Ten Years Then Ditch - Any Make

[s130]

Having read many posts with users in trouble with failures and parts supply and cost and agro I'm inclined to say that with a modern car then once your car gets to 10 years old and starts behaving badly then it is time to sell it, trade it or even scrap it if it is over 15 years old.

I think gone are times where older cars can be economically maintained unlike the older and lower tech models of the Unos, Puntos, etc. And certainly not if it is your main/prime car required mosts days.

It all started when many makes of cars required the front bumper to be removed to replace a headlamp bulb. Down hill from then on.

Also with the older model cars Uno / Punto then they we basically the same car over several years thus ensuring a good OEM parts supply. These days a simple 500 has had so many revisions, different this, different that and coupled with all the electronics specific to that particular vehicle then I'm not surprised that things are getting more difficult.

An extreme example would be say a 500X with all that Lane Assist with all it's sensors and cameras. After year 3 from new if you get a warning light on the dash at MOT time then you are potentially in real difficulty. Almost certainly a dealer / specialist job with parts (if avalable) cost an arm and a leg.

Worse still these days you can't buy a car with no mod cons so you end up with stuff you don't want and can't afford to repair!

Food for thought?

 

[portland_bill]

Maybe a year or so ago, I'd have agreed, but I think with the silliness of EVs, we may see a whole new trend of aftermarket support for favourite models. Only the most well off can afford to buy a new vehicle outright every few years. The current situation with PCP, etc., finances the depreciation, but with EVs having a shorter life expectancy, due to battery degradation, depreciation is severe, and finance companies are feeling the pain. I've already seen fleet vehicles move from replacing tyres at 3mm, to not until it hits the wear indicators, in an effort to reduce the costs of higher wear rates. Companies are tending to keep cars longer, to spread the loss over a longer period.
Used EVs are worth little. Range degrades, and each owner heads nearer to the point of unsaleability. There will be a need to keep older cars going for as long as possible.
As a result, I think we may see an increase of aftermarket support for popular, or at least desirable models, allowing us to keep them maintained for longer. Specialist breakers will move further out of the 'muddy field' image, as we look for used parts, especially bodywork. An older 500 will accept many bumpers, even if different in style from the original, and owners will care less if their car keeps moving for longer.
Independent garages already are learning how to reset distance radars, and the rest will follow. Think how many of us on here already use MES, where we may have started out with very analogue vehicles. We adapt and learn. Good forums, like this, will help.

On the other hand, some of us are old enough now that we are likely gone before the situation gets really bad. I wonder just how long a 2006 Panda will last?

 

[vexorg]

95% of most cars hasn't changed in 20 years, even EV cars have much the same, the drivetrain and suspension, brakes and so on. I've never had to remove a bumper to change a headlight (lower arms on the 500, but that's just a stupid design)

In my view it's the manufacturers deliberately trying to kill off the home mechanic.Even the latest vauxhall systems had encrypted ECUs to stop you getting fault codes out. Yet older vauxhalls would give you the codes with a simple piece or wire.

I dont htink we are at the throw away point just yet, maybe in the near future, but I dont think there are any cars that I wouldn't be happy to fix on my own.

 

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

95% of most cars hasn't changed in 20 years, even EV cars have much the same, the drivetrain and suspension, brakes and so on. I've never had to remove a bumper to change a headlight (lower arms on the 500, but that's just a stupid design)

In my view it's the manufacturers deliberately trying to kill off the home mechanic.Even the latest vauxhall systems had encrypted ECUs to stop you getting fault codes out. Yet older vauxhalls would give you the codes with a simple piece or wire.

I dont htink we are at the throw away point just yet, maybe in the near future, but I dont think there are any cars that I wouldn't be happy to fix on my own.

I like and agree with much of what you are saying here, but.

I'm very doubtful about the longevity outlook for the latest generation of small, very highly stressed, turbocharged petrol engines - mechanically too fragile in my opinion?

Once you get your head round the basics and get your hands on a competent scanner - I have MES for the Fiats and VCDS for the VAG stuff - I completely agree that there is much the wee man at home in his lockup can still repair. The problem is that there are just so many individual ECUs with all their attendant sensors and the actuators they drive, all of which can fail that there is a far greater possibility of needing to spend serious money on an older vehicle - although, in my experience, thank goodness, it's not often the ECU itself is the guilty party. Complicated wiring looms can be quite a nightmare to continuity check too and Can Bus is still something I really toil with. On the very newest vehicles there's also the complication of manufacturer encryption to further complicate things.

My 2016 Ibiza had a new turbo - in warranty thank goodness - at 2 years old due to a now know problem with the wastegate linkage on the earlier design. It ran well until last year when it ruined a final drive bearing when we were on our annual pilgrimage down in Devon and generously distributed metallic glitter throughout the entire box so had to have a new one. That wasn't under warranty but VAG/SEAT generously gave us a third off the price of the box and the main dealer who did the job matched it with a third off his labour. I thought this was pretty generous but didn't stop me crying nearly all the way back up the M5/6 to Scotland! Still, look on the bright side Jock, being a genuine VAG unit, the box has a 2 year warranty on it! I'm quite surprised that I've, so far, had no electronic problems however It's nothing like as robust a vehicle as my old 1999 Cordoba 1.9 TDI which I bought at one year old and ran for nearly 20 years until it literally expired.