[Closed] You've got £2000 to spend on a car........

What would you buy

A bike.

MX5/Eunos, small quirky and fun to drive, not got a lot of space but you can always put a boot rack on to add some.

Pretty reliable as well.

Golf or a Polo.

Datsun 120y and soup it right up.

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A2's are brilliant. But you won't get one for £2000.

Saab 9-3 hatchback - tons of room for bikes with the rear seats down (up to 3, or more if you take em to bits) and great pokey (if noisy) 2.2 TiD engine with mid-40s fuel consumption, great driving position and the most comfortable seats in the world. Get leather and it's easy to keep clean.
TiD pretty bulletproof, just needs regular servicing and cleaning out of all the filters that can clog with diesel grime. Mine is on 141K miles and rising fast.

Petrol Turbo cars OK but frankly not much faster than the diesel and with at least 12 less MPG...........apart from the Aero, which flies and is a good enthusiastic driver's car (need to ensure suspension tight, though, and that steering rack clamp is installed to ensure minimal torque steer and generally less baggy handling - diesels seem much better on this, probably due to heavier engine).

Hope that helps - agree with you about most French cars (cardboard and plastic engineering). Final point - always use a specialist for your servicing and repairs, not a main dealer (at least as knowledgable, less smarmy and half the cost!)

Well I wasn't going to post it, but after seeing Golf and Polo, we just bought a 53 reg Ford Fusion 2 for £2400. Basically a Fiesta estate, front passenger seat folds completely forwards as well so you could probably shoehorn a tandem into it 🙂

We originally bought a Punto as the Fiesta was too expensive, hadn't thought to look at the Fusion which is less popular. The Fusion is miles apart from the Punto which we quickly learned to hate!

The Focus is probably the best car available at 2k. On the other hand, 2k will get you a leggy MK4 Golf, which has a better looking interior. Depends how strong your aversion to Fords is.

Polos at that price are generally the facelifted MK3, and often 1.4 engined. Not amazing. But they do tend to have less miles than the equivalent price Golf.

..........But so much less space than the Saab - I know, just tried to load a bike into a Focus this am!

True. It's also not based on an old Vauxhall, which is always good 😆

SAABs are cheap for what they are, lots of space, good seats and pretty decent pace in a Turbo, but they're hardly cutting edge. The Focus has had money spent on its ride and handling and it shows. I've always felt like the seats are too high in them though, which spoils things a bit.

Equally, the MK4 Golf has suspension which isn't hugely dissimilar to what you'd find on a MK1 or MK2, but it has a nicely finished interior and is pretty refined.

i've notice that Golfs tend to be pretty high milers, the Saab look great and being of a certain age, they'll always be cool to me.

Why do A2s hold their money soooo well? had a Polo, never get the same car twice.

Why do A2s hold their money soooo well?

I'd guess Badge and MPG. They seem to attract people who can barely drive though!

[url= http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201010354329142/sort/priceasc/usedcars/price-from/2000/price-to/3000/make/skoda/radius/60/postcode/ba129by/quicksearch/true/page/1?logcode=p ]Octavia 1.8T 69k miles[/url]

That Datsun 120Y looks like it could have been a member of Kraftwerk. I know it sounds really silly but it's the fisat think that came into my head when I saw the B&W picture 😐

Saab's a perfect bike car if you're not too fussy about driving pleasure. If you want to have fun, you're probably better off with a Ford. Focus estate's good value. Not pretty though.

Volvo S40 T4

A mate just picked up an immaculate 2000 model for around a grand.

I borrowed it yesterday whilst my car was being worked on.

Quick, safe, and sensible

Something like this...

[IMG] [/IMG]

keep 1500, spend 500 on a standard ford or vauxhall because loosing 500 when it breaks (which it will) is better thank losing 2000 when it breaks (which it will!!)

been bought both T shirts and now contract hire a new punto at 136/month inc. road fund license..

good luck

my 400 quid Astra has not broken and I have had it 5 years

A HRV mine cost not much more than that and is quirky and useful.

A2's hold their value because they are excellent cars! Made from aluminium, they were very expensive to build and this was the principal reason why Audi pulled production. I have read unconfirmed reports that the frugal diesel variants can achieve as much as 124 mpg, but i know 70mpg is achievable, even by the most leaden footed drivers. I wish i'd bought one instead of my A6 as the A2 would be worth more now.

The A2 never got the promotion it deserved and some totally miguided motoring journalist unfairly slated it. If launched in these times of high fuel prices, it would be an instant success.

Years ago I drove an A2 whilst my own car was in for service and was very surprised at how good it was to drive. My surprise was entirely due to the negative review I'd foolishly believed.

