Axes of desire

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Another week goes by and I’m still a Mini owner. This isn’t how I planned it.

This past week, I was off work. I hesitate to say on holiday. The first day was spent... at work. And the rest was spent either being ill or decorating the house. And to think I had plans for getting a new car instead. Despite this, at least I’m making progress toward the next purchase. The front bumper is looking great following its respray. The exhaust’s all sorted. I even think I found the source of a persistent rattle coming from the back of the car.

On top of this, I’ve made the car a little more photogenic, sprucing up the wheels and taking the opportunity to even the tyre wear by swapping front to back. The photos I’ll take could well be called upon soon too. I’ve contacted 3 private sellers about doing a part-ex on their cars, although I’ve only heard back from one so far. And that was a negative. The cars, by the way, are a mixed bag: an S2 Elise 135; a Honda S2000; and a VX220. Frankly, any of those would make a great next car.

I’m also considering approaching a guy with a BMW 330cd, which is a departure from the usual models for me. This got me thinking about what I’m really looking for from my next car. And what compromises I’d be willing to make. I figure there are a number of separate traits that would entice me. Because I’m stupid, I’ll call them my axes of desire:

  • Straight-line speed – ideally, less than 6 secs to 100km/h
  • Chuckability – ideally, just as nimble as the Mini
  • Kerb appeal – ideally, it should make me grin like an idiot at petrol stations
  • Economy – ideally, will regularly return 40mpg plus
  • Practicality – ideally, I could get stuff from B&Q in the back

Over the next few posts, I think I’ll make the case for a bunch of cars I’ve been considering and see how they fare on these criteria. Promises of future blog posts are a dangerous thing when you’re as lax as me, but what the hell. I made a whole site about a car purchase once, you know. I did. Stop yawning, dammit.

Comments

Mal said…
Update on the car enquiries: after getting the nay from the S2000 owner, I've since received another negative from the VX220 owner. This time, it was down to the owner needing a bigger price difference between our 2 cars - he needs to generate some cash, so a near-swap wasn't what he was after. Of course, that still leaves the door open for a cash offer, after selling the Mini separately...
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