is it possible?

Smiley Man · 29 Jul 2006 at 19:36

...to get a big, reliable and old barge for £250?

me and some mates are going for a roadtrip around wales for week or so at the end of august and need a car to do it in

we dont want anything like a fiesta 1.1 (saw one for £500 :eek:

) cos there will be a lot of long motorway work getting there

volvos sprung to mind, but what exactly should i look for? ideally we want something with space to sleep in with the rear seats folded down

if anyone can find anything local to me (st neots, cambs) that would be super

, we dont want to buy another shed

ajgoodfellow · 29 Jul 2006 at 19:40

Yep

Something like a Volvo 740 Estate will be big enough to sleep in, comfortable and cheap. They should be reliable too

If you post a post code then I'd be able to look for something in Autotrader

Smiley Man · 29 Jul 2006 at 19:44

ajgoodfellow said:
Yep

Something like a Volvo 740 Estate will be big enough to sleep in, comfortable and cheap. They should be reliable too

If you post a post code then I'd be able to look for something in Autotrader

yeah an old 740 would be ideal

know quite a bit about them and have half of a stripped one here

postcode is PE19 1LN - if you could do a search that would be great thanks

ajgoodfellow · 29 Jul 2006 at 19:51

Just had a quick look and there's only one 740 and no 760s within 40 miles of your postcode! :eek:

http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/WW...&miles=40&max_records=50&modelexact=1&photo=1

Having said that, the only one there looks pretty good at a glance. It's an automatic unfortunately though - I don't know how reliable the Volvo autos are

Scania · 29 Jul 2006 at 19:52

Be cheeky, phone this bloke up & offer him your £250.....

1990 BMW 735i SE, 142000
miles, 4drs, Automatic, Saloon, Petrol, White, 3 Owners, ABS, AC, Alloys, EM, EW, e/s/r, Black Leather Interior, Head restraints, PAS, Radio, S/Roof. HPI checked.Barnet/Potters Bar area. M25 Junct.24. £695. 07956 865157 [email protected]

38 Miles from you.

*multi-photos 1988 F Reg BMW 735i SE Sisson Motors 4 Doors, Automatic, Saloon, Petrol, 212,459 miles, Metallic Silver, MOT-12-2006. ABS, Adjustable seats, Adjustable steering column/wheel, Alloy wheels, Anti theft system, Central locking, Child locks, . . . . (trade)
£ 495
37 miles

Another cheeky offer?

If yopu want a barge, get a proper one!

Smiley Man · 29 Jul 2006 at 19:52

ajgoodfellow said:
Just had a quick look and there's only one 740 and no 760s within 40 miles of your postcode!

http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/WW...&miles=40&max_records=50&modelexact=1&photo=1

Having said that, the only one there looks pretty good at a glance. It's an automatic unfortunately though - I don't know how reliable the Volvo autos are

auto wouldnt bother me, but my mate hates them with a passion so no autos im afraid

(please dont question why if he is paying 1/3 and doesnt want an auto we wont have an auto

)

also - save me starting a new thread, does anyone know of that site similar to dayinsure that you pay monthly?

Andr3w · 29 Jul 2006 at 19:53

http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/WWW/cars_search.asp?modelexact=1&lid=search_used_cars_full&make=FORD&model=MONDEO&min_pr=75&max_pr=&mileage=&agerange=&postcode=pe19+1ln&miles=40&max_records=50&source=0&photo=1&sort=3&ukcarsearch_full=SEARCH

some of these

Smiley Man · 29 Jul 2006 at 19:54

yeah a mondeo was our other idea, can you get a runner for £250?

we want tax and MOT really

R124 - we want a barge which we can insure ourselves on for a month, and the 3 of us arent exactly insurance companies favourites

me - 18 no NCB full licence for 4 months
mate 1 - 18 no NCB provisional
mate 2 - 25 no NCB full licence for 7 years and DC10 (think thats right) 3 years ago (off licence now but insurance is still a pain)

Andr3w · 29 Jul 2006 at 19:57

Smiley Man said:
yeah a mondeo was out other idea, can you get a runner for £250?

