Shite Attitudes - Or Are We Perverse?

[Pete-M]

The shortlist is a 98 ish 316i or 318i Touring or a 1.6 / 1.8 A4 Avant of similar vintage. If it cruises along at 80 quietly, does 35 on a run and doesn't drop to bits with rust, that'll do me. Must have anthracite trim and a big-ish loading area for scrapyard jaunts. £800 should buy a tidy one to last 4-5 years.

 

If you want to cruise along at 80 I wouldn't recommend an A4. Weird little foible with those that they don't seem to like cruising between 70-90 mph. Don't know what it is, but every one I've driven has been the same, even new ones. Get to 70ish and they seem to get all lethargic. Don't know what it is, as they're ok at a ton (on the Autobahn obviously) but I've noticed it in a lot of Audis. Might be some ECU tweakage to get maximum MPGs from 'em, but my old A6 did it as well.

 

It's like that massive flatspot the EEC IV Onion injections and Mk3 Cavs had at 56 and 75 mph.

[dieselnutjob]

If I broke down and turned up at a client's office on an AA truck

I'm genuinely curious. Why would your client care how you turn up as long as you turn up?

I'm told that for some sales people this stuff is important. I also understand that some salesman will virtually kill a car in three or four years due to the high mileages anyway.

 

I commute round the M25 every day and to be honest looking at the cars that on the hard shoulder the new cars don't seem any more reliable than the older ones.

Many many of the breakdowns seem to be punctures and I don't think a nail cares what kind of car the tyre is on that it goes into.

[Guest]

 

Buying new cars is daft if you don't get your money's worth and run it into the ground - buying it on finance (so paying interest on a depreciating asset) and doing 12'000 miles a year is just crazy. At least I paid cash for mine so I only got raped the once!

 

Spot on. I could do to learn this one.

[Gompo]

There are new, good and generally well percieved cars that I do like (Cayman S, Elise SC and Exige and G40 are about the cheapest), however these are way out of my price range and buying a car that still depreciates more than I can run a similar car for is never going to work with me.

 

The unloved thing does certain ring true with me, as I'm sure it does with most here. I have been trying to make an effort in deciding what shite to get next, but struggling at the moment.

 

What about when not following the herd becomes fashionable? Not following the herd would be like following the herd.

 

You could be on to something there. In fact, buying a brand new Ford Focus in silver would be incredibly radical.

 

While not exactly the same, there's a well known quote that goes something like 'Those who always oppose the crowd are still dictated by the crowd'. Obvious of course, but a recognised train of thought.

[Tayne]

.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

The shortlist is a 98 ish 316i or 318i Touring or a 1.6 / 1.8 A4 Avant of similar vintage. If it cruises along at 80 quietly, does 35 on a run and doesn't drop to bits with rust, that'll do me. Must have anthracite trim and a big-ish loading area for scrapyard jaunts. £800 should buy a tidy one to last 4-5 years.

 

If you want to cruise along at 80 I wouldn't recommend an A4. Weird little foible with those that they don't seem to like cruising between 70-90 mph. Don't know what it is, but every one I've driven has been the same, even new ones. Get to 70ish and they seem to get all lethargic. Don't know what it is, as they're ok at a ton (on the Autobahn obviously) but I've noticed it in a lot of Audis. Might be some ECU tweakage to get maximum MPGs from 'em, but my old A6 did it as well.

 

It's like that massive flatspot the EEC IV Onion injections and Mk3 Cavs had at 56 and 75 mph.

 

 

Hmm, interesting - I'll have to try one. My used car* standards are quite low these days - I'm sure it will be fine.

 

New cars? There isn't much in the current BMW range that does much for me - I have a feeling their glory days are well and truly over as they become just another huge selling 'prestige' badge. I'd rather have a ten year old one and spend the rest on high class prostitutes.

 

I rented a new shape Astra the other day. Tell you what, it was pretty impressive and I'd rate it up there with the Golf VI. Nothing to set your pants on fire, but a pleasant, good looking and agreeable chariot that did everything well. If you could get a low mileage one at 18 month old for half list price, it wouldn't be a bad thing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

*When I say used, trust me, I mean USED.

