Insuring new driver on a car with a 4.0 engine

Azhrei

Hi all,

I'm just learning to drive, I've bought myself a '95 Suzuki Baleno 1.3 GL saloon, and am pretty happy with it (it goes from a to b, and it was cheap!). Very soon I'll be applying for the theory test again (failed it by five questions first time, guess I'll actually study the book next time!) and I hope to be driving the Suzuki to work within the next two months or so. Now, I have just started work at a place that pays me pretty well and I will be able to buy a more expensive car somewhere down the road. Specifically, I have my eye on my ultimate dream car, a Jaguar XK8.

These cars are now going for as low as around €15,000 or so, going back to around 1997 and onwards. I can save up for a year or two and I will be able to afford one... or I could get one even sooner by getting a loan. When I do save, I will save even more just for the cost of insurance. In any case, I really, really want one of these beautiful cars, but I'm worried about insurance. I'm turning thirty years of age in July and I've never had a licence before now. Unfortunately, all the XK8's (or XKR's, whatever, as long as it has that body!) seem to come in only one engine variety - a 4.0. They are strong v8 cars. I couldn't care less if the car I get has a two cylinder engine, I'm not interested in racing or showing it off and I won't be speeding around in my current car like many young(er) men do. But whatever year or variation of XK8 I get, will I be insured?

My brother thinks that you have to be driving for at least ten years or so before they'll insure you in one of these cars. Indeed, I tried getting quick quotes from Quinn Direct and others and all of them said the same thing - they couldn't give me a quote over the 'net, I'd have to ring them. I'm not going to ring an insurance company to ask for a quote for a car I won't have for a few years yet!

I was just hoping for a little advice here, if anyone can give some. I'd be very grateful.

bigpinkelephant

You are really running before you can walk- you should focus on passing your theory test and getting a provisional licence. No insurance company will insure you without a licence.

mikemac

Ring them to get a quote just so you can plan ahead, costs nothing except the price of the call

Make sure you are sitting down while making the call in case you get a shock :eek:

wil

Look at the facts - you are nearly 30, never learned to drive, not even enough knowledge of the basic rules of the road to pass a very basic pre-provisional theory test by a considerable margin and you are hoping to drive to work in an XK8.
Would you insure you? For any money?

The terms money and sense come immediately to mind.
The amount of people I see "driving" fast expensive, high end cars who barely demonstrate the ability to control a Robin Reliant has increased hugely in the last few years.
(Tiger cubs arent noted for their driving ability)
Our system has many years to catch up on the Celtic flathuileach.

UK findings are that it takes more lessons for a person to pass the test the older they are.

Option 1 - pass your theory test, get lessons, pass your driving test, buy a regular car, drive for a few years, enjoy motoring then consider your desires for something more exotic.
Option 2 - buy a Ferrari - have a serious accident involving yourself and others - spend rest of life regretting.

Alanstrainor

Sorry but are you driving without even a learners permit?!?! Get your full license first before even considering your xk8, such a car would command a good deal of driving experience, the extra power coupled with rear wheel drive could make it a handful if you push it in any way and let's face it, you probably will at some stage. I mean it's a 290hp beast with just under 400Nm of torque:eek:

chris85

How come you are learning to drive with out having sat the theory test yet, hence no learners permit? you failed a very easy theory test and you expect to be in a 4 litre V8 monster in no time? get real.

You will not be able to control the power of a 4 litre engine yet.

You wont be able to afford insurance anyways. Learn to walk before sprinting it.

MissL

chris85 wrote: »

How come you are learning to drive with out having sat the theory test yet, hence no learners permit? you failed a very easy theory test and you expect to be in a 4 litre V8 monster in no time? get real.

You will not be able to control the power of a 4 litre engine yet.

You wont be able to afford insurance anyways. Learn to walk before sprinting it.

+1 Well said

Azhrei

Whoah... whoah. Calm down there, people! No, Alanstrainor, I am not currently nor do I plan to drive without a learner permit or any form of licence! Chris85, I will be applying for the theory test again next week and therefore hope to be learning to drive in the next two months or so. As for the test, yes it was very easy but I got caught out on trick questions, there was one question about what lane to take for the third exit on a roundabout, there were like five or so choices, and the one that made the most sense was not among the three answers! Also, I knew the maximum permissible speed limit in mph, but not kph... I also just plain didn't study the book or cd because when I applied I was of half a mind about whether to drive or not. This time I'm serious about applying, I need a car.

Wil - did nobody ready my original post? That's what I plan to do! I bought a Suzuki Baleno with a 1.3 engine that I will be using to drive for a few years yet... it's what I will learn to drive with. It's only in a few years time that I will want to upgrade to the Jag. As for a Ferrari, I would never buy one! Or any other "exotic" car. People don't seem to realise that I don't actually WANT the Jag to have a powerful, fast 4.0 V8 engine, but it unfortunately does. I will be a very careful driver no matter what I buy, and the fastest I'd ever drive it, or any other car, would be around 60-70mph. As I tried to emphasise in my original post, I wouldn't care if the Jag had a 0.3 two cylinder engine, I only want it because it's such a beautiful looking car!

