[ficklejade]

The sprog is already part way through the driving test process and I have to seriously think about getting him a car. And I know precious little about modern cars and the whole process is complicated because he wants something he can work on - he's heard enough of my whinges and also witnessed me working on older cars in his youth and isn't too impressed with computer organised vehicles.

Living in a remote location (hence need for him having vehicle), getting unbiassed info is not that easy! It seems that easy to work on cars are very expensive for new drivers and the cheapest ones to insure are the most boring!

Any ideas, people? I am NOT buying new and will get any potential vehicle checked out properly.

Oh, and whilst you're thinking about it - please remember that we're talking wheel swallowing, suspension braking potholes here - not roads:mad:!

Thanks, FJ

[tommytwotanks]

as we dont know what the budget is, it's a bit difficult to suggest anything, but hearing stories from the young lads at work even a cheap car with a small engine will cost an arm and a leg to insure, costing more to insure than you pay for it, it's a bit of a nightmare trying to buy anything these days, being a new driver your son will need something with cheap insurance, so we are talking about something small, like a Peugeot 106, Renault clio, citroen saxo, ford fiesta/ka, Nissan micra
whether the other guy's think they are simple and straight forward only time will tell, but every car has its + and - points, check out the insurance costs before you buy anything, only buy a standard car, ie not lowered with big wheels, and a trendy big exhaust, the insurance companies dont seem to like it, if you dont tell them

there was a website, maybe parkers.co.uk where you can find out what insurance group a car is, and then find all cars in the same insurance group, but they may have change it now

tommy :D

[Rolebama]

Just about everything built since 1999 has been built round a computer of some sort or another, and electronic ignition was being used on almost everything by the late 80s. As for potholes, there isn't really a lot of choice when it comes to decent suspension travel and large-ish wheels, unless you talk in terms of a 'serious' 4 x 4. An alternative could be something like a small hatchback, which wouldn't survive as well, but there are some where the parts are reasonably cheap, and readily available.

[mills705]

fickeljade, when you say work on, do you mean tune and or modify or repair?
As if he is young he is likely to add angel eyes etc to his car.

If he is after something cheap and pritty easy to repair- nothing beats the Saxo, its got a large modification scene which means lots of parts are produced solely for this car. IM not sure how well it would cope with the roads mind if they are bad.

On a note- insurance depending. Could you get him one of the smaller cheaper 4x4's. The sort of ones that look like you should put Barbie in? Theres a suzuki one i no but cant think of name, Vitara?

[benedwards64]

Well if it's something he wants to work on, it needs to be mid-to-late-90s or earlier.

Don't buy a Clio if your roads are that bad - mine snapped a spring and got through three sets of wheelbearings in three years (it was a 1997 P-reg).

Best bet would be something small, lightweight, and simple. Peugeot 106s are all of the above, and very easy to work on as a result, and even the 1.0 litre is fun because of the car's low weight. My car was a 1990 Citroen Ax 1.0 (exactly the same as the Pug underneath, but with even less street-cred) and it was huge fun despite being slow. Also, you can pick them up for very little - he could get one that needs a little work for as little as £200 and fix it up in time to pass his test. I recently sold a very useable M-reg 106 for £250 - it had 150k on the clock and was owned by someone who, shall we say, didn't believe in maintenance ;)

Same goes for the afforementioned Saxo, although prices tend to be a little higher as they were introduced several years later.

[Snowball]

Many years ago, the director of a small engineering company with whom I had dealings was faced with a similar problem.
He bought his son an old but roadworthy, short-wheelbased Landrover.
He said that secondhand spares were abundant and fairly cheap, he could develop his engineering DIY knowledge, and he wouldn't be bombing around at ridiculous speeds.

Might be a useful starting point in deciding how to achieve what he wants.

Regards, Snowball.

[ficklejade]

Originally Posted by mills705

fickeljade, when you say work on, do you mean tune and or modify or repair?
As if he is young he is likely to add angel eyes etc to his car.

