Second Cars...

[Whitehouse_03]

Can I ask if you have a second car? I’m a mummy of 2 under 4 and use our Cali every day...Nursery runs each day, nipping to the shops, trips to the petting/play farm etc, etc, in addition to our camping adventures. We absolutely love our Cali and I want to look after it / hold it’s value and I’ve wondering if a second car is a good idea to do the around town stuff. I was interested in what other people do if you wouldn’t mind sharing...

 

[Georgiegirl]

I used to have a California Beach for camping and a Fiat 500 for every day use. We ended up getting rid of the campervan because we couldn’t justify the cost for the amount of use it was getting (essentially it was a very expensive garage ornament most of the time).
I’ve been hankering after another van ever since we sold it and we have just picked up a new Ocean which I am having as my daily driver. So far I love it and don5 miss the car I traded in.
I’d say if money is no object and you don’t care if the van only gets used occasionally then get a runaround. Otherwise stick with the van and enjoy it.

 

[sensisuperstar]

We got rid of our second car and use Gurty for work and play, it’s much nicer to drive and the weekly shop is a joy. I don’t do huge miles though, so if that were to change I’d probably use ‘bangernomics’ and get a cheap runaround to reduce depreciation.

 

[GrannyJen]

I use mine for everything, cruising a couple of thousand miles through Europe or popping to Sainsbury's a mile away. I don't see any problems with that.

 

[2into1]

Just run the Cali.

If you are only going to use a Cali for holidays and big days out, you might as well buy something bigger (ducato based for eg). As a camping vehicle the Cali is often really too small (see how soon most new owners ask about awnings), so it only makes sense if it gets used for other things too. Every decision is a compromise but the Cali is the best compromise.

Although short trips around town aren't great for any modern diesel, at least you are keeping it moving.... Preventung sticking brakes, dried out air con and a host of other problems that will arise if it sits idle.

 

[Amarillo]

We would love to have an electric car as a second car, we just cannot justify the initial cost.

Amarillo is currently being serviced, and we have a Golf courtesy car. Very impressed to see the MFD showing 70 MPG on the 30 mile drive home from SMG Tonbridge.

 

[ArunAlec]

I've got a Peugeot 207, for lugging canoes and general running around and an old MX5 for sunny days. The value and running cost of the two is relatively low so I can just about justify the luxury.

 

[sensisuperstar]

We would love to have an electric car as a second car, we just cannot justify the initial cost.

Amarillo is currently being serviced, and we have a Golf courtesy car. Very impressed to see the MFD showing 70 MPG on the 30 mile drive home from SMG Tonbridge.

Hmmm...My Cali MFD tells me it does 48mpg on a long run, but in reality it does 36mpg!

 

[Gary&Heather]

We sold our SE about 18 months ago and bought a Generation six we were then going to convert it in to a campervan but we couldn't bring ourselves to doing the conversion as it is such a lovely vehicle to drive this is our daily vehicle but we have just recently purchased a very basic yellow beach which is perfect for what we need as a campervan

 

[Whitehouse_03]

Just run the Cali.

If you are only going to use a Cali for holidays and big days out, you might as well buy something bigger (ducato based for eg). As a camping vehicle the Cali is often really too small (see how soon most new owners ask about awnings), so it only makes sense if it gets used for other things too. Every decision is a compromise but the Cali is the best compromise.

Although short trips around town aren't great for any modern diesel, at least you are keeping it moving.... Preventung sticking brakes, dried out air con and a host of other problems that will arise if it sits idle.

This. You are absolutely right. This has totally convinced me that another car is a bad idea. I love our Cali so why would I want to drive anything else. My husband will also be pleased with the decision Thanks

 

[Whitehouse_03]

Hmmm...My Cali MFD tells me it does 48mpg on a long run, but in reality it does 36mpg!

Our MPG is appalling. Mostly around town at the moment and the average is 20

 

[WelshGas]

Low milage, short trips, barely getting the engine warmed are All things to be avoided if you don't want expensive bills. The old diesels were fine but the modern Euro 5/6 engines have so much in the way of environmental engineering that they need to be used 10,000 + miles a year to avoid problems such as EGR and DPF problems/replacement.
Petrol is better for very short trips not modern diesels.

As far as I am concerned Low Milage is a very definite No No in a diesel, especially a Camper.

 

[Whitehouse_03]

Low milage, short trips, barely getting the engine warmed are All things to be avoided if you don't want expensive bills. The old diesels were fine but the modern Euro 5/6 engines have so much in the way of environmental engineering that they need to be used 10,000 + miles a year to avoid problems such as EGR and DPF problems/replacement.
Petrol is better for very short trips not modern diesels.

As far as I am concerned Low Milage is a very definite No No in a diesel, especially a Camper.

We will definitely be doing the overall miles but it was the little journeys in between that concerned me and the associated cost (fuel, maintenance etc)...

