Schaefft's Bargain Barge Extravaganza - Cheapy Citroen C6

[robthedonkey]

On the plantings aj grab away Washington were cheapest I found we had 36 tonnes to make a carpark at the kids football training fields ... He even tripped and drove to spread it the best he could for us

Was 70 a ton delivered for full loads to cramlington

Sent from my Pixel 8 using Tapatalk

[Schaefft]

1 minute ago, robthedonkey said:

On the plantings aj grab away Washington were cheapest I found we had 36 tonnes to make a carpark at the kids football training fields ... He even tripped and drove to spread it the best he could for us

Was 70 a ton delivered for full loads to cramlington

Sent from my Pixel 8 using Tapatalk
 

Appreciating any local recommendations!

[DVee8]

I have used these a couple of times.

 

https://www.woodstoneaggregates.co.uk/

[somewhatfoolish]

On 14/12/2024 at 11:44, yes oui si said:

Big shed as previously discussed, park cars in shed, also park ride on mower/baby tractor in shed, devote small amount of land to veg/hay production, shed is therefore an agri building. 

Minimum area of 5 hectares is needed before ag building exemptions start; how big is your backyard @Schaefft?

[yes oui si]

5 minutes ago, somewhatfoolish said:

Minimum area of 5 hectares is needed before ag building exemptions start; how big is your backyard @Schaefft?

He doesn't really need exemption. I'm not sure why an agri shed would be denied given the area and existing buildings nearby. 

[somewhatfoolish]

He would need ordinary PP, unless it's in a conservation area or his gaff's a listed building it shouldn't be problematic.

[Schaefft]

35 minutes ago, somewhatfoolish said:

He would need ordinary PP, unless it's in a conservation area or his gaff's a listed building it shouldn't be problematic.

Its just around 6 acres in total, its not a listed building and not in a conservation area but in the Newcastle green belt (just about, which is annoying).

[somewhatfoolish]

6 acres is enough to make the "I need a shed for my tractor" argument pretty irrefutable even in greenbelt I'd have thought; @rantingYoof?

[rantingYoof]

6 acres is 2.4ha which isn't enough to secure a building utilising any agricultural permitted development right. Class A, Part 6, Schedule 2 is for agricultural holdings 5ha or more, Class B of the same Part doesn't permit new buildings. Even if you had more than 5ha, if a prior notification for an agricultural building came across my desk then it'd need to be accompanied by a statement setting out the agricultural need for such a building, and the definition of agriculture here is that it must be associated with a trade or business.

If it's land outside the residential curtilage of the dwelling, you'd be effectively seeking the permission to erect a new building and change the use of the land to either residential garden or simply the storage of private vehicles (sui generis).  You might even run into the same difficulties simply changing the use of the land without even having a building there if the land is in a nil use presently - if it's a green paddock and you want to put car(s) on this, this will affect the visual appearance of the landscape to a degree.

Also, unless you're dumping a load of gravel on it, creating an area of hardstanding the proper way (digging down, base layers, needing mini diggers etc) is likely an engineering operation which requires permission by itself. However, exemption 154(h)(ii) does permit engineering operations which preserve the Green Belt's openness. It'll be the subsequent storage of paraphernalia on it that trips over this exemption.

I appreciate this makes me sound like a dullard jobsworth but I'd rather be unpopular and you a lot better off having not invested ££££s in pursuing something than you poorer and me having given you false hope.

[Tickman]

3 minutes ago, rantingYoof said:

I appreciate this makes me sound like a dullard jobsworth

It makes you sound like you know your job which as you've said could well be, and probably has been with previous advice, of great help to Schaefft

[Schaefft]

I've had a chance to have a quick look around the C6 during lunch today, lets do a tour of what 550 quid can buy you in the French executive segment in 2024:

Things aren't looking too bad at a first glance, however the whole car received a respray at some point and as seems to be all too common unfortunately, it didn't hold up for very long:

The whole front is covered in stone chips where the clear and basecoat just weren't strong enough. You'll also notice that the previous owner (who the seller from yesterday bought the car from) felt like tinting the side and foglights would add to the appeal of the car. I've also removed the loose chrome trim on the bonnet before it had a chance to take off on the motorway. At least I found the toweye cover inside the car.

The bonnet doesn't look much better. Hard to tell what exactly is going on there but the clearcoat is pretty rough but might come back with a cut and polish. There's some pretty gnarly glue residue and that scuffed front corner, most of this should come out as long as the clearcoat is still there. Headlights definitely need a polish. The roof doesn't look that much better, maybe Im lucky and its just grime from standing for so long but my bet is on the clearcoat just not being hard enough to withstand fairly normal wear and tear.

