Cars be * expensive vs 10 years ago

[adam cool dude]

My memory is a bit hazy but going back that far you risk losing some basic stuff like isofix, cruise control, potentially cd player and electric windows on cheaper cars and then potentially lack ULEZ compliance if that matters. Obviously some people won't care about this stuff maybe they can fit aftermarket audio, no kids etc.

Infotainment is mostly the main issue with older cars which can easily be fixed a android auto head unit. Also auto gearboxes are miles behind what they are today. Not so much of a problem if it is a manual.

My 2004 Saab 9-5 Aero Estate has the following.

isofix, heated seats, cruise control, dual zone climate control, night panel, electric windows and mirrors throughout, dual beam xenon headlights with follow me home feature, fog lights, auto dimming rear view mirror, 7 speaker sound system (Harman Kardon), proper luxury sports leather seats with full electric adjustment and lumbar support, chilled glovebox, map reading light with field of vision and roominess that a modern car can only dream off. At the time it was a 5 star rating on the Euro Ncap too.

Mine is however quite a lowly specced Aero. I can retrofit ventilated sports seats, heated rear seats, auto wipers, folding and auto dimming wing mirrors, memory electric seats, diesel auxiliary night heater!, rear pull out load tray on the estate models as well as many extras I am sure I have forgotten.

The car has nigh on 300BHP and will do close to 40MPG on a run and around 500-600 miles range on the motorway. Normal day to day driving see high 20's/low 30's and 400 miles to a tank.

I really struggle to see what I can replace it with as it just keeps on going and just doesn't make financial sense to get rid. It is also pretty exclusive which is what everyone wants no ?

This is all from a car that dates back 1998. BMW's, Audi's and Mercedes from this era are no different either.

These guys took a tatty E39 530i touring and what they have done with it is truly remarkable. I would take something like this in a heartbeat over your new Kia Sportage, Nissan Qashkai etc. It wasn't cheap however but something a little less thorough could be done.

 

[adam cool dude]

Yeah PCP is definitely the most common way people get new cars. Prices of PCP deals are also crazy now compared to a few years back. I got a brand new full spec'd Audi TT in 2014 for £300 a month it was about a £36k car. Absolutely no chance of getting anything like that now!

When I ordered my GR86 with the maxed out 11k deposit it was something silly like 8% and £585 a month for a car that cost 33,460 on PCP. A cash purchase was pretty much the only option.

 

[[TW]Fox]

I would take something like this in a heartbeat over your new Kia Sportage, Nissan Qashkai etc.

I don't know why people say things like this. When would this ever be a choice you'd ever make? I'd take a bus ticket over one of those cars, it doesn't suddenly make it a credible argument that the bus is simply better does it.

Nobody interested in cars enough to buy a fully restored E39 530i would pick the Kia and nobody who'd pick the Kia would be at all interested in all the annoyance that would go with owning what is to everyone else just an old BMW.

A far better comparison is whether you'd have that over a newer 5 Series (as something other than as part of a collection) which, as someone who put 60,000 enjoyable miles on an E39 530i and then spent 10 years in newer 5 Series, I absolutely wouldn't. Things move on.

 

[jpaul]

Infotainment is mostly the main issue with older cars which can easily be fixed a android auto head unit. Also auto gearboxes are miles behind what they are today. Not so much of a problem if it is a manual.

The car has nigh on 300BHP and will do close to 40MPG on a run and around 500-600 miles range on the motorway. Normal day to day driving see high 20's/low 30's and 400 miles to a tank.

I really struggle to see what I can replace it with as it just keeps on going and just doesn't make financial sense to get rid. It is also pretty exclusive which is what everyone wants no ?

This is all from a car that dates back 1998. BMW's, Audi's and Mercedes from this era are no different either.

you missed one ... which is my main reservation of driving a similar aged bm - crash protection
other than that I concur that mpg/handling/infotainment(lots of shoddy systems in new cars, poor eq ) / comfort have changed little - just the strong marketting message that convinces people newer is better,
auto boxes improved as you say; when the HUD unit works with polarized sunglasses maybe they will become desirable.

e: an idle google - interesting
Now prior to this Swedish car manufacturers had already been acing crash safety. Take Volvo for example, in the 20th century they pioneered crumple zones and even the 3-point seatbelt. Saab took similar engineering steps, quite famously having the ignition in the center console, mounted towards the floor. This was so that in the event of a crash the key would not get impaled in the driver's leg. Saab also introduced Active Head Restraints which softened the blow of collisions. ..

