As you’ve no doubt gathered, I’m a big fan of running cars on a tight budget. Mostly because I have to. But I also find it very satisfying to keep cars going that otherwise might just be thrown away. We’re a terribly wasteful society.
So, in my latest video, I talk through some of my experiences and tell you how to safely grab a bargain. I also tell you how I sometimes got it wrong…
HubNut - celebrating the average! 
In the 1990’s I used to read a magazine called “Buying Cars”. Sadly, long gone now I’m afraid. This splendid publication explored the idea of ‘bangernomics’ on a regular basis. One article that sticks in my mind was a piece by Ken Ross called “Why I drive bangers”. You may also remember another magazine called “Jalopy” which was also very interesting. Of course the government scrappage scheme made bargain basement motoring more difficult for many people.
I think you are right in your philosophy of finding the right car, at the right price and then spending a bit of money on it to prolong its life even more i.e. new cambelts and so on. But where to draw the line? As you said, the Range Rover expenditure was probably too much. It’s a difficult balance. Realistically, a Range Rover is never going to be cheap to run. I never believed the “Buy a Rolls Royce for Mondeo money” type articles. The real bargains are the less desirable marque’s. The ugly ducklings or the cars that didn’t quite manage to impress the motoring press but which are, nevertheless, still quite capable. It’s just nobody else seems to want them. Except, of course, the bargain basement motorist.