastic link on the clutch pedal.

[/quote]

I'm sure the mechanics don't get that, but trust me, I can't get ANYONE to do owt with Citroen suspension in my home town, other than the dealer, and they charge £80 an hour.