Advice please

iainw

Member
Messages
3,386
I have been- I want a 4 door,diesel, automatic, heated seats, sat nav and not much more.
I tried looking at golfs but can’t find any decent ones under 4K. Maybe I am looking in the wrong place. Even considered smart cars.. or a Renault twinzi - I could get my dihedral door fix there too! :)
Trying to work out better to lease or buy at the low level..
 

D Walker

Member
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9,827
Dihedral door ---hint hint....
You should be able to get a decent Golf / Jetta for 4k

Edit - Quick look - not with heated seats - Nav,,,,,
 

Felonious Crud

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The best times to buy cars from dealers are end of the month, end of the quarter or end of the financial year - the last day of March is when many will be itching to nail one more sale before the end of the year.

In the case of sillycars I'd guess that winter is also a good time to buy because who in their right mind would buy a mentalist supercar when there's an inch of snow in the ground.

My conclusion is that if you've found that ideal spec and the deal's a good one then buy it and ask the dealer about storage. Ideally somewhere it'll get started and moved a bit every month.
 

outrun

Member
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5,017
Forget sat nav at that price and just use Waze on your phone which is much much better than any inbuilt nav, especially one from an old car. I'd also say forget
diesel for a couple of reasons 1) you don't do enough miles to make it economical and 2) they cost more to buy than petrol and Sadiq Kahn is likely to hammer
older diesels in London more and more so they're just not worth it inside of the M25.

I'd stretch the budget to £2.5k and seek our a Saab 9-3 auto convertible. Great car, throws all pretence out the window and will always be cool. Is that a pauper or
a millionaire driving? Only the Mini Cooper has the same ability to transcend stereotypes.

You can also put the roof down on a sunny day in traffic and feel a million dollars.

That's my 2p worth!
 

Felonious Crud

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Athol’s on the money there - 9-3 convertible is just wonderful. My brother-in-law has one and it’s prety much perfect. A bit hard for parts and service from time to time, but I’m sure there are enough specialists to keep them running well.
 

outrun

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5,017
Athol’s on the money there - 9-3 convertible is just wonderful. My brother-in-law has one and it’s prety much perfect. A bit hard for parts and service from time to time, but I’m sure there are enough specialists to keep them running well.

They are Vectras underneath from the days when GM owned Saab and shared platforms so the parts are easy and cheap to source. Saabs are cool and the convertible is a classic in the making, just like the 900turbo which is super cool.
 

conaero

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34,593
Just in case the collective forums opinion did not come over clear enough....Buy it!
 

iainw

Member
Messages
3,386
Forget sat nav at that price and just use Waze on your phone which is much much better than any inbuilt nav, especially one from an old car. I'd also say forget
diesel for a couple of reasons 1) you don't do enough miles to make it economical and 2) they cost more to buy than petrol and Sadiq Kahn is likely to hammer
older diesels in London more and more so they're just not worth it inside of the M25.

I'd stretch the budget to £2.5k and seek our a Saab 9-3 auto convertible. Great car, throws all pretence out the window and will always be cool. Is that a pauper or
a millionaire driving? Only the Mini Cooper has the same ability to transcend stereotypes.

You can also put the roof down on a sunny day in traffic and feel a million dollars.

That's my 2p worth!

i would love one of those - Many years ago at University one of my friends dads had one and i thought it was great.
Can you really get one for that money?!
 

D Walker

Member
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9,827
My missus used to have one, this one in fact...SAAB 009.jpgSAAB 007.jpg
Was great to drive, was the Aero, 210bhp, went like stink, so much so we had to get rid as it terrified her in winter,,,,,
 

iainw

Member
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3,386
I can't believe cars like that and this https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classi...ice-to=3500&advertising-location=at_cars&body type=Convertible&postcode=sa34sw&make=SAAB&radius=1500&transmission=Automatic&onesearchad=Used&onesearchad=Nearly%20New&onesearchad=New&page=3

Cost the same as painted callipers on a 458. Brings it into perspective.
I am V tempted - if anyone on the forum knows of a good example for sale - please let me know. I think it would be a great buy for a good one and a disaster if the wrong one...
 

D Walker

Member
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9,827
We traded ours in for 6.5k 6 years ago for the Fiat 500, cost me 13 and she only had it 3 years but after the bad winter she just didnt want it.

Cracking car. So much so my ex next door neighbour bought one as well.

If you do go to look at one, have a look for bubbling on the ridge just under the rubber strip on the rear windows
 

outrun

Member
Messages
5,017
A pal of mine and occasional forum visitor (gjwilson) bought an aero version at the auctions for £1100. Main dealer trade in, 90k miles, all the toys. It never missed a beat and he sold it for double. I'd maybe look into the Saab forums and see if anyone is selling. They have an active following.

What other £2k car can a surgeon show up to work in and still not make it look like times are tough?

Same price as one breast augmentation, never mind for the pair!

This one looks tidy. Hunt around though, there are plenty out there.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classi...rchad=New&advertising-location=at_cars&page=1
 

iainw

Member
Messages
3,386
A pal of mine and occasional forum visitor (gjwilson) bought an aero version at the auctions for £1100. Main dealer trade in, 90k miles, all the toys. It never missed a beat and he sold it for double. I'd maybe look into the Saab forums and see if anyone is selling. They have an active following.

What other £2k car can a surgeon show up to work in and still not make it look like times are tough?

Same price as one breast augmentation, never mind for the pair!

This one looks tidy. Hunt around though, there are plenty out there.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classi...rchad=New&advertising-location=at_cars&page=1

Agree - quite like the Aero, and perfect for the NHS car park.
I would use the 458 for the private days. I did get treated slightly differently by the NHS managers when they saw me parking the California. A miscalculation to take that in - wouldn't make the same mistake again!

i lost £2,000 in 3 months on the Mito in 3 months as I wanted to sell fast so I could take that sort of depreciation in a second car!