Most economical car for £1k (or less)

I honestly couldnt do a long commute, I got fed up with a 40mile commute (around an hour to an hour and a half traffic permitting) after just 3 months, so took a 20% pay cut to be 3 minutes away from work. It was either that or spend 400% more on a house nearer my old place of work.
 
I don't know how much time [TW]Fox spent on his calculations, but it seems pretty comprehensive while making huge concessions for other things like the indestructable car and stuff. I guess you could save money here and there by buying season passes for the congestion charge and maybe the ferry.

We're going through a similar circumstance right now. The suits upstairs have decided to change our location seemingly without giving us any consideration or say into the matter. For one of the ladies in the office, it would have been an 'impossible' journey to make much like this one. She had a word with her union rep and then the company bent over backwards to find her another location to work in.

Maybe you can speak to someone like that?
 
I lost the will to live after the 2nd page, but as someone who has lived, worked and commuted from Bristol, London, Swindon, Birmingham, and Leeds, I can assure you that long distance commuting absolutely is NOT viable in the medium to long term. It's expensive and over time, just wipes you out physically, mentally, and emotionally. Having a stressful or demanding job bookended by a mega commute isn't worth it.

Unless you have some sort of Mickey Mouse job that just happens to pay megabucks and you don't care about having any life outside of work, a daily commute from the Isle of Wight to London is the most stupid thing you can possibly do. As that's not even taking into account trying to do it a £1k banger.
 
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[TW]Fox;18313162 said:
If his employer offered such a scheme they would already have told him about it.

As it is, your idea doesnt reduce his costs at all either and involves him living away from his girlfriend and months old baby for 3 days a week. Whilst this might be worth it long term if he was progressing through the forces or something, to do it to sit in an office designing websites is just a complete mixup of priorities.
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Actually, this is a possibility. Part of the discussions were that if I was able to meet their demands of being in the office that there would be a pay rise. I believe this salary sacrifice stuff is simply a way of achieving benefits before the tax man gets a look in, and thus entirely possible.

If I could get closer in to reduce tube fares, and negotiate a long-term discount with a B&B to actually hit that £60pw figure, then it is entirely doable.

Ironically, I have found a local job advertising for a Junior Web Dev offering £22k (negotiable based on experience), It is a job I'd hope I could pretty much walk into with my experience and skillset - I'd just need to negotiate £25k out of them and I have a completely viable solution, if only for the short term, and it is literally a mile or two up the road.
 
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a 1.7 izuzu engined astra estate/hatchback/van, you cant go wrong really, very reliable engines no major issues and I get anywhere between 55-60mpg combined when I use it for business miles, (not ragging it etc)
 
MikeHiow said:
Actually, this is a possibility. Part of the discussions were that if I was able to meet their demands of being in the office that there would be a pay rise. I believe this salary sacrifice stuff is simply a way of achieving benefits before the tax man gets a look in, and thus entirely possible.
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You still think this is feasible, dont you? I mean you actually think you can work in London and live on the Isle of Wight.

Even after everything everyone has posted demonstrating how all your timings and costings so far are completely wrong, you still think that as per usual you are right and everyone else is wrong.

Just.. lol.
 
typical mikehiow stick head in the sand reaction.

Just lock the thread now theres little point it continuing because he will just argue for the next 50 pages it can be given the chance.

Why his bloody wife isn't trying to talk some sense into him i've no idea. I know you lot joke about me being under the thumb, but she would go mental if i wanted to do a job that involved potentially an 8 hour round commute.
 
But mrk1@1's suggestion was being discussed, and that doesn't involve an 8 hour commute. I think 3 days there while staying at a B&B, and two days working at home is more than doable if I can get a sufficient pay rise and salary sacrifice to cover it.

Like I say, this isn't like its something I have my heart set on, but rather a last resort if all else (finding a job that can support us) fails.
 
Great, be away from your young family so you can sit in an office making websites spending all your money on staying in B&B's. Totally worth it. Brilliant plan Mike, spot on. I'd understand if you'd bagged your dream job as a Radio 1 DJ or something but seriously, it's just web development, it isnt worth all this!

Get another job.
 
You see, you're being far to idealistic here - you assume it is easy to walk into a job that can even afford a basic standard of living to support two adults and a child. I cannot just go get an £12k or even an 18k a year job as that simply is not enough money. That isn't me being proud, but a simple fact - it isn't enough money for us to live.

You're right, it'll suck being away from the family, but it is a huge improvement on scrimping for cash and working up debt if that is what it came down to.

You also seem to repeatedly miss the fact that this is a last resort.
 
You dont get it, do you? If you take this you are effectively taking a £10k paycut, irrespective of what combination of driving/B&B's/whatever you choose.

So that £25k job becomes a £15k job!

String it out whilst you can, then once you've been made redundant use that £5k of Civic money to give you some breathing time. If you are skilled enough to command more than £18k it wont take you 3+ months to find another job, surely?
 
mrk1@1's solution is actually a fair bit cheaper than £10k, though isn't it.

What happens if I do not find another job in time? I've not only thrown away a possible source of income already, I've spent my new car fund, and I'm left in a position where I have no job, money and we are royally stuffed - which could have all been avoided by suffering being away from home for 3 days a week.

I think this scenario is a difficult one for you to grasp. It is not until there are people that are truly dependent on you, do you realise the importance of bringing the money home and how it really cannot just be left to chance.
 
Do you think you are a generally unemployable person then? 3 months to find a job with a skillset such as yours is hardly optimistic, is it?

Not as optimistic as your pie the sky London ideas, at least :p
 
Having luck on my side, and it being advertised in the last few days, I personally think I can pretty much walk in to a job within two miles of me, but that is not the point. Ok, it isn't my perfect job, nor will I earn as much as I have been, but with a bit of negotiation my situation will be at least 'comfortable'.

Leaving something that vital up to chance is idiotic, though.
 
There's a lot of assumption about finishing at 5 or 5.30pm on the dot every night.

I'm not a web developer but I'm in IT - just because the clock ticks past 5.30pm doesn't mean work stops. Problems still need fixing and I would expect evenings where a customer wants "just one little thing altering on a site" which turns into a two hour job starting at 4.30pm...

PS. I noticed the PC spec' in your sig - is that something you've paid for yourself?
 
MikeHiow said:
Ironically, I have found a local job advertising for a Junior Web Dev offering £22k (negotiable based on experience), It is a job I'd hope I could pretty much walk into with my experience and skillset - I'd just need to negotiate £25k out of them and I have a completely viable solution, if only for the short term, and it is literally a mile or two up the road.
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You sound desparate for a job, why you would quibble over 3 grand for a job within walking distance, a virtualy guaranteed job, when the alternative is finding a job on the mainland, London or not, is pretty bizzare.
 
I know lots of people who live on the IoW and work in London, some even commute everyday but they are zonked. They all get on at Southampton Airport Parkway and take all the remaining seats. To be fair, the majoroty do stay up near london in B&Bs but these guys are normally contractors or very high salaried employees.

Personally, for the money being offered, I wouldn't venture near London. I commute 5 hours a day and have done for 18 months, but the money is the main reason and a project which has been extended a stupid number of times.
 
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