Thinking of selling Slave 1...

mg_roadster;8708 wrote: Wow, never saw thus coming but family comes first. Having owned both a ZS and a F both cars have their qualities and quirks. I sm not going to sway you either way as it's too personal a decision to make but I hope you make the right 1 for you.

If slave 1 goes so be it just make sure it goes to a good home. I left a tf & zs in NZ when we returned broke my heart as titch had 4k on the clock and the z had 18k on it but was not possible to bring home. Cars can be replaced family can't. Simples

Thanks for weighing in mate.

Agreed I know we love these little convertibles but I should hope we all love our families more!

Alias;8709 wrote: Of course not! You and Frank can go in Flopsy's boot if I can get her working again.

+1 to CJJs earlier post about a Saxo or similar though!

You and Frank are the main reason I kept Flopsy despite her constantly having the flu or something. I've really enjoyed tinkering with you, and making bonnets fit etc. Things wouldn't be quite the same with a silly tin-top! You both made me see what the love of the F was all about.

:grouphug:

Aww thanks mate.

Well if I get this ZS then technically it's still an MG so there'll be plenty more tinkering days when it all goes wrong! :lol:

Gos;8710 wrote: I was hoping you would say that :yesnod:

Cool! :woo2:

CJJ;8711 wrote: I guess if you organise the runs You get to say who comes.

Can we point at you and wisper amongst ourselves though? :hehe:

I'd be offended if you didn't! :lol:

Hi Kara, Just to add to all the other replies, yes family is first. That being the case they should be in on your decision before not after. I gather that local transport would not help or other family members and how will your new job fit in ? All I can add is I hope I never have to make a similar choice so good luck which ever way you go.

i read the thread title and assumed a joke! omg! what do i say!!!!!

CJJ;8687 wrote: Oooooh, blue.

My way of thinking is the 2 car route. I know you say you can't afford 2 cars, but bear with me.

A Citroen Saxo 1.1L can be bought for around £600, you will pay many times more than that to sell yours and buy a 2004 MG.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201003350373126/sort/priceasc/usedcars/make/citroen/model/saxo/price-to/1000/radius/1501/page/2/quicksearch/true/postcode/ne615da?previous=%2Fsearch%2Fresults%2Fusedcars%2Fpostcode%2Fne615da%2Fradius%2F1501%2Fmake%2Fcitroen%2Fmodel%2Fsaxo%2Fprice-to%2F1000%2Fsort%2Fpriceasc%2Fpage%2F2%2Fquicksearch%2Ftrue&logcode=p#techSpecPerformanceAndEconomyContent

Or even an AX. Great little run around (I used to have one). Cheap to run, cheap to service and cheap to tax.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201002350154156/sort/priceasc/usedcars/make/citroen/model/ax/price-to/1000/radius/1501/postcode/ne615da/page/1?previous=%2Fsearch%2Fresults%2Fusedcars%2Fpostcode%2Fne615da%2Fradius%2F1501%2Fmake%2Fcitroen%2Fmodel%2Fax%2Fprice-to%2F1000%2Fsort%2Fpriceasc%2Fpage%2F1&logcode=p

The road tax is £125 a year, that is around £10 a month. You can get multicar policies for insurance, so it wouldn't cost that much more for the second car, especially with a value of £600.

Fuel wise will be cheaper to run than the F.

A lot of people fall into the trap of thinking that running 2 cars costs twice as much, that is wrong. If you are the only driver then you will only cover the same mileage as if you only had one car. That means fuel, tyres, servicing etc will come around half as regularly for each car (if you know what I mean) so overall there will be no difference. It also means that you have an emergency car. The chances of being stuck because both cars are broken are pretty slim.

The choice is yours, but my thinking would actually save you money and mean you keep the F.

It also means that if circumstances change you can sell on the Saxo (or similar) for little loss (if any) and be in no worse position than you are now.

As I keep saying, the choice is yours and your motives are noble, but there are other options available to you.

