2.0 8v written off what next?

[mnmv12 2]

So after 16yrs of ownership and 322k my daily driver finely got killed off by some plonker in a Citroen DS. Totally gutted , loved this car and can't imagine how many hours i've spent behind the wheel. The salvage company took her away yesterday  😢  and while i await their verdict i am left wondering what to do. The car has an agreed value of 4.5k and they will inevitably give it a class N or S so if i want it back i am going to have to pay for it. The question is do i want it back? 

Options

1)Buy it back and get it repaired. - Despite going over and over this in my head and putting sentiment to one side it really doesn't seem to make economical sense and will it really be the same again.

2)Buy another Corrado and use this as spares - Have to find somewhere to store it and can't see me finding another good one for the insurance money already looked at a couple of "Mint" cars which were complete dogs. Trouble is after 16yrs of Corrado ownership you know where to look beyond the dodgy respray. Can i really be bothered to drive round the country trying to find a bargain.

3)Buy it back cheap and break it on the drive. Wife has already said no to this and i don't really want to see my pride and joy being picked apart anyway.

4) Buy it back cheap and sell it on fleabay to someone who wants to repair or break it.At least all those rare parts will be useful to someone.

5) Forget the whole thing - take the money, flog off the huge stock of spares i've accumulated over the years and go and buy a mint MK1 TT quattro 225  

 

Advice please.

[_Matt_ 32]

Oh no, I'm really gutted for you. So much history and it looked immaculate. Sobering thought how quickly they can be taken away. 

On the positive side that car was used well and loved; it could not have had a better life. 

What next? That is a difficult a question. Everything is repairable but like you say maybe not worth the effort. Likely to be a Cat S with the rear 3/4 damage but even repaired you'll have that cat rating over your head forever.

The car seems too nice and well spec'd with those alloys (did you have leather too?) to let sit in some random breakers yard. Buying it back seems sensible even if it is to rob the nice bits for yourself and sell the rest on - I'm pretty sure you would come out on top.

As for finding another Corrado it depends how much you want another. I think you could pick up a very tidy 16v for that budget.... but I can see the attraction in trying something else after 16 years. The TT is a nice timeless design.   

[Keyo 47]

Little citroen knobbers= sorry to hear about your loss. 

[mnmv12 2]

So having selected a few very tidy TT's I made the suggestion to the wife and teenage daughters that this might be a good alternative. This did not go down well, apparently the TT and Audi's generally do not feature on the cool wall in our house and the torrent of abuse was such that i thought might be spending the night in the shed!   So perhaps with some relief i think its going to be another Corrado, fortunately i have the use of another car so i not under any real pressure to move quickly. Which model though? While i appreciate the 2.0 8V  in my old car isn't a popular variant, for an ever day driver it has been fantastic car even after 322k the engine has shown no sign of giving up and i've been storing a spare engine in the shed for 6 years expecting the existing one to expire. I'm not expecting to find this model again so the 2.0 16v may be a good alternative although maybe this is the time to try a VR6 but the fuel consumption may be a problem. What would i typically get out of a VR6 on a daily commute of 50 miles on fairly deserted 'A' roads 24/25mpg?  And 30 for  2.0 16v?

There is an irony to all of this, 16yrs ago the reason i ended up with a Corrado was because some uninsured git rammed my MK1 Golf GTI up the backside in exactly the same place!

 

[_Matt_ 32]

Oh bloody hell you've had bad luck there. 

The rear leg room space on the TT is terrible and definitely no good for adult passengers so maybe that is by the by. The A5/S5 coupe might be an interesting alternative if you were after something else with an Audi badge.

With regard to the VR6/16v I have one of each, but I have only just picked up the 16v. The VR6 can be very good on fuel; the best I have seen is 38mpg on roads like your commute and I ususally average around 28mpg which includes some full bore accelerations. I suspect the VR6 driven normally would perform just as we as the 16v. You're more likely to get a better car for £4.5k going for a 16v though. Sorted VR6s have gone up a lot in money these days.

Another alternative could be a mk2 Golf? In keeping with the VW breed but something different. You'll also get to have a bomb proof 8v engine again too. I've got one of these too but it is in early project stages where it needs taking apart and restoring.

 

 

 

[Cressa 44]

Gutted for you.... The rear end does look bad, so a lot of effort in trying to sort out all of that damage. Certainly is repairable for the love, but not for the cost.  

4 sounds ok but suggestion 3 if you could quickly remove the bits you want and then scrap it.

You certainly know what to look for in a Corrado, so a weekend looking wouldn't be too much to give to see anything good was available. You will still spend time searching for any car.

