Musky is cleaned and polished ready for our departure for France first thing Friday (tomorrow will be lawn-cutting, weather permitting, and packing). We will be spending one night in Milton Keynes to see our 10-week-old grandson and then Eurotunnel Saturday lunchtime. We're having one night near Hesdin so that I can show SWMBO the Agincourt battlefield, then on to Alsace for one night, another night in Annecy, one in the foothills of the Alps south of Geneva and arrival at the flat in Aix-en-Provence next Wednesday. Two weeks there, then a swifter return with a night in Dijon, one in Wimereux (handy for the tunnel) and a weekend in MK again before arriving back here mid-October. Hoping to see a few more SMs in France this time - very few around in the spring or summer.

Now the request for advice/ideas. I am lucky enough to have a bit of disposable income and have persuaded SWMBO (well 90% there!) that it could be a car-related spend. My initial idea was to buy a (second hand) LHD Mazda 5 to keep in France so that we have a car there when we fly or train out for short trips, and an alternative vehicle to use for swanning around in the sunshine if we have driven down in the SM (still a useful return wine-carrier!). With this in mind, I shall be visiting on our journey south next week an English-run car dealership between Lyons and Geneva in order to discuss technicalities of buying and insuring a French-registered car. (I know I could source a LHD car in the UK, but I have heard horror tales - which I well believe, having been in similar situations - about the bureaucracy around re-registering a car in France).

However, a few days ago, I thought of Plan B. For the same amount I am prepared to spend on an MX5 together with the trade-in I could get on SWMBO's Panda Cross, I could buy a newish, low mileage Audi TT quattro diesel roadster. This would then mean that we still have two 4x4s for N Yorks winters, with the possibility (however far-fetched to think of using it) of also having a topless car at our disposal in the UK. We wouldn't then have the perhaps extravagant situation of keeping a car in France that would only be used for a dozen weeks a year and would just be sitting in our garage the bulk of the time. But then, when paying a (literally) flying visit to France, we would still need to hire a car locally, which costs at least £200 a time, even a miserable little car for just a few days.

Decisions, decisions! What does anyone out there think? It's partly a lifestyle decision and partly Mazda v Audi (and I have no personal experience of either car I'm considering). I probably wouldn't be doing any deal until next spring as that's presumably the most practical time to but a folding-top car, so in one sense it's not an urgent problem - but if I happened to see a tempting MX5 in France in the next couple of weeks, who knows?

Help, please!

You are considering two wholly different and inconsistent possibilities. I am a bit dubious about the TT and think they are very expensive for what they are. MX5's have a great following and seem to be well made and sensible but if you are leaving a car for such long periods you would have to be organised to get it re-commissioned for your annual holiday. An old one would need attention to battery brakes and tyres even if things don't seize up rubbers seals and hoses perish and tyres deflate or flat spot.

Left field suggestion buy a much less valuable vehicle to leave there and budget for a local garage to attend to it regularly. Thought of a Fiat Barchetta? All LHD and Punto mechanicals.

Can I throw another one in there as it is France. My in-laws had a Megane Cabriolet and that was genuinely a really nice car. Having a French car in France is generally a good thing and it would not be a compromise.

A colleague has an Audi TT quattro. He loves it and as always it is beautifully put together. As both they and MX5's have a long and loyal following it would probably come down to personal preference. Neither will be bad cars. A lovely position to be in.

And a wee word of caution. Well, two really, having just been down the road of buying myself a bit of a treat in the form of a topless vehicle.

How big are you on your back legs? I am 6'2" and of average build, but I could NOT fold myself into an MX5, nor a Barchetta thing either, and since I am not a hairdresser I walked past the TT!!

I ended up with a BMW Z4 which seems, so far, to fit my bill. My head doesn't rub the roof, and despite sitting on the road surface (or so it seems) I am able to clamber up out of it. Mind you, the Beemer is 8 years old (53) and has only 29000 on the clock.

Ever thought of a push-bike? Does wonders for the figure (and the sense of self worth) (and smugness).

Can I throw another one in there as it is France. My in-laws had a Megane Cabriolet and that was genuinely a really nice car. Having a French car in France is generally a good thing and it would not be a compromise.

A colleague has an Audi TT quattro. He loves it and as always it is beautifully put together. As both they and MX5's have a long and loyal following it would probably come down to personal preference. Neither will be bad cars. A lovely position to be in.

The Megane Cabriolet had crossed my mind - may well think further about this!

You are considering two wholly different and inconsistent possibilities. I am a bit dubious about the TT and think they are very expensive for what they are. MX5's have a great following and seem to be well made and sensible but if you are leaving a car for such long periods you would have to be organised to get it re-commissioned for your annual holiday. An old one would need attention to battery brakes and tyres even if things don't seize up rubbers seals and hoses perish and tyres deflate or flat spot.

Left field suggestion buy a much less valuable vehicle to leave there and budget for a local garage to attend to it regularly. Thought of a Fiat Barchetta? All LHD and Punto mechanicals.

