Best cheap car you've ever owned?

[trainmania100]

Cheapest car I've ever owned is my only car I've ever owned
Kia picanto lx 06, can get 80mph at 4000rpm and it runs well
...Not that I've ever exceeded the national speed limit of 70mph...

 

[sk688]

Not cheap as such, but have an Audi a1, that since we bought it in April 2012, that has given flawless service, much better than the Fiesta that came before it ( quieter, more comfortable inside, better in car entertainment , sat nav etc)

Would definitely recommend for anyone who wants a small supermini, far better than a Fiesta

When I start learning to drive in a few months time, might use this ( if allowed to). I don't know if you're allowed or not while learning at 16/17

 

[D365]

When I start learning to drive in a few months time, might use this ( if allowed to). I don't know if you're allowed or not while learning at 16/17

Learner insurance should be fine, depending on the engine size/output.

Obviously it's a premium car so the interior spec is going to be nicer than that on a Fiesta, but at what cost? And I've found my family car to be perfectly adequate for the price.

 

[Busaholic]

My very first car, a 1994 Renault 5 Campus which I bought for £425 in 2007. It had two previous owners, the first being a little old lady who lived in Dunster and only used it to go to Taunton twice a month. The second owner was slightly boy-racer-ish but only had it for 3 months so didn't have chance to wreck it. He did however fit some very nice speakers, which was nice of him. It had only 36,000 miles on the clock when I got it, it ran like new and was ridiculously cheap to run, while not being slow by any stretch. The only downside was that it had the same 1.4l engine as found in the GT Turbo version of the R5- but without the turbo intercooler- so it did have a tendency to overheat on long motorway journeys!

I too had an old Renault 5, had 41.000 on the clock, I'd got it up to 90.000 or so before being comprehensively destroyed by a young, drunk driver (luckily, when parked) about four years later. Never had any serious trouble with it and it was quick! My insurance company later told me it had a CLIO engine (it was among the last 5s ever built).

 

[Bromley boy]

Modern Diesels are a false economy. Unless you regularly thrash on the motorway, they suffer EGR and DPF issues which cost far more than the gained mpg.
My mates got a 1.6 petrol A3 which has been bullet proof in the 4 years he has had it and returning close to 40mpg. Petrol versions are also cheaper to buy than their diesel counterparts

Very true. Espescially given how efficient modern small capacity petrol engines with start/stop have become.

This will probably get worse in future as diesel seems to be rapidly falling out of favour due to NOX pollution, and will probably end up with big rises in duty before long.

 

[Butts]

Yes, my dad had a green Viva before the Chevette, however I don't recall much of it's performance as I was generally preoccupied with motion sickness

It obviously was not a Chevette HS2300 - anyone remember that little pocket rocket.

 

[deltic1989]

I have only ever owned 1 car in my life that I paid more than £500 for, and even that was a bargain it was a 1987 BMW M3 (E30), that I gave just shy of 3 grand for.

The others.
1991 BMW 316i Coupe (E30) - £113-Bought it with some slight front end damage, put that right and it was a great first car, even if you could hear the pound signs rolling up in the insurance company's eyes when I called for a quote. Can't remember exactly how much but it was something like 10x the value of the car.

1989 BMW 318i Touring - £495- Bought because the ex-mrs wanted "A car with 4 doors" when our first child was on the way. That was treated to an engine swap, the standard M40 B18 came out and an M42 B18 (from a 318is) went in. Owned it for 3 years with no faults, until some *@%$*@£ ran a red light and bent the sill and b pillar on the passenger side. Was absolutely gutted.

1989 BMW 318i Touring - £490 - This one was red, absolutely faultless, should have never sold it.

1997 BMW 316i se (E36) - £500 - Lovely car like all Beemers a grin monger to drive. a little down on the power side, but I was having too much fun to care.

1997 Volvo V70 - £250 - It was a 2.5 5 cylinder Audi engine, and went like a stabbed rat, despite weighing in at 1.7 tonnes, bags of room for the family.

Current 2001 - BMW 318ci se (E46) - £270 - I had to scratch the Beemer itch so I took a punt on this, it was cheap for a reason, but none of the issues it had when I bought it have been hard or expensive to fix, it's a 2 litre so has plenty of power for me and it loves back roads as much as I do. The fuel pump is on its way out at the moment, but with the community surrounding these cars I hae one on the way and not too badly priced, so still in the good category.

 

[Tetchytyke]

Yeah the new model is fantastic... new missus and new Fiesta alike

I wouldn't dare reference the missus in a thread about cheap models

 

[sk688]

Learner insurance should be fine, depending on the engine size/output.
.

Ok thanks

 

[61653 HTAFC]

I too had an old Renault 5, had 41.000 on the clock, I'd got it up to 90.000 or so before being comprehensively destroyed by a young, drunk driver (luckily, when parked) about four years later. Never had any serious trouble with it and it was quick! My insurance company later told me it had a CLIO engine (it was among the last 5s ever built).