 

[HangTime]

Infotainment is mostly the main issue with older cars which can easily be fixed a android auto head unit. Also auto gearboxes are miles behind what they are today. Not so much of a problem if it is a manual.

My 2004 Saab 9-5 Aero Estate has the following.

isofix, heated seats, cruise control, dual zone climate control, night panel, electric windows and mirrors throughout, dual beam xenon headlights with follow me home feature, fog lights, auto dimming rear view mirror, 7 speaker sound system (Harman Kardon), proper luxury sports leather seats with full electric adjustment and lumbar support, chilled glovebox, map reading light with field of vision and roominess that a modern car can only dream off. At the time it was a 5 star rating on the Euro Ncap too.

Mine is however quite a lowly specced Aero. I can retrofit ventilated sports seats, heated rear seats, auto wipers, folding and auto dimming wing mirrors, memory electric seats, diesel auxiliary night heater!, rear pull out load tray on the estate models as well as many extras I am sure I have forgotten.

The car has nigh on 300BHP and will do close to 40MPG on a run and around 500-600 miles range on the motorway. Normal day to day driving see high 20's/low 30's and 400 miles to a tank.

I really struggle to see what I can replace it with as it just keeps on going and just doesn't make financial sense to get rid. It is also pretty exclusive which is what everyone wants no ?

A former colleague had a 9-5 HOT Aero. It was/is a good car but that was high end spec for the time (standard was higher spec than 5-series standard I believe?), I was writing in the context of the Yaris etc being discussed here, bottom end of market. Honestly if you look at a lot of the cheap runabouts from 20 years ago they were really lacking modern comforts, my gf had a 07 hatch without nearly everything you listed there, didn't even have A/C.

So yes you can get older cars with good trim but I'd wager for this £2.5-3k budget there's not a huge number to choose from.

 

[Vern1961]

We just pxed our 6 yo Kia Sportage for a new Toyota Yaris Hybrid and i was pleasantly surprised to get a £9.5k trade in on the old motor. I got the feeling despite talking the talk, some dealers are struggling to shift their stock.
Mind the Yaris is nice and I love the automatic transmission plus the fuel economy but it's a bit cramped after the Sportage and you feel like you're sitting on the floor.

It also nearly came a cropper less than a week old, my wife and I being at ground zero for this:

Firefighters cut casualty out of crash wreckage on major road

FIRE crews have acted quickly to rescue someone from the wreckage of their car on Great Western Way.

www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk

We heard the bang on the roundabout up ahead then next thing saw the Lotus flipping through the air, landed on its roof, slid and then stopped literally less than a foot in front of our front bumper. If I'd been two or three seconds earlier or not had the presence of mind to get the anchors in, we would have been wearing it round my car. The joys of motoring...

When I got out to check was fully expecting to find the driver in bits but looks like he got off with minor injuries.

Sting in the tail was after giving my witness statement to the police, had to move PDQ to clear out the way for the fire brigade and ambulance which meant driving across the reservation, cue wincing at graunching noise as the Yaris grounded on the pavement. Luckily no visible damage, had it up on the ramp at the body shop today to check and they couldn't find anything.

A nasty close call, worst experience in over 40 years of driving. Still a bit shaken by it, but getting back in the car and getting out there seems the best way to get past that.

 

[Rroff]

So yes you can get older cars with good trim but I'd wager for this £2.5-3k budget there's not a huge number to choose from.

Needs a bit of luck and knowledge but the sweet spot there is those times where mainstream brands have tried to produce a halo car or tried to go head to head with luxury brands but failed - creating fully kitted out cars but no one is going to pay that kind of money for a mainstream brand. Or the likes of Infiniti.

Though there are risks as sometimes parts can be obscure, expensive or hard to find, etc. and/or garages aren't very familiar with them.

