The most modern old shite you can get away with?

[RoadworkUK]

Right. Unpopular answer time. 

B5-generation Audi A4, pre-facelift (1994-1998). Particularly with the 20v 1.8 pez engine, or the turbocharged 1.8T version. Post-98 they cheapened out a bit on build.  

I have the 1.8T. Bought it when it was 10, to tide me over. 14 years later, I still have it, because it's been utterly trustworthy and there's absolutely no point in getting rid of it.

Some people on here have had bad times with them, I know, and perhaps it's a 'your mileage may vary' thing, but mine has soaked up 100,000 miles during my ownership. It's just approaching 150k all in. It's A Modern Car, really. Has four airbags, plenty of power, 35+mpg, rides quite well (better than virtually any current Audi, anyway), handles neatly (if rather short on involvement), 

The every-60k cambelt job is a bit of a faff, requiring all the front end to come off for access, but it's all relatively straightforward Halfords socket-set stuff (like, even I can do it, and have done, thrice). It's a twin cam engine, but the cams are chain-driven, so there's only one belt plus auxiliaries to change.

I had a strange issue recently where it forgot how to tick over, but the full version of VCD-lite (what once was VAG-COM) is less than £100 and enables all kinds of freaky laptop voodoo. I recalibrated the injection system with it and all is well. I also had suspected head gasket failure at one point; the cooling system was full of mayo, but it turned out that the oil filter heat exchanger was leaking, mixing oil with coolant. Replaced that and flushed the system, right as rain.

Only 'take it to a man' fault I've had with it is a sheared driveshaft, which seems pretty major but I think it was about £250 inc parts and labour at a trusted garridge.

I still think it's a fairly sharp looking machine, and just about from the era that an Audi didn't immediately identify you as a complete pox on society. 

I like 'em.

[sierraman]

I quite like those era Audi, classy car, not yobbish like the new ones. Front suspension aside they are pretty durable. 

[maxxo]

1 hour ago, Dobloseven said:

Yeah, I was thinking along the same lines! Guess they mean something thats as new as possible, but with as little to go wrong as possible. 

It completely depends on the car really

luck of the draw, for completely no effort ownership something brand new and Japanese or Korean with warranty would be exactly the an car required

But for me, French with fluide suspension is what does me in the right ways

[JJ0063]

100% depends on the car 

My old E30 was a 1988 and I could easily have used it as a daily, wouldn’t have thought twice.

Discovery 2 on the other hand, I’ve owned 3, newest being a 2002 and I wouldn’t have trusted it as a daily at all.

[Waderider]

I've had a Volvo C30 1.6 petrol for about a decade. Done 90k in that time with two things over regular servicing - windscreen needed rebonding to resolve a leak, and a power steering hose needed replaced.

On 119k, no plans to move on, it's our in and outa town car.

[EyesWeldedShut]

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1192190978310530/?hoisted=false&ref=search&referral_code=null&referral_story_type=post&tracking=browse_serp%3Af2a92e4c-0977-4848-9d58-07602f71075d

[MJK 24]

Audi 80 1.9TDI manual.

[RoverFolkUs]

I wouldn't bother with a Volvo C30. They're literally the same as a MK2 Focus, but easily double the price of a decent Focus, if not more.

Only advantage I'd say they have is a questionably nicer interior (I'm not a fan, but still better than the Focus interior) and they look a bit meaner

If you just want a run about then just get a Focus

[New POD]

18 minutes ago, RoverFolkUs said:

I wouldn't bother with a Volvo C30. They're literally the same as a MK2 Focus, but easily double the price of a decent Focus, if not more.

Only advantage I'd say they have is a questionably nicer interior (I'm not a fan, but still better than the Focus interior) and they look a bit meaner

If you just want a run about then just get a Focus

The T5 always appealed 

 

https://www.evo.co.uk/volvo/c30/8875/volvo-c30-t5

I quote : a better car than the nose-heavy Focus ST it’s based on.

I predict that in years to come these will achieve cult classic status. 

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202210100594821?atmobcid=soc5

[FakeConcern]

3 hours ago, RoverFolkUs said:

I wouldn't bother with a Volvo C30. They're literally the same as a MK2 Focus, but easily double the price of a decent Focus, if not more.

Only advantage I'd say they have is a questionably nicer interior (I'm not a fan, but still better than the Focus interior) and they look a bit meaner

If you just want a run about then just get a Focus

I kind of agree, but I do like that you don't see them very often and many people have no idea what they are, plus the equivalent model to my C30 is the Focus ST and I couldn't really picture driving around in one of those.

