Now ive settled down with the Charade, Im posting in my early report :-) Done 3000 miles since first week of June, pretty decent motoring for a 9 year old car.
Its interesting for me because this is the first time ive bought virtually the same car based on previous ownership. What is certainly true is that my feelings about the original Charade still hold true, it really is a very good small car.
Costs so far: £130 for some overdue fluid changes and a new aux belt at end of this month. £115 for two rear tyres as perished though legal. £9.80 for new alloy wheel centre cap, it fell off somehow. £75 for new windscreen due to stone chip courtesy of road resurfacing and a fast lorry ( sporting a lovely 20 ins crack until Tues ). I didnt need to do the servicing bits, the fluids look OK, but no harm in keeping them fresh esp with a holiday in hilly Devon coming up.
The good news is that there are no niggles with the car, not so much as a trim squeak. No clonks, it all feels tight on the road ( bar the spongey rear tyres making hard cornering feel a bit unsettled ). The tyres are being replaced with Hankooks which tend to wear stupidly slowly on there cars so I look forward to seeing how it gets on - has Firestones on the front which Im not fussed about, no bite.
Economy is steady at in and around 60 mpg with a high of 62.5 and a low of 59.1. Either way its definately more economical than the lilac car. In the current climate, its very welcome and over the Kenari im saving about £60-70 a month. Just renewed the road tax and do enjoy paying less than a tank of fuel for a years tax, it doesnt get old.
This one has less gearbox whine than the other one though its feels more notchy, an imminent gearbox oil change may help that - the other car did well from the fluid change.
When I first got the car there was a wobble at 75 mph which id assumed was the tyres but infact once the driveshafts were changed it went away bar a very slight wobble which hopefully the new tyres plus having the front two also balanced at the same time will solve.
Its working well as a work car, I can fit everything in easily and being a 5dr, its more practical than the lilac car. Im also amazed that the air con works so well - its arctic on the most humid days yet I very much doubt its ever been touched, I do wonder if previous owners knew what the button did.
Im resisting sorting the cosmetics out just yet, I want to have it a while before I start painting wheels and getting dents removed. Wheels are looking like about £50 a pop so I want to know ive settled on it before I spend money I wont get back.
To sum up, as a car I love it being both comfortable and quiet while fast enough, as an ownership prospect it gives me no worries and costs me less than almost every other car out there would. Happy camper so far and my wife thinks I may have curbed my car habit - I only sold the last one because I ran out of money, not something im under threat from these days.
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>> £115 for two rear tyres as perished though legal. £9.80 for new alloy wheel centre cap, it fell off somehow.
Cause and effect perhaps? I lost an expensive wheel trim immediately after having new tyres fitted, "not us guv".
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Not had the tyres done yet, gotta wait till Tuesday. I was gonna leave it longer but I happened to poke one with my finger and it was nigh on as spongey as that what I wash cars with, so I decided it was time!
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i think its great that you are willing to buck the flow and go for obscure makes and it works well in the end.
I've only ever stuck to mainstream cars and had no problems. a friends mum years ago had a charade turbo and it was very quick and gave no problems
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Ive owned a fair few mainstream cars over the years but the best cars ive owned have always been far eastern and a bit different.
Its not a compromise though as the Charade rides very well ( HJ describes it as on a par with a Clio ), its good on fuel, its spacious and well made. It was very up to date in 2003, one of the first ever cars to qualify for the 30 quid tax band, so it made sense when new and as a used car it makes even more sense. The only car that comes close is the Suzuki Alto, but they arent as accomplished and there are a few question marks over the build, unlike the Charade which is a genuine japanese built car.
The car I most desire next is a Mitsubishi i. We looked at one when my wife was buying her car but they were about £1k more and less spacious so decided against, but I did like it all the same.
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are you intending to keep for more than a few months? we only have normal dealers here in Chichester so only see mainstream cars.
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My intention is to yes, that was sort of why I bought it as my wife said to buy a car I knew I liked. I only sold the last one to pay child support when business dipped badly and I needed the cash.
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>> My intention is to yes,
I think we have been here before, here is my virtual £5 it doesn't last 12 months.
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Last Charade kept 2 years, are you sure?
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I'll go a fiver on 13 months.
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yup you have caught the bug since then....
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I used to own 3 cars at a time when I was 21, my car ownership has always been keen.
Worth noting that atleast half of the cars ive got rid of have been been due to imminent mechanical failure and not wanting to fix them, always a risk with older cars.
My wife is the one to watch - she still misses her Forester and was making eyes at one the other day, but I said she needs to make manager before she can get one!
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just to say FoR that im only light heartedly ribbing you.
i like your choice of cars but would love to see you in something like a 7series or s class for a change.
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>> just to say FoR that im only light heartedly ribbing you.
>> i like your choice of cars but would love to see you in something like
>> a 7series or s class for a change.
Not quirky enough.
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Haha, I object to paying so much for petrol, I do so many miles it does dominate the decision usually.
For the record, if I was going to choose a juicey big saloon, it would be a Hyundai XG30 :-p
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mk11 shadow maybe. very quirky but rusty and parts hard to get.
not very old xj's for 1-2k next time maybe?
