"country car" gimmick?

[ford man xf]

I used to always see used car adverts in the trading post and elsewhere " "country car" as if it was some bonus buying a country car, and a couple people I know have bought a "country driven car" and have said it like its beneficial to buy a country car. But all I can think of is that it would be less beneficial because country roads can be terrible with bumps and potholes so suspension problems, the gravel roads likewise plus stone chips, used to tow often, driven through heaps of dust.

The only thing I can think of that would be beneficial to a country driven car is that it would not be driven in stop start traffic idling away thus the bores would have less chance of being glazed? And maybe a lot of highway travel?

May seem silly at first, but what would the benefits be?

[malazn mafia]

Fewer people living in the countryside means less idiot drivers, less carpark dings and less likely chance of being damaged and repaired through insurance once or more times in its life. Got hit in the rear by a dump truck at traffic light once and the insurance co decided to fix it. The damage was appalling and they spent 3 months and $15k to fix it (was a $17k car) because the assessor made a mistake. I would never want to buy the car if I knew its history, and had no say in the matter of fix or stat writeoff...

[Franco Cozzo]

My car will be advertised as "country car"

For instance would you rather my car with 80,000km highway ks on it or something from inner Melbourne with 80,000km city ks on it? Through constant stop start traffic, clutch in/out all the time etc.

My car still has 50% on its factory pads where as the guys in the Focus section are getting maybe 50k out of the OEM rotors/pads.

The most damage on my car is from stone chips, got them on the bonnet, front bumper and one big one on the driver side door handle lol.

[XB GS 351 Coupe]

The obvious, no stop and go traffic, car does not work as hard to cruise around, so milage shown would have a lot less wear that a city car. So no ideling for two hours every day like most city cars.

For me to travel 100km takes about one hour, when I was in Sydney to travel 100km would take about 5 hrs on average. most of the 5 hours would be spend sitting in traffic and on the brakes or the accelerator, where my 100km now involves accelerating to 100km at the start of the journey, setting cruise, disengaging cruise and letting car coast to 30km apply brakes and stop.

Closest traffic light to me is about 100km away, my car has done over 70K km's and brakes are on the original pads and will probably go for another 70K km at least before I need a pad change, and it's an auto as well, most city cars have changed pads and rotors by the time they hit 70k km.

Down side a few stone chips.

[Iggle Piggle]

Think "country car" was used to justify high km cars by suggesting they had not been subjected to lots of stop/start driving, but when people hear that term these days many think of a stone-chipped car full of red dust that has been belted down corrugated gravel roads.

So now the sellers say "highway kms".

For the record, I actually don't mind genuine country cars.

[Nanoraptor]

In AU at least, city = coastal = salt air. Also, pollution = a more acid environment. That's *supposed* to make for country cars having a lot lower likelihood of being rusted out hulks in short order.

Not to mention low-speed city traffic constant nudges and bumps. Country roads aren't all horrendous or dirt - services, people, and jobs are just further apart. The idea is a country car with 200k on it has probably ended up with less damage all round than a city car with 100k, and a 30 year old country car is easy to find rust-free.

[Crazy Dazz]

It is predominately related to mileage. 100kk in stop-start city traffic (which represents maybe 10,000 trips) will have put a lot more wear & tear on most components than the same kms cruising up and down the highway (~maybe 1,000 trips.)
Typically country cars would be much higher in kms for the same period, but they are claiming its actually less w&t.

Some truth if it really IS highway miles.
But if the car has spent its life in the paddock, being driven to "town" once a week, maybe not.

[Nikked]

Country car:

-High mileage
-Lots of dings and dents underneath
-Said underneath also with a coat of dust, cow and horse dung.
-A few stray skeletal birds in various parts of the engine bay and/or frontal intake area
-High possibility of roo hits on the front.

[Itsme]

Originally Posted by ford man xf

The only thing I can think of that would be beneficial to a country driven car is that it would not be driven in stop start traffic idling away thus the bores would have less chance of being glazed? And maybe a lot of highway travel?
May seem silly at first, but what would the benefits be?

I think you answered your own question, City driving stop start conditions can be deemed very harsh on cars wheres country driving is supposedly easier conditions.

