Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 49 total)
  • what medium sized petrol car?
  • sadexpunk
    Full Member

    got a 57 octavia lauren & klement, 2.0Tdi. im guessing its currently worth around £4000 altho i havent seriously researched that yet, its a rough estimate for now.

    my current driving suits a petrol engine these days, more small trips than any motorway journeys, so looking to change ‘codes’. the octavia was ideal for camping and boot space, but its just me and the missus these days, so ideally we’re looking for something just slightly smaller than the octavia, 4 doors and reasonable boot space and a good name for reliability. itd also be nice to free up a grand or so to knock off my overdraft.

    so far ive been warned to stay away from french and cant go wrong with japanese or volk/audi group.

    anyone care to add to this advice and give me any pointers to certain makes/models to look out for please?

    im guessing that as id want to be going a little cheaper, then garages arent the place to look as they just want me to take finance, and wouldnt be interested. so am i better off looking on autotrader and going private?

    thanks a lot

    angeldust
    Free Member

    Not buying French is a good place to start

    sadexpunk
    Full Member

    sorry, i could have made that clearer i spose. im thinking current car worth around £4000, wanting ideally to free up a grand, so around £3000?

    cheers

    retro83
    Free Member

    cant go wrong with japanese or volk/audi group.

    Some of their big sellers are missing from the top 100 list:
    http://www.reliabilityindex.com/top-100

    E.g. A2, A3, A4, Bora, Golf…

    HoratioHufnagel
    Free Member

    IMO, when you’re not spending much, its best to avoid the “brand x is crap” advice and just buy on condition, low number of owners, good service history (with receipts), no significant accident damage etc..

    trail_rat
    Free Member

    When your not spending much i find its better the devil you know unless you have costly repairs coming.

    At 3 grand you could sell up and buy a new car and find your self shelling out a grand on repairs soon after.

    Obviously this caveat is lifted if you have a clue what your looking at.

    Fwiw , at that price i would buy french , esp on a petrol – you will get nearly new. I got a 3 year old diesel van with 30 k on the clock 5 years ago and done 60k in it without hitch , couple of small niggles now ( snapped a spring and my aux belt tensioners siezed last month)

    bland
    Full Member

    Mazda 3, wife has had one for years and nothing has been replaced on it other than teh battery.

    Awful on fuel though, averages 14 litres per 100 miles, something like 27mpg so dont go for a 2.0 litre model as it is expensive and slow, plus diesels are so much nicer to drive

    clubber
    Free Member

    Focus 1.6 petrol – good cars, reliable, relatively cheap to buy and plenty to choose from and if it does go wrong, relatively cheap to fix

    core
    Full Member

    My mechanic does not rate VAG group cars at all, particularly for rural driving, I’m in a similar position, (£4000 ish to spend) and he is warning me off diesel and VAG cars at all costs, he particularly dislikes their suspension, and says he changes more shock absorbers and broken springs on them than anything else, by a long way.

    I currently have a 2003 focus 1.6 petrol, 135,000 on the clock, and it’s just now getting a bit long in the tooth and having regular, niggly little (inexpensive) problems. Would be fine for a runabout or low mileage user, but I do 20,000 miles a year (mostly for work) and need something reliable.

    I’m looking at all sorts, but keep coming back to another, newer focus, 1.6 petrol. The original MK2 is a bit plain/ugly, but the facelift was ok, hoping my £4k may just stretch to one.

    sadexpunk
    Full Member

    just been googling the focus on your recommendations, and been reading car reviews all morning. they usually say ‘not as good as the excellent honda civic’

    the civic seems most appealing at the mo ive got to say. anything good or bad to say about these?

    thanks

    Yak
    Full Member

    Had a petrol 1.6 civic. Did about 75k in it and sold it on 106k. Over that time, and in addition to services, pads, disks etc it needed, 2 front suspension arms, 2 brake calipers, 1 windscreen and I think that’s it. Mpg was average – 30something, rear passenger space was great. Seats folded it fits bikes easily. All good really. It’s no performance wagon though – just functional and reliable.

    retro83
    Free Member

    sadexpunk – Member

    just been googling the focus on your recommendations, and been reading car reviews all morning. they usually say ‘not as good as the excellent honda civic’

    I found the Focus much nicer to drive and bought one instead, but it’s probably down to personal taste. I know a few people who have Civics and really like them.

