trading down years/older bigger car

G rock

hi all,

looking for some advice from those in the know..

currently driving an 09 1.4 golf, which i'm not too happy with. it's running fine but it's hardly a joy to drive and i'm now coming to the realisation that if i don't enjoy driving it what's the point in paying out a big enough chunk every month to service the loan on it?

i don't know enough about cars (hence i'm driving a golf!) to trust myself to buy something from the bangeronomic school of thought, so i was thinking of trading down a few years for a better spec'd car with a better engine.

any thoughts on this plan of action?

wise/not wise?

just take a gamble on bangeronomics and then have the extra cash in my pocket as well?

Bought that for €850




that for €430



that for €800 (gearbox went 10,000 miles later so not a great example)



that for €900.


And this sexy lady for €2250 :eek:




Loved them all and it's cheap motoring once you can spare a Saturday afternoon every so often, may not be particularly shrewd move if you will go to the garage for every small little job but you can more or less eliminate depreciation from the cost of motoring. Of course you'll need to sell on the Golf without losing your arse on it too.

that's only the last 18 months too.

Eoin

RoverJames wrote:

that for €800 (gearbox went 10,000 miles later so not a great example)

That still is a good example! 10K miles and you're only down €800 - minus whatever you got for parts / scrappage?

G rock - have you checked out the bangernomics thread for some ideas? Anything grab your fancy?

F-Stop

I can't answer all your questions, because I'm asking the same ones myself. I'm seeing more and more posts like this. There was a good effort at starting a recession busting car thread (as opposed to bangernomics) recently (but I can't find it now, it was only a week or two ago though).

I think bangernomics is great, but for less knowledgable people (me!) it doesn't quite fit. The general gist of the recent posts like this is:

People want to shed loan repayments or free up some cash in the car they have.

Set a budget generally around 2,000 and under (though this varies of course).

Are happy enough with a 10+ year old with reasonably high mileage.

Want something reliable that isn't going to cost a huge amount when parts need to be replaced.

Want a decent sized engine, but an economical one that doesn't drink fuel.

Would also like an enjoyable drive and a bit of luxury if possible.

The sort of things that are suggested are:

Honda Accord, Volvo S40, Nissan Primera, Toyota Avensis, Ford Mondeo...

These aren't really cars that fall into the bangernomics category, but there seems to be a growing interest for this type of thing.

Eoin

It doesn't have to be a money pit / high maintenance car though.

Double the budget to 4K, and you could be looking at a really tidy car that won't need much done.

Want something reliable that isn't going to cost a huge amount when parts need to be replaced.

Want a decent sized engine, but an economical one that doesn't drink fuel.

That's going to be a popular car, so prices will probably be quite strong for that. Get a thirstier car for less money and have some fun! OK, I'm biased - but an e39 530i has a pretty solid engine, and can do over 30mpg on the motorway.

BrianD3

I dont know how much a Golf was in 09 but they're now advertising new ones for 15850. If you sell your 09 one now how much will you get for it and how much will you still have left on your loan etc.

Bigcheeze

Like the BMW. The Touring models look much classier than the saloon.

Squall19

Good move Rock, if you enjoy your driving then a weedy 1.4 Golf thats costing you a fortune every month isnt an good match.You will take a big hit at the start, because 1.4 petrol Golfs are not really in demand, if it was a diesel with low road tax you be fine.Long term you will be much better off without the Golf, its very basic in fairness.

Something like a new shape Hyundai Coupe would be money well spent imo, for 3k you could get a nice car.1.6, handy on fuel, ok performance and they look modern, my brothers girlfriend had one and she never had a problem with it, nice to drive too.

http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/1602568

Thats a low maintenance option, I would get a nice BMW petrol like the boys have suggested though

jaffa20

Roverjames, I really want your Honda Prelude. It's a beaut. Looks so well for a 93.

jaffa20

jaffa20 wrote: »

Roverjames, I really want your Honda Prelude. It's a beaut. Looks so well for a 93.

An enthusiast bought her off me, he was looking for an auto one for a while. The photo flatters her a bit, she had a pinking tinge when not freshly polished and some poorly repaired rot on the passenger rear arch.

G rock

thanks for all the replies!

i guess at the minute i'm debating whether to

a) sell the golf and use the full revenue generated to buy a better motor (and still have the same amount outstanding on loan) e.g 4-5yr old

b) sell golf and then buy something around the 4-5k mark (older still, higher mileage etc) but release some money

c) sell golf, buy banger, have no loan at all.

option c, however tempting it might be, might be a stretch, since my motoring knowledge is nil, and i reckon that not only would i not trust my choice of car, but if any little thing goes wrong with it i'll be paying someone else to sort it out!

i'm actually not doing too many miles as it is (cycle to work), so option b could be a goer.

G rock

G rock wrote: »

c) sell golf, buy banger, have no loan at all.

option c, however tempting it might be, might be a stretch, since my motoring knowledge is nil, and i reckon that not only would i not trust my choice of car, but if any little thing goes wrong with it i'll be paying someone else to sort it out!

i'm actually not doing too many miles as it is (cycle to work), so option b could be a goer.

If your doing so few miles I'd go with C, buy something freshly NCTd that is more or less sound and you may well have to throw very very little into it over the next few years. They are not the money pit you'd expect.

Matt Simis

eoin wrote: »

That's going to be a popular car, so prices will probably be quite strong for that. Get a thirstier car for less money and have some fun! OK, I'm biased - but an e39 530i has a pretty solid engine, and can do over 30mpg on the motorway.

Im glad I hired you for my PR campaign! (see car made for this thread for sale in signature)

Padraig Mor

G rock wrote: »

a) sell the golf and use the full revenue generated to buy a better motor (and still have the same amount outstanding on loan) e.g 4-5yr old
.

That's what I did a few months ago. Sold my Citroen C5 which i bought new in 2008 and essentially 'swapped' for a 2005 Lexus GS300 of similar value. The Citroen was nice but the Lexus is a different class of motor altogether. Pretty much every conceivable gadget you can think of (plenty of which would rarely be seen even in an S Class), 3 litre V6 auto which GOES when you want, and as comfortable as the QE2. Getting about 26/27 mpg compared to the 30 mpg I got in the 1.8 Citroen. Cost wise, I reckon the Lexus will cost an additional €1200 - €1500 a year to run (tax, fuel, insurance, servicing), the majority of which is tax. The extra petrol is only about €5 a week, and I do 13/14000 miles a year. A no-brainer in my book TBH.

G rock

now that's a good swap!

anything over and above what i'd driving now would be a vast improvement, gadgets or no gadgets.

i'd like an alfa 159 jdtm but that's another can of worms altogether...