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Car costs

19 replies

Trampolineissues · 31/07/2024 21:13

Really at a dilemma with our car and hoping you financially savvy people can help!
we have a 64 reg car - it is perfect for our family and is well used. Has circa 109k miles on it
its broken down twice in the last 6 mths. First time - brake pads. Second time - failed injector cylinder. Both about £500 to fix.
it now needs a new clutch (is slipping badly) and the cam belt should be changed.
cam belt change will be £500. Clutch - roughly 700.
we don’t have any cash to buy another car. I’ve had a look at car finance for a similar sized car with slightly less mileage eg around 60-70 and we could stretch to it - but it would be a massive stretch per mth at about 3-400 a mth.
I think we fix the old car and push on with it. Husband disagrees.
what’s the best thing to do?
so as not to drip feed - money tight as we’re paying off debts accrued because Of building work. Once that’s all gone in a year or so, we can save up for another car. That will probably take 1-2 years to gather enough to get something like above but no finance or minimal finance.

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Bjorkdidit · 31/07/2024 22:22

Brake pads isn't 'breaking down' it's routine maintenance. You shouldn't have to spend on this for a few years now, but that sounds awfully expensive for brake pads. I got a quote for mine for £200 but in the end, DP did it himself and the parts cost just over £100.

If the car is otherwise good, I think I'd spend the money on repairs, although you should get advice on your car from your mechanic. A 64 plate car should have a good few years left in it and if it lasts a year or more after £1200 of work you're probably ahead compared with depreciation of a newer car.

OutThePanIntoTheFire · 31/07/2024 22:24

So repairs approx £1200
If other than that its generally a reliable car then I would get it repaired ?
That is all wear and tear stuff in fairness.

You could go get another car. And have the same issues again. Just because it may be a newer car doesn't mean to say it's more reliable.

Also FWIW. Usually with injectors it's recommended to change all of them , obviously not a must. But most places you can get refurbished ones.

OutThePanIntoTheFire · 31/07/2024 22:27

Also £500 is very steep for brakes all round. It's worth getting a few quotes.

Biscuitandacuppa · 31/07/2024 22:34

I have literally just replaced all of my injectors. The first one failed in March and I only replaced that one, the second failed this month and rather than paying repeated labour costs I replaced them all in one go.
I drive a semi-automatic and had to have clutch replaced last year. I’m currently saving to replace the timing belt and water pump.
Mine is a 61 plate with 55k on the clock, it is still cheaper to replace parts than the monthly payments for a newer car that would still likely need wear and tear parts replaced over the length of the finance agreement.

LondonQueen · 31/07/2024 22:34

It sounds like routine maintenance other than the injector. Brake pads needing to be changed aren't breaking down! I'd rather put the £300-400 a month away then you have the money for repairs, or a new car if it needs something more major than deems it economically unviable to repair.

Chickdaft · 31/07/2024 22:47

I’d get it repaired as if you factor in the monthly payments of a newer car? It’s just maintenance. My last car, an Astra did me happily for 17 years with just the few bigger maintenance bits in the last yr or so and was still going well before I decided to buy another. If in debt I’d totally string it out as long as I could as even second hand cars of a year old are extortionate now. Pay the debt and then hopefully you can reconfigure a newer car .

Trampolineissues · 01/08/2024 07:54

Bjorkdidit · 31/07/2024 22:22

Brake pads isn't 'breaking down' it's routine maintenance. You shouldn't have to spend on this for a few years now, but that sounds awfully expensive for brake pads. I got a quote for mine for £200 but in the end, DP did it himself and the parts cost just over £100.

If the car is otherwise good, I think I'd spend the money on repairs, although you should get advice on your car from your mechanic. A 64 plate car should have a good few years left in it and if it lasts a year or more after £1200 of work you're probably ahead compared with depreciation of a newer car.

It was brake pads and something else related - it broke down as in refused to drive whilst I was on the motorway so definitely broke down but yes is a routine thing to do

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Trampolineissues · 01/08/2024 07:56

The injectors worry me - we couldn’t afford to do any more and asked about refurbished and they didn’t do that. We were stuck with the garage we’d had it towed to.
we are not handy in the slightest so couldn’t get on YouTube and be changing parts ourselves.
but I agree - the cost of both jobs is a couple of mths payments for a new car. I just worry we’ll be paying out endlessly for the bits breaking.

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lazzapazza · 01/08/2024 08:41

Are you sure this is a trustworthy garage?
When was the cambelt last changed?
What car is it?

