ARTICLE: YOUR 5 year old car : Keep, Upgrade or Swap?

[PatienceWins]

Originally Posted by dailydriver

1. A few black coloured plastic panels have started to lose colour.

2. Many wires, insulating materials, rubber hoses and connectors in the engine bay have started to get brittle.

Can and should they be replaced?

1. You can use a good quality plastic protectant and polish for exterior treatment .I am using this - https://www.detailedclean.in/wheels-...-perl-500ml-79 It is very good in retaining the colour for a long time. Got it free from a friend long back.

2. Replace them as they have become brittle.

[vrprabhu]

Originally Posted by sajo

I have a (soon to be) 7 year old car too, a Swift ZXi petrol that I got for 5.xx Lakh rupees. Looking at the range of options available at the next logical price point (~10L) , there isnt much being offered that can be an upgrade in "spirit" to the Swift. Atleast nothing that can excite the petrolhead.

I in a similar situation. Mine is an older car - more than 12 years old in fact.
Mileage is low <50,000 kms.

Resale value for Palio is a joke in the used car market :-(

None of today's hatchbacks gives me the same feeling as Palio - only Figo comes close, but appears to be 'tinny'!

As my car is mechanically sound, decided to go ahead and get it ship shape - it is proving to be a worthwhile exercise and helps me takes my mind off the other pressures at work!!

May be the new Swift or a Vitara Brezza with a 1.5l petrol engine make its appearance in 2018? (Next one will be from the Maruti - no other brand commands a better resale value in the user car market!)

[rajivtelang]

I have my Santro (4 years old) that has run only 31K. I have mixed feelings about selling it or not. Had checked the resell value with Maruti and Hyundai and amazingly Maruti is offering more exchange value
But coming back to selling part, I am not able to make any decision. It is two fold. One is my involvement in that car and secondly which car to buy after selling this. It is not at all bad in performance but having some minor issues lately such as punctures, issue in electric box where in the relay for high beam got melted due to loose connection, sudden increase in RPM while changing gears etc. For everything Hyundai service is helping to solve but not a full peace of mind as such. Bit afraid to take for any long drives.
So am confused on what next. Of course new car will draw a handsome amount of money from my pocket even after exchanging, no matter which one I go for.

[hserus]

Originally Posted by rajivtelang

but having some minor issues lately such as punctures, issue in electric box where in the relay for high beam got melted due to loose connection, sudden increase in RPM while changing gears etc. For everything Hyundai service is helping to solve but not a full peace of mind as such. Bit afraid to take for any long drives.
So am confused on what next. Of course new car will draw a handsome amount of money from my pocket even after exchanging, no matter which one I go for.

You are probably at a stage where the tyres have to be changed and that will address the issue with punctures, especially if you pick a good brand like Michelin or Bridgestone instead of the stock JK or other cheap tyre you got with your car.

Loose connections for relays is a simple issue to fix and any competent mechanic can tune it for you.

The sudden increase in RPM when changing gears - get your actuator / throttle body checked for any faults. Pretty common santro bug, this.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...depressed.html

[rajivtelang]

Originally Posted by hserus

You are probably at a stage where the tyres have to be changed and that will address the issue with punctures, especially if you pick a good brand like Michelin or Bridgestone instead of the stock JK or other cheap tyre you got with your car.

Loose connections for relays is a simple issue to fix and any competent mechanic can tune it for you.

The sudden increase in RPM when changing gears - get your actuator / throttle body checked for any faults. Pretty common santro bug, this.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...depressed.html

Absolutely, all these things are already being addressed in exactly the same way you suggested. I have the pathetic Goodyears as stock tyres which I will change at around 40K or so. Relay problem is solved with that slot in electric box permanently damaged. Luckily there was a spare one which is now used for the new relay. And coming to raise in RPM, I am getting the throttle body cleaned up every 6 months, but no luck, issue keeps on returning after a few months (In fact I got it checked today itself).

[Durango Dude]

When I moved on to the 2017 Honda City CVT, I was in two minds whether to retain my Hyundai Elantra or sell it. My 18 yr old daughter put her foot down and said NO! Now she's using my Elantra: after all how much would a 11.5 year car fetch. My daughter saved me the heartache of saying bye to my old car!!

[hserus]

Originally Posted by rajivtelang

Absolutely, all these things are already being addressed in exactly the same way you suggested. I have the pathetic Goodyears as stock tyres which I will change at around 40K or so. Relay problem is solved with that slot in electric box permanently damaged. Luckily there was a spare one which is now used for the new relay. And coming to raise in RPM, I am getting the throttle body cleaned up every 6 months, but no luck, issue keeps on returning after a few months (In fact I got it checked today itself).