Personally it all comes back to how well you have looked after the car regardless whether it was city or country driven.

cheers.

[Shonky.]

Here in QLD it always used to mean no rust.

Long way from the coast = the country = no rust.

"Rust free country car"

Now cars are long gone before the rust becomes an issue

(Save for a few falcons that get it round the seams from factory)

[In Focus]

A woman I used to work with back in the 90's went to see a car advertised as having only done 50,000 km. When she got to the dealership, she found the car had 80,000 on the odo. She asked the salesman what the go was. He said, "Those are country kilometres."

[Windsor220]

Once the car has warmed up it doesn't matter too much what it does. Taxis drive around cities all day and do high kms no worries.

[LoudPipes]

Country cars use to mean no rust.
A good thing when cars were all metal but not always a true assessment.

It also meant lots of rattles everywhere and metal fatigue around shock mounts.
It was a real ****er having a shock push its way up through the boot.
The main roads and town streets as a whole aren’t as bad these days.

[GSPSI]

It being a country car or city based car doesnt mean crap.
Service history log books is what you should be looking for.

[Mesa]

You used to be able to option 'country packs' on Holden, Ford and Chryslers. Basically higher suspension, sump guards/plates, mesh headlamp guards, insect screens for the radiator etc.

[xxx000]

Originally Posted by GSPSI

It being a country car or city based car doesnt mean crap.
Service history log books is what you should be looking for.

Really?

Try comparing a car living parked beside a beach to one from an inland country area and compare them for rust

Country cars are generally rust free, may have higher kms but not necessarily so. It depends what part of the 'country' we're talking too: outback, regional country town, etc

[JaguarDave]

Originally Posted by Windsor220

Once the car has warmed up it doesn't matter too much what it does. Taxis drive around cities all day and do high kms no worries.

I think that's really the main point they were chasing in the old days, back when a hundred thousand miles and a car engine was considered worn out.

They assumed (not always correctly) that country cars travelled longer distances between towns and places of work so their engines always warmed and thus experienced less cold start wear up whereas lots of city cars drove trips of 2miles to school or bowls so never really warmed up.

It was/is all based on assumptions, like the rust one - some country cars drive on wet dirt roads and never get the mud washed out and rust quite hideously.

Like any car, you judge it on its own merits not on where it came from.

[Franco Cozzo]

With my car I used it to travel 55km each way to work and back when I was working full time, so was doing 550km highway a week.

[mcnews]

Country kilometres generally means less short trips and heat cycles which generally will mean that all drivetrain components would generally be in better condition than city cars. Definitely an asset in my book.

Country cars in inland areas also much less susceptible to corrosion. I live at Lake Eildon which is a fair way inland, and it is absolutely amazing how little things corrode here. I have a 1959 Dodge Truck which has spent all of its life outside and uncared for, it has dings and cuts in the metal work, and those areas are rust coloured, but it generally only ever seems to be surface discolouration and no real corrosion seems to happen. Coming from Perth, I find it unbelievable the difference, as that truck parked anywhere in Perth would be totally and utterly destroyed if treated the same way.

[Polyal]

I agree with the rust thing more than anything else. For example, I got my GTV from central Victoria and it has by far the least amount of rust in it by a long way. Was sitting in a self storage shed for 10+years.

I bought the car based on that condition alone, mechanical issues are cheap in comparison.

[LTDHO]

City car > country car any day.

I'd prefer to buy a car with 80k from city driving then 80k from country.
(Assume both have same driver, service history, etc)

[Claytopia]

I live in a "Country town".

I also work in town and I can tell you my car has done 90 000 km in the last 10 years.

It only takes me 6 minutes to get to work regardless of traffic.

So twice a day my car gets run for a few minutes and several times a year it does the 1000 km round trip to Perth.

I personally don't flog my car on the Perth trips but I can tell you not all the cars that pass me drive the same.

So while the long trips are fine I wouldn't consider the 5 min runs twice a day (or more) to be anything worth advertising about.

Have you ever seen a cattle grid? Ever wondered what driving over them repeatedly at 100 does to your car?

