Our Cars: 1998 Toyota Avensis 1.8GS
2 March 2015: Final reckoning?
The Details
| Current mileage | 150,066 |
|---|---|
| Actual economy | 35mpg |
I feared that this final post from the depths of free Avensis ownership might prove to be the car’s obituary.
Having barely turned a wheel in the past two weeks, the car cranked into life and did a 440-miles over two days, during which I concluded that the handling was getting floppy, and decided weary rear shocks were the cause.
One of the rear tyres had a slow puncture, so initially I imagined that the squishy tyre had caused the squishy handling, and as the car came with a set of virtually new winter tyres on steel rims, I switched to these, but the problem persisted.
The Avensis has coil over shock rear suspension. A local fast fit quoted £420 to renew the shocks, our village garage £300. When I go back to summer tyres the car will need a new pair for which I was quoted £45 each. I wasn’t going to spend £400/£500 on a 17-year-old, 150,000 mile vehicle, so began looking for a replacement, finding nothing but over priced, clapped out rubbish. Honest John’s excellent review put me off several candidates like early petrol Mk2 Mondeos (dodgy duel mass flywheels and a habit of sucking inlet manifold butterflies into the engine anyone?). Their frailties made me appreciate the Toyota’s robust simplicity and mechanical sweetness. Shocks aside, it was better than the stuff I was seeing. It also has four months tax and test and suspension sorted, I could see nothing to stop it getting another MOT in the summer. Could it be saved?
I Googled ‘Toyota breakers’ and found myself speaking to a rough diamond who had a pair of complete, used Avensis rear shock towers for £25 each, but I’d have to collect them.
‘Where are you?’
‘Bedford.’
Since I was in Kent that was out. In the end I spent £80 for two allegedly good, low mileage struts with coils and shocks in situ. The price included delivery. Yes, I bought them sight unseen, but they look fine, and if I’m wrong at the very worst I’ll have lost £80. My village garage charges £55 per hour, so if they’re good, the Toyota’s wobbly bottom can be cured for about £135 -fitting complete struts is a simple job. Using eBay I’ve also spent £45 on a pair of budget tyres, which the garage can fit and balance for £10.
In eight months the car has covered 10,000 miles - I'd run it for a bit before writing these blogs. I’ve spent £35 on some plug leads, £17 on fresh oil and a filter. Power steering and alternator belts were £19, and the garage fitted them for £35. The MoT was £55, tax £230. So, not including fuel and insurance, my free car will have cost £546 to run. Over a year that’s £10.50 a week.
This is either very cheap, or very penurious, depending on how you look at it, has the advantage that I’m not locked into a long finance deal for a depreciating asset, but the disadvantage that should the Avensis die nobody is going to offer me a courtesy car, but thus far its been a faithful companion.
The Avensis is utterly forgettable to drive, but keeping on top of the knife-edge economics of running it has been fun, it’s never failed to start, and despite the odd age-related glitch, has always got me where I wanted to go.
I would be a little surprised to be driving it in a year, which is why I’m still passively on the lookout for a replacement, but stranger things have happened, and if the Avensis is still squatting on our drive in 2016, I won’t be sorry.
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