Dam i thought i was onto a winner there with the second one down but its been sold

Its it a strict budget of £250?If you can double it land rover baby

or

not sure how reliable these are escort (the [url="javascript:more_info(200629101043291,38,'CARS',4,200629101043291,490,560);"]FORD Escort 1.3 Encore, J reg. 9)[/url]

ajgoodfellow · 29 Jul 2006 at 19:58

Didn't realise they were so cheap now!

Not sure about whether you can get a good one or not but they're probably worth checking out

What about a Rover 400 Estate? Somewhat smaller than the other suggestions but still good cars - http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/WW...category=CARS&channel=CARS&id=200630244390650

Smiley Man · 29 Jul 2006 at 19:59

too much, we need to pay for all the fun stuff to do while were buzzing around wales

we dont want to be filling it up every 5 mins either really

Scania · 29 Jul 2006 at 20:01

Smiley Man said:
yeah a mondeo was our other idea, can you get a runner for £250?

we want tax and MOT really

R124 - we want a barge which we can insure ourselves on for a month, and the 3 of us arent exactly insurance companies favourites

me - 18 no NCB full licence for 4 months
mate 1 - 18 no NCB provisional
mate 2 - 25 no NCB full licence for 7 years and DC10 (think thats right) 3 years ago (off licence now but insurance is still a pain)

fair enough mate, I'll shut up & crawl back under my rock......

I'd be interested to hear what the insurance will cost you though mate, if you would'nt mind.

axe · 29 Jul 2006 at 20:07

dont know if big enough

Renault 19

Gribs · 30 Jul 2006 at 15:48

Have a look for volvo 940's too. You probably couldn't pick up an estate for £250 but a saloon should be easy. They're big, comfortable and suprisingly cheap to insure. You wouldn't be able to sleep in the back but that wouldn't be exactly comfortable with 3 people in an estate.

Smiley Man · 30 Jul 2006 at 17:24

R124, will let you know

volvo saloon sounds good, get a nice GLE with leather (note to self, make sure it has tax and mot

)

so far a rough guide is:

- big
- 1.8> engine (lots of motorway miles)
- comfy

doesnt have to have billions of gizmos or super shiney paintwork, as long as it moves

axe - tax runs out tomorrow

we want something we can just buy, insure and drive really, and we cant afford an extra £70 odd for tax

ZG002 · 30 Jul 2006 at 17:34

Only your "mate 2" will b-able to use a company like day insure by the way mate.. as you need to be 21 and driving over a year with all of the places like that..

you will have to get one of you to insure it properly (short term is possible) and you and other mate on as named drivers i think..

sounds like a fun trip tho

Smiley Man · 30 Jul 2006 at 17:44

ZG002 said:
Only your "mate 2" will b-able to use a company like day insure by the way mate.. as you need to be 21 and driving over a year with all of the places like that..

you will have to get one of you to insure it properly (short term is possible) and you and other mate on as named drivers i think..

sounds like a fun trip tho

we know, we know

there is a company out there who you can have a 1 month minimum contract with, but i cant remember who they are

mr tommo · 30 Jul 2006 at 17:47

Smiley Man said:
we know, we know

there is a company out there who you can have a 1 month minimum contract with, but i cant remember who they are

When you find out let me know, sounds like a good idea. Thinking of getting a 205 gti, doing a couple of trackdays, then selling it on.

Smiley Man · 30 Jul 2006 at 17:48

someone posted a link on here a while back, but i cant find it anywhere :confused:

Gribs · 30 Jul 2006 at 17:53

Smiley Man said:
R124, will let you know

volvo saloon sounds good, get a nice GLE with leather (note to self, make sure it has tax and mot )

Don't get leather unless you've got a/c which is unlikely to be working on a £250 car. Half leather is the best compromise between looks and comfort. Ebay seems to be a good place to pick up cheap old barges. My 940 SE turbo cost me £200 with a years mot and 5 months tax.