The ACTUAL cost of a car

[Brains]

Nowt wrong with cheap cars, just make sure you get in AA or RAC membership with the take you home service, it will cost over £100 a year, but you only have to use it once (and with a cheap car you will!) for it to pay back.

My parents had a family friend who was in the business of supplying 'cherished number plates' he would buy old bangers for the plate, get the vehicle an MOT (we never asked how) swap the plate of the banger with that of a Rolls or Lamborghini and then we would buy the banger off him for two bottles of whiskey.
We would then drive said banger into the ground, some lasted weeks others lasted months, and we even sold a few of them on for 'spare or repair'. It kept us going in cars for years, we often had two or three at the same time (for when we felt the one on the road was really on it's last legs). It taught us a lot about driving, 'get you home' basic repairs, the RAC and just how far you can push the rules.

If you know of anyone in the car trade, you may find them grateful that someone will get rid of the old bangers for them for a small price and no questions

 

[simon the viking]

When you pass your test you have to do the car 'thing' to be cool....... funny though now my mates (non cyclists) think I'm cool for doing the bike 'thing' again and if I could manage without a car I would... but Mrs V thinks I can't manage without a car.... as i have to take her shopping

With regard to tax and mot the last 2 cars have roughly coincided with my 2 month council tax break, I just save the money and pay for it using that so I don't have to find the money

 

[on the road]

Stop your bleating. Buy an Audi, Merc or BMW and live a little!

Can a student afford one of those?

 

[musa]

Tbh depends on what you find at the time. Do you really need a car? Just ask dad to put you as named driver on the car.

I recently got a 206 (erghhh) my uncle insisted it was ok hes a mechanic. 30 pounds tax a year and its a diesel. Find out when the manufacture says timing belt needs changing that an extra 250 quid i gotta spend. And petrol monies dont forget that. Car with no fuel is not a car

 

[MarkF]

Nowt wrong with cheap cars, just make sure you get in AA or RAC membership with the take you home service, it will cost over £100 a year, but you only have to use it once (and with a cheap car you will!) for it to pay back.

As someone who thinks £750 is a lot to spend on a boring vehicle, no way am I spending £100 on breakdown cover! It's all a con, I am 51 and have never had a car break down, I've saved £1k's, enough to not be bothered if I actually do ever break down. I often wonder what AA/RAC men do all day considering how reliable modern cars are, maybe what firemen do? Whatever that is..............

 

[MarkF]

As someone who thinks £750 is a lot to spend on a boring vehicle, no way am I spending £100 on breakdown cover! It's all a con, I am 51 and have never had a car break down, I've saved £1k's, enough to not be bothered if I actually do ever break down. I often wonder what AA/RAC men do all day considering how reliable modern cars are, maybe what firemen do? Whatever that is..............

P.S I would advise the OP to get a vintage Vespa anyway, an appreciating asset, 100+mpg, £100 insurance, free road tax and utterly coolio.

 

[Hip Priest]

I got my first car when I was your age. I wish I hadn't. As others have said, they're just a massive money pit, and almost completely unnecessary for a young single lad. I try to drive as little as possible nowadays, but it's definitely handy, what with having kids.

 

[Dan B]

I often wonder what AA/RAC men do all day considering how reliable modern cars are,

Jump start cars whose drivers have left their lights on all night, and carry cans of petrol for those who have run out of fuel.

I'm guessing, but it sounds plausible

 

[hopless500]

breakdown cover.

^^^^^^^ that.
If you are going for an old car, then breakdown cover will be a godsend.
We all had to start off that way, and yes, old cheap cars have a nasty habit on the whole of having bits suddenly stop working. But you have to start somewhere. Just buy something that has cheap, easily available spares.

 

[Chris1983]

To give you an idea on the real cost of cars

I have got a 1.8Diesel focus...its 13 years old
insurance cost me £550
VED is £230

In the past year i have done 25K miles and in that time its needed:

• 4 new tyres at £200+
• tracking - £25
• new clutch - £300
• cambelt and water pump - £200 - typically these need to be done very 40kmiles
• 3 services in total - every 10k miles - £50 a time as i do the work myself - a garage would charge 3 times that, or more.
• and has needed a few suspension parts replacing due to wear and tear - £200
• its now had to have an MOT as well...in which it needed another couple of parts - £150 inc MOT charge
• Fuel - over £3K (and that's at around 55MPG which works out at around 13p or 14p per mile)

all in all i have spent just shy of £5000 on the car in a year...that doesn't include buying the car or taking into account depreciation...

This is very high mileage i agree which is why the cost are so high but you will be surprised how quickly costs add up...

Hope this helps and don't let it put you off its always better to make an informed decision

Cheers

Chris

 

[Brains]

As someone who thinks £750 is a lot to spend on a boring vehicle, no way am I spending £100 on breakdown cover! It's all a con, I am 51 and have never had a car break down, I've saved £1k's, enough to not be bothered if I actually do ever break down. I often wonder what AA/RAC men do all day considering how reliable modern cars are, maybe what firemen do? Whatever that is..............

I'm of a similar age, the long journeys that I have done with the vehicle on the back of a RAC low loader are:
300 miles -Chelsea Embankment to Snowdonia (with 8 people, minor electrical fault, fixed next day by the RAC)
600 miles - North Cornwall to London (twice)
1,000 miles - Vienna to London (blown head gasket)
500 miles - Birmingham to Perth (with about 12 of us, another blown head gasket)
800 miles - Perth to London (and the same 12 back, unable to get spares in Avimore)
100 miles - Andover to London (Cam belt)

Plus numerous 'get you home' trips most only 20-30 miles but I've been a member of the RAC since I was 17, I'm now on my 30 something year, I reckon even if I remain a member for the rest of my life they will not make a penny out of me in the long term

As you say 'modern' cars can not be repaired beside the road, however most of these long RAC trips were in a VW 'hippy' bus, a Ford Transit minibus, a LDV minibus and several in my trusty Land Rover Defender
OK, now I have a Citroen, they may win as long as I have it, but I guess I'll be back to 'proper' Landrovers with the next car

 

[Brains]

If you buy an old banger, make sure you get someone to teach you how to do bump starts and jump starts. It's a skill, like riding a bike, you will never forget and will be essential.

(I can start a petrol engine single handled in less than 2m off the camber of a road)

 

[Noodley]

Get a job with Domino's as a delivery driver.

 

[Lance Jack]

Before getting the car think of some extra training, http://www.dlbs.co.uk/driving-lessons/pass-plus-driving-course or http://www.iam.org.uk/ This could help lower the cost of insurance which is probably going to be the biggest amount you pay out. It will, of course, make you a better driver. When I passed my car test way, way back in 1988 I thought I knew it all. When I passed I ripped the L Plates up and knew I was as good as everybody else on the road! Only. I wasn't. I was good enough for a forty minute drive round town, the learning really started when I got in the car on my own. Since then I have added my Cat C and D to my licence and on each course I learned a bit more.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

Its been a year since I brought my KA, 2004 reg, I paid £1200 for it, in that time its cost me £1800 and I've done 4500 miles, the 2 biggest payouts have been MOT, rear brakes and nearside sill, and insurance, I was car free for over 30 years and get treated as a new driver, its been reliable, I've had one no start due to a failed coil pack, nothing else has failed or fell off but I did put four new tyres on it and I've had a water leak, cured with a tin of redweld..