Our cars

Toyota Prius recall - our car is the first in the UK to be fixed

2010-02-09T19:52:08Z

So after all the hype and reputation destruction, it’s cured by nothing more than plugging a non-descript box with a touchscreen into the car and pressing some buttons.

I’ve just had our new long-term Prius recalled and reprogrammed to cure the thing with the brakes, which has gone from being described as “there’s nothing wrong” to a full blown, country-wide recall.

Toyota issues Prius recall

It’s the first Prius in the UK to have the procedure carried out, so there was a little head-scratching from the blokes at our local Toyota outfit while they ran through the instructions that had just turned up from Toyota HQ, but the actual reprogramming took under two minutes.

If you’ve got a Prius, bargain on a maximum of 45 minutes, allowing for messing around with parking (which is always, always impossible at every dealership I go to.)

The boss at the dealership said they’ve been somewhat overrun by phone calls from customers, although rather too many of those calls are from people who are getting the throttle pedal and the brake issue mixed up. The Lexus dealer down the road is getting calls about the brake problem…

Standing in the dealership waiting for the service manager, I overheard a woman on the phone. “Well, while I’m here I’m going to get them to check the brakes as well because you never know, do you?” she was saying.

Actually you do know – if it’s not a Prius it isn’t going to have a brake problem. And what was she driving? An Aygo.

Volvo's 'flagship dealer' impresses

2010-01-28T16:08:00Z

Late last year I took my long-term Volvo XC60 in for a service at Volvo Cars West London in Chiswick.

It was a frustrating experience, punctuated by a series of small problems that left me pretty unimpressed, especially as it was my first experience of a so-called premium dealer.

Read 'Volvo's flagship dealer disappoints'

It also seemed that I wasn’t alone in feeling let down by dealer experiences – the response from autocar.co.uk readers to the story was massive, sharing both good and bad tales.

But this blog isn’t about the problems, but the solutions – all of which have left me very impressed.

Subsequent to my initial report, Tracey Perry, the company’s MD, rang me. Not to shout and complain, but to talk about what went wrong and how she could improve the service on offer.

All very well, of course, but, as they say, actions speak louder than words. A few weeks later I got an email outlining what had changed in the weeks following my visit. Perry was determined to tackle any criticism head on.

In total, 29 company cars were moved off site to improve customer parking. In addition, plans were put in place to prepare and sell new cars off site, and have them delivered to Chiswick only when there was space available.

She subsequently asked if I would attend another meeting, and she and I talked through my experiences in painstaking detail with someone from Volvo head office, so that specific training could be instigated.

While the fact that my experiences were published on Autocar.co.uk undoubtedly had a major bearing on Perry’s response, it’s also worth noting that she says she also talked to other customers to gauge their opinions.

This training is still rolling out, but passing by the other day I thought I’d drop in and see if the reality of Perry’s changes matched the promises.

I can’t compare like with like as I haven’t put a car through a service there, but I have been back, unannounced, to have a wander around.

The signs were entirely positive. For starters, there was none of the parking chaos of my previous visit (although I did have to take the last available space). It’s amazing how much more positive you feel about a place when you can negotiate its car park without needing the prowess of a stunt driver.

There was also plenty of assistance on hand, all offered in a helpful but far from pushy manner. I’ve always been mystified by how, when you are making one of the most expensive purchases of your life, or trying to maintain it, customer service is so frequently appalling (that said, estate agents aren’t exactly shining examples on the whole, either). But, on this snapshot, Volvo West London got it right, in my view, treating my mild curiosity at new models with informative and helpful answers.

Of course, I’d like to go back again, just to see if the service desk had raised its game (which it needed to). After all, this time I was showing an interest in buying a car, rather than having one serviced. Overall, though, the signs were positive.

But perhaps the autocar.co.uk forum users can step in again on this one? I’d be intrigued to know what you expect in terms of customer service from a dealership, and hear about any first-hand experiences.