To a more limited degree the Nissan Pulsar falls into that category as the Tekna trim they pushed the boat out a bit as a kind of halo product but it failed to find mass market appeal. Though sadly beneath the skin it is the same old Nissan platform and some of the nicer stuff is only skin deep.

EDIT: Bit of a ramble but Nissan really messed up on the Pulsar IMO - they flinched when it came to hitting the market instead of coming in with conviction at the last minute they went timid killing off the higher performance regular spec and the NISMO variant and leaving the rest of the line up in an awkward kind of place and with too many trim levels.

 

[sx_turbo]

Infotainment is mostly the main issue with older cars which can easily be fixed a android auto head unit. Also auto gearboxes are miles behind what they are today. Not so much of a problem if it is a manual.

My 2004 Saab 9-5 Aero Estate has the following.

isofix, heated seats, cruise control, dual zone climate control, night panel, electric windows and mirrors throughout, dual beam xenon headlights with follow me home feature, fog lights, auto dimming rear view mirror, 7 speaker sound system (Harman Kardon), proper luxury sports leather seats with full electric adjustment and lumbar support, chilled glovebox, map reading light with field of vision and roominess that a modern car can only dream off. At the time it was a 5 star rating on the Euro Ncap too.

Mine is however quite a lowly specced Aero. I can retrofit ventilated sports seats, heated rear seats, auto wipers, folding and auto dimming wing mirrors, memory electric seats, diesel auxiliary night heater!, rear pull out load tray on the estate models as well as many extras I am sure I have forgotten.

The car has nigh on 300BHP and will do close to 40MPG on a run and around 500-600 miles range on the motorway. Normal day to day driving see high 20's/low 30's and 400 miles to a tank.

I really struggle to see what I can replace it with as it just keeps on going and just doesn't make financial sense to get rid. It is also pretty exclusive which is what everyone wants no ?

This is all from a car that dates back 1998. BMW's, Audi's and Mercedes from this era are no different either.

These guys took a tatty E39 530i touring and what they have done with it is truly remarkable. I would take something like this in a heartbeat over your new Kia Sportage, Nissan Qashkai etc. It wasn't cheap however but something a little less thorough could be done.

We've got a 2006 A4 b7 and have the same reservations of newer cars

We've looked but none seem to be of the same quality, the ride and handling isn't as nice, the noise suppression isn't as good, they're just generally not as good even some 17 years on, things like any Kia focus/Mondeo, insignia etc newer cars might have more kit, but tbh we're driving it and the new kit doesn't really add much imo yeah they're nice to haves but can survive perfectly well without them

If we were to buy newer would have to be for a similar car only but unfortunately they've all kind of gone silly money certainly down here in Essex.

 

[moon man]

My 21yr old Fabia unfortunately bit the dust, both me and my ex got one of these, mine in Cornwall so a bit over 3k on a 14, hers 3k on a 13.
It's great for my folks to jump in and out when I visit, room to use as a day camper and also a tip run machine as seats detach from the car .
Prefer simpler cars tbh bit it's got reverse sensors heated seats blah blah blah , panoramic sunroof. Averaging 57 mpg

 

[FoxEye]

e: nm, that's not a Verso at all, heh. I have no idea what that is.

It's a Roomster?

 

[moon man]

e: nm, that's not a Verso at all, heh. I have no idea what that is.

It's a Roomster?

whoops oh yeiah its a roomster , i do miss the simplicity of my old sdi ,no turbo to worry about, no dpf or multiple warning lights but the space is great especially for the garden 1 tonne type dumpy bag

 

[squarehead94]

There are definitely still bargains out there.
I've just picked up a 2012 VW polo 1.2 TDi with FSH 110k miles. No MOT and had a running issue (turned out to be a blocked EGR valve) rather than replacing, £4 egr blanking plate and an EGR delete & DPF delete remap (£130) and she's running great. I paid £500 for it and it's actually incredibly clean too. Just got a full MOT on it. Facebook is usually the place to go for bargains I find. But it is also riddled with scam ads like the one listed on page 2.

 

[FoxEye]

Well, ****.