Okay, let's simplify this. Here's what I am looking to do - pass the theory test and get my learner permit and as soon as possible, my full licence. I will drive this car for a few years while saving to get the Jaguar XK8/XKR. What I'm worried about is, when I'm thirty five or whatever age I get it at, will I be insured? By that point I should have been driving for a few years with a full driver licence with no tickets for speeding or anything (because I never will, I don't see the point). All I want is what is in my opinion, the most beautiful car in the world. Unfortunately, that car, in all its variations, has a powerful, 4.0 V8 engine. Is it possible for me to get insured at that point? I acknowledge that it'll be more expensive, I mean obviously.. but my brother says they won't give it to me until I've been driving for ten years.

I'd just like to know.

bigpinkelephant

Azhrei wrote: »

Whoah... whoah. trick questions, there was one question about what lane to take for the third exit on a roundabout, there were like five or so choices, and the one that made the most sense was not among the three answers!

If the third exit was for turning right (more likely than not, it is), you go in the right hand lane. You go in the right hand lane for any exit further to the right than the "12" on a clock.

Azhrei wrote: »

Also, I knew the maximum permissible speed limit in mph, but not kph....

you need to adapt to kph, that is what the speed limits are in- far too many people stilll seeing 60 on a sign and forgetting its kilometers and not miles- 60mph is 100kph! my uncle does it- forgets to look at the "kph" part of the speedometer :eek:

Azhrei

bigpinkelephant wrote: »

If the third exit was for turning right (more likely than not, it is), you go in the right hand lane. You go in the right hand lane for any exit further to the right than the "12" on a clock.

I know, that's what I would have chosen.... but the option presented (as a choice) wasn't in the answers! It was really weird.

you need to adapt to kph, that is what the speed limits are in- far too many people stilll seeing 60 on a sign and forgetting its kilometers and not miles- 60mph is 100kph! my uncle does it- forgets to look at the "kph" part of the speedometer :eek:

Yeah, I know, that's my fault, I've still got mph instead of kph on my mind. I'll definitely study the ratios before going for the theory test again.

chris85

Ok the theor test is straight forward. A couple of odd questions getting wrong is fine as you are allowed 5 wrong (or 4, not sure, been a couple of years).

Get your mind thinking in km as miles are not used. You havent driven before so thinking in km should be easy as you have never had to think of limits before in terms of miles.

Insurers technically must give you a quote but it will be extreme for the foreseeable future.

By the way we all thought you wanted to get insured now on one as you saw in your title "insuring new driver on a car with 4 litre engine". The new driver being paramount.

Wouldnt even contemplate being able to afford insurance on one for 5-10 years. the running cost on an XKR is massive as well. You will go through about 4 times as much petrol compared to a standard 40mpg car.

Azhrei

Ah, sorry for the misunderstanding, what I meant is that by the time I hope to get the XK8, I will still be a relatively "new" driver, having been driving only for a few years.

As for the running cost, every review I've read on the XK8 says that they are far more economical fuel-wise than people think, averaging around 25mpg. Not great, no, but as far as I know my Baleno is only 23mpg, and that's a Japanese car. I'll see about ringing Quinn Direct and Britton Insurance (very cheap!) over the weekend and will let you guys know what they say. I appreciate your replies

chris85

Azhrei wrote: »

Ah, sorry for the misunderstanding, what I meant is that by the time I hope to get the XK8, I will still be a relatively "new" driver, having been driving only for a few years.

As for the running cost, every review I've read on the XK8 says that they are far more economical fuel-wise than people think, averaging around 25mph. Not great, no, but as far as I know my Baleno is only 23mpg, and that's a Japanese car. I'll see about ringing Quinn Direct and Britton Insurance (very cheap!) over the weekend and will let you guys know what they say. I appreciate your replies

Britton will probably be best for this sort of car but to be honest I would wait till you actually want to buy one as there is no comparison between quoting now and in five years time, it will be totally different.

Tbh they are going to laugh when you say you are new driver and want insurance on an XKR, seriously, they mite even choke a little.

They wont give a quote for five years time. pretend you are a driver with five years full licence but the quote will not be anywhere near as accurate as it will be five years down the road.

you gotta chillax about getting the XKR as its far way down the road, get your permit first.

Azhrei

chris85 wrote: »

Britton will probably be best for this sort of car but to be honest I would wait till you actually want to buy one as there is no comparison between quoting now and in five years time, it will be totally different.

Tbh they are going to laugh when you say you are new driver and want insurance on an XKR, seriously, they mite even choke a little.

