BMW/KIA/Honda/Toyota - Need Help Buying a 2nd Hand Car. - Cristiano91

Good Morning Fellas,

I would like to ask some advice regarding buying a 2nd hand car.

I am looking for a reliable and economical car,has to be automatic because of health issues.

What i have seen so far are

Kia Sportage 1.7 Diesel Automatic.

Toyota CHR 1.8 Hybid 2017 / 2020

BMW X1 2017 18D 2 Wheel drive.

Hyundai Tuscon 2017 1.7 Diesel automatic

Honda Civic 2018 1.6 Automatic / 1.0 Petrol automatic.

What Would you guys tell me on the models regarding reliability?

I have searched on the internet,but its always a 50/50 Review.

Thanks,

Ryan

BMW/KIA/Honda/Toyota - Need Help Buying a 2nd Hand Car. - gordonbennet

No reason any of these should be unreliable choices, provided they are maintained and looked after.

It's the use you are going to put the vehicle to is the decider, if lots of your journeys are shortish hops then petrol/hybrid is going to be best bet for you as they avoid possible fuel/exhaust system problems, if you drive longer distances regularly then whichever of the above takes your fancy, none are bad cars.

Sportage so long as it has full documented dealer service history has at least a 2 year longer warranty than any other make but limited to 100k miles IIRC, Toyota hybrid system is well proven over ridiculous mileages and warranties can be extended particularly on the hybrid batteries.

Checking the costs of maker's extended warranties might be interesting if you intend to keep past maker's normal offerings, also as buying used what the costs of larger service items might be as the car ages, ie transmission fluid changes and cambelt changes if applicable.

Check tyre sizes and replacement costs too, is spare wheel important to you, does the vehicle have one or a useless pot of goo and toy pump, might not matter if you drive solely at normal times in safe'ish civilisation, could be a major issue if you drive at odd hours and visit remote areas where a damaged tyre and no spare could be a serious problem, despite possibly no spare this could be to the BMW's advantage if its on runflats allowing you to continue a reasonable distance, but check tyre costs.

BMW/KIA/Honda/Toyota - Need Help Buying a 2nd Hand Car. - Cristiano91

Thanks for your quick reply!

I live in a small Country (malta) which is a heavy mostly traffic related.

It is true that the hybrid would be the most fuel efficient one of the most,but buying it would outway the actual saving done on fuel.

mostly my question is regarding the automatic transmission in these cars.

I have a BMW E90 (manual) 100k miles and is in perfect condition as i am very keep on keeping it that way regarding services.

My Question is if the Sportage and Tuscan and x1 are at the same price second hand which would be the most reliable to opt for? I have read alot of good review on the sportage.

but not alot on the X1

The tuscun has mostly the same parts as the Kia sportage,but is this the same thing as having a Kadjaar and a Qashwai? as they are the same engins,but with slightly different tweeks,and the kadjaar as very bad reviews.

Thanks :)

BMW/KIA/Honda/Toyota - Need Help Buying a 2nd Hand Car. - Engineer Andy

I'd personally go for something that is reliable, not unduly heavy on the tech side, petrol and comes shod on medium to higher profile tyres (minimum 50 profile, but I'd go for 60-65 for compfort, as you won't need to use the better handling characterists of a lower profile tyre) to help with the uneven roads (I too have had first hand experience of them, though admitedly this was during a school 'field trip' many years ago now), but also, as thunderbird says, Malta is a small island and thus you won't likely be doing starship distances per year.

BMW/KIA/Honda/Toyota - Need Help Buying a 2nd Hand Car. - daveyjp

Unless your annual mileage justifies a diesel don't even look at them.

As reliability is a consideration the Toyota and you will get excellent mpg.

However I find that model very oppressive inside, it is dark and feels cramped. There is also very poor over the shoulder visibility due to no rear quarter windows and a small rear window.

BMW/KIA/Honda/Toyota - Need Help Buying a 2nd Hand Car. - gordonbennet

My lasting motoring experience of Malta was how dreadful the road surfaces were, fortunately the hire car was sat on sensible tyres which cushioned us from the worst, if the roads haven't improved i think i'd want a test drive over bad sections in the BMW due to runflats not being great for ride quality.

