New car help....again!

sebdangerfield

I’ve asked for advice on here a few times recently regarding a new car but now things are a little different.

My girlfriend and I are moving house and need to save as much as possible. I’ve recently been bullied by her into selling my M12 and have been allowed to put a deposit down on another new track car which I will get in the summer. I was only allowed this as there is almost zero depreciation so It won’t cost as much to run. This leaves my Alfa 147, I only use it for commuting when it’s too wet or cold to use my push bike so even that’s not getting much use and is under scrutiny from the boss to see if we really need it! It’s started to cost a fortune to maintain and the subject of us saving was bought up at the pub with friends the other day.

The conversation between my best friend’s girlfriend and mine was basically saying I shouldn’t spend so much of my money on cars. My best friend (also a huge petrolhead) was laughing his socks of when, in a sudden twist of fate, his girlfriend also suggested he sold his car to run something cheaper. We were basically being bullied into selling our cars to save money. We were, obviously, having none of it until something happened that no man can refuse;

A dare!

We were dared to run cars for a year on the “bangernomics ethos” Obviously, now this is a competition we both accepted as fast as we could and I now need a car for less than £1000 that I can run as cheaply as possible for a year. The only other part of the rules are... we’re having a lad’s holiday in the summer in Hungary and were going to drive, now we must drive there in the bangers.

So, what can I run that costs less than £1000 that is as cheap to run as possible, reliable, and easy to maintain myself? Also, an estate would be useful but not essential.

Please help!

Foggster

Ford Focus or Vauxhall Astra Estates. You would probably pick up a good Rover estate if you only want it for a year and no street cred!

Personally I would go for a Volvo if I was taking up the challenge because they will keep on going around the clock.

Whatever you decide I think its a great dare.

sebdangerfield

Thanks! I'm more excited about doing something as stupid as this as I was about getting cars i'd saved for years to buy! Top gear's got alot to answer for!

I forgot to mention, I've been rather vocal about my hatred of desiesels and our girlfriends know about this so....... I've got to have a diesel!

Am I right in thinking the older, non common rail ones should be more reliable?

Rolandtheroadie

sebdangerfield wrote: »

Am I right in thinking the older, non common rail ones should be more reliable?

Get round the local takeaway shops and get waste veg oil. Seperate and filter it to around 0.5 microns and use that if it's non common rail.

You wont get much cheaper than that.

sebdangerfield

I hadn't even thought of that! We're in a flat at the moment so have nowhere to store it unfortunately.

Having trouble finding focuses at that price but the astras look like they could be goers. Any other ideas?

Foggster

I have just googled £1000 Volvo diesels and there are some for under £1000 with over 220,000 on the clock!! Fab cars (although I dont own one!!).

Focuses are hot cars with all those old ladies holding onto them *runs away* so no surprise you cant get one for the £1000 mark.

Anihilator

Skoda Favorit

A perfect one on autotrader at under £500

hartcjhart

any diesel skoda you can get,if you should breakdown parts would be easier and cheaper to source

mikey72

Peugeot 205 or 405 diesel, non turbo.

DaveMacD

mikey72 wrote: »

Peugeot 205 or 405 diesel, non turbo.

+1

The Pug diesels up to an R plate were all non-common rail, and virtually bomb-proof. The electrics were, unfortunately, of the usual standard (ie, pi$h).

melorablack

Get down to a local car auction and go for something about '98, under 100,000 miles (So says my OH, who likes your challenge too - he said that's what he'd do!)