You gotta love the fastback style roof line of the C6. You might have noticed that the chrome trim being blacked out on this side, its just tape that should come off fairly quickly:

And the concave rear screen. I think after the XM Citroen finally realized that customers in the executive segment demanded the more traditional boot of a 3-box saloon, this was certainly one way of ensuring a sufficiently seized opening without compromising the sleek silhouette of the car. You can also see the integrated electrically retracting rear wing which deploys at higher speeds. I'm not sure how much downforce it really generates but I think its a neat feature that underlines the tech tour de force Citroen wanted to accomplish with their flagship.

How big is the boot then? Pretty decent actually, even with the trim panel around the battery hanging down like this. Further proof of the car's original color visible as well.

I found the world's largest ziptie inside for size reference:

Jack and spare wheel still in situ!

And another private pool underneath. Can't wait to find the leak for this one. Unfortunately the PDC module got flooded in the process, fortunately cheap to replace:

We also found a replacement clockspring (hopefully fixing the airbag error), some trim bits and the window switch pack for a Peugeot 307. If anyone needs the latter, you can find it in my bin (was junk).

More scuffs on this corner, reverse and foglights blacked out for maximum style, minimum functionality:

Here's the worst of the body damage, I'm not sure if the owner scraped alongside a pole or something sideswiped the car but judging by the amount of various scuffs all over the car I'd be inclined to say the former. The door and rear dog leg got dented in. The door fix could be as easy as replacing it entirely IF it was an original Citroen paint code, the dogleg however will never look decent without plenty of filler.

Exterior condition verdict: Plenty of battle scars, many of which could be removed with a bit of time, plenty more here to stay. 10 footer it is!

Things are looking better inside, even the cupholders are quirky in the C6:

With this being a mid-level Lignage we got plenty of kit as well. The car has half leather/half cloth seats and this dark bluish grey trim which actually looks really good on it. I usually prefer brighter interiors but oddly enough similar to the XM I think black is the way to go here:

Seats are electrically adjustable, no memory in this one though. What I only today realized is that the Lingage equipment level does have the heads-up display!

Heads-up displays are hardly new tech, GM already offered them in some cars as early as the late 80s. It was still very unsual tech outside the States up until more recently though, this is the first car I've owned that has the option. I need to check what info aside from speed this one displays but its a good piece of tech to have. What I don't have is the larger 7" center screen, something that would push the car a bit further into the modern age of infotainment. So I'll have to make do with this:

No conventional instrument cluster in the C6 either, it works well and is easy to read:

A somewhat compromised glovebox with mystery wiring and a free pack of crips:

Moving on to the backseat, its not super spacious considering the size of the car but the backrest folds down making this fairly practical for hauling stuff around, if not as practical as the much taller Velsatis. There was also a lounge pack option adding controls to the backseat but losing the ability to fold them down.

You also get controls for ventilation and 2 power outlets. The center console is height adjustable.

And thats it really. Considering the state of the outside things have held up very well in here, it just needs a proper clean really. Its a well equipped car thats offering quite a bit of kit even in this mid-spec trim and still feels well put together 17 years later.

Any treasures found inside then? Aside from 3 pens, some huge zipties and the few bits of trim its mostly junk. No additional info on any of the previous owners either, leaving me with little about the history of the car (I will be owner number 10). The guy before me had it for about 3 years in which it seems to have deteriorated quite a bit. Here it is a few months after the last owner bought it, still in much better shape back then:

It spent some time in Birmingham before and was originally registered down South and in Devon. The registration indicates it was first registered in Maidstone (certainly not the only C6 with a very similar reg), the dealer selling the car was actually located in Slough which must have shut only a few years after opening. Its now owned by "Guru Maneyo Granth Gurdwara" instead:

https://maps.app.goo.gl/mFyaoHdkaQoRyN2h7

The MOT expires in April. Not much is going to happen over the next 2 weeks but Im hoping to get a chance to clean the inside and eventually give it a proper polish in the new year. That alone should already make a huge difference to the appearance of the car. It will need various things sorting to pass another MOT. A closer inspection will reveal whether its worth it or not, with these being such special rare cars now I think its worth trying at the very least.

[Schaefft]

25 minutes ago, rantingYoof said:

6 acres is 2.4ha which isn't enough to secure a building utilising any agricultural permitted development right. Class A, Part 6, Schedule 2 is for agricultural holdings 5ha or more, Class B of the same Part doesn't permit new buildings. Even if you had more than 5ha, if a prior notification for an agricultural building came across my desk then it'd need to be accompanied by a statement setting out the agricultural need for such a building, and the definition of agriculture here is that it must be associated with a trade or business.

