5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - Myfanwy365

Hello,

1st post on here, I am currently expecting the birth of my first child so will shortly be needing to acquire a new car, my Seat Ibiza 3dr isn't really going to cut it.

I commute approx 20,000 miles a year between Chester & Manchester up the M56 so i'm looking at a Diesel, 1.6 & up. Ideally looking for 55mpg minimum & anything up to 6yrs old or thereabouts, under 45k miles

I had a look on Autotrader & in my budget of £7k I had the following I liked the look of, is there any of these I should avoid or alternatively should I be going for one over the others.

Kia C'eed

Seat Leon

Ford Focus

Hyundai i30

Mazda3

Skoda Fabia

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - oldroverboy.

Hello,

1st post on here, I am currently expecting the birth of my first child so will shortly be needing to acquire a new car, my Seat Ibiza 3dr isn't really going to cut it.

I commute approx 20,000 miles a year between Chester & Manchester up the M56 so i'm looking at a Diesel, 1.6 & up. Ideally looking for 55mpg minimum & anything up to 6yrs old or thereabouts, under 45k miles

I had a look on Autotrader & in my budget of £7k I had the following I liked the look of, is there any of these I should avoid or alternatively should I be going for one over the others.

Kia C'eed

Seat Leon

Ford Focus

Hyundai i30

Mazda3

Skoda Fabia

Anyhing that has the vw group ea189 engine avoid, same for ford 1.6 so really leaves the kia or i30... or a more modern petrol ecoboost/vw tsi (polo) peugot/citroen petrol puretech..

or a kia rio 2011 diesel or petrol, (the 5 door is quite roomy for me 6'2")... and you'll get the 40+ mpg without the potential dpf/egr/injector.dmf problems on the diesels except for the kia hyundai, but wait for Manchester to bring in the diesel surcharge to drive in the city.. (inside the M60) as london will do to add to the congestion charge within the m25, surely to be added to the inner london bit...

Edited by oldroverboy. on 26/02/2017 at 15:40

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - Myfanwy365

I won't be driving into the city so should be ok, just on the outskirts past the airport

Was favouring the Kia/Hyundai initially so that would seem a good way to go

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - oldroverboy.

www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20170130180...1

nice one close to you with some kia warranty left. just check underneath for corrosion.

or main dealer rio

www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20170130179...1

much better bet, lots of warranty, and surprisingly good. I had a 1.2 petrol before and now have a 1.4 venga

Edited by oldroverboy. on 26/02/2017 at 18:53

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - Happy Blue!

Be careful of your back. Reaching into a car to install or extricate a young one hurts your back. Buy a car which requires less leaning in - i.e. a taller car. Avoid typical hatches and look at small MPVs (Kia Venga or Hyundai ix20 are good examples) as are many others incuding Ford B-Max or C-Max, Renault Scenic etc.

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - SLO76
Cee'd is a good option here. Buy one with a full Kia service history and you'll have the balance of their excellent 7yr 100,000 mile warranty too. But don't listen to sales staff who tell you it's still valid without that Kia history, it's nearly impossible to claim on the warranty without proof of main dealer servicing.

The second gen cars are available from your £7k budget but considering your high mileage I'd stump up a bit more and buy as young a car as you can afford. Shop around for finance and you'll save enough to spend more on the car with banks offering personal loans as low as 2.9% you'll save hundreds if not more compared to dealer finance.

