Thetownend.com

My Vectra is a shit heap and I want shot of it. Won't get much trade in, got about £2k to play with. Something family friendly but still fun to drive (automatics bore the tits off me!)

Whadaya think, townend?

That you're gonna need more than two quid?

:D

No idea what you're talking about...

I see you have now put a k after the £2  ;)

Shhhhh ;-)

You a turbo diesel fella?

Vectra shitheap represent!

Bought it 18 months ago, and it's gone wrong from day one. Worst car I've had by far! Think I'll stay away from Vauxhall for the foreseeable future!

For £2k you'll be looking at something with high mileage or quite old.

Have you thought about leasing a new car?

or atleast using the 2k as a deposit to finance a newer car

Can't afford either, the 2k will have to do for now!

If I had £2k, I'd be putting it down on a golf R. Only £199 per month...

i don't believe that for 1 seconds, where?

Yeah VW do have the Golf R for 199 a month on offer till the end of the month I think. If I had enough for the deposit I'd be on that although I'd probably get shafted for insurance with one of them.

http://www.volkswagen.co.uk/buying-guide/offers/golf-gti-vii

Just got rid of a V plate vectra.
Had it for 12 years and in that time , i replaced the cam belt,water pump and altenator.
Never let me down.Not bad for a motor with 156k on the clock.

that's 199 quid for a service plan.

don't buy a Volvo, or if you do, buy mine.

 :clap:

Mine's 06 and has had new alternator, 4 x springs, battery, EGR, thermostat, drop links plus serviceable things like pads, discs and tyres. It's done 110k and I'm chancing my arm with the original cambelt.

Not to mention the state of the rear bumper after a couple of recent minor indiscretions.

in fairness, it's had a hell of a lot of work done since I bought it and has recently had a new clutch and four new tyres...

I've lost track of everything that's gone wrong with my Vectrarse. Broke down on the way to its MOT + service (that was north of £600). Broke down on its way from MOT to the Post Office to tax the fucker. (£250+) all four tyres, battery, you get the idea. Exhaust is held on with jubilee clips as the proper restraints rusted off. Can't be arsed to list off its current gremlins, but if you see a blue vectra driving up the thamesdown drove incline at no more than 30 on a good day with a tail wind, that's me.

I've got a 2001 Vectra - I like having a car and all, but it's one of those deeply uninspiring pieces of automotive history.

Represent...

This is mine:

(https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpf1/v/t1.0-9/10599289_10154535276965578_6465630541289587319_n.jpg?oh=5a7fda932bc70da32a4aa29dbe55844c&oe=54DFA5AF&__gda__=1423874000_3272f76851b062e41b5de1f7d73e9808)

I refuse to drive it to Town games though. I drove it to the one of the earlier games and parked it up in town... didn't enjoy the game at all. I was too worried about someone robbing it or vandalising it.

I used to have a 1989 Mini a few years back and that got vandalised about 8 times while I had it.

As much as I love them, I hate how they are common targets  :(

My first car was a 1975 mini clubman in tank green. It was ace.

Nice! I need to get a clubby at some point. I want a clubby estate. I'd love a clubby van but they were only ever released in New Zealand so that won't happen :'(

I had the 998cc clubman, 10 inch wheels. Dreamed of the 1275gt. A mate of mine had a special edition,  it was a 1975 in silver,  bigger wheels around 1981 plate. Can't remember what it was called  ??? Standard mini, not the clubman

Why do people vandalise minis?

I don't get why people feel the need to vandalise at all but anyway.

Ha, it was a 1979 mini 1100 special

Not sure, over the course of a month or two I had someone stand on the roof, steal my wing mirrors, key it, rob all the external trim...

I live in the centre of Bath, so it could be that it was so pretty that it drew the attention of drunks?

We once found a mini "parked" on it's side Rodbourne as we walked into town.  It was still like that as we walked home so we pushed it back onto it's wheels.

Good lads. They do seem attract assholes :'(

My first car was a Hillman Avenger.It was crap.

Vauxhall nova 1.2. It was an absolute tank, put it through hell and it kept going!

Mine too ! Bright Yellow - bought it off my sister for £50. I had the "Super" version which meant fuck all.

When a classic car is called 'super' or (in my current Mini's case) 'High Luxury' it usually means 'there is a everso slightly different interior or you might even just get a limited edition paint or could be as simple as you get a different gear knob & steering wheel.

If you look over the history of the Mini there are hundreds and hundreds of variants and 70% of them are exactly the same except one or two minor cosmetic changes :P Good old bit of marketing!

Wooden dashboard and a slightly darker beige interior ?  :sherlock:

I think my first car was a Datsun 120y. Classy.

Lime green or copper/brown

 I had a silvery blue A reg Escort 1.6 (I think it may have been a Ghia as well!)

Just had a look and some are for sale at 2k now! Should have kept it!