If he is after something cheap and pritty easy to repair- nothing beats the Saxo, its got a large modification scene which means lots of parts are produced solely for this car. IM not sure how well it would cope with the roads mind if they are bad.

On a note- insurance depending. Could you get him one of the smaller cheaper 4x4's. The sort of ones that look like you should put Barbie in? Theres a suzuki one i no but cant think of name, Vitara?

Sorry, should have made myself clear - he likes doing tuning and will do repairs. As for mods - one he is thinking of (and I'm thinking of doing same) is fitting additional lights - the deer hazard is so serious here that several folks have done this to get a wider splay, etc.

The roads are - truly! - diabolical! A nearly new Landy fell into a pothole at low speed (single track road and the driver was decidedly nervous of them) and the wheel was wrecked not long ago. Plus local garage is replacing springs several times a week.

Many thanks for input - also see response to Snowball's comment below.

[ficklejade]

Originally Posted by Snowball

Many years ago, the director of a small engineering company with whom I had dealings was faced with a similar problem.
He bought his son an old but roadworthy, short-wheelbased Landrover.
He said that secondhand spares were abundant and fairly cheap, he could develop his engineering DIY knowledge, and he wouldn't be bombing around at ridiculous speeds.

Might be a useful starting point in deciding how to achieve what he wants.

Regards, Snowball.

Thanks, Snowball!!

Strange how this has been going through my mind (and Mills207's as well) - don't know what the local lasses would think though! I've actually been thinking about getting one for myself only I'd have a LWB that I could kit out for those nights in the forests marshalling. As sprog is also a marshal and member of the emergency response team - it would be a useful option and certainly handle the local pothole paradise. He's not a risk taker in that sense - he's actually refused lifts with some of his mates because he doesn't think they're safe but lower top speeds would put my mind (at least) more at rest and the tougher the machinery - less risk of deer nasties!

I'm off to find out above insurance on such vehicles.

Thanks, again.

[benedwards64]

i'm almost certain that insurance on a Land-rover would be astronomical. Also, having helped a friend of mine work on a 1970s Land Rover, it's not easy!

The only thing I could suggest that would be attainable for a young guy would be an old Suzuki SJ - it's only a 1.3 so will be insurance friendly, and if he gets a rag-top quite fun as well. They have pretty basic mechanicals, so shouldn't go wrong too much and will be fairly simple to work on. It will be almost unbearably slow though.

[Snowball]

I did some work on Landrovers in the early 60's. I used to design generating equipment for specialist customers, which was driven off the centre-power-take-off. It also meant changing the Isospeedic governor for a Weyburn one, and modifying the on-dash rev quadrant, and the lost-motion rods.

I never considered the vehicle difficult to work on, and it is easy working underneath because of its ground clearance.

The insurance question can easily be answered by a few phone calls.

[Lew1275]

I would recommend a Classic Mini! My first car and the engine and gearbox in mine never put a foot wrong! They go like a pocket rocket and are very easy to work on. Look great and a real head turner and if tuned up can sound gorgeous!

Cheap insurance and only cost me no more than £30 for a full tank of fuel! Took me to France and all around the south of English with a breeze. Unfortunately i was never motivated enough with having to work on her all the time and she failed her MOT last week and I had just had enough! :rolleyes:

[Lew1275]

...and then caught glimpse of your road situation ooops! :o

Best stick to a Land Rover haha

[Snowball]

I did once have a 1960 Morris 1000 Traveller. This car took us all over the place, with two kids. It had a 948 cc ohv "B" series engine, and was very economical for cars of that time. I did all my own DIY work on the car, and it was straightforward in every respect.

The only thing that you have to be careful about, is that you buy one with sound woodwork; new timberwork can be obtained for specialist suppliers, but is expensive.
My Traveller was only about 6 or 7 years old when I bought it, and I stripped and revarnished the woodwork immediately.

The only other downside is that these cars are well loved classics, and are a bit pricey even in fair condition. But, well looked after, they do hold their value.