Color Cars I can't afford

$18K for a car that's done 100K miles is a good slice of cash, so I guess you'd expect it to be pretty special.

It's the annual repair and servicing costs that get you in the end though. A year ago I sold a 14 year old Audi which I would gladly have run for another ten years were it not for annual repair bills in the region of £1,500. It's just not sensible to spend that sort of money every year on a car that's worth about £1,000 on paper (I still did it for three years though).

-R
 
Richard said:
$18K for a car that's done 100K miles is a good slice of cash, so I guess you'd expect it to be pretty special.

It's the annual repair and servicing costs that get you in the end though. A year ago I sold a 14 year old Audi which I would gladly have run for another ten years were it not for annual repair bills in the region of £1,500. It's just not sensible to spend that sort of money every year on a car that's worth about £1,000 on paper (I still did it for three years though).

-R
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When I was growing up in the 60's and 70's, my dad would consider a new car as our old ones approached 100K. Now I consider 100K no big deal. I really think we do not appreciate how much better cars are now.
 
I'm sure that cars are better built in terms of their bodywork. When I was young I would quite often see cars on the road which were badly corroded (or had got the tinworm, as my dad used to say). Sometimes half a door would have been eaten away by rust. I remember being given lifts in cars where you could see the road underneath your feet flashing by through corroded holes in the floor.

You never see that now. Perhaps our MoT test (compulsory annual safety check) is more stringent these days and is weeding out older vehicles with corrosion issues. But you never see vehicles anywhere near as bad as the rusty relics of my youth. I think engines have become more reliable too.

But over the same period cars have become much more complicated. Features like power steering and air conditioning were only found on luxury cars when I was young, and now pretty much every car has those and a lot else besides. And it's all waiting to go wrong as the years and miles rack up.

Since the untimely demise of my Audi, I've been keeping an eye on older cars on the road and wondering why they are still apparently going strong at 15 years plus. It seems to me (and this is only an impression) that the real survivors tend to be unremarkable mid-range cars - not so cheap and nasty that they fall apart and aren't worth fixing, and not so plush and full of complicated features that they cost a fortune to run and repair in later life.

-R
 
P9100033.jpg
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Finally saw one of these beauties in the flesh, at a local lot. Can't afford it, especially with the dealer markup...
(also, note the shutter speed and ISO it allowed me to use. Can't knock Olympus IBIS!)
 
rayvonn said:
As with my previous post on this thread, a relatively affordable car (these days; not so much back in the day!) but with unaffordable running costs.
View attachment 286381
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But a magnificent car nonetheless. 55 years on, yet still looks like brand new. I see the occasional one around here too. Always in magnificent condition.

Agree about the running costs. God help you if anything major breaks!
 
Richard said:
I was once given a piece of sage advice about running an old, luxury car. It might be tempting to pick up something like an old Rolls Royce for a few thousand pounds. It'll make every journey feel special and it'll look great parked on your drive and on the school run. But the ongoing servicing and repair costs will remain those of a luxury car, so don't fool yourself that you're getting a bargain.

-R
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I was overcome once with glitz. A few years after getting out of law school, I found a 2-year-old Maserati Merak which had been imported new but did not have the necessary safety items required in the USA. It had a lost title and although new it was a couple of years old. It took six months to register the vehicle and I had to deal with officials in Rome several times for the title. The safety mandate was easily done at a low cost since the inspector was a car nut. I had a new car, a new title, safety structural modifications and I proudly took it to my mechanic and although it had been bought very cheaply, my mechanic who was certified for Porsches, Ferrari, and Maserati, told me to sell the car, take the nice profit and get a Porsche. He said the cost of maintaining it would bankrupt me. I did as he said, sold the car, put the profit in the bank for a few years until I went to the Porsche dealer and I bit the bullet and bought a 911SC which I still have and it is worth as much as I paid or even more. I have all receipts on the upkeep of the Porsche and it shows normal service charges and only infrequently More expensive surely than my American cars but not out of sight.
 
rayvonn said:
If it's true that this is a Mclaren as the badge says, then yeah, I'd imagine this would be a car I can't afford.
View attachment 293178
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Nonsense, that's a 570s, the "affordable" McLaren.

I found one on eBay for under US$200. It even looks like it has some sort of upgraded rear wing:

www.ebay.com

Step2 McLaren 570S Push Sports Car, Orange | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Step2 McLaren 570S Push Sports Car, Orange at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!
www.ebay.com

- K
 

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