Lifespan of old car/only need one car?

kitty123

I have a 1997 (R) 1.4 Honda Civic Tornado - Mileage: 98,000 miles. My job involves daily multiple short journeys of 2-3 miles at a time (Average 10-20 miles per day). The occasional 25-30 mile trip (2-3x monthly).

So far it has been a very reliable car and has not required any major work at service/MOT. I currently have an annual service which my husband thinks is unnecessary.

At this mileage I am concerned that at any upcoming service/MOT will find more major faults. My MOT in August brought up a warning of "rear axle tie bar front bushs are worn on both sides" - no idea what this is or how serious.

My husband's car (2000 Peugout 106 diesel) is rarely used because he walks to work. We are considering get rid of my car and using his, which would be more economical. However, sometimes we will both require a car and would need to consider short term hires or other options.

Any advice or suggestions about what we should do?

Quinny_2

Get rid of the Honda,and keep the Pug,purely on an age basis,and the fact the Pug will be more economical.

Rather than a hire car when you need to both get out,what about a taxi,or are the journeys involved too long and work out more costly?

Inactive

Different viewpoint...;)


Keep the Honda, it will never let you down, so will cost less in the long run.

kitty123

Hi,
Thanks for the reply. Yes, the journeys would be too long for taxis as my husband's family live 4 hours drive away. I have to work weekends/bank hols (using the car) when he often travels to see them. Trains/flights etc. would be an option too though.

Hintza

Have you a garage you trust? Why not go to them and ask them to give it a through check and price up necessary repairs. Then figure out whether or not it is worth it. If you can keep it running with around say £400-£500 spending a year it is probably still viable.

As for annual service an oil and filter change will be worth it and then anything else on inspection (ie brakes, suspension etc).

SailorSam

Despite the fact the Honda has always been reliable, would you be able to sell it, and just how little would you get ? The price of cars have dropped drastically and even when buying second hand most people can afford newer ones.
My advice would be keep it untill August and see what happens with your MOT. If it's dead try and sell it then even if it's only for scrap.
You really need to work out in the next six months just how often would you need to hire a car and how much would that cost, then set it off against what you may lose by having to sell without an MOT.

kitty123

SailorSam wrote: »

Despite the fact the Honda has always been reliable, would you be able to sell it, and just how little would you get ? The price of cars have dropped drastically and even when buying second hand most people can afford newer ones.
My advice would be keep it untill August and see what happens with your MOT. If it's dead try and sell it then even if it's only for scrap.
You really need to work out in the next six months just how often would you need to hire a car and how much would that cost, then set it off against what you may lose by having to sell without an MOT.

Currently Honda Civics of the same age seem to be sellng for about £600. Obviously that is likely to decrease. I agree that I will wait until my MOT in August and see what work is required. However, I anticipate it still has more life in it yet.

We would only need to hire a car or consider alternatives maybe 2-3x a year as we usually travel together by car to see the family.

What I really want to know is whether it is economial to run this car into the ground, or quit whilst ahead and get little bit of cash and save money on 2 lots of tax/insurance/servicing etc.

thebaldwindowfitter

you could get the car on classic insurance with low miles ie below 7k a year .i have an old porsche 924 which i insure for 169 a year with no no claims to use on it.i would run it into the ground

SailorSam

My last car was an R reg escort, always started first turn of the key, then on the last MOT about 18mths ago, because of welding and a diesel leak, it was going to cost about £600 to get a pass so i scrapped it.
Personally i would always run it into the ground.

kitty123

Hi,
Back again a little while after the initial thread. The new dilemma is that my parents have just bought a brand new car (a new Honda Jazz, for a very good price). They now have a 4 year old Honda Jazz to "get rid of". It only has 27,000 miles on the clock, they have serviced it every 6 months and looked after it very well.

They would be keen for the Jazz to be kept within the family (my current Honda was also theirs previously) but do not want to pressure me into buying it. They would also be willing to accept a good price for it and let me pay them in installments if needed.

Does anyone know what this car would be worth and what would be a reasonable offer? I would want to offer them a fair price as they are pensioners now!

Or should I continue to run my Honda into the ground and let them sell their car privately and forget it?

hartcjhart

if you are only needing to rent a car 2/3 times a year for the weekend consider the option of a 'test' drive from a dealership, you see them often saying you can test drive a new model for the w/end,

I would say keep the old car and just run till dead as long as you look after it re service then it should be good for another 80/90k miles,

the option of the newer car is a hard one if you say no it may offend them,but if you are considering this option try here for a price

http://www.parkers.co.uk/cars/prices/