My new favourite car on my new favourite road

2009-08-12T12:08:00Z

What’s you favourite road? I’ve always longed to have a strip of road that I could take my favourite cars to and really have a blast without getting caught behind some farm machinery or a ten-year-old Nissan Micra.

Last night, I was entrusted with the keys for our long term Renaultsport Twingo 133 Cup for the evening and I set about on a quest to find a stretch of road I would want to return to again and again.

First up, it’s worth pointing out how fantastic the Twingo is. For someone of my age, I think this is all the car you could ever need. It’s powerful, but, crucially, you always feel in control.

I’m not the most experienced driver so having 131bhp going through the front wheels is enough for me to manage and stay on top of without worrying about parking it in a ditch. You never feel like the Twingo is going to bite back and do its own thing – you always feel in control and can feel what the car is doing and responding to your inputs.

And I doubt there would be too many 20-year-olds bothered about a firm ride when in return you get one of most attractive and fun-to-drive pocket-sized hot hatches on-sale.

After about an hour of driving firstly on the A3, and then around Chessington, Leatherhead and some places I’ve never even heard of, I’d got a bit downhearted and thought my quest would be an ultimately fruitless one.

But then, somewhere near Guildford, I turned off the main road into what can only be described as driver’s paradise. This road had everything – fast straights, tight bends, hills, long corners, short corners, scenery, you name it, it had it.

I didn’t once break the speed limit either – the Twingo and the road both knew their own limits and complimented each other perfectly.

After the best part of an hour going up and down this road, the light was going and I thought it was best to turn back. Even on the more restrained drive home, the Twingo raised a smile due to the amount of grip you can get driving around roundabouts, or blasting up slip roads.

You may have read in my biography below that I have a Ford Fiesta that qualifies for scrappage. Although I couldn’t really afford a new Renaultsport Twingo, I still found myself on Renault’s website this morning eyeing up what kind of deal I might be able to get on one. I really was that impressed. It’s gone straight to the top of my list of what my next car is going to be.

Technorati Tags: Reanultsport Twingo 133 Cup, roads, A3, Renault, scrappage, Ford Fiesta, Guildford, Chessington

Cruising in the Honda Insight

2009-08-10T12:01:00Z

Over the weekend, I clocked up more than 300 miles in our long term Honda Insight.

Honda’s latest hybrid offering is packed with lots of hybrid technology, but my favourite part of the car was hardly anything revolutionary – cruise control.

On my drive up to Norfolk on Friday evening, I decided to trust my right foot and frequently I found the speedometer growling at me (by flashing blue) rather than patting me on the back (by flashing green).

This was my first time driving any hybrid and I quickly learned that rapid acceleration and trying to do my own gearshifts in sport mode were off the agenda.

By the time it came to the drive back to London last night, I’d decided the Insight’s technology was probably more clever than I was so I decided to let it show me how it should be done and put it in cruise control.

Instantly, the fuel economy boosted by around 10mpg to 60mpg as the Insight worked out how much throttle was needed to cruise at 70mph.

When going up hills under my guidance, the electric motor kicked in more than was needed (to the detriment of fuel economy) but left to its own devices, the Insight was a model in getting the balance between petrol and electric power just right.

Usually I find myself getting bored with cruise control on but not in the Insight. It was fascinating to see where the battery would recharge itself and how high the mpg figure would rise to without my right foot interfering.

I even found myself setting the cruise control in a 30mph limit and letting the Insight do its business around town. Interestingly, the difference in the mpg figure between cruise control and no cruise control was even greater than on the motorways.

I think my wallet enjoyed the trip, too. I spent little more than £30 fuelling the Insight for its trip, pretty impressive in any class.

Although I'm not necessarily the type of person Honda is aiming the Insight at, it's still left me deeply impressed. I used to think a car used to be quick to be fun, but the Insight has shown me that's not always the case.

The next time the keys are going spare, I'll be doing my best to make sure I'm at the front of the queue to get my hands on them.

