Opinions gratefully recieved - keep existing cars or swop??

[lymmranger]

We currently have two cars - both old but in good nick
1/ ford fiesta 1.3 1998 bought from new,
well maintained very low mileage, hardly used
2/ laguna 1.8 again low mileage - well maintained, used daily

Wife now given up work rarely uses car, so we could manage with just the one.

Both cars have at least 6months MOT and Tax so I reckon they must be worth at least £600 each (maybe more?)

Renault needs a cam belt soon (70k should be hit by Sept)

So......

Do we sell both and put about £2k into another car (was thinking a focus or another laguna, petrol NOT diesel!))

Or do we ditch the fiesta and use the cash to sort out the cambelt on the existing laguna?

I know I am asking you to guess how long my piece of string is but this forum usually gives excellent advice on the second hand car market!!!

 

[Peter.N.]

Generally the older a car is the easier and cheaper it is to maintain, I run older cars so that I can maintain them myself, new cars are becoming expendable items because of the repair costs. I don't know what your dislike of diesel is unless it is again the cost of repairs, but there are a few exeptions.

I have been running Citroen XM diesels for the last 15 years becuase not only are they roomy comfortable and economical but I can repair them myself, I have one that has done nearly 300,000 miles and is still going strong,

I have avoided modern diesels because of the potential unreliability - until I bought my last car which is a 2001 Peugeot 406 Hdi, there are quite a number of these for sale with in excess of 300,000, miles on them which is a very good recomendation form my point of view. The one I bought has now 192,000 miles and drives beautifully, its fairly roomy, well equipped and has averaged over 50 mpg for the last 2000 miles and will do 60 mpg if driven gently.

If you must have a petrol the same generally applies, the older the better, your Fiesta should be a reasonably cheap car to maintain, certainly cheaper than the Laguna although probably not as comfortable, so I think I would be inclined to hang on to it.

Peter

 

[lymmranger]

Thanks for the reply....

We wont be keeping the fiesta - the laguna has a better mpg and is a bigger car. It may get a poor press but overall it is a perfectly capable car.

I totally agree about older cars being less complicated, but I doubt I am very keen to get my tool box out (not that skint just yet)

...changing to a new banger is a challenge in its own right, you usually have quite a few niggles to fix

Hmmm - still dont know what to do

 

[Inky Pete]

If the bodywork on the Laguna is sound (you don't say how old it is) then I'd hang on to that.

£2K isn't much of a budget to get yourself something of a similar size, performance and reliability - certainly not if you want to get it from a dealer so as to get any kind of comeback if you pick up a lemon.

Buy private and if it goes bang a month later then your money has gone up in smoke with it!

PS. from your username, are you actually in Lymm, Cheshire?

 

[lymmranger]

its an "85" 1.8 RT - 69200miles!!!!!!!

Bodywork fine (few minor chips)

...plenty of Newer shape lagunas at that price!

Ref : username - It was the inspiration (15years ago) but I do not live there any more

 

[Burnerman]

Help your Laguna by having the timing belt and water pump done as soon as you can......and check for rust below and to the sides of the radiator underneath.
Do keep those bonnet catches clean and lubed!
John

 

[lymmranger]

@ Burnerman...

...You are 100% correct of course (no rust though)

BUT...

that is the dilema that prompted the original post

...how much will that cost? - cos its money I could add to the pot for a newer model isnt it

and the bloody fiesta needs a belt too

 

[Burnerman]

I would guess that its a 3 hour job to do the belt on the Laguna with parts £70 or so, and the Ford (zetec 16v presumably) about 2 1/2 hrs.
So - as ever the choice is yours....although the vehicles are valuable to you, unfortunately they are worth very little in the trade so a private sale is the way to go if you head down that route.
John

 

[Belle427]

i hate renos with a passion but if your happy with it and are not bothered about driving something newer then do the belt etc and run it to destruction!

 

[lymmranger]

i hate renos with a passion but if your happy with it and are not bothered about driving something newer then do the belt etc and run it to destruction!

They are the most boring uninspiring cars Europe makes.

Everyone hates them (including me)

BUT.....

because of that they are CHEAP!!!!!!!

...and actually quite reliable (I have had 3 now ) - always managed to sell them for twice what I paid for them - not many people can say that!!!!

 

[Inky Pete]

The risk, as always, is that you get rid of your old reliable one for buttons and spend the money on a newer one which turns out to be a money pit.

With only £2K max to spend you're always going to be taking pot luck and have very limited come back on the seller.

On the other hand, your old one could suffer a catastrophic failure 3 months from now whether you do the belt and water pump or not.

Not much you can do except flip a coin really, but my personal preference would be "better the devil you know".

 

[alfajon]

Keep the Laguna, you obviously do little mileage but on a daily basis, therefore this leads to its own problems, however agree the better the devil you know.