Take car to Uni or not?

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No-one can give you a definitive answer because they aren't you, they don't know where you'll be staying, they don't know that you'll end up in a relationship with someone who lives 2 tram rides, a bus ride and a 20 minute walk away, or that you'll spend one weekend a month cursing public transport trying to get home, they don't know that you're timing belt it due in 6 months and it'll fail it's MOT with about a grands worth of work.

Oh and neither do you :)

What I do know is that leaving a car sat unused for 4 years will not do it any favours, it'll also see another 4 years of depreciation (may not be much of an issue depending on what you drive). You can also forget about your now claims in 4 years you'll be starting from scratch.

Either way knowing as much as we do from your post i'd take it down and then if it wasn't practical i'd get rid. Just make sure you don't leave anything on show and have a steering lock (new students are prime targets for theft).
 
Take it, you'll be very grateful for having one. Wish I had when I was at uni! PLus that money it costs you can be saved by charging mates for lifts :D
 
digipeep said:
When I went to Uni any one who had a car might as well have put a placard on their head reading "Avoid Me I'm a ****".
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So 90/440 people in my halls were "****s" and that the fact im within a very nice group of people suggests otherwise?

You sir know nothing. Or you went to some low life uni where things like cars matter more than life itself...

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digipeep said:
Oops sorry, I mean you go to Uni once in your life, enjoy being a downtrodden student with huge debts and party a bit. Who cares if you have to take public transport to get home.

The people where I went to Uni who had cars were really not the sort of people who wanted to go to Uni in the 1st place, just something that they had to do as they travelled through life and their car meant less time mixing with the underclass if you get my drift.

My point being those students with cars are sort of saying "look at me I can afford a car, I'm not like the rest of you plebs raking up huge debts", someone you really need to avoid at Uni unless you want to bum lick a bit.
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I did have fun at uni, and yes I am amassing debts, and I have a car there, and with the amount of stuff I bring from home my god it was worth it. Its useful and I don't give two hoots who cares if I have one or not, its my money I will do what the hell I like with it!!!

Again wrong, I WANTED to go to uni, very much so. I also took my car as it had another 6 months insurance etc on it and im gaining NCBs anyway. So it went with me. And it'll be going with me every year too.

Again, this is really dependant on where you go, in Bristol 20-25% of people brought cars, and they weren't any better off than the others...


Anyway, to the OP, I took mine and all I can say it sits there doing nothing 99% of the time but when you just want to go for a drive or need to go somewhere or do something that walking or public transport would take forever its totally worth it.

After my exams we went for a day drive somewhere, unfortunately got hit by a woman not looking but thats by the by!
 
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shauncr91 said:
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

It's terrible, some of the worst I've seen in England in regard to buses. Trams are OK but are incredibly limited as to where they go :p



To the OP: What about selling the car and buying a moped/small motorbike?
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Buses are awesome. Especially in the student areas. 50p down to uni. Yes please.

You wont need a car in the first sixth months and I'd recommend getting to know the city on foot first. Shops are plenty close and people are always walking to them, giving you a chance to bolster new friendships you make.

I took my car from the second half of your first year onwards, but mainly out of necessity for getting to other cities for football games, rather than because I needed one in Sheffield. I certainly could have done without it had I not needed to get to other cities and towns easily / regularly. Getting to Tesco / Morrisons is a nice added bonus but you wont save the money you spent on your having you car against the raised prices of spar/nisa/getting the bus to tesco.

Depending where you live in second year, you'll be having to pay for a parking permit outside your house @ £130 a year. However, permits for parking in Endcliffe or Ranmoor student villages are free... or they were two years ago.
 
If you're a stinking rich student, then go for it. But an average student has nowhere near enough money to run a car. Certainly not if you're just living off the student loan plus whatever pocket money you can scrape together during holiday work.
 
MikeHunt79 said:
Indeed, I found it all rather silly, it's not as if the uni has CCTV looking out for students in cars! :D
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They do it because it is an agreed condition with the council, probably as a result of a planning application for a student halls that didn't include enough/any parking.

Student parking is causing an increasing issue in many cities in the 7 years I was a student I noticed a massive increase in the number of students with cars and this has had a detremental impact on parking near University campus's, halls of residence and areas of housing with high levels of student occupacy. Councils have come up with two ways to combat this, insisting that Uni's say no cars to students and parking permits in resedential areas near campus's and were students live.
 