Technorati Tags: Honda Insight, hybrid, Toyota Prius, cruise control, London, Norfolk

Our Insignia brought back some happy memories

2009-07-27T16:44:00Z

Spending some time in our long-term Vauxhall Insignia this weekend brought back a lot of happy memories for me of how saloon cars used to be.

I grew up on a diet of watching saloon cars go racing in the BTCC in the 1990s. These cars were my real boyhood motoring heroes and I used to love seeing the Mondeos, Vectras, Accords, A4s and co crashing into each other on a fortnightly basis.

The real appeal with these cars though was the fact you could carve out some real brand loyalty. You could roll up at Brands Hatch or Snetterton in your Renault Laguna and then go and cheer on the same motor – on the outside at least – around the track. Volvo were always my favourites if you're interested.

It was watching these races where I picked up most of my initial impressions about brands that I still have today. Audi were the innovators, Ford and Volvo the dependables, Alfa Romeo the style conscious. And then there was Vauxhall.

Right up until I drove Insignia, my overriding memory of Vauxhall saloons was of a plucky but flawed effort, more concerned with coming along for the ride rather than going all out to produce something really special. This was personified by its performance in the BTCC, spearheaded by the ‘good ol’ boys’ Derek Warwick and John Cleland.

The Insignia deeply impressed me on so many levels and certainly ditched the ‘good ol’ boys’ image I still associated with Vauxhall. The styling is a real triumph, with subtle touches including the chrome piping around the windows and the gently raking roofline.

I showed me how good a car can be for simply being a pain-free, effortless experience. The smooth 2.0-litre diesel helped covered the miles at a quick rate and for £20k, there aren’t too many interiors that have the sophistication of the Insignia’s.

It wasn’t just me singing the Insignia’s praises, either. At least 30 people I know saw it or spent some time in it over the weekend and not one could fault it. The benchmark saloon in my eyes has been set and I’m looking forward to having a go in some of its rivals to see what can better the Insignia.

Driving it also got me thinking how good a modern BTCC would be with all the current guises of the 1990’s saloon classics. Now there would be a proper race series to get excited about…

Technorati Tags: Vauxhall Insignia, BTCC, Ford Mondeo, Renault Laguna, Honda Accord, Volvo S40, Vauxhall Vectra

Some quality time with our Kia Soul

2009-07-17T09:24:51Z

Last weekend, I spent my first period of quality time with our long term Kia Soul. Being a twenty something (well, I’m 20) I’m just the sort of person Kia is aiming its new soft-roader/mini MPV crossover at.

But being a twenty something, I always have to watch the pennies and this is where the Soul’s biggest fault in my eyes comes in with its rather disappointing fuel economy figures.

Over the weekend, I did around 350 miles travelling from Teddington to Norwich and back, with a return trip to Great Yarmouth thrown in the middle. This cost me £50 in fuel, a return of around 32mpg. I was hardly spirited with my use of the throttle so this figure could have been worse if I really was going for it.

This figure backs up the 34mpg we achieved when road testing this very Soul earlier this year, so my experience of it wasn’t just a one off. In a car of its size and 1220kg weight, the 124bhp, 115lb ft 1.6-litre petrol engine just feels too underpowered to make the Soul a sensible economic choice for its target market, especially when you could get a new Fiesta for similar money.

On the motorway, the engine is noisy and a bit unrefined and you have to turn the radio up to make the cabin a more pleasurable place. On the subject of the radio, however, the sound quality is excellent and you can even pick up Radio 4 LW without any interference.

The lack of a sixth gear is also an issue too and I think the addition of a sixth ratio would solve a lot of the Soul’s fuel economy problems and make motorway cruising a quieter experience. It also has the same aerodynamic qualities as a brick, which again hinders any hope of a decent return at the pumps.

I am starting to get my head around the Soul’s looks, though. I remember seeing several Souls driving around Norfolk earlier this year and late last year when Lotus was involved in tweaking its ride and handling for UK roads and it was as striking then as it is now.

