Probably not, if you're looking to insure both cars for the entire year, but because I'm only wanting to insure one for a short-term, they want to charge me a fee for setting the policy up, a fee for cancelling one car, a fee to alter the direct debit, two fees of £25 each to change both number plates, blah blah, blah . . . . I've given up
Lou Loads of sympathy and understanding from the Badgers. To think that your poor little Copen has its wheels caught up in all that red tape but even if you can't drive it yet, you can sit in it,polish it, check it over and generally love it to bits! And while you're doing that, please think of a better name than Noddy There's always We Buy Any Car in desperation!
Complete Rubbish - to give you a live example - My insurance with Admiral, husband with admiral... got a q quote to multicar my husbands audi with admiral- £700 odd quid, quote for him to renewal on single car policy - £400 odd quid. Nuff said. Maybe it works on other peoples cars but certainly doesnt work for us! tend to get quite competitive prices for new ish hatchbacks, my husband got a good quote on his previous fiesta that was full leathers.
yip, unfortunately insurance is no more than legalised robbery these days. I moved house a couple of years ago and i've about 7 vehicles (mostly 2 wheeled variety). Even though each individual policy is under £100 (trust me its no cheaper doing multi-policies), i was hit with between £25 and £50 PER POLICY to change the address mid-term. Then on top of that there was an adjustment to take into account the new postcode supposedly to recalculate risk. Cost a few hundred altogether for what is basically just an admin change. Also, i've NCB on three separate policies (car / van / bike), but they dont take into account NCB on a different policy when calculating discount. Ironically if you have a claim on any one then it counts against you on them all!!! Last straw for me was last year when i got fined £100 from the DVLA for 'not having adequate insurance in place' on a classic bike. It was in pieces at the back of my garage and covered under a 'laid-up' policy. I thought this perfectly adequate. Apparently this is breaking the law because it still had a valid tax disc. I was told 'although i had not used the vehicle on a public road without insurance the fact i had a tax disc meant i had the means to do so'. I pointed out I also own a ski-mask and kitchen knife but so far had escaped prison for having the 'means' to commit armed robbery....... Basically i got fined for having tax then. (on a tax exempt vehicle!!!) total sham. as usual its the people who actually pay that get penalised for those who dodge it.
Dunf that is OUTRAGEOUS and you have my full sympathies. I'm afraid that's typical of the "jobsworth" culture we seem to have imposed on ourselves (funny, I don't remember voting for it in this great democracy of ours ). It's always the honest idiots like us who have to subsidise all the freeloaders who don't have any road tax/pay tax/have insurance, etc. Rant over
Here here! Mini still not sold. Copen still in garage without a decent nickname. Owner cheesed off, but not to the point of going to webuyanycar.com . . . . . yet :-((
I'm liking that But she's not out in the Copen (LOL) yet, she's still stuck in the garage :-(( And to top it all off, even if I were to get the Mini sold tomorrow, I can't get Sesame (thank you) out the garage cause bl00dy Scottish Gas have dug up our drive to replace pipes. That was a week ago and they've not been back to sort out their mess. Am I being punished for not buying a Copen sooner???
Hi Lou! Hope you're taking the opportunity caused by forced imprisonment in the garage to pimp Sesame (glad you liked the name! ). Once you get the insurance and the gas board finishes messing about with pipes you will want to drive her/him/it all the time so no time for cleaning, fettling, polishing, etc. See, every cloud has a silver lining Or not, if you hate cleaning
Yeehaa, Sesame is now on the road Got the Mini sold yesterday, got the insurance swapped to the Copen this morning, and managed to squeeze her (just) round the Scottish Gas holes to go for a run. Ah, what a giggle . I'm going to end up getting sectioned if too many people see me with that grin on my face, talking to my dog (who has her own car seat) and driving around aimlessly just for the sake of driving!!!!! The only downside is that I only had a couple of hours before I had to go to work, and work is only 1.5 miles from my house Roll on the summer!!! I'm going to have a terrible time trying to decide which vehicle to play with . . . . . Copen or motorcycle. I think Sesame will win . . . as the puppy can come too then Happy days
fantastic news Lou! let the fun times roll! dont worry you will find plenty of excuses, try not doing a weekly shop - instead every other day... or taking the long way to work as I sometimes do...lol I would actually really be interested in your opinion on the difference/similarities of the mini vs copen
Yaaaaay!! You made it Lou! Well done and enjoy every minute of it. Best cure for the blues is.....a Copen it even makes travelling to work enjoyable
Yes I know that dilemma, (and what a great dilemma to have, eh?) - but for me it means that there's Copen driving fun on the coldest, wettest days
i sold the wife's mini to get the Copen. It was a proper mini though - 1996 mpi cooper. Previous to that I also had a bmw mini - cooper S. Verdict - Mini Cooper S - 2003 - deceptively slow, handles great, plush finish, niggly problems, expensive servicing and maintenance after the plan runs out - put a medium sized smile on the wife's coupon Mini Cooper 1996 - really slow, handles great but harsh ride (even after fitting new super cones), rust bucket, leaked like a sieve, cheap parts but still a money pit, lost countless weekends to DIY engine rebuilds, brake rebuilds, suspension, wiring, etc etc. put massive smile on wife's coupon. Copen - 1.3 2008 - pretty slow, handles great but little harsh, touch of rust, practically maintenance free in comparison, puts big smile on wife's coupon and a massive smile on mine because I dont have to work on it much! I should give Top Gear a bell eh? lol
Ooooft, the two cars are night and day. The Mini was a Cooper S so had all the sporty specifications, and was nice to drive, although it felt a little clumsy and heavy for being such a small car. And it could go like stink!!!!! But considering the roads that i drive on, it was a waste of a car. It was in great nick and didn't need anything done to it, but the general running costs were a bit high. £70 to fill the tank, £280 for tax, and Group 30 insurance. The Copen is near immaculate, way better condition that you'd expect for a 2004, is obviously a lot slower than the Mini, but beautifully light and agile, and although the ride is a bit bumpier than the Mini, it's just much more fun It FEELS more sporty than the Mini, with the low-slung seating position and the teeny cabin. I did my weekly shop this morning, and got five full bags of shopping in the boot whereas the Mini only fitted four before I would have to put a backseat down. And £35 filled the tank the other day It's had more compliments in the two days that I've had it on the road, that my Mini got in two years! I'm looking forward to getting a non-rainy day, so that I can fold the lid in and cruise I'm officially in love
Another thought about Mini vs Copen . . . I keep comparing them to an R1 vs a CBR400 . . . . The bigger, powerful bike/Mini is great for whizzing along at speed, but you get to your destination too quick with an adrenaline rush, road rage and no fuel or tyres left. The slower, smaller 400/Copen is for pottering about, enjoying the journey itself, playing on roundabouts, and arriving relaxed with a smile and plenty fuel for the return journey.
loving the Dunf and Lou comparisons, I have always been fascinated because most people would consider them comparable. (I dont but then I have serious issues with modern BMW obese mini) Top Gear should definitely hire both of you, far more informative and entertaining I recently drove the renault wind and I was shocked at how much I hated it, for me it felt like a tank in comparison, slow, cumbersome and a complete dullard. Dunf - never heard of the word coupon being used like that - a scottish thing? Long live being 6 inches from the floor, red leather interior and going topless
I get the idea behind the bike comparisons (I raced supersport bikes up until last year) but even by car standards I still felt the BMW mini was slow. Middle aged execs in their Skoda Fabias would leave it for dead! Aargh. I think the race minis lap knockhill in around 64secs? I can go round all day long in 55s on my wee 600 (and I'm no Valentino!)
