05-10-2016, 09:49 AM
As I always say, it baffles me that people take VED into consideration when buying a car. Providing it's not in the top 3 or 4 bands (£270+), then it's an inconsequential amount of money in the overall scheme of things. OK, finding the lump sum once a year might be a pain for some (direct debit is now available), but £220 per year when you might pay £100-£200 (or much more in some cases!) on insurance, £200-400 on routine servicing and MOTs, and of course, fuel. I do between 1 and 2 thousand miles per year (cycle to work, mostly), so in theory, that £220 should "hurt" much more than someone doing (a more typical) 10 times my mileage, but that's not how I view it at all. And look at all the folk who have bought zero-rated cars, only to have all the savings wiped away when the DPF needs replacing 
I'm interested in what you decide. We're in a similar position - I still have my Focus (nearly 16), and my wife has a Fiesta (13). Both were bought back in the pre-children days, when we could afford new-ish cars every few years, and neither was bought with the expectation of being kept for more than 3 or 4 years. Since then, life has changed immeasurably, but the cars remain. The wife's car is still on the original battery, and mine lasted 13 years before the garage finally convinced me to change it (though it was reading "low", it hadn't let me down yet). Both have original exhausts. The only unscheduled maintenance has been water pumps (both cars), coil springs in the Focus, plus a seized calliper because of low usage. Contrast that with the last VW I had, which by the age of 4 had had a new exhaust, battery, starter motor, wheel bearings, and a whole load of other stuff I've managed to put out of my mind!
Anyway, what to replace them with? I'm convinced that all manufacturers - whatever the product - go in "cycles", and I think we bought our Fords at a good time (just luck - we liked the dealer). Would a modern Ford be as good long-term? There's really no way of knowing, and past performance is no indication. 15 yeas on, it's a different economic climate, and manufacturers are better at engineering to the design lives - that delicate balance between good but not too good durability - not so poor that reputational risk becomes a serious issue, but not so good that people keep their cars forever.
In my experience, the dealer matters far more than the actual vehicle, especially if you have them service it for you. And at the time, there was only 1 VW dealer in a 40-50 mile radius - and they knew it! Whereas there's a Ford dealer every 5 minutes - if you have problems with one, you simply move to another. That's worked well for me - in fact there was only 1 garage that I was less than happy with, and they've closed down now. (happily, my present garage took on the decent mechanics).
Anyway, I know your feelings about Ford, so I'm not asking for an opinion on my situation - and I wouldn't want to "threadjack" anyway. But, I will be interested to hear what others suggest. Personally, I know relatively little about current cars, but will have to make a decision sooner or later...
I'm interested in what you decide. We're in a similar position - I still have my Focus (nearly 16), and my wife has a Fiesta (13). Both were bought back in the pre-children days, when we could afford new-ish cars every few years, and neither was bought with the expectation of being kept for more than 3 or 4 years. Since then, life has changed immeasurably, but the cars remain. The wife's car is still on the original battery, and mine lasted 13 years before the garage finally convinced me to change it (though it was reading "low", it hadn't let me down yet). Both have original exhausts. The only unscheduled maintenance has been water pumps (both cars), coil springs in the Focus, plus a seized calliper because of low usage. Contrast that with the last VW I had, which by the age of 4 had had a new exhaust, battery, starter motor, wheel bearings, and a whole load of other stuff I've managed to put out of my mind!
Anyway, what to replace them with? I'm convinced that all manufacturers - whatever the product - go in "cycles", and I think we bought our Fords at a good time (just luck - we liked the dealer). Would a modern Ford be as good long-term? There's really no way of knowing, and past performance is no indication. 15 yeas on, it's a different economic climate, and manufacturers are better at engineering to the design lives - that delicate balance between good but not too good durability - not so poor that reputational risk becomes a serious issue, but not so good that people keep their cars forever.
In my experience, the dealer matters far more than the actual vehicle, especially if you have them service it for you. And at the time, there was only 1 VW dealer in a 40-50 mile radius - and they knew it! Whereas there's a Ford dealer every 5 minutes - if you have problems with one, you simply move to another. That's worked well for me - in fact there was only 1 garage that I was less than happy with, and they've closed down now. (happily, my present garage took on the decent mechanics).
Anyway, I know your feelings about Ford, so I'm not asking for an opinion on my situation - and I wouldn't want to "threadjack" anyway. But, I will be interested to hear what others suggest. Personally, I know relatively little about current cars, but will have to make a decision sooner or later...