I agree with CJJ* and I'd add a big BIG +1 to that, my mums little matiz is an 06 reg... just flew through its first MOT, costs about £40 a year to tax and £105 a year to insure..... tires and fuel are what you'd be putting in GS1 anyway BUT tires are about £20 each and it does 55mpg so that £145 will be recouped many times over during the year... yes the dash is made out of the same plastics used to make tic-tac tins and the suspension came off a hover craft... and yes it's the slowest car available to buy 0-60 but there is enough room to fit 4 adults in it without them being in total agony and the back seats fold flat so you can pick 4 alloys up from Edinbrough (not to mention driving the 300+mile trip to Edinbrough and back comfortably) also reliability is spot on**


now i have to be horrible... but I'm going for the "you have to be naughty to be nice" idea...

Slave1 is an amazing F, and you've spent immense time and money on her to make her into YOUR ideal car, but you are in the same situation that i am... it's YOUR ideal car the same as Bucephalus is mine and as a result... (so so sorry) the car is essentially (and I'm really really sorry to say this but)... worthless

Fiscally that is!!!!! (not as in anyone thinks she is worthless)... my point is heavily modified cars never sell as well as if they were un-modified, not only do they put off buyers who don't like the mods but people tend to assumed modified=thrashed (in my case they'd be right) lol***


why am i being so mean? well... between jonnocash and clive they may have hit the nail on the head... well why not get something insanely cheap (evan if its a R reg R200 for £150) you could then garage GS1 (she's paid for right? no outstanding finance so take the tax off her which will help pay for the 'new' car and while she's sat say on your parents drive she won't be costing you a penny? after all you probably won't get much for her selling her anyway as CJJ says

once your back on your feet financially you can think about taxing and insuring GS1 again... that way u have the old banger to play taxi in but GS1 for you and frank

i can vouch for this idea from personal experience... remember i had mine off the road when i was jobless? cost me nothing sat in the garage i just put petrol in my mums car... putting me on her insurance and canceling mine saved me enough to buy GW's seats remember?


the last idea is somewhere in between... get a ZS120 and keep GS1... how you ask?

well simple... put her back to an original F! you sell her quicker and for more!

what makes her GS1 is the parts you added!

true you may have to buy the odd replacement part but the expensive ones are the bonnet (i'm guessing you still have the original? the boot and the wheels

then in a week. a month. a year, however long it takes you can buy another BRG F and after a few days work putting the parts from GS1 back on the "new" F you'll have GS2!! with all the parts that made GS1 special in the first place

Kara;8705 wrote: Just an additional thought guys... do people mind if I still organize runs and come along to them? It's just I really enjoy them.

I run the Teesside meets and turned up to 3 in my mums matiz! lol

* I make a point to ALWAYS agree with CJJ, he's da' man

**NEVER tell her i said this... if she asks as far as you know i hate that car and my jokes about it are very funny

***Note to self my chance of selling my car is now ZERO and so is my chance of selling any of my other possessions on this forum... 'thrashed' or otherwise

:bye:Kara,

I've got to tread carefully here. I still a "newbie" in this MG world and I don't want to upset anybody - least of all you!

You've always had kind and supportive :bye::bye:words for me.

A couple of questions .....

Where are you moving to?
How far will this be from your brother, (older or younger)?
How old is he?
What support can he expect from his wider family, Mum, Dad, etc)?
Does he have a job?
What kind of relationship does he now have with his child's Mum?
How far way does his girl live from him?
Is she going to be "awkward" with access?
How often is he going to see his little girl?

I know these are personal questions but imo I do think that they are germaine to your position overall.

I know that Slave 1 is "just a car" when it comes to family, but (and of course depending upon FAMILY circumstances overall), couldn't you and you family finance a "cheapie" car on a monthly basis, (credit card, etc).

I've read enough about you to form the conclussion that you are a very caring person and you have also formed a passion for your car.

IMO you should not solely embrace total responsibility for your brother's travel requirements.

The load should be shared.

What about "sleep over" arrangements Aunty Kara?

