XmisterIS Posted November 4, 2013 Share Posted November 4, 2013 I just bought a Ford Ka Studio (which is the no-frills new-look version), it is nice. Not very quick, but hey, it's a car not a bike, therefore it is slow and boring!Several so-called "professional" car review websites gave it 2 stars out of 5, with the reason being along the lines of, "With the no-frills version, you get what you pay for - no central locking, no electric windows, no body-coloured bumpers or wing mirrors, no satnav, no alloys".When I looked at it, I thought, "Great! It's really cheap because it has no central locking, no electric windows, no body-coloured bumpers or wing mirrors, no satnav, no alloys, so I can fix everything myself for cheap and there's less on it to go wrong!"My sentiment seems to be shared by the army of people who have bought the same car for the same reasons as me. But sadly, fewer and fewer newer cars are being offered as bog-standard-no-frills-dirt-cheap-fix-it-yourself-what-you-see-is-what-you-get-let's-call-a-spade-a-spade!When will the car industry wake up to the fact that many, many people don't give two shits about pretentious advertising, don't care whether the car has got body-coloured this-that-and-the-other, don't care whether or not it is crammed to the arse with electronic gizmos, and just want a cheap, basic car that will get them from A to B with minimum fuss, on a teaspoon of petrol, costs pennies to insure and tax, dead simple, and can be easily and cheaply fixed when it goes wrong? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grumpy Old Git Posted November 4, 2013 Share Posted November 4, 2013 Well said! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazzyG Posted November 4, 2013 Share Posted November 4, 2013 Damn straight, I hear you!We have two cars; my Alfa GT which is loaded to the gills with electronics, all of which constantly go wrong, the onboard computer flashing up almost every day that something's gone wrong.Then we have my wife's Punto which has no central locking, windy-up windows yet never skips a beat!I'm right with you on simpler=better a lot of the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smokin Joe Posted November 4, 2013 Share Posted November 4, 2013 Hear hear!!!Central locking is a lovely little toy - till it goes wrong. Over two hundred cigarette vouchers to fix Mrs SJ's locks when it went wrong. And you can stick your colour coded bits of tissue paper and fit proper bumpers too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al_stu Posted November 4, 2013 Share Posted November 4, 2013 my Alfa There's your problem...Italian electronics Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
techno Posted November 4, 2013 Share Posted November 4, 2013 I got a fiesta studio, but I was amazed hill start help thing and traction control lol but tho its central locking no fob control, ridiculous.Oh I don't want stuff you can"fix yourself" I want stuff that doesn't need fixing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebel Rach Posted November 4, 2013 Share Posted November 4, 2013 Oh I don't want stuff you can"fix yourself" I want stuff that doesn't need fixing! And that there is why I bought an Audi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megawatt Posted November 4, 2013 Share Posted November 4, 2013 An Audi !!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazzyG Posted November 4, 2013 Share Posted November 4, 2013 my Alfa There's your problem...Italian electronics Yup! Every Italian car was built on a friday.Luckily they make up for it in other ways! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiggie Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 Wifes Renault has the lovely habit of winding a window down on its own and not being able to wind it back up without playing about with fuses and then it only raises the window 1 inch so you have to keep messing with it I too love the idea of a no frills car with manual everything!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tankbag Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 I got a fiesta studio, but I was amazed hill start help thing and traction control lol but tho its central locking no fob control, ridiculous.Oh I don't want stuff you can"fix yourself" I want stuff that doesn't need fixing! I found the hill helper thing a bit odd at first Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joeman Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 Oh I don't want stuff you can"fix yourself" I want stuff that doesn't need fixing! And that there is why I bought an Audi Same Here,I've got an Audi A6 3.0 quattro avant, loaded with electronics (just the way i like em) none of which have ever let me down.Always buy German and you can't go wrong.Even my old W-reg, 1000quid VW passat estate I bought for moving muddy dogs about and taking stuff to the tip has electric windows, air conditioning, and remote central locking and even though it's done over 100k miles and looking a bit battle scared and stinks of dogs, it all still works fine. In three years of owenwrship I've only had to replace the CV boots and one tyre. Never even changed the oil!! and it flies through MOTs no problem. Cheap, motoring No idea why people buy low spec 'cheap' new cars when there are so many used cars with loads of miles left on the clock and a few luxuries that can be bought for around £1k... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tankbag Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 You are kidding about the oil right :-$ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
techno Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 I got a fiesta studio, but I was amazed hill start help thing and traction control lol but tho its central locking no fob control, ridiculous.Oh I don't want stuff you can"fix yourself" I want stuff that doesn't need fixing! I found the hill helper thing a bit odd at first When it first happened was in the wifes car wondered wtf it was but its not too bad in hers, but its really shit in the ford, it tends not to want to let go so you can stall the car, keep meaning to turn the dam thing off tbh! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruz Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 XmisterIS,It is a simple case of the marketing people knowing what the customer aspires to, and that is the problem.People want a car with all the bell's and whistles but only want to pay for the basic car, ergo the 'studio' range from F**d.Simple case of 'you get what you pay for', if you want a car which has comfort ant a degree of class then buy pre-used (what used to be called 2nd hand) and get something more upmarket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XmisterIS Posted November 5, 2013 Author Share Posted November 5, 2013 XmisterIS,It is a simple case of the marketing people knowing what the customer aspires to, and that is the problem.People want a car with all the bell's and whistles but only want to pay for the basic car, ergo the 'studio' range from F**d.Simple case of 'you get what you pay for', if you want a car which has comfort ant a degree of class then buy pre-used (what used to be called 2nd hand) and get something more upmarket. That there is the problem! I don't aspire to material things (except motorbikes) and I don't give a toss about class. I don't want a car with bells or whistles! (would be noisy ...). I am not the "usual" customer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 Oh I don't want stuff you can"fix yourself" I want stuff that doesn't need fixing! And that there is why I bought an Audi Same Here,I've got an Audi A6 3.0 quattro avant, loaded with electronics (just the way i like em) none of which have ever let me down.Always buy German and you can't go wrong.Even my old W-reg, 1000quid VW passat estate I bought for moving muddy dogs about and taking stuff to the tip has electric windows, air conditioning, and remote central locking and even though it's done over 100k miles and looking a bit battle scared and stinks of dogs, it all still works fine. In three years of owenwrship I've only had to replace the CV boots and one tyre. Never even changed the oil!! and it flies through MOTs no problem. Cheap, motoring No idea why people buy low spec 'cheap' new cars when there are so many used cars with loads of miles left on the clock and a few luxuries that can be bought for around £1k... Must just be my Audi thats failed its MOT miserably then!