2 hours ago, New POD said:

The T5 always appealed 

 

https://www.evo.co.uk/volvo/c30/8875/volvo-c30-t5

I quote : a better car than the nose-heavy Focus ST it’s based on.

I predict that in years to come these will achieve cult classic status. 

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202210100594821?atmobcid=soc5

Exactly...

Mine's a T5

[New POD]

7 minutes ago, FakeConcern said:

I kind of agree, but I do like that you don't see them very often and many people have no idea what they are, plus the equivalent model to my C30 is the Focus ST and I couldn't really picture driving around in one of those.

Exactly...

Mine's a T5

When you come to sell let me know. 

[GeordieInExile]

My missus has just got a mk3 Focus. It's quite nice. I'd have one once they're down to £1500 for a warmed up version.

[Asimo]

My Transit Connect: 2006, petrol.  Had it for 9 years and I just don’t know that I could do better. 
Utterly reliable in that modern, fuel injected way. No frills ( ok, it does have the - optional- ABS and a single (driver’s) airbag).  The bodyshell is strong, stiff, mostly made of zinc- coated steel, so despite the thinnest, cheapest paint possible, it is largely solid at 16 years. Suspension is struts and leaf springs, PAS is purely hydraulic - ‘50s technology. (But it steers really nicely) Stops as well as any modern yet has rear drums (a good tug and you can handbrake turn like a Helsinki bus driver)
Engine?  It just works. Perfectly.

Look at this, I did the cam-cover gasket a few weeks ago. Looks like new at 16 years /90,000 miles.

Petrol Connects are very rare in Britain, much fewer than 1% sold. The Diesels are relatively miserable. The 2008-on facelifted Connects have a tacky, shittier interior and that horrid, “project drive” air of less care, more profit. The follow up model? No way, Ecoboost, connectivity shit, multiple bollocks. Just a mk7 Fiesta with a box-body really.

One day the rust will win. No idea what could replace this.

 

[robinmasters]

On 10/5/2022 at 12:50 AM, Alan_Green said:

Yeah.  Was inevitable really.  I picked it tonight and drove it the 20 miles back to base.  It drove like a dream.  Smooth and wallowy.  The interior feels like new.  Just ridiculous that this is near death.  It's got at least another 200k in it.  Anyway, it's now parked 10 feet away from an independent Peugeot/Citroen garage.  Will it live?  Tune in to find out.   I'll stick it on the ramp tomorrow and have a good look.  A big thank you to Rob for his flexibility tonight and for his continued cooperation over the next week.  Thanks a million Rob.

This. 1.9 xud, which will last forever. No canbus shite. Comfy. Some airbags. Not rusty. 

[Split_Pin]

On 10/21/2022 at 9:06 PM, RoadworkUK said:

Right. Unpopular answer time. 

B5-generation Audi A4, pre-facelift (1994-1998). Particularly with the 20v 1.8 pez engine, or the turbocharged 1.8T version. Post-98 they cheapened out a bit on build.  

I have the 1.8T. Bought it when it was 10, to tide me over. 14 years later, I still have it, because it's been utterly trustworthy and there's absolutely no point in getting rid of it.

Some people on here have had bad times with them, I know, and perhaps it's a 'your mileage may vary' thing, but mine has soaked up 100,000 miles during my ownership. It's just approaching 150k all in. It's A Modern Car, really. Has four airbags, plenty of power, 35+mpg, rides quite well (better than virtually any current Audi, anyway), handles neatly (if rather short on involvement), 

The every-60k cambelt job is a bit of a faff, requiring all the front end to come off for access, but it's all relatively straightforward Halfords socket-set stuff (like, even I can do it, and have done, thrice). It's a twin cam engine, but the cams are chain-driven, so there's only one belt plus auxiliaries to change.

I had a strange issue recently where it forgot how to tick over, but the full version of VCD-lite (what once was VAG-COM) is less than £100 and enables all kinds of freaky laptop voodoo. I recalibrated the injection system with it and all is well. I also had suspected head gasket failure at one point; the cooling system was full of mayo, but it turned out that the oil filter heat exchanger was leaking, mixing oil with coolant. Replaced that and flushed the system, right as rain.

Only 'take it to a man' fault I've had with it is a sheared driveshaft, which seems pretty major but I think it was about £250 inc parts and labour at a trusted garridge.

I still think it's a fairly sharp looking machine, and just about from the era that an Audi didn't immediately identify you as a complete pox on society. 

