Well hello again guys.

You may remember that the old faithful Focus was replaced a couple of months ago with a 1999 Volvo V40. Well, although it served us very well and never broke down, I took the decision to sell it before the MOT expired and buy a replacement due to the issues which would have caused it to be uneconomical to repair.

So, last Thursday the replacement was bought - for £300.

For that you'd be thinking an old rusty 1990s vehicle that just scraped through an MOT, but actually it is not.

What it is is a 2005 Nissan Primera S 1.8 hatchback in near immaculate condition inside and out. The catch? It is an ex-taxi and has covered 193,000 miles. That is slightly outweighed though by the fact that all four tyres are almost new, the clutch was replaced 35,000 miles ago and it has a clean MOT history with the only advisories and failures through the years being tyres and a distorted rim. Nothing for brakes, exhaust and certainly no mention of corrosion ever. The current MOT passed first time with no advisories. All good there.

Although it is certainly not as sporty as the Focus (or even V40 for that matter, not that you could class a Volvo as "sporty") in so much as it feels like a boat going around corners - in a straight line it actually has a fair amount of power especially at 4,000+ RPM with your foot on the floor.

There are two negatives though, although I do not class them as immediate issues.

1) The ABS light comes on after 2-3 miles of driving - not quite sure why there is a delay but I'm assuming in any event that it is the sensor(s) to blame

2) The "Check Engine" light comes on immediately when the engine is started. This was not apparent when the car was purchased but only happened on Friday. Fortunately the engine still runs fine and has not lost any power so it isn't a mechanical issue, and because the car has a computer built in I can get the error code (and reset the light) from that rather than having to plug in a laptop or something.

Anyway, the bottom line is that the car is going well - aside from the dashboard being lit up like a Christmas tree with warning lights - and with the two issues resolved it should be a good car for a year or two at least. The long-term aim though is of course to return to either Ford or Volvo, as that is where my heart belongs.

So, if any of you have read to this point and are even interested - I'll leave you with some pictures of the "new" car...

These tend to be good workhorses, hence the abundance of them being minicabbed! Personally, I think they are one of the most uninspiring drives I have ever driven (I drove my ex's Dad's old immaculate one from York to Stow on the Wold) they are fairly solid and dependable.

Sent via the 'Clacks'

GNU STP

I think you have hit the nail on the head there!

It is a very comfortable car to be in with great sound proofing (the engine can barely be heard below 4,000RPM) and you get the feeling that it could just go on and on for days without stopping - but the downside is that it is about as exciting as a microwave oven. Although to be honest the Focus was the same, with the exception of having slightly better cornering at high speeds.

The Focus is in a completely different league, it has better handling, more tight and sharp, more responsive. The Primera is like you said, a microwave oven. Does what you want it to do but it doesn't matter what brand it is, it just does what it needs to do and naff-all else.

to be fair fella for the amount your spending on cars, and how well they seem to last it looks like a good buy! £300 for for an 05 is good by anyones standards, petrol can easily do 250k, and with the major components done and dusted - its a bonus! sad though that its due a timing belt - which will cost more than the car :p

to be fair fella for the amount your spending on cars, and how well they seem to last it looks like a good buy! £300 for for an 05 is good by anyones standards, petrol can easily do 250k, and with the major components done and dusted - its a bonus! sad though that its due a timing belt - which will cost more than the car :P

It would be, if it weren't driven by a timing chain... B)

I have been very lucky though! The Focus cost £290 and lasted 2 years, the Volvo £100 which lasted 2 months (and I sold for £220!) and this one cost £300 which I expect will last AT LEAST a year.