If it's land outside the residential curtilage of the dwelling, you'd be effectively seeking the permission to erect a new building and change the use of the land to either residential garden or simply the storage of private vehicles (sui generis).  You might even run into the same difficulties simply changing the use of the land without even having a building there if the land is in a nil use presently - if it's a green paddock and you want to put car(s) on this, this will affect the visual appearance of the landscape to a degree.

Also, unless you're dumping a load of gravel on it, creating an area of hardstanding the proper way (digging down, base layers, needing mini diggers etc) is likely an engineering operation which requires permission by itself. However, exemption 154(h)(ii) does permit engineering operations which preserve the Green Belt's openness. It'll be the subsequent storage of paraphernalia on it that trips over this exemption.

I appreciate this makes me sound like a dullard jobsworth but I'd rather be unpopular and you a lot better off having not invested ££££s in pursuing something than you poorer and me having given you false hope.

It certainly does complicate things. I've asked our solicitor to provide a better overview of the exact zoning of the property. Theoretically there should be potential space for storage even within the boundaries of the current garden/garage/workshop etc. It does mean that proper car storage would be more of a mid-term goal though, something I would have hoped to not be the case! Guess I'll just space things out across the entire property if needs must to lessen the impact😂

[GeordieInExile]

TATDS with that bit of trim in the boot. Mine had it as well. 

As for the 7" infotainment screen... You're better off without it. The software is laughable, even when new it was outdated!

[Schaefft]

Some C6 updates: Drained the pond in the sparewheel well and cleaned it all. Unfortunately the PDC module has had it:

I briefly thought about cleaning it to see if I can get it going again but with a replacement costing only 25 quid posted that was probably the smarter way to go. It arrived today:

Looking much better:

Success, no coding needed, plug&play. Front and rear PDC is working as intended again despite 2 of the front sensors not even sitting properly in their holes, another job for when I remove the tint from the sidelights.

I've also reassembled the bootliner which got messed up at some point by someone trying to reach the battery (which seems to have recovered very well since the drive home, no issues so far). Really looking forward to giving this car a clean, it should transform it:

I'll keep an eye on any potential leaks inside the boot, a quick pour of water around the seal and taillights didn't reveal anything. If I had a guess I'd say water collected in there over months if not longer so I'm expecting it to be a fairly straight forward fix once I know where its coming from.

[CGSB]

On 16/12/2024 at 19:04, Schaefft said:

If those wotsits are OG ones before they removed all the carcinogenic chemicals that made them delicious then I'll buy them off you for the purchase price of the car.

The C6 looks fit as fuck even with a shite re-spray. Looking forward to your interior cleaning and general tarting up of this beaut.

 

[Schaefft]

36 minutes ago, CGSB said:

If those wotsits are OG ones before they removed all the carcinogenic chemicals that made them delicious then I'll buy them off you for the purchase price of the car.

The C6 looks fit as fuck even with a shite re-spray. Looking forward to your interior cleaning and general tarting up of this beaut.

 

I couldn't help myself and opened the bag to give them a sniff, smelled a bit dodgy but that's probably normal for them ha.

[406V6]

On 16/12/2024 at 19:04, Schaefft said:

<snip>
...The registration indicates it was first registered in Maidstone (certainly not the only C6 with a very similar reg), the dealer selling the car was actually located in Slough which must have shut only a few years after opening. Its now owned by "Guru Maneyo Granth Gurdwara" instead:

https://maps.app.goo.gl/mFyaoHdkaQoRyN2h7

Brave man taking on a C6 !

That site was the headquarters of Citroen UK for many years. When the local Citroen dealer closed down they built the dealership and sold cars from it for a few years. Then as part of cost cutting the Citroen HQ was moved to Coventry to sit with the Peugeot HQ and the building released. It’s all part of the Slough Trading Estate so I presume they just gave up the lease and the Sikh organisation took it over.

[Schaefft]

1 minute ago, 406V6 said:

Brave man taking on a C6 !

That site was the headquarters of Citroen UK for many years. When the local Citroen dealer closed down they built the dealership and sold cars from it for a few years. Then as part of cost cutting the Citroen HQ was moved to Coventry to sit with the Peugeot HQ and the building released. It’s all part of the Slough Trading Estate so I presume they just gave up the lease and the Sikh organisation took it over.

 

Yeah, I've only realized after my post that this wasn't just any dealership but the HQ itself. Strange to build a brand new facility only to give it up a few years later. Still would love to know whether this was registered in Citroen's name first, considering that these hardly sold at all. Being a September registration it would be one of the first 57-plate cars.

V5 arrived the other day confirming that the seller never applied for one which is perfectly fine with me. I've found the actual previous owner in one of the C6 owners groups on Facebook, crossing my fingers that I'm getting a little more info about the history of the car from him.