Each year student cars roll on into town, some so flashy they blind the local residents while others are charmingly vintage. Check out this gallery of students with their cars of all shapes, sizes and attitudes, and learn about the pros and cons of each.
Each year student cars roll on into town, some so flashy they blind the local residents while others are charmingly vintage. Check out this gallery of students with their cars of all shapes, sizes and attitudes, and learn about the pros and cons of each.
The Mercedes and BMWs struggle over the unusually large bumps whilst the older cars clatter through the town.
Students aren’t aware of the cost of having such cars in Grahamstown, in terms of their pockets and their cars.
Often, little thought is given to the quality of Grahamstown's roads when picking a car or to whether it is a more likely target for thieves.
While older model cars look unique, their age is what makes them attractive to thieves.
The older the model is, the easier it is to get into and the harder it is to track.
There are many stories of students who had their car, or a part of their car stolen.
The real problem though is that insurance does not pay out the full value of the car on older models.
Master's student, Hancu Louw's older-model car was stolen, never to be seen again.
The insurance did not pay out enough to replace the car.
Mia van der Merwe, a former Rhodes student, had to replace the distributer that was stolen out of her older model car.
She said it cost more than the car probably did.
In his first year, Micheal Crook, had driven his older model car, Hayley, all the way from Zimbabwe.
His car was stolen twice.
Having built the car himself, he did not have insurance on the car and has been without his beloved motor ever since.
A stolen car is generally stripped down for parts, which spread across the province and country, possibly even across the border.
Then there is the opposite end of the spectrum: newer, more expensive cars.
They are harder to steal and easier to track, and insurance generally pays out more than it would for an older model.
However, they also take a lot out of your pocket in terms of petrol.
Never forget the unneccessarily large speed bumps and potholes that make up a large amount of Grahamstown's roads.
There is still no easy way through the potholes of Grahamstown without damaging your car.
So the question remains: what is the most practical car as a student in Grahamstown?
There are a handful of dealerships in town, including Volkswagen, Kia and Hyundai GM, Mercedes, Mitsubishi, Mahindra and Toyota.
Most student cars are either bought or given to them by parents or family, or they are saved up for and fixed up.
I don’t profess to be an expert on cars, but what I can conclude from experience and observation is that older antiques are targets and brand new Mercedes and BMWs are fuel guzzlers and too low-slung for Grahamstown's deteriorating roads.
