I Want This

"KirkyV" (KirkyV)
04/13/2015 at 16:27 • Filed to: Citroen, BX, GTi

This !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! (£795):

Plus these !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! (£100):

Equals I need to call my insurance company to get a quote.

DISCUSSION (46)

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 16:28

Don't we all?

duurtlang > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 16:30

Do it! They're great! I actually drove one last year. More a quick cruiser than a corner carver though. I also just love those wheels.

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 16:31

But really.. how could an old Citroën be anything but cheap to insure?

505Turbeaux > duurtlang
04/13/2015 at 16:31

I think he is on to us

twochevrons > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 16:32

I haven't driven the GTI, but the BX 16v is an absolute hoot. Well worth the money, IMO.

4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30 > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 16:32

It looks good for £800 smackers. What's wrong with it?

KirkyV > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
04/13/2015 at 16:33

Becuz UK innit.

duurtlang > 505Turbeaux
04/13/2015 at 16:33

Nah. He still hasn't figured out where the steering wheel should be located.

duurtlang > 4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30
04/13/2015 at 16:35

It's located in the UK. Everything over 3 years old costs less than 10 pounds.

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 16:36

Well, could you BE more chav mate :P But really, is it that bad over there?

KirkyV > 4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30
04/13/2015 at 16:37

That's the thing: it all sounds solid... Which is why I suspect that, if I were to open up the bonnet, I'd just find a fountain of LHM and some rust. Still, I think I might actually head up there and have a look. It's a little further than I'd like to travel for anything but a sure-thing, but it looks so good in the ad!

4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30 > duurtlang
04/13/2015 at 16:38

I wish I'd known that last week. I'd have haggled more :(

P.S. I'm in the UK

Saoul-Virage > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 16:38

It seems to be in pretty good shape and the price is correct.

The wheels in dark grey look very nice. A GTI deserves alloy wheels.

#SaveTheBX

Here is my Sport (basically a GTI engine with a pair of Solex twin carb)

Kinja'd!!!

Cé hé sin > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 16:38

I haven't seen a BX in a very long time. It was followed by the Xantia and they're all gone too.

KirkyV > duurtlang
04/13/2015 at 16:40

Just 'cause we had the sense not to be conquered by Napoleon while everyone else was doing it...

4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30 > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 16:41

What's the distance? It's worth a punt, especially if you can get it (in good nick, with your wheels) for £1,200 OTR... Bargain!

duurtlang > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 16:42

Be sure to look underneath the car. Use the suspension to lift it up entirely. Also do a little test like the one I made this crappy GIF off. It should rise quickly. How fast is something you'll be able to find on an enthusiast forum, I'm not sure myself.

Kinja'd!!!

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 16:44

DO ITTTTTTT

KirkyV > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
04/13/2015 at 16:44

In general? Yes. It sucks to be a young driver in the UK; things actually get pretty good once you're a bit older, and can take advantage of the nutty used car prices without having to deal with insurance craziness, but for now, it's shitty.

Still, on the BX, it's hard to know without contacting them, and I won't be able to do that until tomorrow.It has 'GTi' in the name, which is normally a pretty massive no-go for someone my age, but BX GTis were never really all that popular with the boy racer crowd, and there are so few on the roads these days... I'm just not sure what they'll tell me.

4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30 > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
04/13/2015 at 16:45

Pretty shitty sometimes, but prices have just come down recently. It really all depends on your vehicle, your age, your speeding convictions (or other infractions), your no claims bonus, your postcode at home, where you park it at home, where you park it at work, your annual mileage, your use of the vehicle, how many other cars you own, and what excess you want to stump up if you prang it. Not much.

KirkyV > 4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30
04/13/2015 at 16:48

75 miles. It's not a massive distance by any means, but I generally like to keep it within about fifty when I'm just browsing, and I hate driving near London—I can't be sure, but cars at that distance from me are almost always around there. The wheels are a little further away, but I've got an aunt in Bristol who could pick them up and hold them for me.

KirkyV > duurtlang
04/13/2015 at 16:48

Oh, even if I didn't want to do a thorough inspection of the undercarriage, I'd still be playing with that lever for a good half of the test drive.

KirkyV > Cé hé sin
04/13/2015 at 16:50

Yeah, I never see them, either. Xantias are still pretty rare, but I at least see one or two. BXs are just gone.

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > 4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30
04/13/2015 at 16:50

So pretty much the same as here in Norway then really. I guess I just forgot that some of you guys are younger than me.

I had a VW Golf GTI 16v MK2 (with a Mk3 2.0 engine block and some other shit, total power 190hp) when I was 21, my current insurance company wanted 400 quid each year, the next one one the list.. 2100 quid.

4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30 > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 16:51

Yeh me too, unless it's something I'd buy no matter what the condition.

You have the benefit that it's a private seller, so I'd have a look at the forums or tap duurtlang up for info on problem areas etc and ask the seller to send more pics. Then DO IT.

