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Post by Humph on Feb 28, 2017 12:06:49 GMT
Been doing a fair bit of tooling about in my son's Aygo this past couple of weeks. I let him drive to places he wants to go, then use the car myself to go home and repeat the exercise in reverse order when he's ready to come home.
You forget, well I'd almost forgotten anyway, how much fun it is to dash about in a little manual car. You really have to 'drive' it rather than let it take you places, but that is most of the appeal I suppose. With such a tiny engine you have to keep it in just the right gear and spinning at the right revs etc.
Reminds me of my dog. Willing little terrier of a thing that while occasionally noisy, seems to mean well !
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Post by Alanović on Feb 28, 2017 12:43:37 GMT
Yes, agreed. I said the same thing when I was looking after my niece's C1 last year. Really fun to take it out for a spin every now and again. Would not want to drive to Edinburgh regularly in it though.
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Post by tyrednexited on Feb 28, 2017 12:50:57 GMT
The X1 hasn't been off the drive until this morning, after buying the Smart.
Some of it is, of course, new toy syndrome, but it is a surprisingly easy car to live with.
More room, and better equipped in the front than the Fiesta it replaced. Enough boot room to do a supermarket shop, or to go out into the Peak District with boots and sacks.
It doesn't seem to lack poke, despite being a bit down on power to the Fiesta, the DCT transmission doesn't sap anything though, and it's done about 55mpg since purchase on very mixed journeys.
As I've already said, the ride is better than it has any right to be, and it is a pleasure to drive and park. Whilst it wouldn't be first choice for long motorway journeys, it would certainly hack it.
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Post by Humph on Feb 28, 2017 14:08:37 GMT
I agree that I'd probably not want to use such a small thing for regular long journeys, but credit where credit is due, in a 30 mile round trip last night including stretches of 70 mph dual carriageway it didn't feel at all compromised. Took a bit longer to wind up to speed than what I'm used to of course, but once cruising it felt perfectly stable and comfortable. Genuinely huge load area with the back seats folded. For a couple going on holiday or something it'd be totally fine. "He" wants bike racks for it now...incidentally, I filled it with petrol two weeks ago, and while it's only been dotting about with him practising in it, and me fetching him from places, it has hardly moved the petrol gauge.
We've another wee buzz bomb on the drive today too. My wife's car is in for a service and the garage have loaned her a 2015 Clio 1.5 diesel. Nice little thing. Actually not all that little in truth, it feels pretty much as big as her Qashqai inside. I think it must be some kind of fancy model, sporty seats and big wheels etc. Quite like it.
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Post by tyrednexited on Feb 28, 2017 15:25:53 GMT
"He" wants bike racks for it now... Daughter has a Peugeot 107 of the same basic design. If you have a 5-door Aygo, then you may be able to fit roofbars, I don't think there is provision on the 3-door. Generally, the use of a rear-rack is not a good idea, due to the glass tailgate. AIUI, neither is it homologated for a towbar, so a towball rack is out as well. Best option I could find is this (other suppliers are available): www.pfjones.co.uk/westfalia-citroen-c1-peugeot-107-toyota-aygo-cycle-carrier.html...though it would be best to allow for a lighting bar as well! |
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Post by Humph on Feb 28, 2017 15:28:57 GMT
Thanks T&E. It is a five door so I believe roof bars are available.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Feb 28, 2017 21:08:53 GMT
Well if you have a FOUR cylinder Mercedes, any other FOUR or even THREE cylinder car will feel fine. Those of us with SIX cylinders find our son's Punto adequate but not really ideal for a long distance cruise.
In reality there is immense fun as well as practicality and economy to be had with a small car for 95% or more of my driving. That final 5% makes the extra cost worthwhile but any medium size modern car suits 99% of my driving perfectly.
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Avant
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Post by Avant on Feb 28, 2017 23:39:26 GMT
I agree - a nippy small / medium car is all you need most of the time. The joy of SWMBO's Audi A1 is that you get all the small-car nippiness but it's also quiet and relaxed on a long run. And mpg is better from this 1.4 pwetrol than from my diesel Volvo.
I was going to say "that's why it costs twice as much as an Aygo" but on looking it up I find that a new Aygo / C1 / 108 is quite expensive: an i10 or Up/Citigo would be better value. And with a PCP we got a good deal on the A1 as it holds its value very well. A secondhand Aygo like Humph's makes a lot of sense.
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Post by crankcase on Mar 3, 2017 14:15:45 GMT
Spooky - was just looking at local dealer's Aygo offerings today and doing some maths (not even man ones).
Made the mistake of mentioning the faint concept of trading in the Big Dieselly Costly S60 for a Little Buzzy Cheapy Aygo the other night and there was a generally benign uxorial reception to the concept. Unlike, I have to say, when I suggested something much bigger and more expensive, at which point I admit I was faintly concerned that the matter appeared more likely to be settled by means other than argument.
PS - that's an organ to reckoned with, Avant. Had to sell my electronic one a couple of weeks ago, bought just a little keyboard to tart around with instead and I keep finding I'm pedalling the carpet.
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Post by Alanović on Mar 3, 2017 14:24:59 GMT
You're the one with the Zoe, right Crankers? A fleet of a Zoe and an Aygo. Hmm.
Not for me. S60 would be staying.
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Mar 3, 2017 14:58:05 GMT
With a rigid towing bar and a smartphone app, couldn't you couple them together to make an eight-wheeler that would still fit in the same space as one of our E estates?
Watch out for this in your next 'What's new in Alexa' email.
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Post by crankcase on Mar 3, 2017 14:59:27 GMT
S60 now gets used maybe four times a year. Sits in the garage otherwise costing me in insurance, tax, annual servicing. Waste. I only keep it to cover the journeys the Zoe isn't so good at.
Zoe = PCP runs out end of this year. Love it, love the EV thing, but it's apparent the main economic justification I had for doing it in the first place has gone, probably forever, so getting another EV is not a foregone. So was thinking of an Aygo as a replacement for both.
If I got the Aygo now, the value of the S60 (£6500 CAP) buys a pretty new example. If I wait til December, it doesn't, (S60 might be £4000 CAP by then maybe) and I still have to tax/insure the S60 until then.
Aygo then sits in garage, but much cheaper, still proivides the 4 times a year thing, and could become only car at end of year.
For "Aygo" insert "cheap little thing we can get about in from A to B happily" as appropriate.
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Post by Alanović on Mar 3, 2017 15:06:23 GMT
Ah, OK. Makes more sense.
I'd still keep the S60.
;-)
Vauxhall Ampera?
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Post by crankcase on Mar 3, 2017 15:26:58 GMT
I'd love to keep the S60, as it's a thing of joy when driven, but I'm a tight git. It pains me spending money at all, never mind unnecessarily. So as our financial circs are changing bigtime this year, it kind of has to go on the "things I'm glad I did but can't really afford anymore" heap, of which I suspect there will be many!
Ampera - no, they're too old now, be worried about out of warranty stuff.
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Post by Alanović on Mar 3, 2017 16:05:05 GMT
I dunno. I think the answer is a VW Phaeton W12. But then I think that's the answer to every "what car" question.
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