It comes as no surprise the review was wrong as I have known reviews of other cars to be very biased and misleading. Also, these points of view often do not take into consideration, model variants or model updates.

Many years ago I met a motoring journalist. He was quite frank: If a company was prepared to fly him out to somewhere exotic to try out their new cars, whilst being cossetted in luxurious surroundings, he wasn't going to write anything negative! He ended up working for one of them!

So based on how some companies literally bribe the motoring press, it's no surprise that the reputable firm's products don't get the credit they deserve!

My advice is to try out anything you like the look of and only use reviews as an additional point of reference [u]after[/u] you have had "hands on".

Old shape 5 series?

Mine certainly doesn't feel like a £2k car.

Berlingo.

What do you really want it to do?

If it were me, I'd get a Focus td estate. Hey, I did! Though with £2000 I'd be looking for a slightly newer one with a better engine in than mine. But then I wanted transport, capacity and practicality, not so bothered about fun and thrashing. If I wanted a bit more fun then I guess some sort of daft super-estate, Legnum or similiar. You haven't really said much about what matters to you and your examples are a bit dissimiliar.

plenty of room in the boot or be small and quirky

For £2k, I wouldn't look further than a mk2 MR2 n/a or MR2 Turbo. MR2 n/a for decent insurance/mpg or Turbo for VERY VERY quick driving and still decent mpg (mine was 5 seconds dead 0-60 and I still got 32-33mpg). Anyway, they're small and quirky due to its 2-seat mid-engine layout, but also come with plenty of space in the boot. I got 2 suitcases for me and the missus in the boot of mine, plus there's more space in the frunk, and on top of all that there's a 2-bike rack that fits for about £40 on wiggle. Also, the Toyota SW20 engine is bomb-proof. It was designed for racing and is massively downtuned in the road car.

Mr Starship, and what is wrong with Kraftwerk? They are bloody marvellous! Still listen to them regularly. One of the best bands ever.
Elfin, when I was in the Air Force many years ago in SA ( national service ) I had one of those to my disposal. What a blast it was! Absolutely ragged it and it just kept going.

As you don't want a Frenchie so may I suggest a Pug 406 Est? Cheap, comfy, reliable. Just don't buy a new -ish one, old will do. £1000 for mine 2 years ago, no repairs despite plenty of miles. Oil twice a year so far, new tyres when needed, new battery just in case. Yesterday it took all Hairychesteds for a long sight-seeing trip, never a problem.

Just don't buy a new -ish one,

I can second that. The post 02 Multiplexed cars are horrendous.

Pug 406 Est? Cheap, comfy, reliable

lol

Ours returned sub 30mpg, bits just fell off it, didn't go around corners or stop very well, expensive to service/repair, very dated interior, that is the bits that hadn't fallen off yet, huuuuuuge boot though.

MrNutt - Member
Something like this...

A Scenic?

Small and quirky?

Ford Ka

Golf.

Mine's about to hit 130k, sweet as a nut, decent sized boot anyway and with the seats folded you can get loads in (like camping stuff for a week away, plus two bikes).

You'll probably get a newer Ford for the money, but they just feel cheaper.

I know everyone always recommends what they have as the Best Thing for the job, but..... +1 for a Focus estate. Haven't looked at prices recently but you'd get a decent one for £2000 no doubt. Parts very available and cheap (especially if you've got a decent scrappy nearby), local mechanics know their way around them and they are pure mile-munchers.

Mine (X reg) frequently goes up and down to Skye, Aberdeen, Edinburgh and London. High mileage means lots of new tyres and so forth but no major mechanicals yet....

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/1991-NISSAN-FIGARO-GREY-/250687863035?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item3a5e2938fb

£2k - so far
small - yes
quirky - definitely
would I buy one?- Would I hell

Its also two decades old. Any car thats two decades old cant be expected to be 100% reliable.

I've just bought a 98 BMW 528i Estate for £3k with six months warranty. Unbelievable car for the money. I've spent a lot of time in little hatch backs which cost at least 5 times that amount to buy brand new, and my old 5 series is much nicer to drive and I can fit three bikes in the back.

You can get some great cars for that sort of money if you're not concerned with high fuel costs because you don't commute. Look at the 2.8 VW Passat Estate. 4x4, high levels of build quality and probably hasn't been thrashed as it's not much of a desirable boy racers car. Also look at the Volvo T5. All great, cheap to buy cars but are worth virtually nothing because of their thirst. Just make sure they've got a good service history.

2k to spend?

I would be looking at a Focus too.

3k to spend, then I might start looking for a Golf 😉