Copper, I like that. But we both know it's brown.

I had a B (82) plate silver Escort 1.3L - with a black rubber spoiler. I crashed it into the side of taxi exactly one week after passing my test, driving out of the CG car park onto County Road. 😎.

Ha, I had a 1981 1.3L escort estate in bright orange. What a head turner  :D

The 'best' motor I've ever seen in Swindon was back in early 90's. It was a BMW 3 series from the 80's full of girls that was painted, in what appeared to be, Dulux pink. When I say painted, think Jacko from Brushstrokes painted.

My first car was a 3 year old Fiat Strada 1.3 V reg JLF129V in bright orange/red.
This is the closest colour to mine.

(http://www.autosnout.com/editionimages/241.jpg)

mine was a 3 year old Toyota Corolla coupe... Still not quite sure how I managed to squeeze myself in...


(http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/4/497/1969/38740984002_original.jpg)

Vauxhall victor 2.3 was my first car
Big yellow beast

(http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/uploads/cars/vauxhall/5256603.jpg)

Two lovely classics as first time cars there (not yours mwooly! ;) ). I had a 1984 Fiat Uno 55s. It'd been my grandad's from new and always garaged and only had 20k on the clock. I'm still pained by how quickly I moved a pristine 13 year old car from "as new" to scrap.

That's not a car, it's a fucking mobility wagon!

That's not the 1.3 that's a 105TC. I had a superstrada that had 95hp and that was a 1.5. The daddy was the 130 abarth. Mine was claret in colour too.  :)

Anyone own an alfasud?  Great little cars.

I am aware thats a TC but mine had the front and wierd upside down rear spoiler and the alloys like that, could never afford the 1.6 Twin Cam though as insurance we steep even then. Yes I had a 1.3 cloverleaf alfascud, fell apart on me and would never start!

The only 130 Abarth I ever saw was Lou Macari's when he wasnt driving his Merc.

i remember that car....i think

Same. Well, apart from the tank bit. Smashed the fuck out of mine 2 weeks after passing my test  :doh:

I had a Mk1 Escort Estate. In Yellow. Google it as I can't be arsed to post pictures.

I refuse to own another yellow car. Ever. Even if it does look like a wannabe Bumblebee......

On the upside, I pick up a spanking new Mini Countryman tomorrow ;-)

Anyone on here have, or had a 60's,70's American V8?

Has anyone got any experience of selling their car to one of the online purchase companies? I'm tempted to get a quote but don't want to be bombarded with calls or emails if I choose not to proceed.

I sold a car to webuyanycar.com as it was fucked and I was moving abroad. They offered me £600-700 but the guy who worked there bought it off me privately instead. They'd quoted me over £1.5k online I think.

Sorry SY, I'm struggling to understand your reply  :D

I had a car. It broke.

I wanted to sell it quickly as I was moving abroad.

I got a quote online from webuyanycar and they quoted circa £1,500.

I went to see them to sell the car.

They inspected it and offered me £600 or £700.

The guy who worked for webuyanycar offered me more to buy it from me privately so I sold it to him.

:D What a lad

Thanks sonic

Just got a quote from them myself. No one has hounded me yet. They give you a valuation online but like Sonic says they inspect it and probably try to rip you off by claiming its not up to standard. Personally if you go down that route for a quick sale I'd use wewantanycar as they actually ask more specific questions about vehicle condition and damage so you get a more accurate quote.

You also don't have to give them your real info. I use Guerrilla Mail for almost everything so even if they do email no one will get it.

https://www.guerrillamail.com

just give them a fake email and phone number

Is it wrong that I'm considering one of the Fiesta 1.0 EcoBoosts?

No road tax, but 125bhp from that tiny engine.

Nope. Been in one,  they are good.

Nothing wrong with that at all. 125bhp from a 1l engine is mental.

They do look quite good. Although, I've just got a quote on a Focus for a very similar price.

Wait for the new RS to come out :-)

I love my focus.

This is the 1.6 TDCI I've been looking at.

Used to have a Focus on an 05 reg. 1.8 TDCi Edge, was lovely.

Now I have a BMW 118 SE Sport 8 speed Auto (lazy mans car) it's fucking lush though.

There are also the red and black editions at 146bhp.  Swindon ford were doing these for only a little more than the 125bhp 1.0 ecoboost last month.  I went for the 100bhp Zerect last month and am really impressed with the car, much better than I expected and very economical

I've driven one of those Fiestas and it was a decent drive. Shame the head restrained annoyed the fuck out of me - I reckon it was broken.

But its a ford...

They must be quite small inside.

The size is my only concern really. Might pop to the dealers this weekend and take a look at one in the flesh.

Was surprised how much bigger the new fiesta felt inside than the old ones used to. I reckon though that with a family the boot space may be more of a concern..

