Having Two Cars

[God_speed]

Add me to the list, having a daily is very liberating... The feeling of not having to worry about where you park it at work / the shops / someone else's house at night / the beach / whatever, because of people who can't park / bird poo / tree sap / getting your mirrors knocked off / low-lifes stealing it or keying it, is very underrated.

I picked up an '02 Clio Sport for just under $10K with 55,000km and it had a few minor knocks on the exterior which kinda helps you not to worry about it so much, but mechanically is very sound. Similar to Goombeh's daily above, it is practical, comfortable, and also you don't have to sacrifice driving fun, as it's still a blast to take up Old Pac Hwy, whilst retaining under 10L/100 with your mountain bike in the back.

Before that, I had a couple of Corollas, the first one I paid $4,400 for, and it had an ambigious number of kms on it but it was so easy to drive and park, and maintenance was next to nothing.

[DR 32R]

If two is good three is better!

[jahn-15]

I have a hyundai excel for a daily plenty of dents in her but she just keeps going. The 32 is off the road atm and i cant drive it yet anyway green p's so im just gunna keep working on it until im off my p's. The last daily i had was a awd liberty was always breaking down the effing thing excel has lasted 12 months of being thrashed and she's still going

[jjman]

ah yes. just bought my third daily. Got sick of a stinky carby plunker with no A/C or power steering. sold it n now went with-

a 97 Hyundai sonata. Tinting, spoiler, a/c sony deck, new motor tyres n brakes- 1800.

loves it.

skyline is black so gets to stay polished and under garage+cover at all times. Makes driving it a joy.

[VNS 24]

ah yes. just bought my third daily. Got sick of a stinky carby plunker with no A/C or power steering. sold it n now went with-

a 97 Hyundai sonata. Tinting, spoiler, a/c sony deck, new motor tyres n brakes- 1800.

loves it.

skyline is black so gets to stay polished and under garage+cover at all times. Makes driving it a joy.

Good buy, mate. .

My Mirage is still going strong too, but I will have to shop around for good deal if she breaks down in the future.

[jjman]

yeah the sonata it defaintely does the trick as a daily.

Took my 33 out for a spin today n it was looking all glossy n immaculate. Must have looked the shit drifting onto albany hwy.

[jjman]

oh, n 170 a year for insurance on the bunky. had to close the office door n have a moment with myself after that

[GTR-N1]

ah yes. just bought my third daily. Got sick of a stinky carby plunker with no A/C or power steering. sold it n now went with-

a 97 Hyundai sonata. Tinting, spoiler, a/c sony deck, new motor tyres n brakes- 1800.

loves it.

skyline is black so gets to stay polished and under garage+cover at all times. Makes driving it a joy.

Again, this looks like another ideal situation > update the daily without overcapitalising + preserve the high quality saving extra $$ to modify.

[jiffo]

I find having multiple cars is simply getting way too expensive. Not the running costs as I only have 1-arse, so I can only drive 1-vehicle.

It's the various charges, things we have no control over. Rego and insurance.

I have to register my toy tractor just to slash the verge. That also means fitting lights, indicators etc. simply to maintain roo-visibility on our dirt track that the local council slashes once per year.

Also require a current driver's licence to slash out there or I'll be contributing to the blue revenue fund, that means I can't let the Grandkids loose, might get sued.

If I want to do contract road work with my excavator, it also has to be registered. Same with a dozer, bobcat...........

There's no excemptions for multiple registrations even though most of us can only drive 1-vehicle at a time.

So no, not happy at all giving this useless bankrupt Sate Govt. any more of my hard earned.

[GTR-N1]

...have to register my toy tractor...

daily tractor - jiffo?

hmmm...

something in common with this gentleman?

http://www.lambocars.com/tra/index.php

Ferruccio Lxxxxxxxxxx would be proud of you

Starting a convoy of tractors down to Parliament House?

[sneakey pete]

What, do the cops setup tractor RBT's out side your house or something? Quick zip up and down at night time and noone would be the wiser.

Speaking of second cars (which i'm way off being able to afford right now), what is there in the way of tow cars that aren't utes or 4wd's? If/when i get the money and decide to invest in a trailer and a tow car, was kind of hoping i wouldn't have to get some huge beast that'd kill schoolkids etc if i ever tried to take it to the shops. But looking at everything, it seems something like, say, a falcon wouldnt be big enough.

[sneakey pete]

I think my car will hit 70000km's this week. Will probably do a pretty big service on it, as i've got no idea how the previous owner treated it.

However, the big question is, should i get the timing belt checked/changed? Its only 70000km but the car is 18 years old. I've got no idea if its the origional belt on there or a new one. If so, who'd you reccomend on the south side to do it?

Edit: disregard this one, I was meaning to post it somewhere completely different. God dam i'm turning stupid at the moment.

Edited February 14, 2011 by sneakey pete

[warps]

Pete - I think you've answered your own question. If in doubt, replace it. For a reasonable cost you're buying peace of mind. As you say, you don't know how the car was previously treated. Also, can you guarantee that the car has not travelled more than the km's indicate?

As for a tow vehicle, for occasional towing, a Falcon or Commodore will handle it quite well (just make sure it has the appropriately rated towing kit and the factory towing capacity is up there). I don't know why people think that 4WD's are big, unmanageable land barges. Anything in the mid range (Prado, PAthfinder, Paj, etc) has good visibility all round, is easy enough to park (the pathfinder has a very tight turning circle for its size) and performance is enough to keep up with traffic. With the TDI, highway overtaking is just a matter of squeezing the throttle in 6th gear and letting the turbodiesel torque handle the rest. OK, you won't win too many drag races, but that's what the track car is for.