I’ve seen a couple of Souls in London in black and it actually looks a lot more dynamic and lovable than the orange colour adorning our Soul’s bodywork. Black Soul’s compliment the car’s styling better and it is a much more appealing prospect, especially to its target market.

I hope the Soul will eventually win me over and perhaps with a 1.6-litre diesel or even better, the 2.0-litre diesel it could well do. But hey, if it’s good enough for Sussex Police, then it’s good enough for me.

Technorati Tags: Kia Soul, Kia, Ford Fiesta, Lotus

Carbon dioxide and the law of averages

2009-07-01T15:12:39Z

An enquiring email arrived in the Autocar inbox the other day, from a reader of the mag. One John Carter, operator of a fleet of 50 or so company cars with an average CO2 output of 147g/km (“and falling”, he says), wondered what the overall average CO2 figure for the Autocar long-term test fleet was. Or indeed is.

Good question. And finally, a few days later, once we’d got some important magazine-making tasks out of the way, we have an answer. Now, bear in mind that our long-term fleet is in a regular, if not constant, state of flux, with new arrivals arriving and old favourites departing pretty much on a weekly basis. But as of this morning, the average figure is…drum roll, please… 175g/km. Which, as an overall average, is, I suppose, about average.

Actually, considering some of the tasty hardware we’ve got out in the car park right now, that’s not too bad at all. Currently sitting on top of the table, unsurprisingly, is the Aston Martin V8 Vantage Roadster (312g/km), with our Lexus IS-F (270g/km) trailing in second, ahead of editor Hallett’s brand new 911 Carrera 4S (247g/km – read all about it in next week’s mag).

At the other end of the scale our 1.0-litre automatic iQ2 (99g/km) brings up the eco-friendly rear, with the recently acquired Honda Insight (105g/km) next in line for Autocar’s very own green motoring award. And the Hyundai i10 (119g/km) should please the eco-activists too.

Of more interest, perhaps, are the motors of note occupying commendably low positions on the Autocar emissions table, particularly the immensely entertaining Alpina D3 Touring (145g/km) and Audi’s wholly impressive TT TDI (139g/km).

Of course had our Land Rover Defender 110 XS (291g/km) still been around then things might have looked a little different, although that would have been offset, to an extent, by the Fiat Bravo 1.6 Dynamic Eco (119g/km) that left at around the same time. But as I said, it’s a moveable feast, and one we’ll be keeping half an eye on in the future.

Talking of moveable feasts, as it currently stands the EU’s target for the average CO2 emissions from new cars is 130g/km by 2012. There’s no word yet if that will also apply to motoring magazines’ long-term test fleets, but if it does then a judicious selective process on our part shouldn’t make the process too painful.

Technorati Tags: Autocar, Aston Martin Vantage, Toyota iQ, Toyota Prius, honda Insight, Lexus IS-F, Land Rover Defender 110 XS , Alpina D3 Touring, Audi TT TDI, Porsche 911 Carrera 4S, Fiat Bravo 1.6 Dynamic Eco,

The missing Jag diesel

2008-12-30T11:16:07Z

After running a Jaguar XF for three months I’m even more convinced that it’s the best exec saloon on the market.
But I’m not going to pretend that the 2.7-litre diesel is the best thing about it. Yes it’s peachy smooth and a great match for the six-speed auto ‘box. But a BMW 530d has a far superior motor, let alone the 535d. So the XF’s new 272bhp 3.0-litre diesel is another sign that Jaguar seems capable of keeping up with the Germans.
Then again there’s still a glaring omission in the line-up. Where’s the punchy four-cylinder TD? By far the best selling Bee-Ems, Audis and Mercs are not the fire-breathing versions, they’re the cooking diesels. Jag bosses will tell you that they’re not after big numbers, just profitability. But the way things are going, a smaller-engined XF is going to be required to even get it to figure on potential buyers’ wish lists.
A 200bhp diesel with a Sport badge and the looks of the forthcoming XFR sounds very ‘new Jaguar’ to me.