Surprising how long Clios and 5s were available concurrently. I'd got mine up to 65,000 miles or so before it was written off in a flood while parked outside my then-girlfriend's house on the Levels :cry:

Funnily enough, the last few thousand Trabants made after German reunification were fitted with engines from the mk2 VW Polo, and the few that survive are very sought-after. I'd be tempted if they weren't all left-hand drive!

 

[richw]

Surprising how long Clios and 5s were available concurrently. I'd got mine up to 65,000 miles or so before it was written off in a flood while parked outside my then-girlfriend's house on the Levels :cry:

Funnily enough, the last few thousand Trabants made after German reunification were fitted with engines from the mk2 VW Polo, and the few that survive are very sought-after. I'd be tempted if they weren't all left-hand drive!

Around 2005/6 i had a 1993 Clio and dad had a 1995 Renault 5 at the same time. The Clio was a million times better than the 5 for comfort and driveability, Although the 5 was more reliable. The Clio had a 1.2 whereas the 5 was a 1.1. I don't believe the 1.2 was ever available in the 5.

 

[Busaholic]

The Clio had a 1.2 whereas the 5 was a 1.1. I don't believe the 1.2 was ever available in the 5.

Except when it was - see my previous post about the inquest on my 5's death.

 

[mbonwick]

Rover 75.

Despite all the bad press the K-series unfairly gets, I'm a big fan. A very versatile and easy to maintain engine if treated correctly.

So much car for the money these days.....and it's appreciating rather than depreciating!

 

[richw]

Except when it was - see my previous post about the inquest on my 5's death.

I suspect yours had an engine transplant by a previous owner at some point.
From Renault themselves the 1.2 wasn't an option in the 5.

 

[richw]

Rover 75.

Despite all the bad press the K-series unfairly gets, I'm a big fan. A very versatile and easy to maintain engine if treated correctly.

So much car for the money these days.....and it's appreciating rather than depreciating!

The k series is a fantastic engine when correctly looked after. If the head gasket goes, when repairing give it the updated gasket and it will be bullet proof.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Around 2005/6 i had a 1993 Clio and dad had a 1995 Renault 5 at the same time. The Clio was a million times better than the 5 for comfort and driveability, Although the 5 was more reliable. The Clio had a 1.2 whereas the 5 was a 1.1. I don't believe the 1.2 was ever available in the 5.

Except when it was - see my previous post about the inquest on my 5's death.

My R5 had (as mentioned) the 1390cc engine as found in the 1.4litre versions of the GT Turbo model, mais sans le turbo. Before I bought it, I test-drove a K-reg Clio 1.2 and despite being an older design, the 5 won hands down for comfort and driveability.

 

[321446]

Back in 199?????? I bought a Vauxhall Chevette as a run around for buttons. Coupla hundred tops. We already had a 4 door saloon version, but this was the 3 door. Cracking little thing it were. Nippy, reliable, spacious. Great for handbrake turns. Everything the saloon wasn't. Perhaps I was imagining I was Pentii Airikkala or Russel Brookes on me way to Co-op, but I enjoyed myself. And do you know, I cannot for the life of me think of what happened to it. It wasn't wrapped round a tree or drowned in a ditch. Bless it. Still hanker for an HSR tho. Have you SEEN how much they go for?

 

[mbonwick]

The k series is a fantastic engine when correctly looked after. If the head gasket goes, when repairing give it the updated gasket and it will be bullet proof.

Only if the liners are uniformly proud of the block should the MLS gasket be used Otherwise you're better off with the elastomer offering.

I'm of the opinion that the CHG is very, very rarely the cause of overheating/failure - it's more often a symptom of a problem elsewhere in the cooling circuit - burned out resistor, air lock or failed PRT.

 

[MrCub]

This thread has been interesting. I learnt to drive when I was 17 (over 20 years ago) but have never owned a car or had my own insurance. I'm now thinking of finally getting one but all I want it for is local trips (supermarket etc - nothing more than about half an hour away, once or twice a week). Cheap and cheerful suits. I couldn't care less about make.

I'm utterly flummoxed about where to start knowing nothing whatsoever about cars. I remember my mother being given an old Vauxhall Viva in the early 80s; my dad had it resprayed for free because he worked for the local bus company, so this car was going in around in their colours. It lasted years. I think my mum drove it for the best part of 20 years which was pretty good considering it was apparently 'knackered' when she got it. We went everywhere in it. Something tells me that I'd feel quite at home in one of those with it's sideways speedometer but I suspect they're a bit of a collectors' thing now.

 

[deltic1989]

It would appear (from a quick look on fleabay), that for one in a drivable condition you wouldn't get a lot of change out of 5 grand. If you can pick up one registered before 1976, you would have the advantage of free road tax, and if you are only using it for an average of 2 hours or so a week, a limited milage classic car insurance policy could suit you, which tend to be rather cheap.