If you're towing something fairly big (ATM is over 2 tonnes) then you will have increased limitations on towing (mainly to do with trailer size, and braking setup). Just bear that in mind.

[r33cruiser]

Love having a second car. Theres nothing like having a daily thats quiet, air conditioned, comfy and has a smooth ride.

It makes it extra special when you jump into your other car that first time and start it up

[jjman]

I find having multiple cars is simply getting way too expensive. Not the running costs as I only have 1-arse, so I can only drive 1-vehicle.

It's the various charges, things we have no control over. Rego and insurance.

I have to register my toy tractor just to slash the verge. That also means fitting lights, indicators etc. simply to maintain roo-visibility on our dirt track that the local council slashes once per year.

Also require a current driver's licence to slash out there or I'll be contributing to the blue revenue fund, that means I can't let the Grandkids loose, might get sued.

If I want to do contract road work with my excavator, it also has to be registered. Same with a dozer, bobcat...........

There's no excemptions for multiple registrations even though most of us can only drive 1-vehicle at a time.

So no, not happy at all giving this useless bankrupt Sate Govt. any more of my hard earned.

it is a bit like that to be sure. Im on 3 vehicles (R33, Suzuki GSXR750, and the daily). so thats 3 regos, 3 insurances, 3 service costs (prob only 1.5 times due to only 1 arse but time is a service interval too)

as for the tractor issue. I say find the safest and most deserted time to do your slashing and be done with it, rego be damned. This nanny state shit is a croc and that is a prime example.

I think my car will hit 70000km's this week. Will probably do a pretty big service on it, as i've got no idea how the previous owner treated it.

However, the big question is, should i get the timing belt checked/changed? Its only 70000km but the car is 18 years old. I've got no idea if its the origional belt on there or a new one. If so, who'd you reccomend on the south side to do it?

Edit: disregard this one, I was meaning to post it somewhere completely different. God dam i'm turning stupid at the moment.

definately change it. timing belts are usually rated at 10 yrs.

Also scare your self by doing the sums on what it will cost if it lets go and lunches your motor- and then work out the cost efficency gain by letting it go the next 30 thousand kays (nothing really).

Love having a second car. Theres nothing like having a daily thats quiet, air conditioned, comfy and has a smooth ride.

It makes it extra special when you jump into your other car that first time and start it up

amen to that. I had my last R33 as the 24/7 car n it lost the charm big time. I just got sick of the noise, fuel n running costs n the dirt n door dings.

Now i love the growl n power on the weekends

[sneakey pete]

As for a tow vehicle, for occasional towing, a Falcon or Commodore will handle it quite well (just make sure it has the appropriately rated towing kit and the factory towing capacity is up there). I don't know why people think that 4WD's are big, unmanageable land barges. Anything in the mid range (Prado, PAthfinder, Paj, etc) has good visibility all round, is easy enough to park (the pathfinder has a very tight turning circle for its size) and performance is enough to keep up with traffic. With the TDI, highway overtaking is just a matter of squeezing the throttle in 6th gear and letting the turbodiesel torque handle the rest. OK, you won't win too many drag races, but that's what the track car is for.

Well that's the thing, the falcadores are only rated for about 1500-1700kg's of braked towing. Wouldn't be enough to haul around a skyline+trailer. On the other hand, as you said, if you have the proper attachments you'd probably be able to tow more on one without bending anything.

You're also right about the mid size 4wd's. The newst falcon is the exact size as the Pajero.

definately change it. timing belts are usually rated at 10 yrs.

Also scare your self by doing the sums on what it will cost if it lets go and lunches your motor- and then work out the cost efficency gain by letting it go the next 30 thousand kays (nothing really).

Yeah. I'd have to change it in 30000k's anyway. Thanks for the advice.

[Mayuri Krab]

If I had the money I would get a 2nd car.

But it won't be a daily, my current R33 will (still) be.

Since I have never driven a tiny car (with a fuel usage of something like 5L/100km), the R33's economy of 12-14L/100km seems 1/2 decent for me to use as a daily.

The other cars i have driven for extended period of time was a old VN commodore that drank more fuel than a hummer and a Camry that uses about 11-12L/100km with no power.

[Truffles]

I enjoy having multiple cars. 3 infact. '98 CE lancer, '92 R32 GTS-T and a '04 350Z, the latter I am still paying off (high disposable income kicks ass)

The lancer was my first car and I never intended to keep it. But being 20 and a student, the car is usually parked out in the sun and on dirt at work. I really couldn't bring myself to park my skyline, with such a high sentimental value, nor the 350Z with a high monetary value out in the dirt to get damaged.

Edited February 18, 2011 by Truffles

[jjman]

on this note. Shall we develop this thread into- do you have 3 or more vehicles and why? (+ any commentary on the running costs we are living with)

anybody doing this and have any comment they want to share?

[djr81]

Well that's the thing, the falcadores are only rated for about 1500-1700kg's of braked towing. Wouldn't be enough to haul around a skyline+trailer. On the other hand, as you said, if you have the proper attachments you'd probably be able to tow more on one without bending anything.

You're also right about the mid size 4wd's. The newst falcon is the exact size as the Pajero.

Falcon can handle 2300kg. NFI about the commodore.