I like 'em.

I've had a B5 on my bucket list for quite some time. Very handsome machines and it's good to hear that they're still old enough to fall into the period where Audi made cars for nice people and not chavs.

[AnthonyG]

The thing about Volvo C30s is that they sold to a different, generally more affluent customer base than Focus Mk2s, and almost exclusively to private buyers.

So they may be more expensive now, but they are more likely to have led gentler lives and/or been maintained better, at least the non sport models.

I’ve also never seen a rusty one, so I assume the paint/rust protection was better than the Focus. 

Even the replacement V40 hatch still had loads of Ford bits underneath despite being launched after the ‘divorce’, I remember pointing out the ‘FoMoCo’ stampings on the rear suspension components to a slightly embarrassed salesman!
 

[sierraman]

They had the bit of plastic along the top on the cam cover to stop damp getting to the plug leads, which incidentally is a mod on the Focus. 

[Split_Pin]

Nearly all the C30s I see now are owned by the young team and barried up.

[Dobloseven]

Son bought a 1.6 diesel 2010 C30, three years ago Mysterious limp mode issues from the start that the dealer couldn't sort. Ended up getting his money back. Nieces husband has a 2012 one with a bigger diesel engine (D4?) and auto. Drives home from Devon every weekend in it. Occasional limp mode issues, but seems to keep going. 

[Shirley Knott]

I actually own two of the four cars  pictured in your original post as I type this.

MK4 Golf: I've had quite a few of these and the diesel ones are the pick of the bunch. Arguably the toughest/most robust would be the SDi models, although you pay the price for that with tepid performance (I'm running one of these at present). Even the youngest MK4's are now 20 years old, rust is starting to become an issue for some and even good ones now need regular intervention. All that being said, we've covered 16k in the last year and the only bits needed have been ancillaries, so think tyres, brakes, coil springs and exhaust parts.

P2 V70: Cheap to buy but expensive (ish) to run. Ours is the NA 2.4 manual and the tax is expensive, the MPG isn't great and parts aren't that cheap either. All that being said, they're tough old cars and very comfortable. They also put you almost in van territory in terms of the ability to move large things about. There doesn't seem to be a 'right' choice engine wise, but auto boxes should be avoided like the plague if possible (IMO) unless you fancy a roll of the dice.

RE other stuff, I suppose rust is the real enemy once any car starts to get older, and also availability of parts. Whilst I hear the suggestions of Volvo 940's (And they're a great car), there are various bits for them that are completely unavailable now (Ask me how I know!) and for a daily driver that's never going to work.

 

 

[Ghosty]

10 hours ago, Dobloseven said:

Son bought a 1.6 diesel 2010 C30, three years ago Mysterious limp mode issues from the start that the dealer couldn't sort. Ended up getting his money back. Nieces husband has a 2012 one with a bigger diesel engine (D4?) and auto. Drives home from Devon every weekend in it. Occasional limp mode issues, but seems to keep going. 

The 1.6D is a Ford Duratorq, ie a 1.6 HDI and they're a bit shit. 

A D4 is a five pot Volvo lump - much better. 

[Dobloseven]

Thought I'd achieved some kind of motoring Nirvana with the 2010 Renault Kangoo MPV I bought at 8 months and 4k miles. No DPF, unlike the Doblo it replaced. Only 90 hp, so ran out of steam on motorways, but we'd other cars for that. There was a more powerful engine with 6 speeds, but DPF on that one, vehicle is used mainly for short local trips. Would have replaced it with another, but Renault pulled the plug on them soon after. Mercedes made a Citan version, but sold as a commercial with a lot of equipment missing. Anyways, really liked it and decided to keep it indefinitely. Hoping it would "see me out" as they say. Had the timing belt etc. replaced, kept the oil changed and had just fitted new pads and discs all round, when in 2019,with MrsD, driving back from family holiday in Wales,the engine packed up big time. Guessing the head gasket had gone. Must have got very hot, because some plastic bits had melted. No temperature gauge either. Advised best course would be S/H engine, which I didn't fancy. Decided to give up on it at 125k miles. Replaced it with 66 reg ex Motability petrol Zafira. Someone I knew bought it as was and it's still on the road, so a happy ending in a way. 

[carlo]

AA Breakdown repair cover is your friend, especially on these sorts of cars designed/built in the 90s.  I pay £200 a year for my three cars and they are all covered for any repair resulting into a breakdown for up to £500 each claim.