Yes - when funds were much tighter I had thought about reliving my youth and getting an ancient 2CV that I could leave at the airport (annual parking at Marseille is really cheap).

And a wee word of caution. Well, two really, having just been down the road of buying myself a bit of a treat in the form of a topless vehicle.

How big are you on your back legs? I am 6'2" and of average build, but I could NOT fold myself into an MX5, nor a Barchetta thing either, and since I am not a hairdresser I walked past the TT!!

I ended up with a BMW Z4 which seems, so far, to fit my bill. My head doesn't rub the roof, and despite sitting on the road surface (or so it seems) I am able to clamber up out of it. Mind you, the Beemer is 8 years old (53) and has only 29000 on the clock.

Ever thought of a push-bike? Does wonders for the figure (and the sense of self worth) (and smugness).

Good points all here. I am just 6' and have sat in (although not driven) a friend's MX5 without discomfort. Re the TT, it is indeed SWMBO who finds it an attractive car (despite her not being a hairdresser either!) - but I think I could live with that (as long as it wasn'y bright pink, like a horrid one I saw a few days ago)!

My other car is a current shape MX-5 2,0 Sport (by the way HMIBennett: you completely threw me in your first post as the first time you say you want to buy a "Mazda 5", not an MX5 - which is of course a PEOPLE CARRIER! hehehe). I'm 6' and fit in it fine. Love it as it is simple, RWD and not too powerful. You can wring it's whole kneck all the time and still not be in serious trouble with your own abilities or with the police...

I've had a friend with a Barchetta and he loved it. His now sold mint Riviera (a dark purple near black model with red cross stiched leather) now lives as a second home car in France in fact! One of the best places to buy and service them is http://www.dtrsports.com/ They are all LHD drive. Just do not fall for the last facelifed ones. They were made by Fiat themselves after the original couch builder Maggiora went bust so are terrible. Get a pre facelift one.

TT. Nah. Horridly common hairdressers cars. But I do grant you if you want a 4x4 cabrio you won't find many!

Now the plan B. Nope. Does not make sense. To buy an expensive nearly new car here to either use here or leave in France does not make financial sense. Either in its depreciation or the rental costs in France when you leave both cars here. And going to France in the sportscar means you can take preciously little with you... and on that note, I will never in a million years want to drive in the MX-5 to France. It is noisy and oh so connected and twitchy. Things you want for that country blast but very, very, very, VERY tiring over a long journey. The boot is also miniscule.

So my plan is keep the Panda and the Yeti here and buy something cheap in France. A 2CV sounds ideal. Or something like a Pug 304 cabriolet or a 306 even - this can also fit friends visiting in the back of course! Or how about a 4x4 Renault Kangoo (forfeiting the open top business?)

I am not sure about the situation in France, but how about going down the classic route?

Morgan 4/4 sounds good and you are unlikely to lose any money.

In terms of the French route, the 504 cabriolet is nice, but could be pricey.

Edited 21 September, 201114 yr by My_Yeti

Thanks, Johann - helpful as always. If I buy a vehicle to keep in France, I don't need the 4x4 capability, so the Kangoo's not on the radar (good cars, I think, though - our French neighbour's son-in-law, who lives in the wilds of Limousin, has one). IF I went for the Audi, it would essentially be SWMBO's car that would almost always be in the UK - and we don't always need to take much TO France as we have stuff already there in the flat (but I do like to bring lots of wine back FROM France, so that could be an issue in the TT!). Beginning to think that if it's not to be an MX5 (and I still rather fancy that, but need to check out Freshacre's warnings for myself!), then there's something to be said for a cheapish Pug/Renault coupe cabriolet or, as mentioned before, reliving my youth and getting a really cheap old 2CV which I wouldn't worry too much about, wherever it was left.

Thanks, Johann - helpful as always. If I buy a vehicle to keep in France, I don't need the 4x4 capability, so the Kangoo's not on the radar (good cars, I think, though - our French neighbour's son-in-law, who lives in the wilds of Limousin, has one). IF I went for the Audi, it would essentially be SWMBO's car that would almost always be in the UK - and we don't always need to take much TO France as we have stuff already there in the flat (but I do like to bring lots of wine back FROM France, so that could be an issue in the TT!). Beginning to think that if it's not to be an MX5 (and I still rather fancy that, but need to check out Freshacre's warnings for myself!), then there's something to be said for a cheapish Pug/Renault coupe cabriolet or, as mentioned before, reliving my youth and getting a really cheap old 2CV which I wouldn't worry too much about, wherever it was left.

OK I should not say a car is a hairdresser's car should I!? Specially in me having an MX-5 too!!! hehehe Nothing wrong par se about the TT. It will last and be of good quality, be fast, frugal and all that but it just looks so, meh... a bathtub on wheels and one around every corner. It really just does not speak to me at all. And an Audi has never ever been known to be a fun car to drive... And the toy you are after should be fun.