[Pete-M]

I know I wouldn't want to do my job in an old car.

 

I do between about 50-70k miles a year for work and while it's driving, it's not driving for fun. I'm glad I use new Skodas and the like because they're bloody brilliant at blatting from one place to another, using bugger all fuel, handle pretty well, but they're basically repmobiles doing what they're designed to do - pound motorways into submission for four or five hours a day.

 

Ok, it's the same job that the Mk1 Cav, Mk4 Cortina etc was designed to do, but forty years of advances do make a difference when the car is just a tool for work. I love Cortinas, but the thought of doing 150 miles after a long day in a car without aircon, a decent stereo, or even fifth gear is not one I'd be particularly up for. Not when I do these trips three times a week on average. Then there's the fact that the Superbs I tend to use will average 50 mpg, be very quiet and comfy and go a fair bit quicker than a 2.0 Cortina will in motorway traffic. The Superb doesn't try and change lane when hit by the crosswind when passing a truck either, so they're a fair bit more relaxing.

 

At the weekend, yeah, gimme a Mk3 with an injected 2.8 Granada lump,five speed box and a few choice tweaks and I'd be grinning all day.

[Mr Lobster]

If I broke down and turned up at a client's office on an AA truck

 

I'm genuinely curious. Why would your client care how you turn up as long as you turn up

 

Think the point he was making is not about it being a one off but if you kept being late to meetings or arriving on an AA truck then it doesn't look good. A one off is fair enough, that can happen to anyone but if you keep letting people down because your Talbot Solara keeps breaking on the way to see important clients then that important client will start to wonder if this will be an omen for your future business.

 

New cars do make sense in the way that a lot of Europeans buy them - buy new and keep it until it dies in fifteen or twenty years. Theres a chap I know who only does a small annual mileage, say about 8k. But every three years he buys a new Honda CRV. Last summer he replaced his '07 CRV with a '10 CRV. Its that sort of thing that I don't understand.

[Skizzer]

If I broke down and turned up at a client's office on an AA truck

I'm genuinely curious. Why would your client care how you turn up as long as you turn up?

Well no, my point was about the lateness not the mode of transport, i.e. how long it takes to get Relayed if, say, a fuel pump packs in when I have to get from Swansea to Halifax. Nothing against AA trucks per se. And it's not because I want to look somehow 'prestigious' either - I used to go to clients in my beaten up Scirocco and nobody seemed bothered. They did care about me not being where I was supposed to be on a Monday morning though, and I cared about its catalogue of minor fuelling and electrical problems leaving me regularly trying to fix it in the rain and the dark on the way home on a Friday night after a week of 14 hour days.

 

I know Scooters used to commute weekly between Edinburgh and Hertfordshire in a succession of comfy old barges, but he's a better spanner-wielder than I am and braver with it

 

on the hard shoulder the new cars don't seem any more reliable than the older ones. Many many of the breakdowns seem to be punctures and I don't think a nail cares what kind of car the tyre is on that it goes into.

That's a very fair point, although touch wood I've not been left stranded by any car under ten years old since I stopped owning Metros and Citroens years ago. I have had punctures, but I can stick the spare on myself in ten minutes or so (like everyone else on here presumably, though it seems to be a dying skill )

 

Edited to add: Yeah, wot Lobsta sed I do about 20k a year and I'm keeping the Yeti until it starts breaking down a lot, which will probably be in about 8 years.

[Justin Case]

New cars do make sense in the way that a lot of Europeans buy them - buy new and keep it until it dies in fifteen or twenty years. Theres a chap I know who only does a small annual mileage, say about 8k. But every three years he buys a new Honda CRV. Last summer he replaced his '07 CRV with a '10 CRV. Its that sort of thing that I don't understand.

 

Couldn't agree more. I normally buy cars about three years old and keep them until they fall to pieces or (more likely) I need something completely different. Every time I've asked myself why did the original owner get rid of it at a vast loss, and other than that some accountant has realised that it is cost-effective for an ex-company car (and I haven't worked that one out either) I still haven't a clue. That doesn't mean that I don't like shite cars, or don't photograph them or don't read about them, or don't think that I'm probably doing the wrong thing, in a similar way to others here. It just suits me to run a large 4 year old estate car for the time being rather than a more interesting 1980s or earlier car.

