Insurance

[Demolisher 2]

How expensive are Murena's to insure in the UK on non-classic insurance, in comparison to other cars such as Mazda MX5 and the original Toyota MR2? Bagheera is insurance group 14 with the 1442cc engine, which is a bit high, the two cars I listed are both group 12. I can't get quotes for Murena because no-one has ever heard of it. Presumably it will be more expensive than the Bagheera (even though the 1.6L is slightly slower)?

[Titus]

Welcome to the forum Demolisher,

Don't know about other cars but the Murena is cheap to insure. My policy is with www.footmanjames.co.uk . Unlimited milage, agreed value of £4,000 and costs £127.50 pa.

Last year I was with Adrian Flux, 7500 miles limited, agreed value £2,500, premium £231.53, hence the change to Footman James.

There doesn't seem to be a difference in price between the 2.2 and 1.6 as far as I'm aware. I have a 1.6 Murena.

Good luck.

[suffolkpete]

I'm not sure why you would need non-classic insurance unless you intend to do a high mileage or it's your only car.  My advice would be to ring round all the specialist insurers listed in, say, Practical Classics.  I'm with RH Insurance, £3000 agreed value, 3000 miles pa £97.65 premium, for a 1.6.  You might have to ring round a few before you find one that even understands what a Murena is.  The reactions I got varied from "Is it a Rancho?" to "Crikey that looks a bit sporty!" and the premiums varied greatly.  Good luck and welcome to a very exclusive group.

[krede]

In Denmark the Murena 2.2 is considered a "Special vehicle" categorizing it with the likes of Porsche Jaguars etc..    meaning that some insurance companies wont even touch it.
Those that will, charge you at least 20% more than usual.

I had to pay about £700 a year as an "elite" motorist and buy an additional "inventory" insurance for them to accept it...... and even had to turn up at the insurance office to provide evidence that I actually had such car!!. 
Overkill if you consider that the total value of the car would be in the area of £ 5-6000 .

Once it turnes 25 years old It will be possible to insure it as a classic though... i reckon the price for that would be about  £150-200 with a mileage cap of about 4000 a year..  no driving from November to March, and proven ownership of a second "every day" car..... you Tommie's have it easy compared to us... car wise.. ... though of cause... you have to drive at the wrong side of the road

[Demolisher 2]

I'm not sure why you would need non-classic insurance unless you intend to do a high mileage or it's your only car.  My advice would be to ring round all the specialist insurers listed in, say, Practical Classics.  I'm with RH Insurance, £3000 agreed value, 3000 miles pa £97.65 premium, for a 1.6.  You might have to ring round a few before you find one that even understands what a Murena is.  The reactions I got varied from "Is it a Rancho?" to "Crikey that looks a bit sporty!" and the premiums varied greatly.  Good luck and welcome to a very exclusive group.

I was considering a Murena as an alternative to the mk1 Toyota MR2, as a daily driver and weekend car combined sort of thing because from what I've read it is both practical, reasonably economical (although my defintion of economical is "Does Not Have Five Litre V8"), very good looking (in my eyes, always loved 70's and 80's styling) and apparently handles very well. To use it in that fashion it would need to be on some sort of very high-miles classic policy or regular insurance. Bearing in mind my reasons for wanting one of these cars, I would probably be more inclined towards getting a 1.6 than a 2.2.

[krede]

I think the "Murena/MR2 battle" has been mentioned here before, and i know that views differ quite a bit.
I believe Roy has runs his 2.2 on a daily basis since he bought it from new!!..

However.. having driven mine as my only car for 1 full season, I will strongly recommend you the MR2 if performance and reliability means anything to you (especially if the alternative is a 1.6 Murena). It also has fewer flaws and better driving position .

That said.. the MR2 will always be too common for it to be anything special.
And IMHO the Murena is a true classic car,much more resistant to rust and better looking.   

You choose.

[suffolkpete]

Don't want to enter into the Murena/MR2 debate because I haven't tried the MR2, but the flaw in your plan, as I see it, is that any Murena is going to have a lot of miles on the clock, so reliability is going to be an issue, as will parts availability, possibly resulting in periods off the road, if you do a lot of miles.  Also, you will not get classic insurance if it is your only car.  Don't let me put you off though.  The Murena, even a 1.6, is a great drive and will hold its own in any modern traffic.

[Megatech]

I have used my Murena 2.2 as everyday car for 12 years now - and I am very satisfied with reliability. It have only let me down once on 70.000 km - few modern cars can cope with that. Every 2 years i spend app. 15.000 DKK for maintenance/repairs in a workshop. This may be a bit high, but on the other hand - no depreciation. All in all it has a very impressive low budget. I would expect it after another 3 years to have been quite at bit cheaper than an average Yaris from new - and so much funnier.

