It's an interesting thread this and something that I think about from time to time. After I got divorced and money was tight, I bought a 1998 Mitsubishi Colt off Ebay for £400. I managed to cover 12000 miles in it and in all that time, the only money I spent on it was £175, for a headlight after a bump and for some gear linkages when I lost three forward gears! After I wrote off the Colt, I got £200 back from the insurance for it and then went and found a '99 Toyota Avensis for £360. Okay so I hated it from the perspective that it was the most uninspiring and dreary thing to look at and drive (At least the little Colt was peppy and fun to nail), but again I managed to put around 12000 miles on the thing before my financial situation changed and I could ship it off to the scrappy for £100. I think I spent around £200 on the Avensis, an exhaust and tyres during ownership.
Looking at the cars I own now, sometimes I think it's excessive, but adding it up to what my ex-wife has spent on cars over the same period, it makes sense in my head. She's had a nearly new Honda CRV, which I know needed around £1200 repairs to the fuel system. Factor in as well what she spent on regular servicing. Further to this, add in the depreciation over a 4 - 5 year period. Now the Honda has gone and been replaced by a Ford Kuga. The cycle repeats...
Meanwhile, I have my three cars. The Ka is used for city driving and it's the only one my partner will drive. It's small enough to get down the track at the allotment. Sometimes my mum will borrow it when her car is away for servicing etc. I paid £700 for it last autumn. The Jag XJR is my motorway blaster and we take it on weekends away, airport runs etc. It's not immaculate, but is presentable and people always comment on it. £1850 last September. So far I spent £100 on repairs for the MOT (minor stuff, including some work on the boot release) and £16 on an exhaust repair when I caught it on a speed bump. On top of this, the Jag is unlikely to depreciate any further, even though this isn't the reason I bought it. Finally my 205 GTI, which I've had since 2001. I bought it for £500 back then and have spent probably £4000+ on it during the last 16 years. However, when you add it up, look at how they've increased in value. I reckon it's probably work £4000 now if I wanted to sell it. The Jag and the Pug are on classic insurance and cost me £200 odd for the year. I don't worry about the issues, because I KNOW a 4 litre supercharged car is going to use a lot of fuel and IF something goes wrong it's going to cost me to sort it. So I have a contingency fund for it, however, having owned Jags of this era before, I know they're tough and take dogs abuse before giving problems.
So I have three cars worth maybe £7000 at a push. The point I'm making, in a torturous roundabout way, is for years I've thought the new car game is for mugs. Something valued at say £15000 cash price. Then factor in finance costs, interest etc. All the while your "asset" is depreciating and actually losing value? I don't know, it doesn't make sense to me.
Thanks for anyone that's bothered to read all this drivel.
Looking at the cars I own now, sometimes I think it's excessive, but adding it up to what my ex-wife has spent on cars over the same period, it makes sense in my head. She's had a nearly new Honda CRV, which I know needed around £1200 repairs to the fuel system. Factor in as well what she spent on regular servicing. Further to this, add in the depreciation over a 4 - 5 year period. Now the Honda has gone and been replaced by a Ford Kuga. The cycle repeats...
Meanwhile, I have my three cars. The Ka is used for city driving and it's the only one my partner will drive. It's small enough to get down the track at the allotment. Sometimes my mum will borrow it when her car is away for servicing etc. I paid £700 for it last autumn. The Jag XJR is my motorway blaster and we take it on weekends away, airport runs etc. It's not immaculate, but is presentable and people always comment on it. £1850 last September. So far I spent £100 on repairs for the MOT (minor stuff, including some work on the boot release) and £16 on an exhaust repair when I caught it on a speed bump. On top of this, the Jag is unlikely to depreciate any further, even though this isn't the reason I bought it. Finally my 205 GTI, which I've had since 2001. I bought it for £500 back then and have spent probably £4000+ on it during the last 16 years. However, when you add it up, look at how they've increased in value. I reckon it's probably work £4000 now if I wanted to sell it. The Jag and the Pug are on classic insurance and cost me £200 odd for the year. I don't worry about the issues, because I KNOW a 4 litre supercharged car is going to use a lot of fuel and IF something goes wrong it's going to cost me to sort it. So I have a contingency fund for it, however, having owned Jags of this era before, I know they're tough and take dogs abuse before giving problems.
So I have three cars worth maybe £7000 at a push. The point I'm making, in a torturous roundabout way, is for years I've thought the new car game is for mugs. Something valued at say £15000 cash price. Then factor in finance costs, interest etc. All the while your "asset" is depreciating and actually losing value? I don't know, it doesn't make sense to me.
Thanks for anyone that's bothered to read all this drivel.
She also stated that i could not come home with anything that was less than 10 years old or less than 2k, with a years mot. . . . I bought an 11 year old renault for £1500 with mot till october, not one for following instructions me, . . . it's already making odd noises from the steering . . . 