    I also thought the (facelifted mk2) Focus looked a bit better and had better visibility at the back.

    sadexpunk
    Full Member

    ok thanks, ill keep looking at the focus then. i read something about a 1.0 ecoboost being an outstanding engine, is that still the case do you think?
    and whats the hierarchy on the focus, you know, titaniums, zetec etc. i can only remember the old L, XL, ghia models 😀

    thanks

    brassneck
    Full Member

    Buy Japan, if you’re going petrol. Everyone I’ve had (Nissan, Mazda, Honda) have cost me no more than consumables for lifetimes well beyond ‘fair use’.

    Civic would be my first search. Focus is a good shout though, the fact there are plenty about keeps pricing keen.

    I’d look at 1.6 min in that size car, I have a 1.4 206 at the moment and it sounds unwell with an adult passenger in too 🙂

    Pieface
    Full Member

    Go for a 1.6 LX or Ghia Focus.

    CL – basic
    Zetec – basic but with sporty touches e.g. fog lamps, alloys
    LX – Luxury equipment, but still nowt special.
    Ghia – top of the range with real plastic fake wood.

    But then they changed everything to carbon, titanium etc… I think Titanium is the best one as it had a nice fitted Sony stero.

    The Zetec is supposed to be sporty, but you get extra niceness on the others. Although I believe anything newer than a 54 plate Zetec will get all the extras that were missing on my 52 Zetec (which was a pretty basic car.

    retro83
    Free Member

    Pieface – Member

    Go for a 1.6 LX or Ghia Focus.

    CL – basic
    Zetec – basic but with sporty touches e.g. fog lamps, alloys
    LX – Luxury equipment, but still nowt special.
    Ghia – top of the range with real plastic fake wood.

    But then they changed everything to carbon, titanium etc… I think Titanium is the best one as it had a nice fitted Sony stero.

    The Zetec is supposed to be sporty, but you get extra niceness on the others. Although I believe anything newer than a 54 plate Zetec will get all the extras that were missing on my 52 Zetec (which was a pretty basic car.

    The mk2 facelift onwards I think has LX, Zetec, Zetec S (same as zetec with a bodykit to look like an ST), Titanium, Titanium X.

    Compared to the LX, the zetec has better suspension, bluetooth handsfree on the radio, AC, quickclear windscreen and alloys. Only things I personally miss from the better models are the cruise control, climate (pure laziness – just means you don’t have to turn the hot/cold dial yourself) and DAB.

    clubber
    Free Member

    Mk2 LX has AC (mine certainly does!)

    LX is the base model and it doesn’t have a lot of toys (it even has non-electric back windows!) and no alloys but it’s perfectly comfortable.

    sadexpunk
    Full Member

    thanks chaps. the more i think about it now, i think id want one of the top end models with the niceties. dab a must, although ive got a little adaptor to aux if needs must.
    thanks for the info.

    iolo
    Free Member

    Ford Cmax. Perfect car.

    DaveyBoyWonder
    Free Member

    Bmw e46 shape saloon/estate with the 3l straight six.

    sadexpunk
    Full Member

    cmax’s and bmw’s??? are we now not talking people carriers and big money??
    although i dont mind being sidetracked and considering other options. got sidetracked meself this afternoon and been looking at old cortinas and escorts haha. id love an old cortina, but i assume theyd be too expensive for well maintained cars, and expensive for parts :-/

    chestrockwell
    Full Member

    The 1.0 Ford engine is indeed superb, I have a Focus with one. You’ll not get one for 3k though as they only came out the other year.

    I’ve been driving Focus since 2001 (1.6 petrol x 2, 1.8tdci, 1.0 petrol) and my mum has a 1.6 tdci on a 58 reg. Great cars, never let me down and when parts need replacing they don’t cost a fortune. They’ve always been regarded as a better drive then the Civic (and everything else in the class) as well, although I guess that’s down to personal choice.

    trail_rat
    Free Member

    Id second the emotion on a bimmer

    Looked at a couple pf cheepies my self recently , you do get alot of motor for your money.

    Looked at a 02 ( what ever e that might be) 520 sport with fdsh , mint condition inside and out , 4 new tires – 110k on the clock.

    Only thing that put me off was the insurance as the mrs had just had a crash in the jeep and this was to be a stop gap till the jeep was runnng again ….. Insurance was more than car ! Car was only 700 quid

    chestrockwell
    Full Member

    You’d get an early C-Max within budget easy.