I am assuming that a tree falling on my car (in the middle of the night [parked]) is a no-fault claim, but having just done an online quote with my current insurer, the thing said they couldn't offer me a quote for the vehicle I'm looking to buy.

I hope this isn't the shape of things to come. It's not like I made the damn tree fall down.

Is this one of those cases where you just shouldn't make a claim?

 

[grudas]

Well, ****.

I am assuming that a tree falling on my car (in the middle of the night [parked]) is a no-fault claim, but having just done an online quote with my current insurer, the thing said they couldn't offer me a quote for the vehicle I'm looking to buy.

I hope this isn't the shape of things to come. It's not like I made the damn tree fall down.

Is this one of those cases where you just shouldn't make a claim?

I doubt that’s anything to do with your claim. Just try a different insurer

 

[FoxEye]

I doubt that’s anything to do with your claim. Just try a different insurer

I'm not so sure. They already told me my no-claims bonus is gone (even tho I paid for it to be protected) because there is no other insurer (apparently) for them to make a claim against and recover their costs. The tree was on a disputed patch of land, and the homeowner's insurance is saying it's nothing to do with them. If the land isn't part of their property (despite being inside their fence) then apparently it's just common land, and not insured by any of the home owners nearby.

So my car insurance provider said that the protected no claims does not apply, so I lose it (all of it). Now I'm reading that storm and tree damage is counted as "at fault" rather than "no fault" by insurers?

Does your car insurance cover damage caused by Storm Eleanor?

WITH Storm Eleanor tearing across the country, millions of Brits’ cars are at risk of damage – and many may not be covered by their insurance. Many policies won’t cover falling tr…

www.thesun.co.uk

Unfortunately, because insurers classify this kind of claim in the "at-fault" category, claiming for storm damage may see your premiums increase or invalidate your no claims bonus.

e: Honestly, knowing what I know now, I would just have not told them about it. Scrapped the car and bought another.

 

[FoxEye]

Holy mother of...

Just got a quote from another insurer (Sainsburys)... up from £330 (old premium) to £3300. That's.... insane.

e: Haha, that is mental. CTM gave me some quotes of £376. Up slightly, but a tad better than Sainsburys were offering.

WTH is up with them... £3300, just lol. I'm not even joking or exaggerating. £3300! Smoking the good stuff, they are.

 

[grudas]

Holy mother of...

Just got a quote from another insurer (Sainsburys)... up from £330 (old premium) to £3300. That's.... insane.

e: Haha, that is mental. CTM gave me some quotes of £376. Up slightly, but a tad better than Sainsburys were offering.

WTH is up with them... £3300, just lol. I'm not even joking or exaggerating. £3300! Smoking the good stuff, they are.

This is their way of saying we don’t want your custom. Happens all the time. The internal ratings for each person receiving a write are very complicated. You often get no quote or get a stupid number back due to them not wanting to take you on. Shopping around is normal.

 

[Gilbert89]

My 21yr old Fabia unfortunately bit the dust, both me and my ex got one of these, mine in Cornwall so a bit over 3k on a 14, hers 3k on a 13.
It's great for my folks to jump in and out when I visit, room to use as a day camper and also a tip run machine as seats detach from the car .
Prefer simpler cars tbh bit it's got reverse sensors heated seats blah blah blah , panoramic sunroof. Averaging 57 mpg

I saw one of these today and had no idea what it was until I just noticed your post.

Good to know

 

[FoxEye]

Update on my car fun:

Made a 500 mile round trip to buy something, higher end of my budget. Indy dealer. Drove it home and on the way found numerous faults, some serious (mechanical + engine).

Dealer has agreed to a refund without complaint, which I'm thankful for. Another 500 mile round trip to return (hope it stays together on the trip!)

Wondering now if it's worth spending a bit more (literally doubling budget), staying local, and buying from an affiliated dealer?

e: more info, car I'm returning had <50k miles, 09 model. What you would classify (probably) as low-mileage. Didn't mean anything in the end.

 

[throwaway4372]

Wondering now if it's worth spending a bit more (literally doubling budget), staying local, and buying from an affiliated dealer?

Probably an easier life yeah, just at a cost.