Get the ECU checked. On some older models its the actuator.

[nigeltufnel]

Hi guys, I'm in a bit of a dilemma and would love to hear from the experts here.

I have a 5 year old Polo TDI trendline. I bought it on 2nd Jan 2012. It's an Oct 2011 manufactured model. The car has done 63k and is in great condition. The tyres were replaced at 43k. What a lot of people are advising me is, that I should sell the car soon since it can only go for another 5 years and I'll get the best price for it right now. According to them, the price of my car is going to drop exponentially after this. Therefore, I can get a new car right now with the least amount of investment as compared to say, 3 years from now. To be honest, I have no real issues with my car. It's been regularly serviced and runs great.

What I'm worried about is this: I'm a freelancer and the nature of my work is such that my income tends to be a bit sporadic. Right now Im in a good position in my career where I can save up for a few months, sell my car and get maybe a petrol hatchback with the price difference (I like small cars and don't really need a diesel anymore). However, my current scenario will probably change in 3-4 years and since I want to study more in my field, I might not have a lot of disposable income. At that time, it might become really difficult trying to sell off an 8-9 year old diesel car and get a new one which is not a step down(I love the driving characteristics and feel of the Polo). If I had to look at choices right now, I would probably go for a Comfortline Polo petrol.

Summary:

# 5 yr old Polo diesel trendline in good condition and 63k clocked
# Sell it within a year and get similar hatchback because of good market value right now which will depreciate exponentially due to 10yr rule for diesel cars.
# Major factor: freelancer with unstable income. Im doing well currently but also wish to study further in a few years which might impact my finances. So, I may not be in a position then to buy a new car after selling my current one(whose value would be really low).

Thank you so much for reading. Looking forward to the responses

[hserus]

Keep your car as long as it lasts. Accumulate the amount in question in some flexible medium term instrument. If you anticipate 4..5 years put it into an FD or something of the sort, mutual fund values may go up or down, 4..5 years is no sort of horizon to predict what the markets will be like when you redeem, a longer holding would probably insulate you from market fluctuations.

When your car finally either conks out or gets too expensive to maintain (which will be a very long time, for a lightly used VW), take the accumulated amount and buy either a lightly used polo, or if you're short of funds, just an i10 / alto type cheaper hatchback with whatever you're able to sell the polo for and maybe a little more, then live off your savings.

If you're still doing well financially and have a good income at that time, feel free to buy a more expensive car.

[PetrolRider]

I am in a different dilemma.

I have a 5 year old Micra petrol with 33K on ODO. Yes it is low, my current consumption is around 700-800 KM per month. I had plan to keep this car at least for another 3 years.

The old Micras are built to last, the quality of plastic and other stuffs are pretty good and sturdy. But, as car ages there are bound to be some part failures.
In last 6 month, the car went to service center three times for minute stuffs like, once for horn change and twice for malfunction indicator leads to O2 censer change, which in my opinion is acceptable for a 5 year old car.

Here comes the devil, there is only once service center now which is 25 KM from my place and also just on the opposite side of the city. It takes at least 2 hours to reach service center, that means any small issues, the car would be gone for 2-3 days.

As per my previous experiences, FNGs are not that friendly when one is not local to that area, FNGs become friendly over the period of time even over generations. Where people like me who changes base based on livelihood and also houses in same city based on rents, building reputation with a FNG is highly unlikely. Hence, dependence on brand service center is high.

All over this thread is talks on financial aspect of keeping a 5 year old car, but my aspect is different, that is lack of easiness in up-keeping the car after 5 years, when it needs more nourishment.

My dilemma, is it advisable to replace the 5 year car for better service reach is worth for the convenience and time and pain saved over the financial hit?

[hserus]

Originally Posted by PetrolRider

As per my previous experiences, FNGs are not that friendly when one is not local to that area, FNGs become friendly over the period of time even over generations. Where people like me who changes base based on livelihood and also houses in same city based on rents, building reputation with a FNG is highly unlikely. Hence, dependence on brand service center is high.

Find some bhpian in your city who can recommend you to a trusted garage in your area. Or look around the pune (or is it bhubaneshwar) directory on tbhp and check for threads about FNGs, mention that you came there through tbhp.