They wont give a quote for five years time. pretend you are a driver with five years full licence but the quote will not be anywhere near as accurate as it will be five years down the road.

you gotta chillax about getting the XKR as its far way down the road, get your permit first.

Oh I will man, it's just something I want to plan for as I will be saving for it. Thanks for the great advice

Edit - I just received two quotes from Britton. For the first I pretended to have held a full licence for five years, for a '97 XK8 worth €15,000. I received a quote of €1,086. Switching the quote to a provisional licence only six months old, I got a quote for €5,982. The first quote is fantastic, I now have a goal for the next five years

buckfast4me

Have you ever actually driven an XK8 or do you just think it looks pretty? I drove an XJ6 before for a day and it was an extremely horrible and annoying car to drive. Modern cars are much more comfortable.

Another thing have u seen the cost of tax on an engine that size... €1500 / year or something?

Azhrei

buckfast4me wrote: »

Have you ever actually driven an XK8 or do you just think it looks pretty? I drove an XJ6 before for a day and it was an extremely horrible and annoying car to drive. Modern cars are much more comfortable.

Another thing have u seen the cost of tax on an engine that size... €1500 / year or something?

No, I've never driven one, but everything I've read says that they shed off the image of the older Jaguar cars as being difficult to drive, and whatever other problems Jaguar cars were known to exhibit before they were bought out by Ford. I will of course test drive any car before I commit to buying one (which will obviously be a good few years down the road). Every single review I've read or watched as been overwhelmingly positive, with everyone giving glowing reviews for the car. Even Jeremy Clarkson was full of praise

I don't like the look of the newer XK models of the last few years, they're nice cars but I prefer the look of the "teardrop" XK8/XKR. I'm very surprised that there is actually quite a number of them on sale in Ireland, I thought at first I'd have to import one from the UK. Which one would you choose?



The older model XK8 that I really, really want (although this is a convertible, I want the coupe). Looks like a modern re-imagining of the E-Type



The redesigned, new XKR cabriolet model that has replaced it. I think it's a beautiful car alright, just not as much as the older one.

A-Trak

Azhrei wrote: »

I'm just learning to drive, I've bought myself a '95 Suzuki Baleno 1.3 GL saloon,Specifically, I have my eye on my ultimate dream car, a Jaguar XK8.

These cars are now going for as low as around €15,000 or so, going back to around 1997 and onwards. I can save up for a year or two and I will be able to afford one... or I could get one even sooner by getting a loan?

Learn the whole mechanics of driving with your Suzuki.
Get lessons, apply for your theory test, then your full test.
Save the money over the space of time it takes to learn to drive and pass your full test. When you pass it you can buy your dream car, not get in debt and be able to drive it and have lower insurance for being a fully lisenced driver with 2 years experience!

Or...get a loan, be 15k in debt, be more or less guaranteed to at least ding your jag or worse, and pay huge amounts of money to get it fixed and panel beaten.

Driving schools use 1L to 1.2L cars for a reason!

As someone who bought a car that was beyond my level of skill to drive when learning I would heartily recommend the former option.

Wishbone Ash

Azhrei wrote: »

No, I've never driven one, but everything I've read says that they shed off the image of the older Jaguar cars as being difficult to drive

You should never meet your heros - it always ends in tears!

Alanstrainor

A-Trak wrote: »

Get lessons, apply for your theory test, then your full test.

Surely you mean apply/pass theory test, get lessons, then full test.:pac::pac:

Azhrei

A-Trak wrote: »

Learn the whole mechanics of driving with your Suzuki.
Get lessons, apply for your theory test, then your full test.
Save the money over the space of time it takes to learn to drive and pass your full test. When you pass it you can buy your dream car, not get in debt and be able to drive it and have lower insurance for being a fully lisenced driver with 2 years experience!

Or...get a loan, be 15k in debt, be more or less guaranteed to at least ding your jag or worse, and pay huge amounts of money to get it fixed and panel beaten.

Driving schools use 1L to 1.2L cars for a reason!

As someone who bought a car that was beyond my level of skill to drive when learning I would heartily recommend the former option.

Yep, that's what I intend to do. The Baleno is a fine car to learn in, small engine and all that, I intend to be using it until I get the Jag... whether that's five or ten years down the road, I'll be better prepared and experienced. Thanks for your post

You should never meet your heros - it always ends in tears!

Heh, yep, I'm well aware of the wisdom of that saying. I can't help but be excited to drive one for the first time when all of the reviews I've read or watched sing nothing but high praises for the XK8!

chris85

OP you are putting yourself under pressure trying to get driving to get the dream car but just take it easy and enjoy learning to drive as it is a great experience, well it was for me anyway.

Thinking about this Jag too much will mean you feel you need to pass sooner. Just enjoy it and see what happens in a few years.