Bangernomics - Post Your Cheap Daily Finds and Hacks

[purplea4T]

The market has went absolutely ape**** this past wee while, moreso in the past 6 months, theres very little sub 1k. I've always had a mk4 Golf lying around, last one was an 03 1.8t with leather and sunroof. Mid 30s to the gallon all the time and I've found them to be reliable and cheap for bits. Sold it in February and wish I hadn't, replaced in with a cheap (£1300) TT cabriolet which was actually a nice wee car when I'd ironed out the niggles of poor maintenance and lack of love. Sold that and bought the daughter her first car - mk5 Golf with 161k on it! I'm dailying it and its not actually a bad wee car. Needed wings and a bit of paint on the bonnet but decent enough. Cheap for bits especially as it's the 1.4.
I quite enjoy the fixes and making something look better than it was, but couldn't live with it as my one and only car.

 

[bigpupcooper]

This was my go to for 12 years, even though the driveway had many a nice motor sitting in it (golf R, GTI, S3, M135,JCW). Head to Dublin..take the CRV, head to the beach..take the CRV..head to get the shopping.. take the CRV
Only sold it in July.
Its a 2005 petrol auto, returning 25-28mpg.
Cost me very little in repair bills and that pic is from the forsale ad, so cleaned up well

 

[mike150]

Due to the rushed sale if my 16 Golf GTI due to a deal done on a Golf GTi Clubsport that needed a bit of prep I needed a cheap car and tbh I wanted a cheap car as I've recently been thinking about buying a wee van but they're actually not cheap.........

Behold, the 07 Focus Tdci style (bit short on style ) but a great driving car that's cheap to run, tax and buy 2 owners from new and only 75000 miles...........

People ask me what more would you want......well -

Parking sensors
Bluetooth
Heated screen
Armrest
4 speaker stereo

But it's fine to really. Treated it to 2 new wipers as it still had the originals on and they where well past their best! Compounded it, polished it and painted the wheel trims.

Its now my only sensible car as the Clubsport went Pete tong and fresh cars in general are currently just too expensive imo so I'll sit back, wait, and drive this old Focus

 

[ItsAdamC]

Bought this for £150 a few months ago, still tested until next month. All I've done is fit a timing belt and wheel bearing, it still stands me less than £200!

Have to say it's done a perfect job of driving me to and from work and carting the dogs about without worrying about them wrecking it. Think I'll stick it through the MOT and see if I can get another year out of it. I always grow weirdly fond of cheap **** boxes

 

[Bronk]

My daily wagon, 137k 150bhp diesel with pimp cream leather.

 

[ALN]

Fond new owner of @NickR octavia (good to meet you surrr). I have basically been daily driving my m3 for the last couple of years but work has gotten terrible with parking and I hate leaving it at the airport let alone the cringe when it cold starts at 5am LOL.

Decent driving thing with a surprisingly punchy engine. There are a few aftermarket mods including a tow bar, air freshener and a random little switch below the headlight switch that doesn’t appear to do anything.

 

[NickR]

Fond new owner of @NickR octavia (good to meet you surrr). I have basically been daily driving my m3 for the last couple of years but work has gotten terrible with parking and I hate leaving it at the airport let alone the cringe when it cold starts at 5am LOL.

Decent driving thing with a surprisingly punchy engine. There are a few aftermarket mods including a tow bar, air freshener and a random little switch below the headlight switch that doesn’t appear to do anything.

View attachment 335036View attachment 335037

Good to meet you too mate. Hope it serves you as well as it did me

I couldn't work out what the switch was for either

 

[mikey]

Good to meet you too mate. Hope it serves you as well as it did me

I couldn't work out what the switch was for either

Any chance it used to be a taxi and the switch was for turning the roofbar lights on?

 

[NickR]

Any chance it used to be a taxi and the switch was for turning the roofbar lights on?

Quite possible, there are a couple of little screw holes in the centre console.

 

[ALN]

Quite possible, there are a couple of little screw holes in the centre console.

This was my best guess also for same reason. She's pure taxi spec lol

 

[Paul.]

I remember somebody on PistonHeads talking about an E34 with a mysterious switch they bought. Turned out it switched the rear lights off. Maybe the Octavia’s also been modified for ‘business’ use.