I would go up there without and then see if you need it.
For the first year I'd definately not take a car with me.

However when you move out of halls it might become more useful, and you might actually need it.
 
a1ex2001 said:
Student parking is causing an increasing issue in many cities in the 7 years I was a student I noticed a massive increase in the number of students with cars and this has had a detremental impact on parking near University campus's, halls of residence and areas of housing with high levels of student occupacy. Councils have come up with two ways to combat this, insisting that Uni's say no cars to students and parking permits in resedential areas near campus's and were students live.
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The problem is not students though, the problem is the councils.
My Uni has a huge site that is out of town a bit, plenty of space ... and yet the councils are refusing to let them expand the car park on the site, even though there is probably more than double the demand than the current (official) car park size - the best uni can do is let people park on the glass in what is termed an "overflow" car park (still not big enough).
There is room for enough cars in most places, the problem is that councils are being bitchy about having parking space and want more green space instead.
 
rypt said:
The problem is not students though, the problem is the councils.
My Uni has a huge site that is out of town a bit, plenty of space ... and yet the councils are refusing to let them expand the car park on the site, even though there is probably more than double the demand than the current (official) car park size - the best uni can do is let people park on the glass in what is termed an "overflow" car park (still not big enough).
There is room for enough cars in most places, the problem is that councils are being bitchy about having parking space and want more green space instead.
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That is also a very specific example and doesn't relate to the majority of Univeristies in the UK that have campus's and halls of residence located near to the centre of cities where there is no room to expand car parking.

Oh and the university has to comply with planning regs just like everyone else just because they want a bigger carpark doesn't mean they can have one in what is potentially a green belt site. I'd love to put an extra story on my house and have a rear wall totally made of Glass but can't because it would spoil the area.
 
SlyReaper said:
If you're a stinking rich student, then go for it. But an average student has nowhere near enough money to run a car. Certainly not if you're just living off the student loan plus whatever pocket money you can scrape together during holiday work.
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Gen gen generalisation a go go.... How about if you get yourself a full time summer job? My full time summer work has easily paid for my car for the next year plus a load of other stuff. Does this make me 'stinking rich' student? I don't think so. Far from it.
 
a1ex2001 said:
That is also a very specific example and doesn't relate to the majority of Univeristies in the UK that have campus's and halls of residence located near to the centre of cities where there is no room to expand car parking.

Oh and the university has to comply with planning regs just like everyone else just because they want a bigger carpark doesn't mean they can have one in what is potentially a green belt site. I'd love to put an extra story on my house and have a rear wall totally made of Glass but can't because it would spoil the area.
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Green belts seem to only apply when it suits the council - an area next to where my parents live was a green belt site - didn't stop the council selling it for house development though (affordable housing at that - with the cheapest being £300k terrace (more than £100k more than all the old (semi-detached) housing where my parents lived)
 
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JonB said:
Gen gen generalisation a go go.... How about if you get yourself a full time summer job? My full time summer work has easily paid for my car for the next year plus a load of other stuff. Does this make me 'stinking rich' student? I don't think so. Far from it.
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plus a lot of students, myself included work part time during term times aswell.
 
I had mine up at uni from the end of my first term, largely because my dad couldn't be bothered picking me up. It doesn't say anything about you and it's no great expense once you've got insurance out of the way, mine had very occaisional use, trips to 24 hr supermarkets, random trips, moving stuff about, going anywhere off of the main bus routes. In second year and beyond it was even more useful, supermarket trips for the whole house, driving to lectures if running late. It's entirely personal choice whether you think it's worthwile, but I'm glad I had mine
 
Went through uni without a car and can't say i missed it. I lived on campus first year then walking distance to uni and lived in town near everything i needed.

MW
 
Mr-White said:
Went through uni without a car and can't say i missed it. I lived on campus first year then walking distance to uni and lived in town near everything i needed.

MW
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There is no way it's a neccessity, but it is a nicety and one you wouldn't particularly notice unless you've experience of not having one and having one.
 
Taken mine both years of uni. I couldn't like without a car. The independence it gives I just can't live with now. Plus now I'm on placement and I need to have it for work.. Maybe in public transport actually became usful I'd stop using it..

Yeah if you can afford it and think it'll survive take it, but remember, tax, mot, petrol, break downs but just insurance costs :D
 
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