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Rocky wrote:kind of fancy a 2019 3 Series BMW. Couple of nice 2019 low mileage examples on Carsales.

Just had a quick look - there's 83 but they're all listed as autos. Being a bit more remote up there where you are might also create issues with servicing etc.

Rocky wrote:I'd have to do something about the iStop however.

Rocky, definitely don't buy a Tesla then:
I rented a Tesla for a month. It was a giant pain in the a***
Cool? Yes. Needlessly complicated? Also yes.
Hardly the end of the world – but is the thing a car or a laptop?
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-16/ ... /102833718

93_Clubman wrote:

Rocky wrote:I'd have to do something about the iStop however.

Rocky, definitely don't buy a Tesla then:
I rented a Tesla for a month. It was a giant pain in the a***
Cool? Yes. Needlessly complicated? Also yes.
Hardly the end of the world – but is the thing a car or a laptop?
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-16/ ... /102833718

I just read that article, if the driver was female their name would be Karen...

I have pretty well resigned myself to the idea that the next "family car" will be an automatic. At 71 I still enjoy swapping cogs but the Missus (who would mainly drive it) is pretty much over Manuals - and I have the MX5 anyhow and any Sports Car I owned would always be a Manual.
I don't think I will ever own an EV - just not my kind of car. Maybe when I'm 85 and don't care anymore.
There appear to be devices around that can permanently disconnect iStop ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NTgboIYNDs) and I would make some serious enquiries when the time comes as the iStop is a deal-breaker for me with any car.

Rocky wrote: I would make some serious enquiries when the time comes as the iStop is a deal-breaker for me with any car.

The Mazda iStop is easily regulated by the brake pedal. It drove me insane on my CX5 till I was told how to use it. It only activates when you've pushed the brake pedal hard all the way to the floor. If you hold the pedal at about 80-90% it wont activate and is still enough brake pressure to hold the car even nose down on a hill. Great for roundabouts and giveways etc. When I pull up to a red light i just push the brake all the way and it kills the engine while you wait for the green. Not sure if this is how other brands istop works though.

It's the "principle" with me, Roadrunner. I just think it's a stupid feature and I wouldn't be prepared to "work with it".
I would only buy a car with the feature if it could be permanently disabled. Probably end up buying something that doesn't have it at all.

On the Insurance front: AAMI will insure both cars for hundreds less than Shannons however only at low "Book prices"
Depends whether I am prepared to accept agreed values of $7000. for the MX5 and $6000. for the Mazda 6.
If I am then AAMI will insure the MX5 for a $223. premium and the Mazda 6 for a $292. premium. So $520. total Vs $777.
The story is that "inflation" has increased all Insurance costs by around 25% this year - so parts and labour all more expensive.

Not sure which way I will go. Need to sleep on it.

Rocky wrote:...agreed values of $7000. for the MX5 and $6000. for the Mazda 6.

Don't know about the Mazda 6, but your very low km NB8B could fetch $14k.

Yes, the value seems very low.for a pristine car. Bear in mind if u do insure it at that value it increases the chance of a write - off in an accident (a decent hit would cost too much leading to write - off).

Thirding that the value is too low, probably half what it might bring if well advertised. Also, on the basis that it is well below market value, the co-insurance 'clause' could bite you badly resulting in a payout of a fraction of what you think you are insured for.

On the basis that you get what you pay for, that premium looks very low even for the insured value, better check the fine print Rocky!

Went with Shannons again.
MX5 = $408. Premium for $9K Agreed value.
Mazda 6 = $377. Premium for $6K.
Whichever way it went I would be forking out a lot more money to get either a second-hand MX (NC2) or a Mazda 6 replacement (who knows what) so it's all probably a bit academic. Maybe next year I will think about the AAMI option.
What is this "co-insurance" of which you speak, GM?

Rocky wrote:What is this "co-insurance" of which you speak, GM?

It is a term that has come to prominence in the aftermath of the big fires and floods of the last few years. AIUI, if you insure a house for $1m, and it is worth $2m, if it is a total loss you get half a million - because you have co-insured with the insurance company for $1m so you and the insurance company share the $1m payout. Personally I don't follow the logic, but that is apparently what happens. I think that it is the insurers trying to pressure people, especially those in high risk areas, to ensure their insurance can get them a decent roof over their heads when disaster strikes without the government stepping in, and/or public appeals to rehouse these people.

I don't know if they are applying this to vehicle insurance, but with the pressures on insurers these days I think they will be looking to all avenues to cut costs. If you read the fine print I'm pretty sure you will find something about this, though it probably will be as clear as muddy water in a beer bottle, like the rest of it.

This year I had a good look at my home and contents policy, and increased the values for each considerably - the premium went up, but not proportionally. I also got a valuation recently for my extension, and the insured value of the home and other improvements dovetails well with difference between the valuation and the VG valuation on the unimproved value of the land.

HTH

Thanks GM. It's a complicated world we live in these days. I feel a bit frustrated with folks that get big loans that they have no chance of paying off but in fairness, decades ago, before "Greed was Good", the Banks would apply a stringent lending criteria to borrowers and only lend you what they thought you could repay. Admittedly HP (hire-purchase) used to be a trap for the uninitiated and many 'working people' got into financial trouble with crooked HP companies - National Companies - lending at exorbitant rates of interest and encouraging the naive to keep loading up with more debt.
Conspicuous consumption is more a social norm than it was when I was young and there's more pressure to have the latest iPhone and an annual O/S holiday. You simply can't 'read the fine print' anymore (if you ever could) and the best you can do is ask a lot of questions and Google what you can.
The very professional Shannons adviser asked me if we were "Pensioners" who were struggling with our insurance costs. I said "No Mate, we are just very frugal self-funded Boomers who like to tightly contain our outgoings at a time when everything is blowing out of all proportion".

Rocky wrote:What is this "co-insurance" of which you speak, GM?

I hadn't encountered this concept before either so wanted to learn a bit more about it.
This website provides quite a good explanation.

https://www.mcgqs.com.au/property-repla ... ase-study/

Particularly relevant in my case as the rebuild price of my garden variety brick veneer house is eyewateringly high due to being rated at a BAL of flame zone...

Faaaark!! I had no idea about this! Just read Nevyn's linked article. I need to check all my own policies. Thanks for pointing this out! Yet another "get out of paying" clause amongst the many other confusingly written clauses for insurance companies.

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