You'd probably be better off with a focus that a fiesta.

I've gone for the Focus as I got a stonking deal on a 2 year lease. I was originally looking at a Zetec, but then the broker sent me details of a Titanium with all the toys for just £8 per month more and I couldn't resist.

Bump.

How is/was the Focus Ecoboost, Sam?

I've got the 1.6 TDCI, not the EcoBoost. It's a great car, but that's coming from a 10 year old Vectra.

Big enough to get the family in, nice to drive on the motorway with the cruise control on and good fuel economy too. The TDCI suffers with a bit of play in the gearbox so there's the occasional knock when changing gear, but the car goes back in a few months so it's not really a problem for me.

I need to start shopping around for ideas for my next car now in case the one I want ends up having a three month lead time.

Great cars/engines the ford ecoboos's

Went to look at a 07 plate Civic Type R yesterday morning... p/x'd my super boring Scenic, job's a good'un!

Insurance is a joke though... in my last month of this year's policy, so it's £5 extra over the Scenic. Got a renewal quote at the same time, they're asking for £5 less per month than I've been paying for the Scenic. I don't understand why, but I'm not complaining!  :D

Yeah, insurance is stupid. It was more expensive to insure the wife's Zafira than the Impreza Wagon it replaced.

I've just ordered my new car to replace the Focus which goes back in January. I've gone for a Kia Niro.

It was my first main dealer experience and I have to say it was quite pleasant and hassle free.

Nice one.

It costs the same for me to insure both me and my wife on a 1.4 Ford Focus as it does my VW T5. The T5 is modded to fuck too.

I was having my Honda serviced yesterday and was given a courtesy car - which had the garage's name on it. The garage where I have had previous Hondas serviced and also where I bought my new one from. Tbh they have been the best garage I have ever used.

On the way back to work some woman wrongly thought I was in the wrong lane so honked at me and gave me the wanker gesture - now usually I'd let that go but life has been a bit shit recently so when she pulled alongside me at the next set of lights I decide to flip her the finger.  On arriving at my desk I had a phone call from the garage to let me know she had reported me - which itself is just fucking laughable. They told her that it wasn't anything to do with them but just wanted to let me know.

On picking my car up later that day the service manger came out of his office, smiled and stuck two fingers up and me and went back laughing - shortly followed, in the same manner by the salesman.  ;D

Main dealers get stick but when you find a good one it is so worth it. 

Right if we're on cars, looking to get a small SUV - I believe they are reffered to as 'Crossover' vehicles.  The wife is looking at peugot 2008, renault captcha or nissan quaskai or whatever the hell its called.  Any of you lot who know about cars reckon there is much difference and one that stands out in the 'Crossover' world?

Nissan Qashqai seems to be amongst the best about - I'd avoid anything French personally. 

Don't buy a Zafira!

I've had an Evoque for the last 3 years which is classed as an SUV I guess, mechanically sound but few little issues mainly caused by the dealer to be fair. Will be going in March though as got a RR Sport on order now so nothing to put me off JLR..

You won the lottery or something

Nissan Quashqai's are very good, I also like the look of the new Kia Sportage, i can't comment on if they are any good but they have a good rep. BMW X1 is also worth looking at,dont think its classed as a crossover but it fits in size wise. If doing down the BMW route i highly recommend an xdrive.

Last time I said that to someone turned out his mum had died  :suicide: :badmood:

Thanks all.  Im of the opinion of Quashqai's being the best idea but ive just got to convince the wife.

If only.... nah just work in project delivery which currently pay well, although current job is the lemon that is the Great Western electrification job which is overrunning 'slightly'.... The RR Sport is the best of both worlds, pretty quick and unbelievably comfy so all the car I'll ever need, I'm getting the hybrid but for performance reasons rather than economy and all that environmental nonsense..

Anyway back on topic the Evoque is a good SUV but as a result are retaining their value so depends on budget...

I looked at a lot of crossovers in my search. The Mazda CX3 gets good reviews, as does the Qashqai.

I went for the Kia Niro (https://www.kia.co.uk/new-cars/range/mid-sized-cars/niro/allnewniro.aspx) in the end. It's a hybrid too if you want to be all eco and that.

Isn't the Renault Kadjar just a Qashqai with a different coat on.

Father in law has a Qashqai, gets very wallowy in the back, my little un always gets car sick in it.

Sent from my SM-A310F

Having spent a few weeks doing comparisons of SUV's from online reviews and having test drives I finally settled on a New Seat Ateca which in most reviews comes out second only to the Jaguar F-Pace in the SUV sector but for a fraction of the cost. The only down side since its launch in September is they were not prepared for the demand so I have to wait for 4 to 5 months for delivery.

http://www.seat.co.uk/new-cars/new-ateca/overview.html

(http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f391/tellmetellme/P1190854_1.jpg)

I was looking into getting one, lovely motor with good spec, but after being totally ignored by the tossers in Swindon motor park for around 20 mins I eventually told them to stick it up their arses  :smugfu:

The Skoda Kodiaq looks nice. Not available to order just yet though.