After 16yrs of marriage would you want it back, or is it time for a replacement 😊 I mean the car..

Good luck in your decision

I too lost a mk1 gti, so feel your pain. 

YOU KNOW ANOTHER CORRADO IS THE RIGHT CHOICE as clearly you are a great custodian of one

[vw rule 19]

My condolences to your 2.0 8v that's not good at all 😠  Hopefully you'll be back in another Corrado soon 👍 

No way and it happened in the same place 16 years previously 😱 flipping hell.

If you do decide to get another Corrado and start a fresh, I'd definitely get as much as you can off your current one,      as you know you'll ideally need a good stock pile of spares most importantly the obsolete parts. Especially the front lights and the leather interior if it had that, and door handles and wiper linkage if you fitted new ones in the past, plus anything else of use. 

From my experience of owning a 16v the fuel economy isn't really miles apart from the VR6, both will normally do mid to late 30s MPG on a long run. I think the most I ever got out of my 16v was towards 35 MPG going up to London or up north, around town I'd see 23 to 26 MPG, then on a 15 to 20 mile journey I can see 28 to 31 MPG. I've never seen 40 to 45 MPG from a KR or 9A 16v ever.

Si 👍

[mnmv12 2]

Thanks and your right, you know how special they are when the lorry driver who comes to pick it up is nearly in tears when he sees it, then spends 20 mins telling you what a brilliant car they are. Normally his fist pick up's go on the top deck but he said they can get damaged by trees so he was going to reserve that spot for all modern boring crap (his words) he was picking up next, didn't want the Corrado to get damaged. ( nice gesture but i think your too late mate).

[mnmv12 2]

Update, 

My old written of 8v was given a class U which basically means it could be repaired if i so wished. The cost of salvage retention is a fixed percentage of the settlement value in this case £900 non negotiable otherwise it goes in the crusher this left just over three grand to do the repairs and i really wasn't keen on the idea. In the meantime while on holiday i was scouring every website for a replacement car and i had really given up on finding a Corrado for reasonable money that wasn't a basket case. Having owned mine for so long and not been particularly worried about its resale value I think i have really got out of touch the current prices. Reading the price against some of the MOT history and advisories for extensive corrosion on cars described as "superb", "best in the country" and "mint" is really depressing.

I came within a gnats cock of buying a TT when i found a 1996 VR6 for sale that had been in storage since 2011 with 126k on the clock. As it was on the way home we stopped in to take a look and i ended up buying it for 6k. It is in very good condition better than my old one in fact and totally original. There is a couple of jobs to do, i have already booked it in at Stealth for timing chains and a clutch and the drivers door has a small amount of damage around the door handle where somebody tried to break in.

Now that i have another Corrado i have decided to buy my old one back from the insurers and rob the bits off it. It doesn't really make economic sense but what price do you put on obsolete parts The drivers door will be first and conveniently it is the same colour. Obviously there will be a lot of parts that are specific to the eight valve which won't be any use to me. My original trim wasn't leather but the late VR6 cloth trim, I already have a set the same sat in the shed so i will try and sell this. 

This is obviously working out more expensive than planned and i could have got a good TT for this money but i will be glad to be in a Corrado again and this will my first VR6 (already love the induction noise)

[Keyo 47]

Congrats that looks a clean one with a good colour combo- sure investment- its a shame you have to daily it everyday and wont be a few winters on that snow and the rust will show its face. Cant you get a cheap Mk4 diesel or something for the daily drive. 

[mnmv12 2]

Yea always a difficult one that as i do like to drive my cars as much as possible. I have got a couple of others to share the burden. I bought a Brera S a couple of years ago and had that professionally waxed at Rust Buster so i think i will do the same with this.

I never really think of them as an investment i think i had more enjoyment driving my old one for 300k than i would if i had just used it in the summer. Will they really be worth that much in 10yrs time when they tax us of the road? Who knows, but i will do my best to look after it the meantime.

[Keyo 47]

6 minutes ago, mnmv12 said:

Yea always a difficult one that as i do like to drive my cars as much as possible. I have got a couple of others to share the burden. I bought a Brera S a couple of years ago and had that professionally waxed at Rust Buster so i think i will do the same with this.

I never really think of them as an investment i think i had more enjoyment driving my old one for 300k than i would if i had just used it in the summer. Will they really be worth that much in 10yrs time when they tax us of the road? Who knows, but i will do my best to look after it the meantime.