    Gunz
    Free Member

    Focus 1.6 LX estate here (03 plate). I can’t fault it, reliable, cheap and swallows an amazing amount of stuff.
    Downsides – slow, plasticky inside and everyone’s got one. If you just want transport none of this matters, I’m getting another one as soon as I run this one into the ground (my other car is a ’95 Peugeot 205 diesel so this may colour your view of my opinion but my motoring generally costs me about £200 in addition to petrol and insurance per year which makes me happy).

    sadexpunk
    Full Member

    are we talking petrol beemers here? and smallish? got a link to the sort of thing youre recommending? also what would scare me a bit about beemers would be the cost of repairs, or am i mistaken there?

    isnt the cmax a people carrier?

    currently decided that i cant afford a retro cortina :’-( so back looking at focuses (foci?)

    EDIT: before i truly stop scatching the itch, could anyone tell me the pitfalls in something like this?

    br
    Free Member

    +1 Keep your current car.

    sadexpunk
    Full Member

    im quite happy with current car, its lovely and is reliable too. i spose im a little scared that due to plenty of short journeys, im going to mess the diesel engine up. dont understand cars so dont know how likely that is, but every time i make a short journey and realise the engine hasnt warmed up yet, i feel like im f**kin it up. that sound about right?

    ell_tell
    Free Member

    before i truly stop scatching the itch, could anyone tell me the pitfalls in something like this?

    Safety?
    [video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TITkBzitwjA[/video]

    trail_rat
    Free Member

    The pitfalls of tht escort .

    I had one – fooking awful !

    sadexpunk
    Full Member

    Safety?

    aye, fair comment. more fun tho eh? 🙂

    trail_rat
    Free Member

    Fun . And a mk5 escort 1.6ghia …. No not at all – its not even retro cool yet

    Rs2000 might have been acceptable

    RopeyReignRider
    Free Member

    I wouldn’t discount smaller engines petrol Bimmers if you can find one within budget.

    My 320i does 30mpg around town and around 45mpg on a motorway run. It also has a bit of poke to it should the fancy arise..

    :edit: stoopid autocorrect

    br
    Free Member

    im quite happy with current car, its lovely and is reliable too. i spose im a little scared that due to plenty of short journeys, im going to mess the diesel engine up. dont understand cars so dont know how likely that is, but every time i make a short journey and realise the engine hasnt warmed up yet, i feel like im f**kin it up. that sound about right?

    No.

    Stop over-thinking.

    sadexpunk
    Full Member

    am i over-thinking, or being sensible? ive just spent a while reading up on it, and it looks like its the DPF im thinking about. cars with a DPF (id assume mine has one) are susceptible to them getting clogged up on regular short journeys. the figures quoted for replacement are £1000-£3000.

    does it not make sense for me to accept my driving needs have changed? i rarely do any motorway miles (once a year maybe?) so should i not consider pre-empting a hefty garage bill and look to avoid that by changing to petrol?

    thanks

    chestrockwell
    Full Member

    I guess at the price you’re looking at you could end up with a hefty garage bill what ever you get if you’re unlucky/not careful. If you like your current car and it’s been reliable I’d probably just keep it tbh.

    sadexpunk
    Full Member

    i hear what youre saying and makes kind of sense, but do you not think itd make sense to buy a petrol engine in my position?

    i spose theres always a risk with motors, but no saying i wont end up with a hefty garage bill if i end up driving a diesel engine on short journeys over another year or so?

    trail_rat
    Free Member

    Look up caring for your dpf. Its not that you cant do short journeys – its just that you need to be aware that it needs a regen cycle after so long doing them.

    Its not ideal but at 3grand the cars are too expensive to walk away from if they do throw big bills and too cheap/old to not be potential liabilities ( ie generally zero warrenty)

    Pieface
    Full Member

    The diesel will still be more fuel efficient even on short journeys.

    A lot of minicab drivers have diesel Skoda’s and drive them round at almost zero revs round town. I’d have thought they know a thing or 2 about maximizing low cost motoring.

    sadexpunk
    Full Member

    ive settled on looking for a honda civic vtec, either 1.6 or 1.8 EX model.
    thatd be the ideal, but if i cant find one at the right price id be happy enough to keep what ive got.

    thanks a lot for your help chaps, good to know you think mines still a good car on short journeys, but i think i do really want to change to petrol.

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