 

[soulstyledevon]

Just drive it...!!!

I have used my vans for everything. Can’t see the point of taxing, insuring and maintaining another vehicle for a few thousand miles here and there.

I hate seeing cars sitting about and not being used. It’s such a waste.

 

[Volkywagen]

The van is parked up in the week, we use the cars for short journeys, kids, nursery, work and visiting friends etc.
It’s nice to have s bresk from it and makes jumping in the Cali at the weekend all the more fun!

 

[GreggB]

Bit different to most, we have 3 vehicles on the drive and my work van which cannot be used for personal stuff.
Honda FRV is used by my wife for most of the local running around and was the main family car until we got the Cali. Running costs are pretty low and fuel economy is better round town despite being petrol and the wife is not ready to give up ‘her’ car and use the Cali which was my initial plan. Although this is no bad thing given how it gets treated by her and the kids
Last car is a BMW 330Ci, just for fun and only to be driven with the roof down, something you can’t do in a California!

 

[sapto]

Bit different to most, we have 3 vehicles on the drive and my work van which cannot be used for personal stuff.
Honda FRV is used by my wife for most of the local running around and was the main family car until we got the Cali. Running costs are pretty low and fuel economy is better round town despite being petrol and the wife is not ready to give up ‘her’ car and use the Cali which was my initial plan. Although this is no bad thing given how it gets treated by her and the kids
Last car is a BMW 330Ci, just for fun and only to be driven with the roof down, something you can’t do in a California!

Three here as well:
- „Old T5 SE (no Euro 4/5 or 6)“ with 159k on the clock. Former owners only done about 10k per year so when I bought the Cali in 2015, it was 9 years old and only had about 94k done.
- My daily drive to work (school and some snowboard coaching in winter) is a Skoda Octavia 2.0 TDI 4x4. Got it replaced after an accident in Jan 2017 and since then done 44k (I share insurance with my Cali and can switch plates from one to the other).
- My partners car is a Volvo c30 (around 5 years old and ~90k).

At the moment we are planning to get rid of one or two cars or replace two (Skoda and Volvo) to buy an new one.

 

[Detritus]

Use my Cali as my daily drive for commuting to work, ferrying the kids around, going shopping, taking stuff to the dump, helping people move house etc. as well as three week trips at summer and then festivals and weekend camping the rest of the year. It’s great and I love it. The Mrs has the new VW Polo that she uses for going to work and we very rarely use for family stuff -it’s lovely and has the DSG gearbox as well but we’d all rather be in the Cali!

 

[BayCatOne]

Use it for everything, also nice that you can put food bags between the front seats so you don’t have groceries all over the place when you get home. Other half has old Opel Meriva that she uses to/from work. She also takes it to car bingo because I’ve told her that’s not classy enough for the Cali, haha.

 

[Whistler]

We have His and Hers VW Passats (Coupe and Estate), however we had them before we bought the Cali. Did debate getting rid of one when we got the Cali but I can do a lot of driving for business and the Estate is needed for domestic use (sports kit bags, uni moves, tip runs). Our circumstances are likely to change in a year or so and we may drop one of the cars and make more day to day use of the Cali.

 

[reserves]

Tesla Model 3 when it finally arrives here

 

[Pete M]

300 bhp daily driver, the Cali is used pretty much camping only.

 

[Mike Frost]

Interesting thread!

We sold our Dacia Duster when we bought our 2.5 T5SE last September, couldn't justify owning four vehicles - - but we're hanging onto Jude's SAAB convertible, as it's the mutts nuts, and nothing short of amputation will get me to part with my BMW R1200RT SE motorcycle, so we're very self-indulgent here!

Notwithstanding the fact that Barbara Ann has only been used for holidays, we've managed to put about 8,000 on her since we bought her, so not too long sitting on the drive. We're both totally paranoid about supermarket car park damage, having picked up so much of it over the years with a succession of company cars, that now it's our own vehicles we use remote parking spaces when we do have to shop, and won't countenance taking the Cali into the dodgems, so to speak.

Also, the Cali is our only diesel vehicle, and we'd prefer to keep the engine happy by just doing long trips with her, and doing the running around in the SAAB, but carefully!

 

[stephen watson]

I think the most environmentally friendly solution is just to have the Cali. For various reasons though we have 2 cars - a luxury really. At the beginning of this year we got an eGolf (all electric), mainly for my wife to drive locally. However we both LOVE it! I'd rather drive it to the Cali anyway and I think we now have the perfect set up. It would have been cheaper to buy and old banger but on the other hand it's very cheap to run, should be very reliable and is a dream to drive.

 

[Elmo3]

I like having a beater car for the dog, shopping, short runs, leaving at stations etc. I hate leaving the Cali anywhere like supermarkets and stations, too many idiots about.