[dieselnutjob]

For the record I'm not trying to pick on Skizzer.

I am constantly late for appointments because I live in London and also because I use the M25 and A40M a lot. The traffic is completely shit and if anything happens round here you very quickly get very late. In fact I just came up the A40 tonight and two lanes are coned off and even at 11pm at night it's a huge queue.

Luckily for me it's rare that I really have to be somewhere on time. For the occasional airport run I drive my wife mad by leaving two hours earlier than necessary but you only need a minor accident or something and you are totally screwed.

I'd hate to have a job where you constantly had to be on time all the time. That must be so stressful.

 

I must say that my 607 automatic is perfect for reducing the stress. Built in phone, big comfy seats, nice stereo and a slush box is perfect for being stuck in traffic.

[Des]

 

What about when not following the herd becomes fashionable? Not following the herd would be like following the herd.

 

You could be on to something there. In fact, buying a brand new Ford Focus in silver would be incredibly radical.

 

While not exactly the same, there's a well known quote that goes something like 'Those who always oppose the crowd are still dictated by the crowd'. Obvious of course, but a recognised train of thought.

 

Should be ok as long as never paying any heed to the crowd. Otherwise will have to NOT, not, not follow the crowd, now where am I? Oh feckit, I'll just play safe and get a new Juke and ratlook it and 20 credit cards and OMG scratchcard plasma and become an emo, rude boy, mod, ragga muffin an ting.

 

One thought, perhaps the act of choosing shite is done for the right cause, a personal choice, it's for you alone and not what you think will gain others approval or will bolster low self worth / confidence issues. I don't have a problem with people buying new cars, but I feel few are bought for the right reasons anymore.

[Polystratus]

 

I have calculated that at three years old, given the mileage I do, the fuel, servicing, insurance, licence, tyres, etc. I can afford to throw it away (I assume it will be worth something but not a lot, but by buying the cheapest there is a limit to how much I can lose on depreciation) and it will still be cheaper than trying to keep the old Volvo on the road (It's mainly the fuel bill that does it, the Volvo may no longer have been depreciating, but did half the mpg and was starting to need a lot of parts replacing).

 

Yes I still have old cars as toys, but that's all I use them for now. If it doesn't go it can sit there until I can summon the enthusiasm to do something about it, if I fancy a change I can just change it, it doesn't have to be practical or reliable, it costs me money, I suppose it's a hobby.

 

When I posted something on another motor forum about DIY servicing I got told I was commiting financial sucide by not having a fully dealer stamped service book - and the car would be totally worthless - they presumed that i was like virtually everyone else swapping their cars every two years - or less in some cases. Me and this other guy who like me have a new car once in a lifetime so to speak worked out we'd spent less on cars than some people pay in finance and depreciation.

 

Same for old cars -it's just a hobby for me, just have the 2CV now since didnt really have enough time to attend to the others, I can just do the odd bits in my spare time no pressure to get it back on the road.

[gtd2000]

Neither - my knobs big enough not to worry about it

[Guest]

If I was truly on a budget and wanted the cheapest motoring experience whilst still remaining fairly pleasant, I would get a grand together and buy the mintest example of an undesirable yet fairly uncomplicated car from around the mid 90s - something like a Kia Clarus, Daewoo Espero or Hyundai Lantra (smaller cars are available, I'm just saying what I'd do). Some one old boy owner thing with 30K on the clock, full service history, always garaged. I'd then keep completely up to everything on the service intervals (probably more frequently with the oil), keep it clean and waxed, regular rustproofing. Basically just looking after it as if it was a pretty expensive new car. I reckon a car like that would last nearly forever if you never took your eye off the ball - even if the engine went mental and exploded one day, if the rest of the car was still mint and a known quantity, you could justify doing it.

 

As is, I need to drive weird old things to/from work just to surround the horrible day between. I don't know how anyone else copes.

[mk1_4dr]

I like old things.

