RichardKs wanderings: PT Cruiser or SLK? The MOTs are passed, so... dilemma!

[RichardK]

1 minute ago, Jazoli said:

It was always going to be a difficult sell for an expensive PT cruiser, I couldn't give mine away for 1500 quid and that only had 40k on it (non cab), they are incredibly niche cars and as you have found out, no one wants them at all as there are so many 'better' cars out there for the money, the £710 VED will also put everyone off, it was a brave buy in my opinion, can you not crash it into a wall and claim off your insurance? (joke btw)

My daughter has just had a successful pip claim and it was quite straightforward tbh, it has to be worth filling out the forms for.

What hacked me off was the Huddersfield dealer who came down during October storms, shook hands on £4K, got me to remove the private plate ready for collection, eSure then cancelled the (cheap) insurance when I tried to change the plate "due to a computer error" - chased them, they confirmed they wanted it, then... just nothing.

Before that I was only mildly irritated by its existence!

If I keep it I'll put the plate back on at least.

[N Dentressangle]

The current tax situation is a hot mess, and what you end up with when you have no joined-up policy on anything at all. There's no way I'd consider one of the high tax bracket cars. I don't do enough miles to make it seem anywhere near good value, and there's more chance monkeys will fly out of my arse than car tax being reduced on them.

I would ditch the PT Cruiser and cut the losses. Ebay with a 99p start and low reserve, and make the £710pa someone else's problem asap.

[Dan29]

7 hours ago, RichardK said:

So... now I have a dilemma.

The blue SLK MOT is up, I have too many cars. The universe has demonstrated that no-one wants a 14,000 mile PT Cruiser Convertible for any amount of money beyond a 150,000  mile knackered shitbox (and to be fair there are 26,000 mile and 54,000 mile examples which have been unsold on eBay forever) and the increase in VED may be small ish in numerical terms but it looks fucking horrible at £710 a year after April.

Given the number of ULEZ-banned, smoke-belching knackered-at-80,000 mile zero VED diesels that this petrol punishment inspired, it really annoys me that a 355g/km new car pays £180/year but surviving 226 and up pre-2017 petrol cars continue to be hammered 😕

(I technically qualify for PIP though it's a nightmare to claim. Almost worth it to get the disabled class on the Cruiser).

Do I try selling the Cruiser again and keep the SLK (which has not put a foot wrong since I got it), flog the SLK as-is with a couple of weeks MOT left and save myself the mental space, or MOT the SLK then sell?

Yeah the tax situation is a mess, they need to sort it out for pre-2017 cars. I assume the general public feel the same way as ASers and are put off buying a car in a high tax band, but I'm not sure. Most people only have one car each, so it would make less difference per year, and do they even bother to check before buying? Not sure, but I've just switched to paying monthly for the first time, which I assume most people do, and it definitely makes the difference seem less noticeable. 

Personally, unless you really hate the PT Cruiser now or won't be able to afford the tax (and aren't going to go down the PIP route), I'd MOT the SLK then sell, my thinking being that someone will buy the PT Cruiser but it will take a long time to find that right person. Maybe in the meantime the government will reform the car tax, especially if we get a new government soon in place of the current bunch 🤞

[RichardK]

Well, the SLK failed the MOT, but not in a big way

Need to clean up and grease or replace the brake pipes. I always lean towards replace, but then there's the risk of bleeding them, and of course they go over the subframe.

And I'm really busy.

So either sell it as an MOT failure needing brake pipes and with an advisory for a tie rod, or wire brush and grease but then worry if the pipes are weaker 😕

[yes oui si]

On 06/03/2024 at 08:40, RichardK said:

 

(I technically qualify for PIP though it's a nightmare to claim. Almost worth it to get the disabled class on the Cruiser).

My experience wasn't as horrendous as others have had, it just took a fair amount of time. Definitely do it, having disabled class on the 75 boggler makes things so much easier if we need to go to An City. 

15 hours ago, RichardK said:

Well, the SLK failed the MOT, but not in a big way

Need to clean up and grease or replace the brake pipes. I always lean towards replace, but then there's the risk of bleeding them, and of course they go over the subframe.

And I'm really busy.

So either sell it as an MOT failure needing brake pipes and with an advisory for a tie rod, or wire brush and grease but then worry if the pipes are weaker 😕

Personally I'd get a ticket on it then sell. If you prefer the PT then keep it, the market for it must be vanishingly small. 

[RichardK]

52 minutes ago, yes oui si said:

Personally I'd get a ticket on it then sell. If you prefer the PT then keep it, the market for it must be vanishingly small. 

Yeah, I will try and get the brake pipes brushed, checked and greased this weekend - the steering tie rods are cheap so I'm tempted to fit one of those as well.

I might have preferred the PT once,  but that timewaster buyer, taking plate off, losing insurance (and wanting the money after buying the RR-XKR then going through winter without, instead having to swap cars around to try and keep the RR garaged but not wanting to leave the PT outside either) has made me absolutely hate the damn thing.

At the same time it is a 14,000 mile, rust-free, serviced, large interior four seater convertible automatic with heated seats, air con and tyres, brakes and everything as you would want on a car so "new" - and I just can't stomach the thought of it only being worth the same as a 150,000 mile knackered New Beetle or Audi cab. Hell, if I found a new Beetle Cabrio with the horrid 1.6 and bare bones spec with 14K miles I am sure the asking price would still be crazy - and they handle just as badly, are more cramped, are equally badly made (the roof is worse, IMO) and use more fuel!

Maybe I should sell the Range Rover instead but I just know I'll get pisstake offers if I actually want to sell it, so I'm keeping it until someone actively wants to acquire it, I can afford to send it to a restorer for a mad refit (never, then) or something goes bang (unlikely, it's actually really well converted and the chassis is excellent).

[RichardK]

I could use some tiny axle stands to feel comfortable, but I think these should be okay wire brushed and greased - for now? I reckon the tester wouldn't suggest it if they looked too bad.

Definitely not the worst SLK I've seen!

[MJK 24]

I know you can’t tell until you cut the brake pipes, but the wall thickness of the pipe tends to be very good on the old Mercedes models.

I replaced the rear section of my 190 due to an MOT advisory.  It was only when I took the hacksaw to them that I knew they were years away from causing issues.
 

 

[RichardK]

I have brushed them with a wire brush, but it seems I have no grease or black underseal lurking so I'll have to get some in the morning.

The rattly exhaust is the heatshield that's dropped because a corner has corroded where it fits on. WD40 on that then a BIG WASHER. I can see a couple of bits of surface rust on the floor so I'll treat those 'one day' if I don't sell the car. It does seem to be SLK season on Autoshite again.

[RichardK]

Well, wire brushing, and a load of black waxoil (the parts shop sold me spray on copper grease, what a horrible mess that makes) and...

Not sure whether to sell it now. Hmm.