Whilst the Toyota might be more expensive, balance this against overall running and maintenance costs (Toyota servicing is relatively cheap in the UK), and the normally low depreciation curve of Toyota hybrids generally for when you want to sell, should be an easy sell too.

Its a bigger vehicle overall but have you considered Rav4 hybrid, also is LPG a thing in Malta which opens up all sorts of different petrol engine options, nearly always mated to decent reliable torque converter autos, though i have no idea what might be available for you there.

BMW/KIA/Honda/Toyota - Need Help Buying a 2nd Hand Car. - Cristiano91

Well Diesel is a better option were i live,as i had a Ford fiesta 2012 with 1.2 engine and it was thirsty little car compared to my Renault megane and E90 2.0 Diesel.

are any of the cars that i mentioned have bad automatic gear boxes or anything to look out for?

thanks

BMW/KIA/Honda/Toyota - Need Help Buying a 2nd Hand Car. - thunderbird

Why on earth would you want a diesel living on Malta?

The max speed limit is 50 mph.

The island is about 17 miles x 9 miles, about the size of the Isle of Wight.

Running a diesel in such a place is guaranteed to give you DPF issues. Its doubtful any single trip will be long enough for a full regen to take place and eventually you will be faced with a very expensive replacement.

In such a small place your annual mileage cannot be great, surely no more than 5000 miles a year. The difference in gallons used between 50 mpg in a diesel and 40 mpg in a petrol is only about 25 gallons a year and with a modern more efficient petrol probably less. And remember that with such short trips a diesel will not be working in its most efficient environment.

You will never recoup the extra cost of the diesel car and with the threat of big bills for a DPF issue I would suggest you only buy petrol (or a hybrid).

BMW/KIA/Honda/Toyota - Need Help Buying a 2nd Hand Car. - Cristiano91

To be honest DPF issues here in malta are mostly common on Renault Captur / Nissan qashqai and Diesel 1.6 Golf Cars,rest of the cars rare have any issues of DPF,my E90 *Touch wood* never gave me any DPF issues in 3 years of ownership.

Edited by Cristiano91 on 03/05/2020 at 12:19

BMW/KIA/Honda/Toyota - Need Help Buying a 2nd Hand Car. - badbusdriver

To be honest DPF issues here in malta are mostly common on Renault Captur / Nissan qashqai and Diesel 1.6 Golf Cars,rest of the cars rare have any issues of DPF,my E90 *Touch wood* never gave me any DPF issues in 3 years of ownership.

At the end of the day, it is your choice. But i'm just a bit confused as to why you'd post a question asking for advice on whether to get petrol, hybrid or another diesel, when you clearly seem to have made up your mind to get another diese.

You might get lucky buying another diesel, but if it does go wrong, the bills will be much higher than anything likely to happen in a n/a petrol with t/c auto.

In this country, Kia's come with a 7 year warranty. If it is the same in Malta, and the choice has to be diesel, that is what i'd get. But also a word of warning, again, if it is the same as the UK, Kia will do everything they can to worm their way out of the warranty obligations. So with that in mind, only buy with full Kia history.

BMW/KIA/Honda/Toyota - Need Help Buying a 2nd Hand Car. - thunderbird

In this country, Kia's come with a 7 year warranty. If it is the same in Malta, and the choice has to be diesel, that is what i'd get. But also a word of warning, again, if it is the same as the UK, Kia will do everything they can to worm their way out of the warranty obligations. So with that in mind, only buy with full Kia history.

Kia will only pay out on a DPF in the UK if its a manufacturing defect the reason being exhausts are considered a consumable item (just likes brakes, clutches, plugs, air filters, fuel filters etc). Expecting Kia to keep replacing DPF's because the owner has bought an unsuitable car is unreasonable.

BMW/KIA/Honda/Toyota - Need Help Buying a 2nd Hand Car. - Avant

I would suggest that Malta is an ideal place for a Toyota hybrid - if you want an SUV, either the CH-R if you can stand the looks and poor rear visibility, or the RAV-4 if you can't.

Either of these should be as economical as a diesel, as you're not going to do long motorway journeys. And you should have some of the 5-year warranty left: make sure it's been serviced by a Toyota dealer.