End of the road for our 'E'

2008-12-19T11:12:46Z

So after three months and 5000 miles together, we've finally finished with our 'W124' Mercedes E280. You'll be able to read another story in the magzine in a couple of weeks time - and we're even producing another video.

But for now, it's sitting in the car park enjoying a well-deserved rest.

To be honest, I was surprised by the amount of interest that a £1000 Merc on the brink of bangerdom produced. But in terms of letters, emails and forum traffic, it looks like the idea of trading down into a well-chosen exec is an idea that more people are starting to have.

And, despite our E-class's various faults - most of them down to its aged electrical system - I've enjoyed pretty much every mile I spent in it. It made me reconsider the way I viewed old, non-classic cars.

Yes, in purely economic terms spending over £500 a year to keep a £1000 car on the road - figures reached by 'annualizing' the outgoings during its time with us - does not make a huge amount of sense. But choosing a faded star like an E-class does enable you to travel in the sort of comfort and class that you're never going to find in a similarly cheap Golf or Astra.

My logic is that an old E-class is best seen as a cut-price alternative to a 15-year old Bentley or Roller rather than a particularly rational way to cut motoring costs. And I know that I'm going to miss our E-class more than any other car I've owned or run over the years.

Which brings me to your chance to land yourself a bit of Autocar history. We're selling the E-class on, so that somebody else can continue to enjoy its slightly faded charms. It's got MOT until next August, tax until the end of January, most of a service history and a mere 112,000 miles showing on the odometer.

It’s also sitting on four new tyres with a sump full of fresh oil.

Expressions of interest - as close as possible to the £1000 we paid for the thing - should be made to autocar@haymarket.com

Happy bidding!

Technorati Tags: Merc,Mercedes,W124,E280,estate,Volkswagen,Vauxhall,Astra,Golf,Autocar

Our Merc bounces back – and gets a new friend

2008-11-12T14:15:38Z

Having disproved the myth of the ‘bombproof’ mid-1990s Merc – read the last installment for details of the various electrical gremlins that afflicted it – my 1993 W124 is finally back on the road.

Mercedes came good with a genuine, brand-new heater fan and Steve, our friendly auto electrician, clamped it in place and rebuilt the wiper assembly, which he had previously had to remove to gain access to the motor.

The total cost, including fitting, came in at a wince-inducing £300, meaning that just getting hot air into the cabin has required the investment of a worryingly large percentage of the car’s £1000-ish value.

Lesson learned, anyway – any future problems are likely to be fixed by a good, old-fashioned bodge.

Perhaps sensing my diminishing patience, the Merc has been running better than ever since it was finished. The engine has lost the slight misfire it emerged from the valeting bay with, and everyone who has driven it has commented on its silky-smooth power delivery.

Fuel economy has settled down at a genuine 25mpg in everyday use, too – better than I was hoping for.

And it also seems that old Mercs are infectious. Because Vicky Parrott, erstwhile web reporter and now the newest member of the Autocar road test desk, has just splashed £620 of her own hard-earned on an equally venerable 190E 2.0.

It’s slightly tidier than the E-class, although it doesn’t have the W124’s leather upholstery or comprehensive service history. But a quick run around the block in it confirms that it drives with the same solidity and sense of permanence as its bigger brother, and has an even sweeter-shifting autobox.

It’s good enough to have attracted plenty of favourable comment from elsewhere in the office. I won’t be surprised if there are a couple more sub-£1000 Mercs in the carpark in six months time.

Technorati Tags: Mercedes W124,Merc,E-class,190E

Land Rover Defender - the defence rests

2008-11-03T13:08:27Z

Have to admit that I'd never got the Defender thing. Sure they are brilliant workhorses, but I could never understand the cult following.

But having spent the weekend tooling round in a 110 XS, I'm a convert.

It helped that I had lots of smallish journeys to make, clearly, if I'd been doing a couple of hundred motorway miles we wouldn't have parted on such good terms.