A "Country car" is just a swap

you swap carpark and shopping trolley dents for stone chips
you swap coastal air for bull dust
you swap stop start driving for short cold runs
you swap potholes for bigger potholes and cattle grids

So you city folks want a country car... well I can tell you us country people like buying second hand city 4X4's

[Crazy Dazz]

I just keep laughing when I read the "no corrosion inland" comments.
Must be nice to live in such places.
Inland WA is incredibly saline. You live on, you certainly drive on it. Cars rust like buggery. I've seen 4~5 year old vehicles written off because they were rusted out.

MANY moons ago, my brother bought a 2 year old HZ for $200. He had it about a month before the cops red-stickered it.

[NTF6]

Originally Posted by Big Damo

With my car I used it to travel 55km each way to work and back when I was working full time, so was doing 550km highway a week.

Same here, about 60ks all up from home to work and back, 3 stop signs, 4 corners, 1 roundabout and about 5 applications of the brake. Engine up to temp every time, bugger all brake pad/disc wear or dust. Little wear and tear.

No gravel ever ever ever!

[GSPSI]

Originally Posted by xxx000

Really?

Try comparing a car living parked beside a beach to one from an inland country area and compare them for rust

Country cars are generally rust free, may have higher kms but not necessarily so. It depends what part of the 'country' we're talking too: outback, regional country town, etc

Fair enough if you put it that way. But logbooks generally means driveline.

[HULK_I6T]

Originally Posted by Iggle Piggle

Think "country car" was used to justify high km cars by suggesting they had not been subjected to lots of stop/start driving, but when people hear that term these days many think of a stone-chipped car full of red dust that has been belted down corrugated gravel roads.

So now the sellers say "highway kms".

For the record, I actually don't mind genuine country cars.

people try and justify a high km car by saying its country km... But it seems every high km car has "country car" or "highway km" tagged onto it so there is no way of telling. just judge km as high or low, acceptable or not acceptable.

Also a country car driving at you would think a high speed over rougher roads? it would make the car loose, copping shocks through the chasis all the time...

A city car driving slower over smoother roads = better condition.

[MercurySilver]

Country car doesn't automatically mean crap roads.
Might be a freeway or hwy connecting a country town to a main town.

Anyway kms are kms.
If its done 270 thou then its done 270 thou.
Imo

[Grippy]

There are good and bad examples of city and country driven cars. Each car needs to be assessed on its own merits and service history.

[cram_it_frog]

I bought a country car and it was owned by Lachlan Shire yes it has seen its fair share of country roads and some dirt

but I would prefer this to a BA Ford with same Ks that has done all city traffic.

But in reality you are taking the chance with any used car I worked for a Nissan dealership got a information on what to look for in buying a car
and I prefer to look at log books and who has owned the car.

My last car had high ks 170,000 a magna wagon 1994 it was used by a rep who traveled between Albury and Dubbo now all the selling point here is all services were done heavy duty radiator and that car gave me 200,000 k with very few problems because it was looked after from day one all i did was oil and filter ever 5000k ks and the odd major
service

so my advice to any one is a company owned car is often the best because it has got good maintenance compared to a private car

yes staff may trash it or drive it hard but I would say most staff drive the car properly

[BENT_8]

Our weather comes from the west, of course rust will be a big issue in WA, the rain has developed from evaporation over the Indian ocean...

We get high salinity in Adelaide because our weather comes across both Gulfs and then dumps it as it crosses the ranges.

My parts bloke wont even warranty Aluminium radiators if rain water is used because he has seen it time and time again over 30yrs in the game.

AS for country K's.
You need to look at the whole package.

A country car, say an BF2 Ghia with 150k's for arguments sake, which has been owned by a retired couple and only driven to the big smoke for medical appointments, family visits etc. and having full history and no evidence of structural repair would be better than an FG with 75k's that was leased by a pig for its first 40k's who only got it serviced because it was part of the deal.

I'd rather a BF with 100k's of city driving than an FG with 50k's of country driving over corrugation into town and back.

Sure, all can be detailed to look a million dollars but only one in each case would be worth buying.

Look at the location, the appearance, the service books and the story given by the seller and make a judgement based on probability.
No used car is guaranteed, the key is to find one that is least likely to cause you headaches etc.
There is no golden rule.

I don't think its a gimmick, just a tool used to make you consider cars which generally have higher k's but less stop start, that you might otherwise brush aside as flogged in the city.