Years ago a journalist with Autocar wrote how he was following a little Citroën Visa van home in his Porsche/Ferrari/[insert supercar name here]. The van was doing a fair clip and was being pushed to its limits. In his sports car he kept up of course but was only using 1/10th of its power and handling. The Citroën was using 10/10ths all the time and were at its limits. And who do you think had the most fun? Journalist man thought the Citroën driver was of course. On today's roads you can rarely use all a car's ability and the stronger and faster your car is the less you can use it fully. Hence me saying before I like the MX-5 as it is (fairly) low powered... For this reason too I have once seriously considered a smart roadster. Small, inexpensive and not too powerful. A 10/10th car.

One other thing to consider with a car being left at a holiday home is that inveriably it will be the car you go and pick friends up in from the airport... so getting a 2 seater might not be the cleverest thing and therefor a four seater convertible might be the best bet.

I have seen the result of a Smart being rear-ended. I wouldn't want one nor would I want any friend to be in one.The driver never saw anything and never will.

We're having one night near Hesdin so that I can show SWMBO the Agincourt battlefield,

Slightly off subject... We stopped at Agincourt in June for some lunch, pulled very carefully off the (narrow) road into a very wide farm road, and parked carefully out of the way. We had just settled down to 'Le Picnic' when there appeared a tractor towing a very large cutter followed by an even larger combine harvester! They proceeded to negotiate round our parking and hooked the two togther in order to combine the field next to us. They assured us that we were no problem and we should stay where we were and enjoy our lunch.

SWMBO would have none of it - it was all my fault because I should have known that a combine would arrive, etc etc, so I had to leave my lunch, pack up and set off in a hurry. We left and headed for the main road, in the village we met the rest of the 'gang' 2 x tractors towing huge grain trailers - narrow road and I was towing 7.4 metres of caravan behind the Yeti !! - Just managed to sqeeze through, The Agincourt Battlefield has a totally different meaning for me !!

Have a good trip Andrew very envious, try and pick up some Riesling and Gewurz in Alsace ..... delicious. A very German bit of France

Colmar and Riquewhir are lovely .

Hope you find a good open top car for over there and looks as though there could be another very similar Yeti up in Wensleydale in November as we may come up to Middleham (a favorite of ours)to celebrate!

When wonderwoman leaves school next year we will be heading off into Europe in Yorkie.

Cheers :beer:

Peter

Have a good trip Andrew very envious, try and pick up some Riesling and Gewurz in Alsace ..... delicious. A very German bit of France

Colmar and Riquewhir are lovely .

Hope you find a good open top car for over there and looks as though there could be another very similar Yeti up in Wensleydale in November as we may come up to Middleham (a favorite of ours)to celebrate!

When wonderwoman leaves school next year we will be heading off into Europe in Yorkie.

Cheers :beer:

Peter

Thanks for this and glad to see that your own Yeti is about to be made - they're still rare beasts in these parts (as far as I know, based on observation, only mine and one based around Grassington within a 20-mile radius). Middleham is twinned with Agincourt, hence my wish to revisit (I first went when accompanying a school party more than 20 years ago). We shall be staying one night near Colmar so I certainly intend to drive the Route des Vins and pick up some samples!

Andrew

Forget buying a UK LHD car and registering in France...I've been down that road (LHD Mk II Golf GTi) and its a nightmare. Even with a French wife to help...we never managed to acheive it.....so I would forget it.

For me (regardless of car) the insurance is your problem. A UK company will not be interested and a French company (given you live in the UK and not resident in France etc ect) will require so much documentation (that you won't have) that you will go mad. There may be other (European) insurance companies out there that deal with this type of thing but you will pay for it.

So a hire a car probably is your best (and cheapest) option...unless you move to France full time....which I can recommend

Regards

If you want another idea for a fun sportscar that is comfortable as well as involving to drive, how about an

MR2 Roadster? I've driven one across Europe a couple of times, well all the way to Corfu once! Plenty of room if you're fairly tall as well.

What a beautiful car the 504 cabriolet is / was. Just shows how far Peugeot have fallen.

Of the same ilk - and almost as gorgeous - you could also consider a Fiat 124 Spider

I am not sure about the situation in France, but how about going down the classic route?

Morgan 4/4 sounds good and you are unlikely to lose any money.

In terms of the French route, the 504 cabriolet is nice, but could be pricey.

<snip>

Thanks for this and glad to see that your own Yeti is about to be made - they're still rare beasts in these parts (as far as I know, based on observation, only mine and one based around Grassington within a 20-mile radius). Middleham is twinned with Agincourt, hence my wish to revisit (I first went when accompanying a school party more than 20 years ago). We shall be staying one night near Colmar so I certainly intend to drive the Route des Vins and pick up some samples!

Andrew

Mrs YY and I were in Alsace last month. We stayed in Riquewihr; a little touristy it has to be said but the Route des Vins has some lovely villages. If you get a chance, you should see if you can get a tasting at Marcel Deiss in Bergheim - he makes truly wonderful wines!