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > 4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30
04/13/2015 at 16:51

I guess it's no worse than Norway really, I just thought it'd be cheaper.

4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30 > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
04/13/2015 at 16:58

Some of them just don't want your business! I'm 28 now so I avoid most of the high prices unless I look at something ludicrous. My first car at 17 was a 60hp Fiat Punto, the insurance was about £600. After that (20) I got a MK1 Focus 2.0, £500. Then some other stuff from 1.6ltr to 5.0ltr and it steadily dropped and dropped based on the fact I've never crashed. The Skoda is about to cost me around £260 p/a, which is OK-ish. Across the three cars i'm set for £1,100 p/a, before you take into consideration road tax and MOT stuff.

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
04/13/2015 at 17:01

I pay £730 a year on a 1.2 Twingo... it's pretty bad. The only reason it's that cheap is because I have a massive excess (what you pay upon claiming if you have an accident) of about £800.

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > 4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30
04/13/2015 at 17:02

Wow.. Well. I paid less on my GTI I guess, but I actually pay more on my current car if you consider what it's worth.. My current '96 Ford Fiesta is 200 quid.

MultiplaOrgasms > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 17:03

Probably didn't help that ours was crushed after it outlived its usefulness.

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell.
04/13/2015 at 17:04

I guess you're not 34 though :P And you probably do not live in a small town?

KirkyV > MultiplaOrgasms
04/13/2015 at 17:05

Indeed. There's a decent chance my 106'll go the same way, sadly, though I might be able to pass it on to some seventeen year old who needs a first car. That's how I got it, after all.

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
04/13/2015 at 17:06

I live in a small town, but I'm only 20...

4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30 > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
04/13/2015 at 17:06

£200 is my benchmark for a good price :) what engine has it got? My friend has a one with the 1.25 and it's damn near unkillable. He doesn't mistreat it, but he puts plenty of miles on it

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > 4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30
04/13/2015 at 17:10

If you ask the people in charge (folks at what would be your MOT) it's got a 1.4 with 60 HP.. In reality it's got a 1.8 Zetec (112hp or so).

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell.
04/13/2015 at 17:11

Yeah, that'll do it.

kanadanmajava1 > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 17:12

When I was younger I really hated BXs. Now I slightly want to have one. Two of my friends still have running BXs. I probably would like to get a grey one as there aren't green BXs.

BX sold really well in Finland. We even had own special model BX for Finnish markets. BX Van used amazingly aerodynamic glass fiber roof heightening piece. There's weirdly placed opening in the roof from where you can put stuff over the original roof.

The extra piece is there because it needed to get higher roof to get it registered as a van that had a lot lower importation taxes. And there's no backseat. These usually had a diesel as the yearly diesel taxes are pretty low for vans.

Kinja'd!!!

4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30 > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
04/13/2015 at 17:13

The diesel?? Or engine swap?

4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30 > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
04/13/2015 at 17:14

Wait, you said Zetec. That's a good engine!

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > 4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30
04/13/2015 at 17:15

Nice engine for sure, swapped it a few days ago.. WAY to much power for a tiny Fiesta.

4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30 > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
04/13/2015 at 17:20

I can imagine. A Focus with the same feels sprightly, a 1 tonne Fiesta must feel great.

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > KirkyV
04/13/2015 at 18:29

Do it! I'm one step away from MOTing my BX 19 TXD :) I haven't even driven it on the road and I've already been charmed by it. No word of a lie it's better over the bumpy loose road down our field than the 800kg heavier XJ40 :)

Look for rust on the front wings/wheelarches, sills and in the boot. If there's not crippling bring it around mine and I could have a crack at it for a crate of half decent ale ;)

KirkyV > BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires
04/13/2015 at 18:55

I'd been hoping you'd see this! I'm going to check all the usual rust spots, and look in on a few owner forums for any other tips—do you have any advice on checking out the suspension? I know hydropneumatics, particularly on later Citroens, aren't nearly so failure-prone as some would have you believe, but I've no idea how to tell the difference between a healthy system and one that's on its last legs.

Here's hoping there's not enough rust to make it worth the trip, but regardless, I'm incredibly grateful for the offer!

KirkyV > Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh
04/13/2015 at 18:56

That's a fantastic swap. I suppose the game'll be up when it next needs to be inspected, though...

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > KirkyV
04/14/2015 at 03:52

Yeah they're really rather solid systems. If you can drive it around check for a really solid ride. That suggests that the suspension spheres are on their way out (I think). It should be nice and cushy.

The pump should activate periodically. If it's on constantly or every 2 or 3 seconds that's not a good sign.

Mine's a bit creaky and sticks as it raises and lowers. I'm hoping that's just the bores of the struts that need flushing out as they can get covered in gunk and get sticky. There's a fairly simple procedure for that.

Other than that I'm not sure, but definitely let me know if there's a manageable amount of rust :) I'd gladly fix it to help another opponaut :)

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > KirkyV
04/14/2015 at 10:51

Indeed, but the car won't be on the road for more than a month or two anyway..