The Cee'd estate is a very useful car for family duties and even the 1.4 diesel can hold its own on motorways with over 160lb/ft of torque. If you buy an older car with 40-50k on it you'll find it's worthless after 3yrs at 20k per annum while the newer car will still be well short of six figures and much more sellable plus you'll be under warranty on this one til 2022 or 100k which should avoid any big bills and it's also a chain driven engine so you'll avoid a £300-£400 timing belt change. Auto Trader #DrivenByMe
www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20170126167...6

The Toyota Auris is another good high mileage bet and also comes with a long 5yr warranty and has no timing belt to bother with. These have plenty of room and a great reputation for reliability if used for distance work. Too many local runs can cause DPF issues as with any modern diesel but this shouldn't be an issue for you. There is a BMW 1.6 diesel too but the 1.4 is fine when up to speed and probably more robust being Toyota's own work. Auto Trader #DrivenByMe
www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20170130179...2

The Honda Civic 1.6 DTEC is another great car and probably what I'd personally buy for this mileage if you were willing to spend a bit more money. It's a fantastic engine that will do 70mpg on a run (we get over 60 in our CRV on long runs) it's gutsy and has loads of space inside with a huge boot and what's known as magic seats in the rear which fold flat and also allow you to carry very awkward loads. I haven't heard of any problems with this engine to date and again it's chain driven. The plus point is lower depreciation with diesel Civics always in demand even with crazy mileages up. Auto Trader #DrivenByMe
www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20160909761...7

Forget the Focus with PSA's notoriously troublesome 1.6 diesel or the 1.0 petrol which is unlikely to stand up to your usage. The redesigned 1.5 diesel may work out ok but it's still early days as to whether they've fixed the problems. The Mazda 3 shares the same PSA 1.6 diesel and later 3rd gen cars are still beyond £10k for diesels and Mazda's 2.2 diesel has developed a nasty reputation for problems in the 6 and CX5 so while I really rate the 3 in petrol form I wouldn't touch a diesel.

Good luck, have fun and don't forget to shop around for your finance too, it'll give you more to spend on the car.
5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - daveyK_UK

I would not reccomend you buying a kia venga/hyundai ix20, if youe doing 20k a year.

The 1.4 petrol is to thirsty (most owners struggle to get over 35 mpg), the 1.4 diesel is slow, loud and problematic. They did being out a 1.6 diesel in recent years which is much better but not sure you will get a decent one in your price range.

I would point you towards a late 13 plate old shape Nissan Note either 1.4 petrol or 1.5 diesel.

the diesel is widely used in a variety of cars and can give a long life if serviced regular.

the 1.4 petrol while less economic than the diesel pulls fine on the motorway. should give you over 40mpg and in n-tec trim will have lots of toys.

Avoid the current shape Nissan Note which is a pig of a car and has been made on a strict manufacturing process and component budget.

You should also consider a citroen c3 picasso with the 1.2 puretech petrol engine, will give you 50mpg on the motorway and is a doddle for getting kids in and out. You might find one within your budget.

Fiat 500L is under-rated and worth considering.

Edited by daveyK_UK on 26/02/2017 at 22:27

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - Avant

"Avoid the current shape Nissan Note which is a pig of a car and has been made on a strict manufacturing process and component budget."

Skidders will be along soon to disagree with that! Mrs Skidpan has a new-shape Note which I believe she's very pleased with.

My impression is that the new Note is smaller - lower in particular - than the old one, possibly to avoid clashing with the Juke. I think it's still quite spacious inside, but possibly doesn't have the height of the old one which makes lifting a baby in and out that much easier. The Juke is one of these stylists' triumphs where the back doors are small and rear room cramped.

And personally I think the Juke is plug-ugly. But then what would I know - the RR Evoque loooks dreadful to me but it's a big seller, probably through brand image more than anything else.

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - bazza

And personally I think the Juke is plug-ugly. But then what would I know - the RR Evoque loooks dreadful to me but it's a big seller, probably through brand image more than anything else.

Completely agree Avant, Juke is vastly over-rated. All the RR products are pig ugly to me, in particular the Evoque, however, we are definitely out of touch as the younger generation lust after these things in the same way as designer clothes and bags!


5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - Mike H

And personally I think the Juke is plug-ugly. But then what would I know - the RR Evoque loooks dreadful to me but it's a big seller, probably through brand image more than anything else.