 

[muz379]

This thread has been interesting. I learnt to drive when I was 17 (over 20 years ago) but have never owned a car or had my own insurance. I'm now thinking of finally getting one but all I want it for is local trips (supermarket etc - nothing more than about half an hour away, once or twice a week). Cheap and cheerful suits. I couldn't care less about make.

I'm utterly flummoxed about where to start knowing nothing whatsoever about cars. I remember my mother being given an old Vauxhall Viva in the early 80s; my dad had it resprayed for free because he worked for the local bus company, so this car was going in around in their colours. It lasted years. I think my mum drove it for the best part of 20 years which was pretty good considering it was apparently 'knackered' when she got it. We went everywhere in it. Something tells me that I'd feel quite at home in one of those with it's sideways speedometer but I suspect they're a bit of a collectors' thing now.

My first car was a second generation fiat panda active . I can recommend this , the active spec is in insurance group 1 so literally among the cheapest cars you can insure . The 1.1 fire engine is a bit of an older design now so the fuel economy is around 40-45 mpg around town , sure you can get better fuel economy from a more modern petrol car but then you'll be paying a lot more for the car and tbh if you are only doing low mileage the higher cost of the newer car wont be offset by the savings in fuel economy anyway .

From a drivers perspective the visibility is probably the best out of any car I have driven since . Another thing I really liked was the raised position of the gear lever . although then I tended to use it as a handrest more which is supposedly not good for the gearbox .

A lot of the used examples for sale have been owned by older people as well so usually come with well below average mileage for their age and have been well looked after

Very cheap to repair , and tbh there isnt much complicated on it that can go wrong anyway . The 1.1fire engine is even a non interference design so even if the timing belt snaps there wont be any extensive damage to the engine like is usually the case .

 

[EM2]

I have a current Panda (although it's a 1.2 FIRE) and I would endorse everything above. It's a great little car.

 

[MrCub]

Thank you! This thread is great.

 

[EM2]

Thank you! This thread is great.

Have a look at your local Fiat dealer and see if they have any offers. My dealer is currently offering a brand-new Panda on a four-year lease deal for £329 deposit and £119 per month - http://www.glynhopkin.com/fiat/new-vehicle-offers/new-fiat-panda/

 

[richw]

I have a current Panda (although it's a 1.2 FIRE) and I would endorse everything above. It's a great little car.

My brother speaks very highly of his, his only criticism is it isn't long enough to get his pole vault equipment in, but that's his own fault as surely he noticed that before buying it!

 

[Cowley]

My brother speaks very highly of his, his only criticism is it isn't long enough to get his pole vault equipment in, but that's his own fault as surely he noticed that before buying it!

You'd think that would have been the first thing he would have thought of

 

[MrCub]

My brother speaks very highly of his, his only criticism is it isn't long enough to get his pole vault equipment in, but that's his own fault as surely he noticed that before buying it!

So many inappropriate jokes, so little time.

 

[Butts]

My brother speaks very highly of his, his only criticism is it isn't long enough to get his pole vault equipment in, but that's his own fault as surely he noticed that before buying it!

He should have got one with a sunroof

 

[Cowley]

He should have got one with a sunroof

Or started doing the long jump instead.

 

[robbeech]

Due to me having an intimate moment with a Yodel lorry the Volvo S80 I was driving is sadly no more, this in itself wasn't expensive. However the 'temporary' vehicle I purchased to replace it whilst I found something else is an 2007 vectra estate. I paid £350 for it though it needed a clutch which I sorted. I planned on having it for a couple of months (which were quieter months for me anyway) whilst I found a replacement for the volvo. 15 months and 28,000 miles later and I'm still driving it. I'm rather enjoying 54mpg instead of 27mpg from the twin turbo petrol engine the Volvo had.

I also bought an old (1999) sprinter van a few years ago as a local shunter so to speak on the grounds that I had a nice van that was busy all the time and I would have an old one to do local runs and just hire one for any additional long distance work when my main van was busy. It was about £1200 it was quite scabby and had a few dings and dents in it but it was mechanically perfect. I had it about 4 years and did around 60,000 miles in it. I only hired a van in once to do as I said and that was purely because it was cheaper to hire a van than pay the LEZ charge when I had to go to London. The hire van developed a fault and I had to drive it most of the way home in limp mode at less than 50 mph.

I'm not a fan of new vehicles they don't have the character of something older and quite often they don't have the reliability, it's a shame that we are forced to get rid of our older vehicles (tighter emissions, increase in road tax, emission charges in London and no doubt other cities will be following).

I've had a nearly new car once. I bought a 3 and a bit year old Mercedes S Class. A stunning car with everything you could want and more. I really liked it but it lacked something you get with an older car that's been around the world a few times.