35497
1987 Volkswagen Jetta 1.6 TX
Bought: September 2002 for £500, 51,000 miles
Sold: October 2003 for £360, 54,500 miles
The Jetta might be an ugly beast but at least if you buy a TX you get a hint of performance due to the various Golf GTI bits (like the wheels and suspension). Only a hint though as under the bonnet is the standard 1.6-litre engine that, because it's made by VW, is about as powerful as any other manufacturer's 1.2 (75bhp). Mmmm - slow. Anyway, offsetting the ugliness is the size of the boot, it's massive. An ideal car for a booze cruise, you'd probably get a year's supply of beer in there. And it was reliable and didn't rust much like all the best Volkswagens. I did have to sort out some rustholes in the rear door, underside of the bootlid and near the front passenger door hinge, but not at all bad for a 16-year old car that had spent all it's life by the sea.
Of course with it being a banger there were the usual problems when purchased (but used to haggle £100 off the price) such as a ripped driver's seat (sorted with a £30 complete replacement interior from eBay), broken rear window held up with pegs (new regulator), rattling exhaust (new rubber mounts - twice!) and clunky clutch (new engine mount). Hell, the mighty Jetta was good for another 100,000 miles yet. But the lure of a decent car was proving hard to resist, so off it went to a new owner.