 

Its a rare occurence that I buy something new, and its not just cars either. When I was with the ex, I kitted the entire house out in old/vintage furniture, an awesomely huge and comfy '60s leather 3piece suite that was like new that I got for £40, a deco mahogany bookcase, a 20's dinning table etcetc, basically alsort of juicy period stuff to fill the house. Unfortunately, when I moved into the flat, Ive had to start again. Ive not made much progress so far.

 

Cars though, I like old cars, and Im not really sure why. There is the simplicty of them, although, the lack of available parts sometimes does my head in, but thats the price you pay to actually be able to wield the spanners and fix it myself.

My family love the old cars, and never dream of telling me to upgrade to a new motor. Im not sure my girlfriend understands, infact Im pretty sure she doesn't, I have told her in no uncertain terms that she'll have to get used to them

The guys at work give me nothing but shit about driving old rammle, but they also love it when I rock up in something different, and everyone loves escRot.

[Justin Case]

Now that my car has passed its fourth birthday, those nice people at Mazda have sent me a little brochure telling me that I can have bright shiny new one just the same as the one I've already got for a mere £279 per month over the next three years. Of course I won't actually own the car, so at the end of the period I won't have the bother of trying to sell it before I take on another one, which by then will no doubt be £379 per month. I am sure that that would be £10,044 well spent in anybody's money.

 

In terms of perverseness surely that is off any scale known to the human race, and is the best argument I have seen yet for shite.

[oman5]

I do get a perverse thrill out of the inverted snobbery of driving shite, but its also a nostalgia thing and a not-wanting-to-follow-the-herd thing too. I've worked my way through cars I remember from my childhood (cortinas and sd1s mostly)

and now its anything that's reasonably easy to fix and worthless enough to aquire in good condition for very little outlay.

volvo 740s are my current passion. the saloon versions are worth pennies even with a chunk of MOT and high mileage is really not a concern.

[gtd2000]

I do get a perverse thrill out of the inverted snobbery of driving shite, but its also a nostalgia thing and a not-wanting-to-follow-the-herd thing too. ...and now its anything that's reasonably easy to fix and worthless enough to aquire in good condition for very little outlay.

 

That's pretty much exactly my take on it, but I tend to focus purely on the Asian marques.

 

When I was swanning around Holland in my Proton in 2008 & 2009, I used to laugh at the endless ribbing of my colleagues who virtually all drove BMW and Audi cars..

 

One of them had a rear brake service done on his BMW, which, actually cost as much as my entire car

 

The Proton was sold to an Austrian colleague in the end and it finally passed to a chap from Hartlepool (one of his employees) who normally drove around in a Discovery & Rover 75.

 

He was actually very impressed by the Proton and said he'd not think twice about buying another one.

[scooters]

Current culture revolves around being made to feel like individuals whilst operating within specific norms - being a free spirit by purchasing a specific type of mobile phone, wearing a specific outfit, going to a specific corporately-run music festival, etc. People like to feel like they're part of some sort of gang I guess. More of an observation than a criticism, but being a radical alternative type seems to be more about wearing bowling shoes and not getting a proper haircut. You're still trying to impress people, but just "your" sort of people. Nobody is impressed by me.

 

Anyway, I buy whatever cars I like and can afford.

 

 

 

damn right

[scooters]

my main motivation is it's interesting. I like cars and this way I get to drive and own a variety of them. Also economy - buying a new car makes no sense at all to me. Leonard and I don't agree on mutch but I agree with him that a reliable, well known and proven car is a very sensible option.

 

Also, aything post on board diagnostic system - ie anything that needs a laptop plugged into it (say post '93) is beyond me mechanically - hell it's all I can do to get my head around EFI!!!

 

gibe e a Sherpa anyday! straightforward and you can fix it with a hammer.

[worldofceri]

...cheapest motoring experience ...grand ...mintest example ...undesirable ...Hyundai Lantra ...old boy ...30K on the clock...always garaged....frequently with the oil...clean and waxed...looking after it ...nearly forever ...engine went mental and exploded ...still mint ... justify doing it.

 

What he said.

 

Just out of interest, what would you do, Hirst, if you actually had a job you enjoyed? Buy a brand new Renault Wind perhaps?