I'm not going to get rid of the car. I'd have to fork out five grand odd to get another one, that's a lot more than £700! Given that there's no guarantee whatsoever that a new car wouldn't go wrong in some horrible way, it'd be utterly pointless.
ECU failure is a random event. It's absolutely not an indicator that anything else will go wrong with it down the line.
You own a Focus don't you Peter? They are made in Germany. Granted they arn't unreliable expensive or shitheaps, well mine isnt, but German all the same.
What's your point, caller?
Didn't you mention a salt water tide mark where the ECU is? Owned the car from new or possible that its been flooded?! Could be worth inspecting the rest of the electricals before going too mad with the cash.
molgrips - Member
I'm not going to get rid of the car. I'd have to fork out five grand odd to get another one, that's a lot more than £700! Given that there's no guarantee whatsoever that a new car wouldn't go wrong in some horrible way, it'd be utterly pointless.ECU failure is a random event. It's absolutely not an indicator that anything else will go wrong with it down the line.
True but if/when big bills mount up on an older car that you've had for some time, you start to question the rationale. I don't known the current value of your car but if the ECU is say ~10% of the value then it needs another 'big' spend, is it sensible to put big bucks into something that is at the point where more big things are likely to go wrong?
I got rid of my last A6 when it was due a cambelt (which is very expensive) and the aircon was constantly loosing pressure (expensive). The car was worth £7k and the repairs likely more than 20% of its value. I preferred to put the 20% into a new car with warranty.
Not saying your wrong, but there's obviously a 'sensible' limit on what to throw at an older car unless it's a classic or you're emotionally attached to it.
True but if/when big bills mount up on an older car that you've had for some time, you start to question the rationale.
I've thought about this quite a bit.
If I buy a car of similar value, there's absoultely no guarantee that it'll be any more reliable than the one I have. In fact there's a risk someone's getting rid of it because of some impending issue.
If I buy a new or newer car, then it costs far far more than the repairs to this one. So I'd be spending £5,000 to save £700.
That's all true Moly and my cunning plan only works if you reinvest the £700 in a newer car that is *much* less likely to have expensive problems. I.e. possibly one under warranty.
I'm never sure when the crossover is. I got rid of MrsB's Focus last year as it needed another new clutch. It had already had clutch, EGR, alternator, DMF and wanted another (£700) clutch/DMF combo. The car was 5 years old, 60k miles on it and worth ~£4k. I couldn't see the point of sticking 20% of it's value into it when it was probably due the dreaded turbo/injector problems.
Thing with cars is they are not really one off purchases. You end up buying into a refresh schedule trying your best to minimise cost/depreciation whilst maximising comfort/efficiency/life/reliability. This means new or nearly new and replacement every ~5 years for my cars.
My dad's keen to buy almost new cars with warranties on them. Which I think is daft, because the extra cost of newness is way way more than even the worst fix you'd have to pay for yourself, and those are unlikely.
I would like to buy 3 year old cars if money permits. There are plenty around due to people getting rid of them after warranty. They are still mostly just run-in at that point and are almost half the new price. The money I saved from a new Passat would have paid for two new engines at least.
I did a lot of work on my previous car myself, spent maybe as much as the car cost (about £600) but I knew it had a whole slew of new parts and was running sweet as a nut, and I also knew the essentials were in good shape. So I got a car I knew was very sound for £1200, and buying a different car for £1200 would not have been anything like as sound I reckon.