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebel Rach Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 Must just be my Audi thats failed its MOT miserably then!! MOT what is this thing you speak of??? No MOT in my world for another 2 1/2 years Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Fro Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 Same Here,I've got an Audi A6 3.0 quattro avant, loaded with electronics (just the way i like em) none of which have ever let me down.Always buy German and you can't go wrong.Even my old W-reg, 1000quid VW passat estate I bought for moving muddy dogs about and taking stuff to the tip has electric windows, air conditioning, and remote central locking and even though it's done over 100k miles and looking a bit battle scared and stinks of dogs, it all still works fine. In three years of owenwrship I've only had to replace the CV boots and one tyre. Never even changed the oil!! and it flies through MOTs no problem. Cheap, motoring No idea why people buy low spec 'cheap' new cars when there are so many used cars with loads of miles left on the clock and a few luxuries that can be bought for around £1k... I bought an cheap deisel Volvo estate a few years back to move house and tow things. 40k miles later and I still haven't quite got round to changing the oil although I did treat it to new air and fuel filters this year. Other than that I regassed the air con, replaced a power steering pipe and slapped a new battery on it for the winter. Cheap motoring with all the toys including heated seats! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joeman Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 I bought an cheap deisel Volvo estate a few years back to move house and tow things. 40k miles later and I still haven't quite got round to changing the oil Yes, I think oil changes on older cars are a myth, as if they were really that important, my VW dog-waggon would have died ages ago, but its still going strong!! I noticed the CV boots had split, so I treated the old gal to a new pair of drive shafts a couple of weeks ago. got the pair brand new for 70quid, and fitted them myself - they should last another 100k miles, even if the engine doesnt!Feeling a bit guilty about the oil change now... i'll add it to my todo list Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazzyG Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 It's never really so much about the brand itself, rather how well that particular car has been looked after.I know of Fiats and Alfas that have been faultlessly reliable, because people keep on top of things. Conversely, I know of Audis and VWs that have fallen apart because the owners think they'll run forever without any kind of attention.There's other factors, too; what're the roads like? What distances do you drive?My cousin had a Jag S Type that she thought was unreliable. It wasn't; the problem was that she was a care worker, driving short distances between houses in a 2.7diesel Jag that was meant for the motorways. The DPF kept clogging up and putting the car into limp-home mode. Not the car's fault. Not Jag's fault. Just the wrong car for that job.Which market was the car made for? My GT was made for carving up the Italian mountain passes, lovely tight curves on smooth tarmac. The wishbones are made of chocolate, because that's all they need to be made of for that job. However, on British potholes, that's a liability. All 156s/147s/GTs tend to need their wishbones replacing once every coupla years in England, because they get wrecked by our shitty road surfaces.Many many things that influence our perception of a car's 'reliability.' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joeman Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 The wishbones are made of chocolate, because that's all they need to be made of for that job. However, on British potholes, that's a liability. I have the same problem with the front wishbones on my BMW330.. i've owned the car since new, and its done about 68k miles, during which times its had two sets of front wishbones each time ive had them replaced at BMW's expense as my argument has been they are clearly not fit for purpose - ie not upto the job of driving on british roads.. ive also had a new turbo and various other bits replaced on the Beemer .. i have given it a good thrashing though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazzyG Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 The wishbones are made of chocolate, because that's all they need to be made of for that job. However, on British potholes, that's a liability. I have the same problem with the front wishbones on my BMW330.. i've owned the car since new, and its done about 68k miles, during which times its had two sets of front wishbones each time ive had them replaced at BMW's expense as my argument has been they are clearly not fit for purpose - ie not upto the job of driving on british roads.. ive also had a new turbo and various other bits replaced on the Beemer .. i have given it a good thrashing though Yup! I swear we have some of the worst roads in Europe, lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitarman Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 ...if you want a car which has comfort ant a degree of class then buy pre-used (what used to be called 2nd hand) and get something more upmarket.That's what I did a few years back. Got a top of the range Zafira 8 months old, I paid half of what it would have cost new 8 months before. Apart from a new gear box just before the warranty ran out it's gone well and I've never had to put any oil in it either. (It is serviced every year though) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Throttled Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 The UK is the only European country where the base model with no extras is not usually available. Certainly in Germany you can buy Audis, BMWs and Mercs with window winders, manually adjustable seats, standard stereos and ABS with no other driving aids (ABS is usually legally required). The marketing people knew the UK market and its demand for extras. I would be happy to see that changing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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