xf or el

[doey]

hey guys. i have a delema that i wanted to ask an opinion from one ford lover to another.

i brought an xd fairmont ghia as a project car. but when i summed it all up it was going to cost more money to restore it and make it the way i wanted it than my 2nd year apprentice wallet could handle.
so i brought an xf s pack for $1,500, 4 speed manual, lowered and everything which came with a nsw roady but it isnt valid in vic. so i went to go get another one and it looks like its going to cost nearly $5000 to put it on the road and in my name. i dont know how this bloke got a road worthy for it but any way.

i want to know what u guys think. should i spend the money on the xf or should i sell the xf as is and spend the money on an el xr6?

dont hate me because its not a technical question. im just stuck on what to do.

cheers
doey

[AaronEF8]

Find another mechanic.
What's so wrong with it that it'd cost 5k to fix? Thats a lot of cash for a standard XF.

I'd lean towards the EL, but there's a fair chance other shit will come up on one you buy as well, so you'll need some extra cash for that as well.

[doey]

Pretty much every bush and arm and steering componants need to be replaced. And i need new springs and needs the rust tO be repaired. Thats about $4,200 with me doing all the repairs.

[Sunboost]

EL XR6 hand freakin down. Question doesn't even need to be asked.

[Troutman]

It's not quite comparing like with like, as the EL would need money spent on it too, on top of the purchase price.

My advice, careful shopping will find a good, low-km BA XR6 for around $9-11k. On a 7-year personal loan this works out to $40-50 per week (of course you would want to pay more than the minimum and pay it off much sooner).

The newer car will typically have lower running costs, have more safety and refinement, better reliability and have some value as an asset in comparison. Older models - excluding classics with appreciating value - are strictly for enthusiasts with money to burn.

[doey]

Im not after a quick car. Im after a sedan which is a manual. One that looks good. And the xf looks good but all the mechanical work is shit.

[sdoylie]

buy a low k, STANDARD car which has regularily been serviced and maintained.

dont worry if it has mods now. a good base is always a better car to start with anyway.

oh and personally, i wouldnt go for a loan. bad idea, paying off something for 5 years which will be worth around half by the time you finish the loan.

buy something in your price range thats a good runner and do mods as you can afford them.

i wish i had listened to this information when i was an apprentice.

good luck.

[doey]

Yeah i dont want to get another loan because i still have one of those. Still paying off my xg ute.

[sdoylie]

yeah, and im guessing you dont have that ute anymore now do you....

there is plenty of people with plenty of advise out there.

mine is what i have learned from my experience.

[Troutman]

bad idea, paying off something for 5 years which will be worth around half by the time you finish the loan.

Not factoring in (probably) lower running costs/better reliability and having a superior car over that period of time, not to mention safety features that could potentially save your life. If anyone considers an XF better looking or nicer to drive than a late model, however, then my formula will no longer hold. To each their own.

In previous times I used to buy relatively cheap cars, then spend silly amounts of money on mods/repairs to try and get it up to my standards. A loan to buy the car I actually want to drive makes perfect sense for me and probably works out cheaper, though everyone has different circumstances so needs to evaluate for themselves.

[Parfrey]

Find a decent EL with a rwc, and get it checked out before you buy it.

Spending 5g on an XF that will only be worth 2g once its on the road is a good way to waste money! Plus, an EL will be alot nicer to drive than an xf.
Only trouble with getting a BA is they're still pretty expensive to fix if something goes wrong. So a BA for $10,000 might have 150,000km+ and is bound to need shit replacing soon..

[doey]

No i want to keep my ute. Yeah i might see ifni can sell the xf and save up a bit and buy an el.