It's loud, uncomfortable and the steering lock is frankly ridiculous, but what the Defender has that so many modern cars don't, is character.

From the solid click of the indicator stalk to the meaty mechanical gearchange, and the fact you have to clamber up into the driving seat the whole thing is an event. And sometimes that's what you want from a car.

The slight issue of manoeuvrability aside, the Defender is a doddle in London traffic. Why? Because no-one messes. Not buses, no black cabs and certainly not Porsche Cayennes.

Whether that's because they worried for their paintwork, or because our particular Defender is gunmetal grey and looks like something straight out of Spooks, doesn't matter. It's another reason to enjoy the Defender.

Technorati Tags: Land Rover Defender,Porsche Cayenne,London

Our Merc has issues

2008-10-31T10:20:47Z

It’s good to see that our 1993 Merc E280 has fired up so much debate in the forums, most of it favourable, but unfortunately the car itself has been faring less well.

So where to start? It was all going so well: the E-class got its oil changed, had four new tyres and went along to Autoglym in Hertfordshire for a full cosmetic makeover. By the time it emerged it looked factory fresh – and worth at least three times the £1000 we paid for it.

Then the gremlins attacked. First the aftermarket alarm system, which had always had issues, threw a proper wobbly and immobilized the car in a busy supermarket carpark.

Then the central locking failed. And then – worst of all – the heater fan decided to pack up.

The last point being something of an issue as the autumn turned into an early winter – without the fan it was impossible to defrost the car and the journey to work might as well be conducted through the Siberian Tundra.

At which point I called in a professional auto electrician to work his magic. Fixing the central locking took a couple of hours to track down a broken connector – but digging the old heater fan out required the disassembly of the entire wiper mechanism.

And then the quest to find a new one began. I never thought that tracking down parts for a once popular car could be such a challenge, but it took several days to track down a brand new blower fan.

Finally, after a week of waiting and with the sparky on standby, it arrived and with Christmas-like anticipation I opened the box – only to discover I’d been sent the wrong part (a single rotor fan rather than our climate control-fitted car’s twin rotor.) My response was succinct, predictable and best not published here.

Anyway, I’m really hoping the E-class will be back on the road next week: I’m starting to miss the old girl. And, apart from the heater fan, it’s in tip-top nick. But in the meantime, consider it’s plight a cautionary tale. And wish me luck.

Technorati Tags: ercedes,W124,E-class,Merc,Hertfordshire,Autoglym

Peugeot 309: the story so far

2008-10-28T09:53:25Z

I’m delighted that there’s been an enquiry or two about the fate of the Autocar Peugeot 309 GTI track-day car, mainly because it gives me a chance to describe how the car has been covering itself in glory.

Some of you may remember that the car was bought about four years ago for £250 on eBay. The idea was to build a ‘backyard’ car that would be as quick as a Mini Cooper at the Bedford Autodrome. It nearly worked.

We gutted the car, fitted a half-cage plus semi-race suspension (courtesy of Peugeot UK) and the car duly ran against a Cooper on one of the longer Bedford circuits, getting within a second a lap, which was reasonable if not a triumph.

I’ve always liked the idea of owning a cheap hillclimb/sprint car, so I took it over. First it went back to Peugeot where the apprentices cut out the old glass sunroof and replaced it with standard tin, saving about 20kg.

It was good, but not notably quick.

Then, just as inspiration was running out, the whole effort was saved when I made contact with a rally preparation specialist and Peugeot 205/309 expert, Christian Prynne, based in Builth Wells, who agreed to assess the car and suggest a plan of action. We started again.

Prynne reckoned it would be safer to fit a full cage, and bolt the race seats directly to the floor, so we did that. He sorted our engine (already Longman-headed and rebuilt at Peugeot) by putting it on a local rolling road. Suddenly it would rev cleanly to the 7200rpm limiter.