Trampolineissues · 01/08/2024 08:50

The garage I’ve got it booked in at for cam belt is one we’ve not used before but has been recommended by friends so hoping so. We had a really good one until last year when it shut and have been at the mercy of who would take a broken down car the last two times.
its never had a cam belt change so it’s pretty urgent. Not totally sure the clutch needs doing so have asked them to check it but it’s slipping really badly so I’d guess it’s on its way out. But don’t want to pay for clutch and not cam belt in case the cam belt goes and wrecks the car!

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psuedocream3 · 01/08/2024 08:51

Personally I would repair, buying a another reliable car will cost you alot more and the cost of an extended warranty which if you cant afford extra repairs you'll want. What is the value of the car, surely repairing and selling if you were set on looking to buy something else, would put some money in your pocket if needed.

taxguru · 01/08/2024 08:53

It's all risk based really. You're the risk that your existing car will continue to have things go wrong with it (though some of the items are just routine servicing matters). But if you buy another second hand car with a few years behind it and tens of thousands of miles on the clock, there's the risk that will need repairing too, on top of the monthly payments to buy it.

Clutch, cambelt and brakes are basic service/maintenance issues really - they'd be expected to be replaced as they're mileage based, and certainly the brakes and cambelt should have been replaced as per service/schedule. Was nothing highlighted when you had it serviced previously? The garage should have been checking against service schedule what needed doing and when.

A "new" car at 60-70k miles will also probably need a cambelt change (if not done already in previous services), likewise brakes do wear out over time, so again, depending on whether it has been serviced properly, may have been done recently or may not. You can get a "feel" of the clutch during the test drive - sometimes it may already be slipping or be very "light" at biting point. Best to check the service history per the service schedule book and MOT history online to see what's been done and when. MOT history usually shows up previous failures and advisories so you can see what's been done and what hasn't!

Personally, I'd never buy a used car with over 50k miles, and not one with over 10k per year on average. You just don't know how well/badly it's been driven, and things like clutches, gearboxes, suspension are all highly dependent on previous driver care. You can, of course, be lucky and get a well driven, properly serviced higher mileage car, but again it's a risk!

Trampolineissues · 01/08/2024 09:16

Thanks - I appreciate the input as it’s supporting what I’m thinking
weve had it serviced as per its schedule and they’ve never brought up the issues that have arisen.
also agree that if we buy another car with a relatively high mileage - who knows what we’d get. At least we know what’s been done to this one!

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Blondeshavemorefun · 01/08/2024 23:51

£500 for brake pads

I had mine replaced 2weeks ago and was £133

As I also cash and they didn't have any change they said call it £130

So £500 is a lot

Ans agree with poster it's not breaking down. It's maintenance

Notquitethere60 · 02/08/2024 08:02

You’re being brainwashed by all the newer cars on the road! My car is nearly seven years old and I still think of it as fairly new.
Just repair. If I’d bought my car on a PCP payment I wouldn’t own anything after 4 years.

WonderingWanda · 02/08/2024 08:10

I would repair if it was diesel and my mechanic said the body work was ok.

If it's petrol I would be more wary depending on engine size. In my experience smaller petrol engines don't cope well with high mileage.

Trampolineissues · 02/08/2024 18:56

It’s diesel so definitely should have a long life. It has lots of dents and scratches externally but no rust or body issues.
i can’t remember exactly what the brake work was but was more than the pads and was what we expected.
we Don’t have a garage we know any more and hoping the one we’re using for the cam belt will be trustworthy. 500 for a cam belt is reasonable isn’t it? It’s a family sized Citroen.
Ive decided we definitely will not be buying on finance - it’s such a waste of money and would leave us constantly spending on a car than intermittently. For the next few years at least

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psuedocream3 · 02/08/2024 19:08

£500 is the very firm upper end for a cam belt, mine was £300 as it's tricky to get to. The cost isn't the cam belt, they are fairly cheap, the additional cost is labour, it does seem like a lot of labour time for a straightforward replacement. I also agree breakpad replacement for £500 was extortionate, I would say around £170 is the top end, unless they were doing break discs as well, but that still shouldn't be £500 more around £250. If in doubt ask them a full breakdown on the costs so you can research whether it's a fair price or not.

Trampolineissues · 02/08/2024 19:17

Thanks. It wasn’t this garage that did the brakes - that was another that we plucked from the area who could take us when we broke down. It was the pads and discs they did - am sad to hear it was really expensive :(
I’ll have to ring round - this garage was recommended so I just assumed it was an ok price

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