Sure investment in a modern classic is not really on the cards taking into account the costs unless its a very high value car - looks a real nice one you got there just hope another none attention payer don't get you as the more its on the road so does the potential especially in rush hour traffic when people are most likely not to pay attention  - I daily my Mk2 golf in the summer 6.00 am morning- 14.30 home (scaffolders early bird catches the worm)  but the winters and the salt on the Motorways are just horrific for them and parts so hard to get a hold of. Tax will be free by the time they get to 40 years old- hopefully might drop down back to 25 years or less when we drop out of the EU as the 40 year old kicked in to tie into EU law whatever its called . 

[1xshaunx1 27]

Nice purchase 

Shame the decision was forced on you,  get a third brake light put on this one. 

[_Matt_ 32]

Nice one and every cloud as a silver lining they say!

Interested to hear/see more on the rust proofing. Those alfas are prone to rust - has yours been protected?

I spray wax oil or equivalent into my cavities (oh err).



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[Cressa 44]

Looks a great standard purchase, well done mate.👌

[mnmv12 2]

On 8/17/2020 at 5:27 PM, 1xshaunx1 said:

Nice purchase 

Shame the decision was forced on you,  get a third brake light put on this one. 

Third brake light, now that is a very good idea, any recommendations? Found a Hella one for rear screens with 20-36 deg rake but its a bit of a lump. Might just go for a fairly inconspicuous LED strip.

 

 

[fendervg 32]

The US and some EU spec Corrados had a third brake light from factory, mounted just below the spoiler, but needs a bespoke US model tailgate. I have seen UK cars with them retrofitted with some careful cutting and welding, but not everybody's cup of tea.

There's a wide range of LED ones around that can be fitted at the top inside of the tailgate or into the roof lining - there was even one on here that had pinhole LEDs mounting in the spoiler.

@keyo - that 40 year classic thing is not EU law, it's UK specific - in Ireland it used to be 25 years, now it's been 30 or over for a decade or so, €56 road tax. I think the change to the limit was more to keep the motor tax coming in and to discourage people from hanging on to big displacement older cars.

[Keyo 47]

16 minutes ago, fendervg said:

The US and some EU spec Corrados had a third brake light from factory, mounted just below the spoiler, but needs a bespoke US model tailgate. I have seen UK cars with them retrofitted with some careful cutting and welding, but not everybody's cup of tea.

There's a wide range of LED ones around that can be fitted at the top inside of the tailgate or into the roof lining - there was even one on here that had pinhole LEDs mounting in the spoiler.

@keyo - that 40 year classic thing is not EU law, it's UK specific - in Ireland it used to be 25 years, now it's been 30 or over for a decade or so, €56 road tax. I think the change to the limit was more to keep the motor tax coming in and to discourage people from hanging on to big displacement older cars.

30 years would do- 40 years is taking the mickeY !

[fendervg 32]

2 hours ago, Keyo said:

30 years would do- 40 years is taking the mickeY !

Agreed, for sure - on the bright side at least you don't have to pay €1360 in road tax every year until it's a classic.

[Keyo 47]

6 hours ago, fendervg said:

Agreed, for sure - on the bright side at least you don't have to pay €1360 in road tax every year until it's a classic.

Wow what a rip off !

[Cressa 44]

8 hours ago, fendervg said:

Agreed, for sure - on the bright side at least you don't have to pay €1360 in road tax every year until it's a classic.

HOLY SH## !! How much...   You must have the best roads ever to drive on

[fendervg 32]

27 minutes ago, Cressa said:

HOLY SH## !! How much...   You must have the best roads ever to drive on

You would think that, wouldn't you? Doesn't even get spent on roads, just goes into the overall tax revenue pot. How much is it annually for a VR in the UK? Apologies to mnmv12 for hijacking the thread - that VR looks like a lovely example and should be a worthy replacement and successor to the 8v.

[_Matt_ 32]

Less than £300 Fen. Can you Sorn your cars when not in use over there to save some money? Probs won't work for you as you use your year round right?

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[fendervg 32]

11 minutes ago, pfnsht said:

Less than £300 Fen. Can you Sorn your cars when not in use over there to save some money? Probs won't work for you as you use your year round right?

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk
 

We can declare them off the road, on a month by month basis although the minimum taxation period is 3-months,which works out more expensive per month than an annual renewal.

Mine was a daily, but has been off the road since March due to the pandemic outbreak and working from home, so at least I'm saving some cash. We have a cheaper to tax family MPV diesel that's still in use.

[tony_ack 0]

On 8/17/2020 at 12:49 PM, mnmv12 said:

but what price do you put on obsolete parts 

A big one for some of them!

£900 is well worth it for the stash of spares you'll have, and the bits you'll sell. 

The VR looks a great find.