New Car or Old Knacker!?

Indie

Indie

Indie

Soldato
Joined
11 Jul 2006
Posts
4,530
Location
Cradley, West Midlands
Good morning Motors!

I had a bit of a bump in my car a few weeks ago (2003 Corsa).. I decided to have an argument with a volvo in the staff car park. Needless to say, I lost... But..thats all out of the way now!

However my car is looking a bit worse for wear. As you may have guessed, its not worth a great deal anyway, but the repairs may (I find out later today) cost over £450.

Now I'm in an awkward situation... Do I go for a newer/nicer car 2011+ and be done with it. Or do I buy an old knacker that can just get me back and forth to work for a year or so until we're in a better position to get a newer car?

If I went down the new car route it would have to be on finance, no more than £200per month. Don't exactly have a huuuge deposit either, around about 1.5k. If I went down the old car route probably wouldn't be able to spend much more than 1k-1.5k.

My commute is around 20 miles per day, non-motorway driving.

What would you guys recommend, new or knacker? also any recommendations on car?
 
Whats the damage to your Corsa? Is it bodywork or mechanical? What state is it in generally?

Your budget isn't lending itself to either a new car or finance. If the Corsa still runs relatively well I'd be inclined to keep that and save until you have a budget for something substantially better.
 
zipp0r said:
what is the damage ?????? patch it up cheaply and drive it till it dies.
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This man speaks the truth & cable ties are your new friend. :p


Seriously though if you ran the old Corsa into the ground you'd have some good money saved for a decent motor next time.
Always try to buy cash as you get better deals & finance sucks unless you earn enough a month to not even notice it coming out your bank. :)
 
Yup, ideal situation, patch it up until it dies. But just thought i'd try and plan ahead should this not happen! :)

The initial damage to the Corsa was mainly bodywork but..

New Radiator needed £26
New Bumper £75
New Bonnet £75
New Number plate £7

managed to pick up a radiator for £26, and numberplate for around £7. Found a guy thats selling the bonnet and bumper for around £150 for both. But not purchased them yet as wanted to make sure everything else was okay...

However, after fitting the new rad, the engine is making a weird ticking noise. A mechanic friend of the family says it COULD be 'timing chain hydraulic tensioner' .. bear in mind, that means bugger all to me... He hasn't actually seen it yet but he's popping round later today (2pm ish)

Oh, also needs two new front tyres as they are bare. £61 each.
 
i see no case for a new car. goto a few scrap yards and you'll probably get a bumper and bonnet for less.

on vauxhalls, injectors tick, idle control valve ticks, tappets can tick on cold starts. all pretty normal.
 
zipp0r said:
i see no case for a new car. goto a few scrap yards and you'll probably get a bumper and bonnet for less.

on vauxhalls, injectors tick, idle control valve ticks, tappets can tick on cold starts. all pretty normal.
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£150 for both is literally the cheapest we've found. thats going through scrappies and auction/trade sites.

I'm hoping nothing else needs doing to it. £300 or so to keep it road worthy would certainly suit me!

Had no idea the tick was normal, I was just concerned that it was getting louder etc...
 
ci_newman said:
Why can't you do something in the middle? Get a 5/6 year old car and a much smaller personal loan?
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Also an option. never thought of getting a loan though to be fair! Would probably work out better/lower interest rate.
 
Indie said:
New Radiator needed £26
New Bumper £75 - scrapyard
New Bonnet £75 - scrapyard
New Number plate £7

managed to pick up a radiator for £26, and numberplate for around £7. Found a guy thats selling the bonnet and bumper for around £150 for both. But not purchased them yet as wanted to make sure everything else was okay...

Oh, also needs two new front tyres as they are bare. £61 each. - Needed doing regardless of crash
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I'd get it patched up and keep running it, compared to paying £200 a month for a car, you should save a fair bit hopefully!
 
As it's an old Corsa in standard colour I'd look about for an MOT failure the same colour, Pay a 100 quid for it & get all the bits you need in one go & scrap the rest, Profit.

100 quid for MOT failure - maybe 75 quid for scrap means you pay 25 quid for all the parts you need & all the right colour & age so the fade is the same. :cool:


Yes I know I'm a Genius. :D
 
Indie said:
£150 for both is literally the cheapest we've found. thats going through scrappies and auction/trade sites.

I'm hoping nothing else needs doing to it. £300 or so to keep it road worthy would certainly suit me!

Had no idea the tick was normal, I was just concerned that it was getting louder etc...
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There is a large selection of bumpers on the 'bay for less than £40, might even be able to find a reasonable colour match. Similarly with bonnets for under £60, if you look carefully you should be able to find one either with cheap/free shipping or local enough to go and collect .
Or do what 4t5 said, it would be my choice if I had somewhere to keep it off road to do the work.
 
Tyres are a consumable, don't be conned into the school of thought that it's an extra burden specific to this car. ALL cars wear their tyres out.
 
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