[Jon Weywadt]

In Denmark you can insure the Murena as a "Classic car" with "Nordisk Veteranforsikring". I just insured mine there with an agreed value of 50.000 DKr. The premium is under 2.000 DKr. / year for collision and liability and allowing year round driving. If you don't drive in the winter months (nov 15. to marts 15.) the premium is 1.638 DKr. Noone else offer such a good deal.

[roy4matra]

I have used my Murena 2.2 as everyday car for 12 years now - and I am very satisfied with reliability. It have only let me down once on 70.000 km - few modern cars can cope with that. Every 2 years i spend app. 15.000 DKK for maintenance/repairs in a workshop. This may be a bit high, but on the other hand - no depreciation. All in all it has a very impressive low budget. I would expect it after another 3 years to have been quite at bit cheaper than an average Yaris from new - and so much funnier.

I agree with you.  There is no reason why the Murena should be unreliable when used every day, provided it is properly maintained.  I covered over 150,000 kms in 15 years used almost every day.  It covered higher mileages during the first years and less during later years simply because I had moved to London and used the tube to commute, but it is easily capable of covering 20,000 kms per year if required.  The main problem is that you will need to keep some stock of parts so that you can replace them whenever necessary, otherwise you will be off the road while waiting for them.

This is what I have always done.  I keep spares of all the items that are likely to wear and need replacing, and I do one major service every year, using the best materials.  For instance I have always used fully synthetic oils in engine and transmission, have a full stainless steel exhaust, and use the best tyres I can get.  These pay you back in the long run.  As soon as an item is fitted, I started looking to replace my 'stock'.  The Murena is generally a simple car and as such has less to go wrong.  I would match mine against any new vehicle anyday, as most of these are too complex and have so much to go wrong that something usually does!  I see it all the time in my job.

The time any Murena (or any car old car) is unreliable, you can bet the maintenance is below standard.

Roy

[suffolkpete]

Your strategy works, Roy, because you've owned your car from new and maintained it meticulously.  Demolisher is not going to have a huge choice of cars to buy and he will probably end up with something with no history.  My car has had six owners since being imported (and an unknown number before) and I keep finding little problems all the time, the latest being a steering rack full of rusty water.  Roy's advice is excellent, but I would like to that if Demolisher is dependent on having a car on the road, ie no public transport, he should run his classic as a second car until he is confident of its reliability and all the problems caused by previous bodgers have been teased out and eradicated.

[Anders Dinsen]

I'd also like to add, that while Roy is absolutely correct, I think most of us like to maintain our Murena ourselves, and we aren't trained mechanics. So occasionally we do (well I do, at least!) some "below standard" work on the car.

Keeping an old car like the Murena on the road takes a good deal of work and learning-while-you-go-along, but it's great fun

/Anders

[krede]

I am inclined to agree with Pete and Mr Dinsen. Roy's car is an exception, with it having been properly maintained throughout its life.
Most new Murena owners will probably get a vehicle that need some form of attention right away.
My own car was in good nick, and passed mot with no work needed when I bought it. But during one year of service( <15000km) it needed : a new generator, battery, front wheel bearing,tiers, top engine stabilizer bush, cabin fan switch, inner track rod, rear brake discs, front shock absorbers, ignition coil, clutch master cylinder,and clutch...... and those are just off the top of my head. Add to tis, that the twin barrel carburettors never ran as smooth as I would have liked them to, and that the engine started leaking so much that I judge it would need attention to pass the mot..   

My point is, that it these cars might not need be as difficult to maintain as current ones .. but what ever way you look at it, they are still at least 23 years old, so ANY thing can go wrong.. and will eventually.
In my experience it is essential to have the time, tools, and space, to fix and maintain the car properly when this is needed. If one is relying upon the car for daily transportation ( as I was), without the means to fix faults as they occur, the list of things that needs attention can soon become overwhelming to the extend that the car needs to be taken off the road ...... well..... that was at least MY experience.        

[Anders Dinsen]

My point is, that it these cars might not need be as difficult to maintain as current ones .. but what ever way you look at it, they are still at least 23 years old, so ANY thing can go wrong.. and will eventually.

Well at least you won't have airconditioning to fail, or a complex sequential automatic gearbox (Audi's current boxes last 60000 km before needing a rebuild!). Or power steering, timing belt, xenon headlamps, multiple computers, several oxygen sensors, catalytic converters, custom ignition coils. I could go on like that.

All these things are in the modern cars for a reason and I don't think it's fair to compare a Murena to a modern car. It does the same job of getting you from A to B, it has four wheels, is built over the same principles, have the same type of engine, but it's just so much different.

I love my Murena because it makes me smile when I drive it, but there are times when I wish I had a modern sports car instead of it (say a new Toyota MR2)!

[krede]

Audi's current boxes last 60000 km before needing a rebuild!

I take it that you have the DSG boxes in mind... and they last a LOT longer than that....If people would leave it alone..
But chipping a turbo diesel increases the torque way beyond what the boxes are designed for. Clutch "fires" and shaft "explosions " are not uncommon results of overloading the DSG boxes...