Civic? - Recommend a car please. | Motoring discussion | Back Room Forum

Sun 21 Mar 2010 19:35

Civic? - Recommend a car please. - allokay

Hi,

i am in my mid 30s and just passed the practical test at my n-th attempt (female) – on manual.

Happy.

but really clueless as what to buy – have a certain budget of £5k, but can stretch up to 8k if i feel i like the car that much.

i had been driving aa’s Ford Focus and nothing else, have preschool kid and really need to commute only around 50 min every day in the city mostly 20, max 40mph roads.

Low insurance and economy are two main priorities but i would also like to avoid headaches and maybe have a car i would feel myself good/confident in.

There are a few new cars in my budget but i do not feel like any of those.

The time given to test drive a new (half hour at best) car is not at all enough for me to make up my mind.

i’ve tried new Honda Jazz and civic and liked the latter somewhat. Tried Nissan Note and did not like it. both times 1.4s. and have no idea how 3+ years old cars in my budget would drive in comparison. Drove friend’s bMW3 diesel for a very short while and found it quite hard.

anyway if anyone would kindly recommend cars that are good v4m, suitable for my commute and represent best choice taking into account my skills/insurance/practicality – i would appreciate your opinions.

So far i have done some research on buying used cars (private sellers/write offs/clones/mileage) and it taken me back somewhat so i really need reassurance.

Tia.

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Sun 21 Mar 2010 21:20

civic? - Recommend a car please. - Avant

If you like the Ford Focus, you could do a lot worse: there are lots for sale and they're good to drive. Go for a petrol one: it doesn't sound as if you do enough miles to make a diesel worth it, and when they get old they can be expensive to repair.

Also consider the Skoda Fabia: even the 1.2 is quite lively and economical.

Others you could think about - particulaly if the Focus is too big:

Ford Fiesta - comments as Focus

Vauxhall Corsa or Astra - plenty around but not as good to drive as the Fords or the Fabia.

Toyota Yaris - go for the 1.3 and you could be very happy. My elder daughter is on her fourth.

Suzuki Swift - not so many around but well reviewed.

VW Polo - good but they hold their value so your budget wouldn't run to anything as new as the others.

Try to find a dealer that will let you have a longer test drive- there are plenty that will.

Edited by Avant on 21/03/2010 at 21:20

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Mon 22 Mar 2010 14:12

civic? - Recommend a car please. - loskie

if you are a new driver then the new generation civic will be restrictive for rearward vision. but at the budget you state i think you'll be looking at the older model.

if you like the focus go with it. Good alternative would be a Fabia estate.

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Sat 27 Mar 2010 23:02

civic? - Recommend a car please. - allokay

Hi,

Thanks for your replies.

I had since let myself be convinced to go for something under £5k as my first car.

I had a look (and liked) at Polo and 1.4 is quite good, unfortunately overpriced in my view.

I can get Fabia (not keen on the looks), yet to view it properly really – shall ask my neighbour to have a look at hers.

Tried these cars also made me realise Focus is a bit heavy, and hard to ‘find the bite’ in comparison. Is this due to larger engine(1.6)/car setup or just a car quality?

Looking at used cars – should i consider write offs – they seem to be ridiculously cheap. (If so cat D only?)

Having said that if the car i consider – say civic 1.4 SE (older) 05 costs £5k and cat c is only £3k, would it have much bearing when i choose to sell it in a few years time? Both cars would drop to pretty much same level with say £500 difference? That it providing it would escape me undamaged.

Quite a few dealers/garages offer 3-6 month warranty on write offs they sell.

Would that be a false economy? If so how?

Thanks in advance for your replies.

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Sun 28 Mar 2010 09:25

civic? - Recommend a car please. - Mike H

Looking at used cars – should i consider write offs – they seem to be ridiculously cheap. (If so cat D only?)

No no no! There are plenty of good cars around without deliberately going for a write off irrespective of category.

You have just passed your test and I would guess your overriding needs are reliability, low running costs and easy to drive. Reliability=japanese/korean, low running costs=petrol, easy to drive=small/medium. Is image a concern?

There is another recent thread on the same lines. It has been suggested that you buy on price and not be too concerned about the make, although other people here have made some excellent suggestions. VWs in comparison in comparison have a percieved reliability/quality advantage, but in reality, a lot seems to be imagined - read the ar review on this site (on the home page) to get some idea about models you are interested in.

HTH

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Sun 28 Mar 2010 13:44

Civic? - Recommend a car please. - Manatee

We bought a new Fiat Panda 1.2 Dynamic for £5700, to be used by my son who was then a new driver. 4.5 years later nothing has gone wrong with it.

A bit smaller than you have been considering, but can be had now for £7000 with aircon and rather than a 3-4 year old car you would have 3 years warranty. Worth considering unless you need more space. I would be quite happy commuting in one of these. And it does 50mpg, 45 running around.

Used VWs are overrated and overpriced IMO - too many people who know little about cars chasing after them. Used small cars generally are poor value - if you buy used you need to go up at least one size to Focus/Astra category to get value. If you need this size, £7,000 will get you a decent 3 year old low to average mileage example even at dealer prices - look at the Focuses/Astras vs. Golfs on offer at that price and you'll see what I mean about VWs

Edited by Manatee on 28/03/2010 at 13:46

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Sun 28 Mar 2010 18:00

Civic? - Recommend a car please. - Auristocrat

How about one of the last model Toyota Corollas. The Colour Collection version has a good spec including climate control, and the 1.4 petrol would be friendly re insurance. I had a 2006 1.4 Colour Collection from new and absolutely no problems at all. Swapped the Corolla for a new Auris in October.

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Sun 4 Apr 2010 01:15

Civic? - Recommend a car please. - allokay

Hi again,

My thanks to all, for your help.

Went to buy Mazda3

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Sun 4 Apr 2010 01:22

Civic? - Recommend a car please. - allokay

Hmm, did not type question marks.

Anyway the car is not very common maybe due to the high pricing as new, but for me this is just a good point among many others.

Should i now buy used car warranty and where from if so?

TIA.

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Sun 4 Apr 2010 01:26

Civic? - Recommend a car please. - Avant

Sorry - I reported the question marks problem a day or two ago and it'll get fixed. Trying to edit your post knocked out the whole line.

Good luck with the Mazda - should be reliable, particularly if it's a petrol. That said, a warranty could be well worthwhile if it's not too expensive. Someone on here recently said that Warranty Direct is one of the best.

Any other opinions on warranties?

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Sun 4 Apr 2010 17:09

Civic? - Recommend a car please. - allokay

Its 1.6 petrol manual with 65k on the clock hence the low price. Mazda DHR, immaculate in/outside, however.

Yes, i’m between Warranty Direct and Car Care Plan that dealer recommends. With pretty much the same ‘total care’ cover WD comes £80 more, CCP is £180 per year. Depends on payouts i guess.

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