Well the missus has ignored you all and is off test driving a Mitsubishi asx or something like that.  God knows.

I drive a Golf.

I drive an H-RV which I've got on really well with, tonnes of boot space too, much more than a juke or cx3. 50+ mpg from the diesel.

dad has had 4 of them (company cars), never had any issues, good on fuel and is basically the same as the Peugot suv, the renault  and the qaishqai (it's a Mitsubishi base but diff engines and shell).... if you look closely they all look very similar in design ;)

Get the Diesel (1.8 i think) as the 1.6 petrol is gutless, the diesel pulls really well.

Drive another Mitsubishi (Outlander) at the moment and never had any issues with any Mitsu in the 12 years we have had them (had pretty much every car they have done in that time). We keep ours for around 9 months and if you get one of these from a dealer then they have a max of 9k miles and have been used just for the staff going to and from their offices in Cirencester, highly specced (leather, sat nav etc) and maintained properly.

Parts are expensive if things go wrong but that's only due to Mitsu not being that popular here and everything having to be imported but we have never had any issues in the 12 years we have had them, probably had 30+ cars now.

Mitsubishi's are ridiculously high for insurance. I was gonna buy a lancer a few years ago until I got quotes. No idea why but they are grouped highly in comparison to similar cars.

I wouldn't know to be fair as ours is covered under the company but it could be down to the high cost of parts, Mitsubishi parts are hard to get hold of and can take weeks to get them as they are mostly boated in from Japan or driven in from eastern europe....

Reliablility wise they have been really good to us but if you have an accident then it's not going to be cheap to replace parts as there is very little "after market" for them unlike Ford's, Vauxhall's and other makes. Mitsubishi are a small, niche car in the UK. Mitsubishi UK are just an importer from Japan Mitsubishi and sell in the tens of thousands per year rather than the hundreds or millions of other car makes.

With respect I don't understand why people buy cars that need a step ladder to get into.

Status symbol? Can fit a large family plus accessories? Safety i.e. most normal cars would just bounce off of these tractors? Frustrated World of Tanks players looking for some experience?

Just the way the car market is going I guess as there don't appear to be many traditional four-door family saloon cars on offer these days in terms of new models.

Oh and Qashqai drivers on the school run appear to be particularly useless.

The interior space is really no bigger in these types of car, I don't know what the fuss about them is? Harder to squeeze in a parking space too.

Get a Mondeo Estate. They're cavernous.

I have a new ASX...the top range manual one. Get all the leather for that blah blah..

Does everything ok but not outstanding.

Main point is that you can get true lockable 4x4 within budget (my plld tax value set)... Try and do that in a Quasqui or a Yeti (better handling, interiors etc etc) and you are looking at paying 26K plus..

Done some light green lanes and it handled that well.

I needed an upright driving position after the Leon FR fucked my back.

The real negative is the dogshit sat nav audio system but I believe the new model has improved this point.

My brother in law has sold his early 70s Merc V8 barge and bought himself a '91 Lancia Delta HF Turbo. One of 30ish left registered in the country, and 22 left on the road. Went for a spin in it yesterday after I took him out in my CTR, sweet Jesus that Lancia can shift! A ton of 80s-tastic lag (I still miss my old Mazda 323 Turbo!) and then the thing takes off like a fucking rocket, change gear and repeat. Weighs fuck all, so corners on rails, a proper smile-inducing car!

Very Sweet Leggett.

LHD or rarer still, RHD?

They're fetching an absolute fortune now, do you know how much he paid for it (if you don't mind me asking)?

A truly beautiful car

(http://allfotocars.com/data_images/gallery/01/lancia-delta-hf-turbo/lancia-delta-hf-turbo-02.jpg)

Not the integrale then? The HF turbo is a 1.6 isn't it?

Not an Integrale, TT! There's more of them around than the HF Turbo. 4D, bang on, 1.6 turbo. This one's been breathed on a little, produces 175bhp, and the suspension has been fiddled with too. Lovely little motor.

No, I know it isn't Leggett, but that's why I was enthused  :toocool:

The "less desirable" versions - not that there is an huge amount between them - are as you say, rarer. Still a right corker and a beaut!

oh that it is, previous owner has receipts for over £10k in the couple of years he owned it! A little ripper, makes my Type R seem sensible in comparison :D

I assume like all Lancia's it will also dissolve before your very eyes when it rains, the £10k spent in the last couple of years was probably purely on bodywork repairs!  ;)

Haha I've been saying he can't take it out when there's puddles about or it'll melt around him... it's rust free, apparently!

It may have been a week ago, I would not be so sure now!  ;)