Can you and yours accomodate your brother sometimes when he has his little girl?

As has been previously said, the cost of putting a second car on the road is not horrendous and whilst I realise you are hitting a "high" with current spending, this additional cost will be very quickly absorbed in practice, (what about cancelling Sky for a little while? - that should provide the neccessary funds!

Anyway my love, sometimes a little courage is required to get a workable solution - either way in this case!

My best wishes and my sincere hope that you don't get rid of your rather unique car.

Cheers!

Richard

I thought I was seeing things when I read the title of this post but needs must.I have bought a few cars and announced that I will never sell it only to do that about 18 months later:lol:

Circumstances do change as yours have Kara and you have to do what you need to. I know Slave 1 has had loads of work and mods done but now that you are sort of finished, that can also have a negative effect. Maybe its no bad thing to get the ZS which incidently with the 180 kit will look excellent:) and when things have settled down, get another F that you can start modding:thumbsup:

Perhaps its been in your mind for a while that a change is due and the situation with your brother just makes it clearer or easier to do.

The F and TF (if you dare;)) will be around for a while yet so plenty of scope to get one again in the future, chances are most of us may still have one.

I know I would find it impossible with just a 2 seater car so fully understand where you are coming from.

ok Kara heres my tuppence worth

if the only reason for selling slave is to help your brother i think you really need to talk to him first

the questions that need to answered honestly,

how many times a week/month will you be taking your brother out?

how far will you be traveling?

depending on the answers would it not be possible to hire a car every other weekend say, till you have enough cash to buy that second run around?

or as you're about to move and start new jobs, could this decision not be made in a months time when your circumstances have improved?


i totally admire your reason for thinking as you are but please explore every concept first

as Clive says running 2 cars is not a huge extra expense, ok the purchase of the vehicle is!, but day to day expenses are split and you have the luxury of having a choice of cars

its a hard decision but whatever you decide I'm sure you will have 100% support from everyone here :grouphug:

phil x

Hewoo

Could your Bro help finance the second motor? It only needs to be a tiddler doesn't it?
Don't know about finances available but a secondhand Toyota Aygo/Citroen C1/Peugeot 107 (all the same car) do about 60mpg, group 1 insurance and £35 a year tax....cheap as chips, it's just buying the thing, initially!:rolleyes2:

X

Doesn't bear thinking about, but what about......

I'd just like to say thank you everyone for your support and advice. :grouphug:

As the owner of an F/TF forum I never thought I'd be giving reasons to members as to why getting rid of an F is the right thing! :lol:

As the owner of Slave 1 I never thought I'd part with her unless she or I met with some tragic accident!

I've thought it over and MGFmad is right. When it comes to a hulk of metal (albeit a very attractive one) vs. family it really is obvious what decision needs to be made. And the more I think about it the more I realize that what I loved about Slave was the journey rather than the end result. I love modding F's! Pure & simple! And when I get the money I'll be starting all over again with another F and there's actually something really exciting about that thought.

I wish I could go into more details about my brother's situation and why it would be impossible for him to drive or why we can't afford a second car and all the other reasons why this is the right thing to do but I can't be going into such personal matters on a public forum. There's a line and it would be wrong for me to cross it and it would be disrespectful to my brother's privacy.

Finally let me say, cars will come & go but the experiences & memories you have and the friends you meet along the road will I hope last forever! When I started this forum it was out of a desire to bring together a community, yes we have come together because of a common interest but every time we just chat amongst ourselves or start a random non-MG related thread it reminds me that we are not just car fans we are an online family and family have and will alway be more important.

Kara x

Well said Kara, have a big group hug from us all.

There is not much I can say to add to the comments and advice already provided, all that I can say is go with what you feel in your heart is the correct decision, and never have any regrets.

After all as I said about GW when you were copping flack from some people for breaking her, when it all come down to it, its just a car. they are still making them and your next one will be better because of what you have learned from Slave 1. Besides next time maybe you will turn from the darkside and get a white one

Craig

:grouphug: