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The end of an era — 25 Comments

  1. Something the old bangers become a bit like a pet, don't they? 😉

    Just in case somthing get’s a bit “hanging in there”, you might want to have a look at this: https://sugru.com/blog
    Amazing stuff!

      • Yes, there is. And it works very well – if you happen to see your mistake within five minutes. Which I didn't. Hmf! 😉

  2. Ah, dear, I'm sorry the Focus is going.

    I'm up to 448,000 kms on my Peugeot 207 (I don't know what that is in old money).

  3. Well, What's the make and model?  It doesn't look like anything sold here.  They don't make station wagons for this market any more.  They're all SUV's or hatchbacks.

    • Can't give you a link, but it's a Dacia Logan Wagon. Just Google it. One hopes it's a petrol motor.

      • Well spotted.  To give it its full title – Dacia Logan Signature Estate.  And of course it's petrol.  You don't think I's stoop to one of those battery driven toys?  My only regret is that it isn't a diesel.

        • Sounds nice.  I dogpiled it and Dacia Logan's are not sold here in the US but it sure sounds like a nice car.  I hope you get another 15 years of use out of it.

  4. Good choice – I've had two of the saloon model on my fleet, both with the 900cc petrol turbo engine, that's the one to have (it's basically a Renault Clio in a different frock) – both have been faultless.  OK, they're not pretending to be luxury limousines, but the latest one even has air-con and a digital radio, so hardly basic. The first one only depreciated by £3,500 over four years – that's less than £20 a week, amazing value for an everyday runabout.

    Just make sure you change the oil regularly and it will do everything you need it to do.

    • Indeed it has air-con and a digital radio.  Apparently it also has cruise control and a speed limiter [I shall be disabling the latter].  There are various other gizmos [bluetooth?  MP3 player?] but I'll need to investigate once I take delivery.  The test drive I had was just to confirm that it starts and stops, so I didn't go into the finer details.

      • Remember also to disable the ridiculous stop/start function every time you drive it – the battery and starter-motor are not designed for such excessive use, it's only there to appease the malevolent greenies, sod them, they won't pay to replace your knackered battery and starter when they fail just out of warranty.

        • I don't think it has that "feature".  It behaved itself very well on the test drive with no signs of a stop/start.

          • Check alongside the handbrake lever – if there's a mysterious rocker-switch that toggles a light on and off, that's the stop/start eliminator.  You need the light on.   If it's not there, congratulations.

  5. 33,000kms! I do 300kms each week just driving to work, mind you I do live in the land of OZ and as you might imagine we do get through the kms. My last camping holiday to the outback (NSW, SA, NT, QLD) we did about 7,300kms in three weeks.

    • The last few years I have done relatively little driving, apart from many trips up to the hospital.  Where I really rack up the miles is on holiday.  In many ways the new car is in anticipation of a few holidays either in Ireland or France.

  6. One cannot keep a car forever. Something I keep telling my wife as her old mini-van keeps costing more $$$ every year just to get it through inspection. I have to admit that it pretty much runs like new, something which I wish the chassis would listen too but it's not to be.

    Looks like you made a good choice. Not available in the US but so are a lot of other decent vehicles.

    • At least you have cheap petrol?

      And I have just realised that last year I paid more than the Focus was worth to get it roadworthy.  crying

      • And I have just realised that last year I paid more than the Focus was worth to get it roadworthy.

        Which is just about the time you want to trade it in on a newer vehicle for whatever they decide to give you for it? 😉

         

  7. Great choice. The car is made in Romania and they are making Renault based models there since the 60's. Romanian (and much of Eastern European) market is a difficult one – the car must be sturdy, has to have a good fuel consumption, and has to be cheap! Of course, they do realise this making cars that do not make you feel like the king of the road but we all know no one is king on the road whatsoever so one can live well enough without feeling like that!
        I have two in my fleet and we are truly impressed with their fuel consumption and overall reliability. Great choice!

    • Welcome Cristian!  I will be honest and say that I'm not sure I even heard of Dacia before.  This is a good thing as it means I have never been pissed off by their advertisements. 

      I did a bit of research beforehand and the general opinion is good.  In fact the only criticism is that it lacks some of the gadgets found in other cars.  So what?  I can add things like SatNav and reversing cameras myself if I so wish.  I'm looking forward to picking it up once the finance and paperwork is sorted.

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