Minimum use?

Grouchy

Not sure if this is a daft question or not but here goes.

I have an old Corsa with 90k miles on it that is starting to get a little niggly and I'm getting a bit less confident with long trips in it. I'm planning to buy a new car fairly soon, mostly because I live well in the sticks and don't want to be in a position of no car if the Corsa goes fatal. Also to use the new car on longer trips.

Work from home so normal week is 20 mile round trips say 5 times a week, 200 mile round trips are once or twice a month.

Corsa has been a real diamond so dont want to scrap it until absolutely necessary and anyway still like driving it.

I think once the new car is in the drive it might get driven most, not sure though.

Question is, is there a minimum you should drive a car to keep it running well? Would the same apply to an old car vs a new one?

Thanks for any ideas.

forgotmyname

Wont the insurance and tax on the new car be expensive? Costing you more than keeping the Corsa?

Your no claims will already be used on the Corsa so you will be starting anoptehr policy with zero no claims. Or a multicar policy that may not be any cheaper for you.

How much to drive it will be an unknown quantity. If you choose a car thats known to have sticky handbrake cables or calipers then being parked up for a week at a time wont do it any good.

Short journeys or starting the car and leaving it ticking over wont do it any good at all.

Dont forget you need to SORN the vehicles if its not taxed and insured.

Grouchy

Thanks for the input.
Having two cars will be a bonus for the household, so the extra cost is worth it. Corsa costs peanuts to insure+maintain etc anyway. Neither would sit for a week at a time though as there would be a second driver to make use of the second car. Thanks for the heads up on the cables and caliper weak sports with some cars - helpful, I'll bear that in mind.

Cheers

reeac

Grouchy wrote: »

Not sure if this is a daft question or not but here goes.

I have an old Corsa with 90k miles on it that is starting to get a little niggly and I'm getting a bit less confident with long trips in it. I'm planning to buy a new car fair .... .

Question is, is there a minimum you should drive a car to keep it running well? Would the same apply to an old car vs a new one?

Thanks for any ideas.

My experience, based on owning 3 cars now for about 30 years, is that as long as a car is driven maybe once a week it will be fine. The only problem that I've had is with my 1958 MGA where the brake wheel cylinders tend to seize up if left unused for months [e.g. during the winter].

PasturesNew

Due to my current situation, for the last 18 months I've been using my car (8 years old) about once a week for a 6 mile round trip .... and another 1-2 local/quick trips per month .... and then still just chucking a case in the boot and heading off for a 400 mile round trip about 3x a year without even caring if the tank's full or the tyres are pumped sufficiently for long distance.... it's never failed me, nor hesitated. It just starts and goes on demand.

SailorSam

I've got an 05 Fiesta with about 32k on the clock, the last few years i've driven probably about 200/300 miles between the Mot. There are weeks it doesn't come out of the garage or i may do a 6ml round trip to the shops. Always starts first turn of the key.

coffeehound

I'd agree with the earlier points about the damages done by short journeys and long standing. If it's getting used once a week for a journey long enough to get the engine up to full temperature for a while, that should be adequate to keep the engine lubricated, expel water from the oil circuits, clean rust off the brake discs, keep the interior dry, and dry out the exhaust system.

One problem that has arisen from new economy measures is that some new cars end up with drained batteries when only used for shorter trips. This is apparently because they do not begin to recharge the battery until the engine has warmed up (as opposed to older cars which start recharging the battery as soon as the engine is running).

In this case it would be advisable to do regular longer trips to keep the battery fully charged – or to connect the battery to an 'intelligent' trickle charger while it is not being driven. Lidl sell these chargers at least once a year for about £13, which is much less than other manufacturers' prices.

My father does this with his car since they also live miles from anywhere so are reliant on the car working. They previously had a couple of instances of the battery going flat. It is a bit of a hassle to park the car in the garage, open the bonnet, connect the charger and switch it on after every journey, but it gives peace of mind.

Grouchy

Thanks a lot these are all useful. Given me more confidence in my plan which I think will work well for the present and prepare for the future at the same time- will make sure to keep each car (if the old banger keeps going!) in good nick and properly serviced.
Cheers

Spankey

As long as the car is in your wifes/daughters/sons name you can legally drive it as third party only with the owners permission.

jimjames

Spankey wrote: »

As long as the car is in your wifes/daughters/sons name you can legally drive it as third party only with the owners permission.

Only if it is insured already.