Most mechanics who get mentioned there are aware that tbhp posts will make or break their business .. positive reviews will gain them a massive amount of new business, while valid negative posts about bad experiences there may make people avoid them. So you should find the F part of FNG kick in even if you are a non local. Always good to learn the local language in whichever state you are though - helps with easy communication with the garage people at any rate.

[asit.kulkarni93]

Originally Posted by PetrolRider

I am in a different dilemma.

I have a 5 year old Micra petrol with 33K on ODO. Yes it is low, my current consumption is around 700-800 KM per month. I had plan to keep this car at least for another 3 years.

The old Micras are built to last, the quality of plastic and other stuffs are pretty good and sturdy. But, as car ages there are bound to be some part failures.
In last 6 month, the car went to service center three times for minute stuffs like, once for horn change and twice for malfunction indicator leads to O2 censer change, which in my opinion is acceptable for a 5 year old car.

Here comes the devil, there is only once service center now which is 25 KM from my place and also just on the opposite side of the city. It takes at least 2 hours to reach service center, that means any small issues, the car would be gone for 2-3 days.

As per my previous experiences, FNGs are not that friendly when one is not local to that area, FNGs become friendly over the period of time even over generations. Where people like me who changes base based on livelihood and also houses in same city based on rents, building reputation with a FNG is highly unlikely. Hence, dependence on brand service center is high.

All over this thread is talks on financial aspect of keeping a 5 year old car, but my aspect is different, that is lack of easiness in up-keeping the car after 5 years, when it needs more nourishment.

My dilemma, is it advisable to replace the 5 year car for better service reach is worth for the convenience and time and pain saved over the financial hit?

Your location shows you are in Pune. Pls PM me your contact details, I will put you in touch with an FNG where many pune members give their cars for servicing. He also is a close friend of ours plus passionate about cars.

Micra is a simple car. Please retain it, makes no sense to sell a 33k kms run car as the resale is terrible.

[PetrolRider]

Originally Posted by hserus

Find some bhpian in your city who can recommend you to a trusted garage in your area. Or look around the pune (or is it bhubaneshwar) directory on tbhp and check for threads about FNGs, mention that you came there through tbhp.

Most mechanics who get mentioned there are aware that tbhp posts will make or break their business .. positive reviews will gain them a massive amount of new business, while valid negative posts about bad experiences there may make people avoid them. So you should find the F part of FNG kick in even if you are a non local. Always good to learn the local language in whichever state you are though - helps with easy communication with the garage people at any rate.

Sorry I forgot to mention it is Pune and I unfortunately stay in a area which is forbidden for punekar BHPians .

Agree to certain extent, even considered that route already. The good and recommended FNGs on TBHP doesn't falls exactly under the N part, if I had to travel 15 Km. Also, Nissan doesn't sell parts over the counter. Few stuffs like the horn change could have easily done with FNGs, where for other stuffs, dependency with After Sales Torture is provident .

All I want to keep the car for 3 more years at least till the moment it needs some work to be done, when the thought of replace is bugging me due to the service headache.

Edit:

Originally Posted by asit.kulkarni93

Your location shows you are in Pune. Pls PM me your contact details, I will put you in touch with an FNG where many pune members give their cars for servicing. He also is a close friend of ours plus passionate about cars.

Thank you Asit, this would really help me. I have sent you PM.

[ptaneja]

Originally Posted by PetrolRider

Sorry I forgot to mention it is Pune and I unfortunately stay in a area which is forbidden for punekar BHPians .

On a lighter note, you should have thought about this when purchasing. No way Nissan can beat service centres of Maruti/Hyundai, and to some extent Tata servicing.

Bring your preference for looks, features, value for money a notch down, and raise your bar for service availability, over the counter spare availability etc .

My heart goes for Punto, but owing to non existent penetration of service centre, had to go in what Maruti could offer

[PetrolRider]

Originally Posted by ptaneja

On a lighter note, you should have thought about this when purchasing. No way Nissan can beat service centres of Maruti/Hyundai, and to some extent Tata servicing.

Bring your preference for looks, features, value for money a notch down, and raise your bar for service availability, over the counter spare availability etc .

My heart goes for Punto, but owing to non existent penetration of service centre, had to go in what Maruti could offer

.
When I bought the car in 2011, Nissan was a emerging brand with plan of rapid growth in service center blah blah.
Unfortunately they are on a rapid growth downward on service centers, when I moved to Pune in 2015 there were 2 service center one just 5 Km away from my place. Eventually closing down even before I could try that.