Tuesday 1 September 2009

And so we got Fuzzer !!

Many many posts ago, I announced that I had passed my English driving test and that I was looking to get a secondhand car. But because we were going on holiday, the search wasn't that serious, wasn't intense and even Fely helped me search for a few, but none ever appealed to me. Before the holiday, we got the Parker's Price Guide (this is a handy guidebook that gives you an idea of how much a second hand car, which model, from which year should ideally sell for so that you don't end up paying too much for a piece of crap). And we found a few potentially good cars within my budget, mostly small and economical so that I don't burn a hole in my pocket filling it up.

Yesterday Steve picked me up after work and we vaguely remember that the auction is normally held on a Tuesday at 4pm, so we decided to 'pop down and have a look look, see see'. It wasn't crowded as usual I think due to the rain but there were still people there who looked like they go there on a regular basis, drinking coffee from their own mugs and I suspect these are people who buy really cheap and tacky looking cars at a ridiculously low price, do them up and sell them again, making loads of money in the process. In the auction, sometimes you get quite lucky and can get some really good deals but these days, small and economical cars are in high demand so it's not surprising that a convertible SAAB or a BMW can fetch less money than a tiny, humble Nissan Micra or Ford KA or Citroen Saxo.

I was eyeing a 7-year-old Nissan Micra, black, with a sunroof (cool, i thought), and with full service history, reasonably low mileage and no visible scratch or dent (that's as much as you can hope for in a second hand car in an auction). Because we have been doing some research online, we know that realistically, this will be well beyond my budget and that other people would outbid my budget of £1500 pounds in a matter of seconds.

Like in a fashion show, the cars are being driven one by one to the bidding area, for people to touch, view and bid for, and then they are driven away again, either sold or rejected (poor things). The bidding process is very very fast (about less than 3 minutes per vehicle) and the guy talks even faster. Took me a few cars to fully understand his lingo and to understand how the bidding goes. Before the Nissan Micra, it was a Perodua Kancil and I was so tempted to bid for it because I had driven one before and I know it's quite okay. But I didn't in the end coz I thought I wanted something different this time and it went for £300, haha.

So finally, in came the Nissan Micra and the bidding started and my heart started to thud thud thud. I told Steve £1500 and that's it. So the bidding started at £800 and went up very quickly till £1200 and then it slowed down and it was a battle between me and another lady. We were very close to getting it at £1300 and suddenly she decided to outbid that and then we were outbidding each other at every £25 and £50 pounds, and brought it up to £1400, and I gave Steve the signal to carry on and we outbid her with £1425, and then £1425 and then he announced again £1425....... silence from the lady..... £1425... and the car is SOLD !! (with a wooden hammer being knocked on the table for the effect) .... and at that moment it hit me.... I just bought a car !!!!! I BOUGHT A CAR !!! yiiiipppieeeeeeeee !!!

It was the colour I like (mind you, when I embarked on a search for a second hand car, I was prepared to take any colour as long as it is in a good condition), and it's well looked after and it was within my budget !! We couldn't believe it. So to cut long story short, an hour later, Fuzzer was home with us. Because part of the registration number has F52ZZR, I decided to name her Fuzzer, haha.

This weekend, we will clean Fuzzer inside and out and I will upload some pretty pictures of Fuzzer for all to see. :)

11 comments:

Betty said...

hehe...congratz. cant wait for the pics.

Doria Robert said...

yipppeeeee.....yeah,cant wait to see Fuzzer..nice name..LOL...

Fely said...

Yayyyyyyyy!!!! Peng Peng has a car!!!! No more running after the bus!! Micra is a good car so should last you a long time. Changing the subject completely, oh my God!! I didn't know Steve's in the catering business. Must come round yours to be fed sometimes. You must be in food heaven!!

ash said...

Post a picture of Fuzzer! Check her tires before you take her anywhere :)

Unknown said...

hey,thanks for coming to my blog, btw,i dont know how nissan micra looks like, but i guess it must be a small compact car, correct me if i am wrong?

do me a favour,the weekend is here,and do whatever it takes to stay happy over the weekend,ok?

ash said...

so how's driving in england like?

PengPeng彬彬 said...

ash, when i first arrived in the UK four years ago i was driving myself to southampton uni four times a week for my masters course and back then it was a real culture shock for me because although largely it is similar to driving in malaysia, there are differences and people follow the rules better here than in Malaysia and people who low tolerance for drivers who don't follow rules so it was a bit daunting driving 'so carefully'. after a year i wasn't allowed to drive with my m'sian driving license anymore and i've only just got an official UK driving license not long ago and luckily i still remember how to drive :P

eugene, you're right.. i shall post pictures of the dear little fuzzer when i get chance (after i've cleaned her out properly that is) and yes since am not working this weekend i shall do something really fun.

aniq said...

congrats Peng Peng! Now you can say "Pimp My Ride" to Steve...he he
Have fun driving and dont drive like MOST Malaysians! LOL

BeaLee said...

wah!!! new car... drive up and help me move end of the month!!!!!

PengPeng彬彬 said...

ah moi would love to do that but end of the month am working and plus am broke so no marnee to buy petrol to go see you :(

when you're settled down and when my bank account is replenished we'll set a date and i'll definitely come visit you, with steve's sat nav guiding me to reading, haha.

BeaLee said...

not sure sat nav will work in Reading town centre though cos ours didn't work last time with the one way roads...hehe.. ok lah... we'll do that later and have a bbq in autumn...lol

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