good morning all,

firstly I should apologise if there is a huge thread somewhere about this that I havent spotted, if so please post me a link. there is loads of info on the site, it's a bit overwhelming!

I am considering adding a twinair to the stable, probably 2012ish vintage. I did look at these when they first came out, but needed a bigger car at the time. I recall it being an absolute hoot to drive.

now that my daughter is driving one of these would make some sense, as an addition rather than a replacement for my 3.0l outback.

are there any particular areas that I need to look at when buying? I know that it is important that they dont run low on oil (i used to run a punto GT turbo, so am used to checking oil regularly!).

Whats it the overall view of these when 5-6 years old? are there any weak areas? do I need to budget for a raft of replacement items at this age point (Exhaust/suspension/brakes/clutch?)



thanks in advance

Hi can't advise re twin air but can say having bought a 6 year old car, keep £1,500 spare to replace many of the failed parts and be good at fixing things yourself, note when was the last time you saw a 10 plate or older? or even a 12 they're all 13-new

I sold mine when it was 6 years old, it had no significant issues. There's plenty of info on this site on the more common 500 faults (doorhandles, hatch wiring etc). Many of the issues seem to be fixable at modest cost if you are prepared to d.i.y.
I don't think there have been too many adverse reports specific to the Twinair engine, although I've had the feeling that the 105 has had more issues reported than the 85. Very important that the oil has been changed frequently, using the correct spec. oil. Some early cars had coil packs replaced. Mine (March 2011 model) had a precautionary turbo replacement at 1 year old under a "service campaign", so worth checking whether a potential purchase was subject to this, and if it has been done.
As John says, worth setting aside some cash for future repairs, sound advice for any car 5 years old or more.

I'm not sure where you live but around here there are more pre 2012 plates then those post 2012

chris3234 said:

I'm not sure where you live but around here there are more pre 2012 plates then those post 2012

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Up here I the north east you'll see mainly 15 plate onwards with a reasonable number of 13/14 , once in a while 11/12 and very rarely 10 as for (our 59) or earlier never see them hence a post I put on a while ago asking where all the older cars have gone?

Must have some money in your area haha

chris3234 said:

Must have some money in your area haha

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Think there all on pcp and get "shipped away" from the area interestingly it seems a lot of Scottish cars end up here in the north east both me Mazda and the wife's 500 are Edinburgh cars

John, not sure what which part of my post you didn't like, do tell, I'm thick skinned!
Sawman, regarding availability, the twinair engine was only launched in late 2010, so 60 reg is the oldest you'll see. I don't know where you live, but I did a quick search on Autotrader for twinair engined 500s between 2010 and 2013, and there were 67 within 50 miles of me, ranging in price from £3500 to £7500, so there seems to be a reasonable choice around.

I did 99000 miles in my T/A over 6 years.

It was severely thrashed on a regular basis, but regularly serviced too.

The costs over and above servicing were all the usual suspects, a door handle kit, a tailgate loom repair kit, two pairs of front top mounts (but it was on Bilstein suspension).

One set of front brakes and many, many tyres.

And

Yes there is a big long thread about this

Cheers

D

thanks all,

went for a quick spin in a 2012 twinair, it went along pretty nicely, and had the character I recalled. Quite comfortable, lie the leather(ette?) seats, steering wheel and gear knob. Also went for a nose round the main dealer and ended up taking a 2017 1.2s out for a drive, likewise it drove nicely, the new dash is a lot more modern, 1.2 motor keen enough, not as characterful, as the 2 pot. the HP payments for the twinair where about the same as pcp on the nearly new. so thats something else to consider.

so went away to consider the deal for the twin air and someone beat me to it!

found another one, a 2011 with low miles, the MOT history suggests a steady 2k miles a year or thereabouts. I wasnt surprised to note the bill for a replacement clutch in the service book (A pal of mine used to run a garage in an area popular with retired folks, and was kept busy replacing clutches in very low mileage small cars)

seems to have been serviced annually at main dealer, does mow mileage throw up any issues with the twinair?

sawman said:

found another one, a 2011 with low miles, the MOT history suggests a steady 2k miles a year or thereabouts.

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Personally I'm not a fan of ultra low mileage older cars; in the UK climate, time takes a greater toll than usage and also the possibility of serious internal engine corrosion shouldn't be ignored. Generally they command a totally unjustifiable price premium and once you've put a more normal mileage on it, the depreciation will be staggering. Also if you're unlucky and the car did have a serious manufacturing fault (uncommon but it has happened), it's much less likely to have shown up whilst under warranty and you'll have to pay the full cost of sorting it out.

If it's needed a new clutch after that kind of mileage, then something is seriously wrong with either the car, or the way it's been driven. Whichever, I'd walk away from such a potential purchase at the earliest opportunity.

jrkitching said:

Personally I'm not a fan of ultra low mileage older cars; in the UK climate, time takes a greater toll than usage and also the possibility of serious internal engine corrosion shouldn't be ignored. Generally they command a totally unjustifiable price premium and once you've put a more normal mileage on it, the depreciation will be staggering. Also if you're unlucky and the car did have a serious manufacturing fault (uncommon but it has happened), it's much less likely to have shown up whilst under warranty and you'll have to pay the full cost of sorting it out.

If it's needed a new clutch after that kind of mileage, then something is seriously wrong with either the car, or the way it's been driven. Whichever, I'd walk away from such a potential purchase at the earliest opportunity.

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Cheers, I think that is my gut feeling about it. there is another one locally for the same price but with a more realistic 8k miles a year on it

As Jrkitching said older but low milage cars are not such a good deal in our wet climate. My car does low miles- but it gets fired up every day, even for a short run. I do around 6K a year- driving localy, Anything less than that the car must have been sitting outside in all weathers rusting silently I'd avoid

A lookunder the bonnet see if there's many small bits of rust should give you a clue if it has been sat for any length or not used regularly
All through I wouldn't class 6k a year as that lol miles avarage I'd say

It's not the body, it's the bits bolted to it?