Cheap daily runaround car?

[VXL V6]

What would peoples thoughts be for a cheap runaround that can munch a few miles if necessary and is cheap to run but not a wheezy shopping car?

By cheap I mean less than £2K
By munch miles I mean around 20-25K a year?
Cheap to run would probably mean something under 2.0 Litres and possibly a diesel?

I was thinking along the lines of:-

Astra H 1.6 Petrol or 1.7CDTi (although the seats would need to more supportive than the ones in Mrs VXL V6's Design model)

Signum 1.9

Astra G (MK4) 1.6 petrol or 1.7CDTi - I still like these and they are simple to work on and don't suffer many rust issues

318d / 320d - A bit more refinement over the Vauxhall offerings.


Obviously I haven't researched in any great detail, i'm just interested in peoples thoughts.
 

[Doctor Gollum]

1.9 tdi Golf within budget with a long MoT

Budget allows for a modest petrol S Class.

[VXL V6]

1.9 tdi Golf within budget with a long MoT

Budget allows for a modest petrol S Class.

1.9 that would be the PD engine I guess?

Not thought about an S class 

[henryd]

1.9 tdi Golf within budget with a long MoT

Budget allows for a modest petrol S Class.

1.9 that would be the PD engine I guess?

Not thought about an S class 

Vw PD engine will run for ever if belted and oil changed well, I find the newer 1.6-2.0 Diesels less reliable with expensive EGR issues common

[Viral_Jim]

Early 1.9 Skoda superb? If you can find one without Starship Enterprise mileage - same PD engine but more space than the golf.
1.9 Saab 9-5? - Basically the Vectra but with better seats.
Some Volvo with the D5 engine? You can get these without DPF which reduces potential bills.

Personally, at that end of the market I would avoid BMW/Audi/Anything 'prestige'. Much higher chance it will have been bought by someone who wanted the badge but not the running costs and not maintained properly.

[Doctor Gollum]

Summat like... https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202005219459870... Avoid the 2.0 tdi injectors a £500 each and basically a service item. For all their faults, these wear mileage better than the Astra.

Plenty of cars with this engine, but AVOID the Audi/Passat/Superb platform as the engine is the wrong way round, which puts all 200kgs of the engine ahead of the front (driven) wheels which detroys the handling and means the whole front end has to come off to change the cambelt or clutch. Taxi firms only used the Superb because they were cheap to buy.

Starter for 10...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202008102329463

Long MoT, post '04 so fewer rust issues (better materials), possibly also 7 speed auto. So pretty relaxed, plenty of seat adjustment as well. Only significant down size is the boot isn't quite as practical as it looks... But might be good enough to retire your work hack

I hadn't looked at the pictures, those front wings are shot. But they bolt on and are cheap enough new... £199 for a pair plus paint and an afternoons work. Very good haggling pount though

[TheBoy]

An LPG kit on one of your existing Omegas

Assuming you can get LPG, of course, as its rocking horse shit around here now

[VXL V6]

Interesting responses 

It's an interesting price point that is slightly above banger territory (something to get you around for a few months!), there seems to be a lot out there and I think the key is to keep the complexity down.

The VAG PD is known to be pretty hardy... but body wiring loom quality on VAG models around 2000-2008 is dire.. Although repairing is not beyond the capabilities of anyone who can use a soldering iron.

Saab is an interesting proposition, same Fiat engine as in many VX products. Was there some issues with the gearbox that was bolted to these?

As you look at newer cars you seem to get bigger bills. eg. newer regulation brings things like DPF's etc into play, older cars with less toys seem to escape some of these issues but then higher mileages mean items like clutches and corrosion start tipping the scale.

[TheBoy]

And remember diesel manuals will likely suffer from DMF issues once they have a few miles on.  That can end up being a large expense.

[VXL V6]

An LPG kit on one of your existing Omegas

Assuming you can get LPG, of course, as its rocking horse shit around here now

Well now you mention it....

The project Omega is nearly there now - needs a visit to you to get some programming electrons fed into the head unit and telematics, a new condensor and re-gas, then a few miles of proper use before starting the LPG install - The thought is to use this car in the summer and SORN it over the winter, then the older daily would be taxed and used over the winter... The thing is it's beginning to need a few bits doing on it and I am planning to wait until it goes in for MOT in case there's far more wrong with it than i'm letting myself believe!

It's all just thoughts at the moment, but i'm err'ing towards replacing the daily with something at the cheap end of the market if it fails the MOT spectacularly and maybe saving a bit on fuel in the process.

The other end of the scale is to buy something around 10K and a lot newer..... but you and I... and many others on here know that finding a suitable / better replacement that you would expect to have better handling, refinement, power and equipment is no easy task.

[Doctor Gollum]

Although, that task is easier if you're less blinkered in the search

Jimbobs E Class, for example 

[dave the builder]

just put SRi  or SXi seats in the wife's Astra 1.7 design and "borrow it" 

[VXL V6]

But it's an estate.... Have I ever mentioned I don't like estates? 

...but yes, SXi and Sri seats are much better!

Really just interested in people's thoughts and experiences of cars that meet the criteria and, just like the current daily, the sort of cars that you don't worry about when they suffer the battle scars of daily life.

[Doctor Gollum]

But it's an estate.... Have I ever mentioned I don't like estates? 

...but yes, SXi and Sri seats are much better!

Really just interested in people's thoughts and experiences of cars that meet the criteria and, just like the current daily, the sort of cars that you don't worry about when they suffer the battle scars of daily life.

It's in the water I tell you...

Dad was a teacher and had a run of modest cars, R5, Sierra, R19... and having written off the last two, was looking at another R5 His driving was occasional weekend running around, a 3,000 mile 3-4 week trip every summer holiday and a fortnightly commute from rural North Norfolk to central London, so say a round trip of 250 miles... and most of this was motorway or fast A roads.

I suggested that he bought a car more suited to longer journeys as that was fundamentally how he used the car. He conceded this point, as he had never looked at it that way. Subsequently he bought a Granada Scorpio and got a few years good use out of it, only getting shot when it was written off in a pile up on the A11. He spent a few days in Addenbrookes, but was otherwise fine and extremely thankful that he hadn't gone with the R5. He replaced it with a further Granada and then a late Scorpio estate, only buying a small run around when he finally retired and stopped doing the mileage.

Point is, if you're going to be spending time doing serious distances, then buy a suitable car.   

[biggriffin]

French Cars are always cheap   leaving the building