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Already had an XJ40, which I liked but even in 2005 it was £75 to fill it so i never used it, so I sold it although I did make £250 on it!
I have the money now, atleast for the time being, but its a question of save for a pension or spend it on cars. Im old enough to be worrying about a pension now ive got my health under control, so its no more cars unless the wife says so :-)
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my new XJ costs a fortune to fill up but is doing an average of 42mpg which is great for 2000kg of metal.
there is something to be said for small city cars with small petrol engines.
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>>For the record, if I was going to choose a juicey big saloon, it would be a Hyundai XG30 :-p
Wait a year or two and nab one of these:
tinyurl.com/bvjnobq
I wasn't aware Hyundai even sold them in the UK until I stumbled across it on their website as a special order (like automatic i800s)
(false postcode before anyone chimes in)
Personally I'd go straight for the bangernomics Lexus LS400.
Last edited by: Lygonos on Sun 5 Aug 12 at 17:55
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Not a bad call, my kinda car, love it.
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Looks like a grown-up Sonata - the interior is minging in a way that even the Japanese have managed to avoid for over a decade but I bet it's a reliable cruiser.
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I dont mind a bit of plastic wood myself, long as its well engineered :-)
My sister has the current model Toyota Camry and she adores it, even with the velour interior.
She reckons its the only car she'd want to drive the Outback in.
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As a previous owner of a Datsun Laurel and 2 Nissan Laurels I say bring on the velour!
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You havent lived until you have been cosseted in brown velour!
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>> You havent lived until you have been cosseted in brown velour!
I miss it. And velour trimmed door panels. Wow!
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Any thoughts on upgrading to a Daihatsu Sirion one day Stu?
Plenty around in this neck of the woods, including rental fleets. Were they not that popular in the UK?
Aside, had a short drive in a new Yaris the other week... yuk! Slabby dashboard and pale grey plastic on the door linings inside made it feel very 70s. Toyota losing the plot IMHO.
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Well my wife already has one so I know the cars well enough. Ive driven manuals aswell as my wifes auto and they are OK, but currently expensive so never come on my radar.
They were reasonably popular, but obviously with Daihatsu not selling new here anymore, people seem to be hanging on to them. My wife has no intention of getting rid of hers, still loves the thing.
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>> I bet it's a reliable cruiser.
>>
That would be assuming that a company justly renowned for its reliable small cars can build a big one and get everything about it right first time.
If it were me, I'd be letting somebody else prove or disprove that. They wouldn't be the first to drop a clanger on moving into a new market.
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Hyundai's been making 3+ litre 'execs' for more than 10 yrs - they just don't sell well here.
Over 20yrs in fact - earliest are Toyota Crown/Nissan Laurel apes.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyundai_Grandeur
Last edited by: Lygonos on Mon 6 Aug 12 at 16:08
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The Sonata wasnt a bad car, I had a 2 litre auto 8 years ago, rather liked it.
Ive driven one of the 2 litre diesels and they aint bad either, very, very comfortable on a long run and huge inside.
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hyundias imported with these big engines must be cheap used in uk market.
are they well put together do we know?
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Sonata originally came with a 3.0 V6, went up to 3.3 in the last model. XG has the 3.0. Also some 2.4 petrol Sonatas about.
Well made yes, though in the far eastern style rather than germanic.
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a better bet than say a much older 7 series BMW?
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Long as your not a badge tart yes. Personally I find the idea of owning a BMW incredibly vulgar.
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Isn't refusing to own a car because of its badge exactly as ridiculous as desiring to own it because of its badge?
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>> Isn't refusing to own a car because of its badge exactly as ridiculous as desiring
>> to own it because of its badge?
Ever had a KIA Pride or Skoda Estelle?
;>)
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>>Isn't refusing to own a car because of its badge exactly as ridiculous as desiring to own it because of its badge?<<
Its not what the car is, but what it represents. Symbolism does matter - try putting a swastika on your car, see if it matters. A BMW badge is nowhere near as potent for sure, but in the car landscape its approaching pariah status - just watch a BMW driver trying to get out of a side road :-)
I prefer cars which dont have a clearly defined image and quite frankly, Im not sure there are enough big Hyundais in the world to attribute any general image to the badge. Big Hyundai = bzzzz....
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You're out of date, FoR. BMW drivers are no longer the pariahs of the motoring world. It's now Audi drivers.
The vast majority of Audi drivers are perfectly OK, of course, but a disproportionate number of them tarnish the image of the whole brand.
I know examples of both types - good and bad - and the pushy aggression of the bad ones doesn't stop when they get out of their cars either.
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Haha, I dont think the stain has been washed from BMW just yet judging by the 3-Series I watched trying to nose out into traffic the other day. Three cars infront got let out, he then waited at least 5 minutes. I saw a BMW driver yesterday just stop in the middle of the road and waited for everyone to drive around him, so I think the sort of person who buys them still buys them, maybe he had an Audi on order :-p
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>> I know examples of both types - good and bad - and the pushy aggression
>> of the bad ones doesn't stop when they get out of their cars either.
Oh it does, believe me. When you drag them out of the german shell by their collars, they deflate into quivering jellies.
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Daihatsu Charade - 3000 miles on - bathtub tom
