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Car hunting, URGH

Felly Magic

By Felly Magic
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Felly Magic Rank: Isuzu Florian

Felly Magic

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My budget is £700 maximum, skint and that is what the insurers are paying out

UmBongo Rank: Renault 16

UmBongo

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I went to see a car on Sunday at a well known dealer.

 

They hadn't even valeted it, and they'd had it for some weeks.

 

The steering wheel control buttons looked like a dirty keyboard, the ones you have to use at work with dead skin and dried snot stuck between the keys.

 

I didn't buy it.

  • michael1703
  • Like 1
sierraman Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

sierraman

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Depends how far you want to travel. I'd sooner travel 30 miles and get a good example that 10 for a mediocre one. Focuses are a bit funny like that. Loads of fucked ones on at £4-600 but some really tidy looking ones at a grand. For £700 you won't get perfection, you might be as well getting something cosmetically challenged but sound mechanically. Similarly I'd be open to looking at the 1.8 if you are doing distance as the fuel economy should be ok. Considered a Mondeo? Plenty of tidy early mk3's about. 2.0 fairly good on the motorway. Did a 550 mile round trip in mind last week did easy 41mpg.

Dave_Q Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

Dave_Q

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I had a Labia estate and my wife had a hatch, both utterly dependable although they were both diesel.

 

649 might be a bit on the high side as we only got 700 a few weeks ago for my wife's which was a tdi on a 53 plate.

 

But I get the impression you don't have the funds/time/inclination to travel very far which will limit your choice a bit.

sierraman Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

sierraman

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If it runs and gives you minimal aggro for 12 months most cars would be worth £600.

  • egg, CGSB and fatharris
  • Like 3
Felly Magic Rank: Isuzu Florian

Felly Magic

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We don't really have funds to travel any real distance, plus the time factor, just been to view an 03 plate Almera locally, a 5 mile round trip walk, it's got peeling paint in lots of places, and the primer is showing, had a look underneath and the crossmember looked decidedly crusty, and only 3 months MOT, won't be long before that needs a fair bit of money spending on it

Felly Magic Rank: Isuzu Florian

Felly Magic

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Swindon? I'm on the Suffolk coast, and has already mentioned, no time to collect from a massive distance like that, and there is such a thing as too cheap, for that money there will be some very expensive bills looming

oldcars Rank: Lancia Gamma

oldcars

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That Hyundai's nice, mot history is good as well. Would.

  • davidfowler2000 and eddyramrod
  • Like 2
Alexg Rank: Lancia Gamma

Alexg

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Choosing to pay Â£6-700 rather than £275 is hardly hedging your bets though is it.

trigger Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

trigger

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Sorry Marty but you don't half expect the world on a plate sometimes, you got a courtesy car and moaned about that now you want help on a replacement car but nothing is ever good enough for you.

 

Perfect cars with no miles, full mot and history which are on your doorstep and all for the cost of a fish and chip supper do not just turn up like that.

Alexg Rank: Lancia Gamma

Alexg

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Also the seller is a trader, I'll wager he's just quickly punting on the bits he had to buy to get to the good stuff. Also his feedbacks good for someone who vends shite

Lacquer Peel Rank: Talbot Tagora

Lacquer Peel

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Yes, good luck finding your ideal car on a budget at short notice next door to your house.

Is it worth pressing the insurance company for some money to cover the hassle of sourcing another car?

SiC Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

SiC

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there is such a thing as too cheap, for that money there will be some very expensive bills looming

Part of me always thinks that for all sub £1k cars.

sierraman Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

sierraman

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I'd avoid the Almera, whilst the engine shouldn't give too much trouble bar the timing chain, the bodywork rots like fuck on them. It's not particularly pleasant to drive either.

 

I'd look to spend £7-800 for a focus worth having. You should easily find one or that, hopefully with some history. So long as the body isn't rotten and the major stuff like the clutch isn't borked you should be fine. As I say you might get a better Mondeo mk3 for your money.

Felly Magic Rank: Isuzu Florian

Felly Magic

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I wish I had more time to actually find a car, but I simply don't, and I don't have the money either to go off to the other side of the country to look at a car that may well be a lemon. We have precisely 5 days from the payment to hand the courtesy car back, bearing in mind due to shift combinations, we only get Sundays off together, once that goes, no car to get to work, wasted fuel already on a 55 mile round trip to look at a shitbox that had no mention in the description of a borked clutch, we are currently in a dire financial situation and need a reliable car to get to work, otherwise we WILL be evicted, we work long hours, and thanks to a string of recent shit luck, like ending up flat on my back in Ipswich hospital for a few days with a severe stomach virus, has put us in an even more deep situation. Suffolk/north Essex is utterly fucking shit for finding reasonable cars at sensible money, Yorkshire has shitloads, but once again its £80 of fuel I cannot afford, and no time to actually go and view, I will never buy a car blind, that's just asking for trouble, and yes Sierraman, that Almera just didn't feel right, no drivers door lock, but one on the passenger side, the drivers door looked bent out at the top, and in the door shuts and along the roof edge in the tailgate opening, the paint had peeled off down to grey primer, that car will rot very quickly, and was up for £800 with 2 mth test, which it will fail on the rotten crossmember, not a cheap job. It would help if the person with that Fabia would turn their bloody phone on as well. 

  • Lacquer Peel
  • Like 1
Felly Magic Rank: Isuzu Florian

Felly Magic

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Seller also has a 51 plate Ashtray 1.6 in, with a reasonable MOT history and 12mth ticket. Not too much of a detour from the ride home from work, just take the A143 instead of A14

  • mouseflakes
  • Like 1
hauserplenty Rank: BL Wedge

hauserplenty

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Autoshite.

 

Your motoring is our concern.

SiC Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

SiC

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That seller looks like he has a few motors that would be suitable IMO. The Vectra if its been looked after would be alright. I know you said you didn't want a small car, but that starlet would be awfully tempting if it was me in a similar situation.

 

Full MOT, reliable, cheap to fuel and repair - also plenty of dosh left in reserve to fix any potential issues a second hand car may have.

sierraman Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

sierraman

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The Avensis was a brilliant car, most of the cab companies swore by them. Surprisingly economical. Any car can be a gamble whether it's £600 or £6000. I'd agree with people when they say a £200 shitter is likely to land you in bother, you might drop very lucky but then also you might not. If you were just knocking about its certainly worth a shot but 80 miles a day might be worth spending your budget. Where in Suffolk are you?

sierraman Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

sierraman

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Out of those 3 I'd be surprised at least one wouldn't be worth having, 2 of them have had the belt done recently. The 1.8 is the least desirable given the poor round town economy but at least it's been looked after by the looks of it.

Barry Cade Rank: Lancia Gamma

Barry Cade

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"that Almera just didn't feel right, no drivers door lock, but one on the passenger side, the drivers door looked bent out at the top, and in the door shuts and along the roof edge in the tailgate opening, the paint had peeled off down to grey primer, that car will rot very quickly, and was up for £800 with 2 mth test, which it will fail on the rotten crossmember,"

 

 

 

 

Just like to add here, the Almera front crossmember isn't a failure if it's rotten....

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