Completely agree Avant, Juke is vastly over-rated. All the RR products are pig ugly to me, in particular the Evoque, however, we are definitely out of touch as the younger generation lust after these things in the same way as designer clothes and bags!

+1.

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - SLO76
I've never owned or sold one but I've looked at a few on behalf of folk and can't say I find much wrong with the second generation Note either. Loads of room and although it shares a floorpan and a Diesel engine with the Renault Clio (probably the most reliable diesel Renault made in recent years) the petrol units are robust chain driven Nissan designs. To me it's a hardy and simple small car I'd happily recommend to people.

Not a fan of the Juke either which really is an ugly and poorer driving Clio on stilts using belt driven Renault 1.2 turbo petrol that hasn't really proved itself yet. But I've a friend with one and she loves it after years of running around in a totally reliable cute as hell Fiat 500 1.2 I recommend to her that she hated... each to their own.

Edited by SLO76 on 27/02/2017 at 09:24

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - Myfanwy365

I am not buying a Juke, i'd rather walk to work than drive that ugly piece of junk

I have a defined budget of £7k, £2k savings & will be getting a £5k bank loan at 4%, I appreciate someone saying I could stretch further maybe but i'm getting married in 2 weeks so my finances will just be manageable with the 5 over 3 years.

Sadly that puts the Civic & Auris out of budget.

Had another look with some of the cars mentioned, I won't be buying for another 3 weeks but gives an idea

Citroen C3 - www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20161222078...5

Hyundai I30 - www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20170205200...8

Nissan Note(2014 Plate) - www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20161111967...0

Nissan Note(2013 Late) - www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20161230090...4

Kia C'eed - www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20170128175...6

Didn't initially consider the Note as had my search set for 1.6L & above, anything that returns over 60mpg & does 0-60 in under 12s should be fine though, anything to make the joy of the M56 more bearable

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - Avant

"Sadly that puts the Civic & Auris out of budget."

But you could find other cheaper ones, so don't give up on them if they're what you want.

Until you've had a baby, you never quite believe how much assorted gubbins they need to have with them. Back in the 1970s I was very pleased with my new Austin Maxi which managed to swallow the staging for a full orchestra. But then our first child came along, and baby + gubbins took up even more room inside the car.

I'd say the Citroen C3 is too small, although the C3 Picasso that DaveyK recommends is worth a look. The economical 1.2 petrol engine would be a better bet than the diesel, even for your highish mileage.

The Ceed you've found looks expensive compared with either of the Nissan Notes: the Note could do you well provided you think it's got enough room inside.

I'd have recommended a diesel if you were buying new; but they csn go expensively wrong as the miles mount up. The long warranties are points in favour of Kias (7 years) and Hyundais (5 years), but you'd need to check that they have been serviced by an authorised dealer, otherwise the warranty is void before you even start.

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - SLO76
If the rate on that £5k loan is 4% APR then it's good value, if however that is the flat rate then the APR will be just under double this figure and better deals are available, especially that zero percent credit card I mentioned earlier... Always shop around for your finance as money spent interest is money for nothing, a total waste.

As for the motors you've listed, I'd forget the C3 which has the troublesome PSA 1.6 diesel you'll often see us discussing on here. It's disliked in the trade and well known as a soft engine. The 3cyl 1.2 petrol is a good engine but C3's don't hold their money well and high mileage use kills them stone dead when it comes time to sell on.

The Note 1.5 dci is in my opinion quite a good wee car. The engine is the same tried and tested unit Renault have been using for almost fifteen years and it's proven quite robust if serviced regularly and the timing belt, tensioner and water pump are replaced every five years as scheduled. They're liable to snap beyond this which will kill the engine. Costs between £300-£400 to do so factor it in when bidding. Road noise is a common complaint on the Note but it's very practical, economical and lusty enough in diesel form. Try one at motorway speeds before buying, it's not as refined as the Cee'd.

