Need a new minicab warning contains "spec me"

I can see an entire 21 diesel 520's under £10,000 and up to 4 years old on Autotrader nationally.

Can't say they all look appealing, with their myriad of base spec, cloth interiors.
 
Foxtrot26 said:
A quick scan of auto trader says I can get a decent 520/320 under 3 yr old for 10k
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Would that be one with a BMW warranty? (although given your mileage & useage, I somehow doubt your too bothered about all that tbh)

IF its reliable (and from what you read it could be a fairly big IF) it'll be a damn site better than a Skoda or Vauxhall as your "office".

Track down a 520 / 320d fellow taxi driver and quiz him on its reliability / costs, I guess they are getting popular - as taxis - for a reason.....
 
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He needs one that's presumably not going to a huge pit into which you throw money.

You can't buy 08 BMW 5 series worth owning for under 10k!
 
MrLOL said:
he's only going to ruin it anyway

He doesn't need a decent one in the same way that you would fox.
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Very true, but equally, given it'll be his income generator, he does not want a Crufts champion either.... :D
 
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Well first thing I'll do is drill 2 holes ion the roof and umpteen in the dash oh and I've got 22 520ds nationally showing

But the thought of bmw parts costs scare me. I can see my sticking with vauxhall or at a push vag
 
22 58 plate 520d's which are decent?

Really?

Just buy a Skoda. More reliable, cheaper to run and more comfortable. It is a taxi after all.
 
As I say, talk to some taxi drivers who have already taken the plunge....

Yes, parts will cost a bit more, but shopping around & avoiding BMW stealers would help greatly....

I know which I'd prefer to spend 12 hours per day in out of a Vauxhall or VAG or BMW, but only the guys doing what you do can really help you I feel.

Taxi work is hardly average useage, but you do seem to see more & more BMW taxis for some reason, I doubt its the badge either.
 
R420LA6X2/4MNA said:
Yes, parts will cost a bit more, but shopping around & avoiding BMW stealers would help greatly....
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As would buying a car you can afford rather than buying a bottom of the market suspect one.

Taxi work is hardly average useage, but you do seem to see more & more BMW taxis for some reason, I doubt its the badge either.
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I'd imagine much of is it the same sense of misguided priorities as those which led Foxtrot to ask us about lowering his taxi on 19's a year or so ago. Some people just seem to forget, or want to forget, that they are a taxi driver and the primary function of the vehicle is to transport paying customers in reasonable comfort.

The Superb was pretty much made to *be* a taxi. It is ideally suited and I cannot think of a single attribute of a BMW 3 Series or a 5 Series which better lends itself to minicabbing than the Superb. The Superb rides better, his money will buy a better example, it has considerably more rear legroom... its just a better minicab.
 
[TW]Fox;19696231 said:
As would buying a car you can afford rather than buying a bottom of the market suspect one.



I'd imagine much of is it the same sense of misguided priorities as those which led Foxtrot to ask us about lowering his taxi on 19's a year or so ago. Some people just seem to forget, or want to forget, that they are a taxi driver and the primary function of the vehicle is to transport paying customers in reasonable comfort.

The Superb was pretty much made to *be* a taxi. It is ideally suited and I cannot think of a single attribute of a BMW 3 Series or a 5 Series which better lends itself to minicabbing than the Superb. The Superb rides better, his money will buy a better example, it has considerably more rear legroom... its just a better minicab.
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I quite agree with you, the fact remains though more & more taxi drivers (well, Scottish ones anyway!) seem to be opting for them, I would be extremely surprised if it was for the "image" - its a taxi after all - I'd hope they do their homework prior to buying such a car as a work tool.

Which is why I suggest he talks to fellow taxi drivers who've opted for them. I somehow suspect he'll be warned off though, perhaps not. It'll be interesting to hear what his feedback is from his colleagues. :)
 
Lots of it will be image, quite a few modified BMW taxis around here now. They look stupid on fake ebay wheels with limo tints but I am sure they think they are cool taxi drivers :p
 
[TW]Fox;19696578 said:
Lots of it will be image, quite a few modified BMW taxis around here now. They look stupid on fake ebay wheels with limo tints but I am sure they think they are cool taxi drivers :p
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Indeed, funnily enough, the first e39 & e60 BMW taxis I saw were both parked near Royal parade in Plymouth (albeit a few years apart)

Sad if thats the reason though, hardly good business sence....
 
About 4 or 5 months ago I saw an E65 7 series taxi ..I actually did a double take ...it was a first and so far a one off for me anyway.
 
i'm just going through and ruling out various options as its going to be a long drawn out process.

yes i may post some silly ideas and you might think wtf? but i'm the one that will spend 12 hours a day in whatever i buy for the next 3 years. So i'm ruling out nothing and exploring every avenue.

atm the current favourite idea is another vectra albeit a 2009 last of the line one. with the current 06 plate vectra being mothballed in the workshop and cannibalised for parts as and when required makes a lot of sense as the only differences between my 06 and any of the 09s i'm likely to buy is the addition of an aux input for the stereo and a few missing options and bits of trim


some assumptions i'm making.

whatever i buy will have a sale value of £0 at the end of service i mean who wants to buy an ex taxi with 250k miles for anything more than pennies?

it will be self serviced. the current vectra sees nothing but genuine parts but self serviced and maintained. this has worked for me for the last 4 1/2 years i see no reason to change now so i really am looking to avoid technically challenging cars.

i've put a 10k figure up as a maximum. ideally i shall spend less than this. I would go as high as that if there was an obvious benefit super comfy or super economical etc but preferably i'd be spending less
 
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