Then the big stuff. Mike Quaife, the gearbox guru, helped us with a low-ratio crownwheel and pinion, a slippery diff, and a set of hardy gearbox internals. Now the car will only do 107 mph (true) against the rev-limiter, which makes it a noisy motorway cruiser, but it doesn’t half get to 80-90 mph quickly.

In went a heavy-duty clutch. The whole thing was fettled over the winter, and last season we did a track day, Autocar’s Prescott driving school and a low-key season of sprints, culminating in our first dry meeting for the season — at Prescott three weeks ago.

That was the moment the car really started to realise its potential.

Our best time (my son Jon’s, not mine) was 54.08secs, which beat some pretty decent opposition. In fact, this is a better time than we’ve achieved on that hill in any of the other three cars we’ve entered in over 10 years — Caterham 1700, Lotus Elise and MG-engined Lotus 6.

Best thing: this car is exactly at out level. It can be MoT’d with a bit of a push, so we can drive it to local meetings. If you feel like making a bit of a noise, you can give it a run just for fun on local roads.

It seems tough and reliable — and better than many a race car in inclement weather, because there’s a roof to protect you in the paddock. I intend to keep gently developing the car, with a view to shaving a couple more seconds off our Prescott time, though I’ve a feeling gains will be harder to earn from now on.

But it’s huge fun, and it won’t cost us much to keep trying.

Still Smarting

2008-10-10T15:42:29Z

Our Smart's gone and I'm going to miss it. Not all of us have been smitten, mind you.

The Fortwo's much improved but still slightly jerky sequential gear shift irked quite a few of us, so did the occasionally crashy town ride.

But I've enjoyed it. I enjoyed learning how to get the best out of it - that 'box requires some work - and I've enjoyed not taking up any more space on the road than strictly necessary. It's also got those increasingly rare commodities: uniqueness and character.

More than this I've relished having what could well be a glimpse of the future. If you take the view that more of us are going to be using 'mission specific' cars - then the Smart fits the bill.

After all, during the week I rarely need more than a two-seat tiddler to ferry me about. So no it's not perfect, but I can see something like it being a permanent fixture in my house before too long.

Technorati Tags: Smart,ForTwo

Meet our new, old Merc

2008-10-06T14:18:49Z

Crunchy credit has been savaging the top end of the car market, and winning headlines as it does. But rising fuel and VED costs are doing much the same at the bottom.

Which, in short, is why I’ve become the custodian of the newest and oldest member of the Autocar fleet – this very fine 1993 Mercedes E280 estate.

I’ve always been a big fan of the ‘W124’ E-class, reckoned by many aficionados to represent the high water mark of Merc build quality, but even its aristocratic breeding hasn’t been able to spare it from the slide in prices that has savaged all big-engined petrol motors. Cars that would have cost upwards of £2000 a year ago are now going for a grand or less.

Which is where the logic of investing my own hard-earned in a representative example came in. First up, I should point out that the myth of the bulletproof W124 was exploded early in the selection process, there are some serious nails out there, many of which disguise their mechanical maladies beneath a good scrub-up.

Fortunately I had Nicholas Froome on side, Britain’s leading W124 expert, and purveyor of some of the finest examples going. With £1000 to spend I was looking at the opposite end of the market to where Nick normally deals, but his help was invaluable, especially the advice to look for mechanical solidity over cosmetic condition.

Anyway, after a couple of weeks of digging, the search turned up L403GYT – or ‘Git’ as it was instantly dubbed. It’s not the tidiest Merc around, with some exterior scuffs and an interior that seems to have been used as an adventure playground.

But the oily bits are all in fine fettle – and with just 107,000 miles on the odometer it’s barely run in by W124 standards (okay, being an estate it’s technically an S124, but that’s not got the same ring to it.)

So how much to seal the deal? £1100, complete with six months road tax, a year’s MOT and a full service history. Now the plan is to find out just how well a 15-year old Merc copes with my 600 mile a week lifestyle. I’ll let you know how we get on.

Technorati Tags: Mercedes-Benz,Mercedes,W124,E-Class,Autocar