The i30 and Cee'd are essentially the same car underneath but I'd generally favour the Kia for its longer warranty and (to me) nicer styling. The second gen car is nicer in every way but the earlier car didn't have a DPF fitted to all 1.6 diesels until early 2011 so a late car without one could be a good cheap commuter. Some had them in 2010 yet some cars without were registered as late as mid 2011 so you'll need to check with Kia themselves or ask your nearest Kia service dept if any car registered in 2010 or 2011 has one or not as many do not. You'll need the reg no and vin number to check it. A DPF is almost guaranteed to cause trouble at some point in the cars life considering the age of vehicle and mileage you cover.

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - Myfanwy365

Cheers, it is 4% APR so pretty good value, over 3yrs so about £140 a month

Will take a look at the Note & also the Ceed/i30 in a few weeks when I come to purchase & might post a few options.

There's plenty more you've all given me to consider than initially thought.

Hadn't considered any issues with a DPF as i'd be doing long journeys, I only really thought about issues due to town use which wouldn't affect me

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - SLO76
Even used properly a typical DPF has a lifespan of anywhere between 70-120k some do last longer and some less. It's not an asset as far as the owner is concerned and is only something else to go wrong and with your mileage it's possible it'll become an issue in 3-4yrs time. Good work on that finance, 4% is a very decent rate for that amount of money, it typically drops beyond £7.5k so sometimes it isn't as costly as you'd think to up the budget.
5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - Myfanwy365

Hello,

I've been having a look at my options, working out money, etc & am pretty much ready to buy.

Decided I have a maximum budget of £7,000 although am prepared to stretch to £8,000 for the right car, taking larger loan over an extra 6 months.

Have looked at the Note as previously advised, wasn't overly convinced with the looks, didn't particularly like it overall.

Am going towards the Hyundai i30

Am booked to test drive this one on the weekend - www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20170205200...8 - £6000 for a late 2011 last gen

I have also seen the following 2, 2012 models for approx £1500 more, both better economy & nicer styling

www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20170311316...7

www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20170112124...5

Would anyone recommend spending the extra money for the newer model, I do slightly prefer the looks but £1500 is a fair chunk with a kid on the way. Any help gratefully welcomed

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - SLO76
They all look quite fresh but I'd spend the extra and go for the later car. It's nicer to drive, better looking, safer, slightly better on fuel and there's more of the manufacturer warranty left to run.

I'd stick to main dealers as they have the best stock and will be able to service it for you if it's due without invalidating the warranty. Remember that if it's missing service stamps or has a non-franchise service history the warranty is no longer valid unless every receipt for manufacturer only parts was retained.

Also the earlier car was right at the tail end of production where they first started fitting DPF's, (although some 2011 registered cars escaped it, check with dealer if this is one) and it was a retrofit designed to allow then to continue selling the diesel until the new car came out. The newer model was designed from the beginning to take this technology and should be less of a worry in the long run. If the earlier car is one of the late cars that escaped fittment then it would be a good cheap option and this would probably swerve me back towards it.
5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - Myfanwy365

I'm going to go & view both the one in Stoke & Warrington on the weekend to get a better feel, will ask about the DPF.

Would see about trying to knock the 2012 ones down to £7,500 if possible as i'd be a cash buyer

Edited by Myfanwy365 on 22/03/2017 at 20:50

5dr Daily Commute car - £7k - SLO76
That's a realistic offer and I doubt they'd refuse a nice easy deal at that but I'll let you in on a wee trick if they do, there's a way to help loosen the dealers purse strings. Let him or her quote you a nice juicy finance deal then after a little think tell them you'll take it if they accept £7,500 or £7,400 if you fancy being cheeky then as you go to sign up tell him you'll arrange finance yourself. They won't back out the deal but the thought of a nice finance commission is often enough to bag a decent discount from the sales manager.

Good luck and enjoy car shopping.