 

[ALN]

I remember somebody on PistonHeads talking about an E34 with a mysterious switch they bought. Turned out it switched the rear lights off. Maybe the Octavia’s also been modified for ‘business’ use.

The mystery switch

 

[Coog]

I always grow weirdly fond of cheap **** boxes

This is it. I’ve had loads over the years. Proper cheap sheds and one of the things I loved the most is having it sitting mint. Some stuff doesn’t need much to bring it back up to almost like new.

About 15 years ago I bought a MK3 Astra for £250 ish. It had 30k miles on it and looked rough as balls and basically ready for trailing wheelie bins up the driveway. Took it home, tidied it over a weekend and stuck new wheel trims and bits on it and I was tortured with people wanting to buy it.

Eventually a mate won me over and I sold it to him with 45k on the clock for about £500. He got another 100k out of it before it was eventually written off and in that time all it really needed was a timing belt and head gasket. He treated it like crap though so it looked like a bit of a shed again after 6 months neglect and about a year or two after that a complete embarrassment altogether.

One of the other things I noticed is that although some running sheds seem to think others in fancy cars are looking down their noses at them, I’ve found it to be the opposite most of the time.

Many times I’ve rocked up to school to drop the boys off and another parent has commented about a ‘fancy’ jag or look at you in your posh Audi convertible when they’ve just hopped out of a 2021 Defender with optional side bolted luggage rack yokes, probably worth more than my car on their own. Even had the head teacher come running out of their office to look round the Golf last year despite them owning a nearly new Q3.

Its a funny old world.

 

[Dave..]

The mystery switch
View attachment 335051

I found a switch like that in our van, no idea what it is for as nothing happens when I turn it on.

 

[eamon343]

I had a switch like that in my old mk3 golf, it had a habit of doing funny things with its windows when you locked it. So you would come back to the car and all the windows are down. My dad never believed me and always blamed me until he was in the drive way and all the windows started going up and down by themselves. So they swith killed all power to the windows

 

[ALN]

I found a switch like that in our van, no idea what it is for as nothing happens when I turn it on.

I flicked the switch but always put it back. Just in case lol

 

[Coog]

Check the rear lighting works with it switched

 

[gary1365]

I flicked the switch but always put it back. Just in case lol

It’s for over boost and propane injection watch your floor doesn’t fall off and check for danger to the manifold.

 

[ossy2004]

My stop gap near 3.5 years ago….Cheapest car I’ve owned and the by far the most reliable.

160,500 miles on it now and it is still so good

everyone should have a volvo v70 in their life…. If there’s one for sale and your looking a cheap reliable runabout… go buy it!

163bhp remap 205/225, enough to keep you entertained during your daily duties

 

[FM155]

One of the other things I noticed is that although some running sheds seem to think others in fancy cars are looking down their noses at them, I’ve found it to be the opposite most of the time.

I've found the same, all the lads in Spain loved the old Rover because it was the Team Bus. Used to get people coming over at petrol stations to talk about the Alfas quite often too. People in brand new quite expensive cars have a secret love for old chod.

 

[vw1500]

I had a switch like that in my old mk3 golf, it had a habit of doing funny things with its windows when you locked it. So you would come back to the car and all the windows are down. My dad never believed me and always blamed me until he was in the drive way and all the windows started going up and down by themselves. So they swith killed all power to the windows

The red estate?

 

[vw1500]

Octavia was the first car I bought for myself that broke the £1k mark really. Anyone can pay a fortune and get a good car, there's work involved buying a decent car for a grand Had to spend a bit more for sensible family cars for the Mrs.

 

[BarryPort]

Managed to gather up x10 £100 cars for @TalkToFrank stag do in 2016. Couldn’t do that now.

Back to topic this thread has got me itching to go view this reduced Alfa 159Ti SW in Ballymena

 

[Smurf.]

Check the rear lighting works with it switched

I'm may have had a mod like this done on an ae86 about 25 years ago. Obviously done by the previous owner.

 

[TalkToFrank]

@BarryPort you may go buy it, you've talked yourself out of it a few times so give in to yourself