Hi All,
Just wondered if anyone can give me a few pointers on getting a first car for my better half. We've got the meagre sum of 1k (absolute maximum!) to spend. She's after something small, Likes the Ford Ka (thinks it looks good), but I'm thinking that we would end up with something problematic at that money. I was thinking a better choice would be: Felicia, Fiesta, Proton Compact, Micra, Kia Pride, possibly something French but am put off by the thought of constant bills (is this really the case?).. It would be her first car, so keeping insurance low would be helpful.
I know this is an ambitious email, but are there any pointers to look out for when looking at when looking at cars beyond the obvious (i.e. under the bonnet) - I'm not very technical, but I'm determined not to lose out by missing something serious that a bit of nouse would allow me to spot!
I saw Top Gear a while back and they managed to get their hands on ridiculously cheap cars that garages wanted to get rid, they had been brought in as part-ex. Is this a feasible route to just getting something basic and driveable?
Many Thanks
Pootle
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Kia or Proton, boring but reliable. Otherwise look for an Astra.
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Does the budget of £1k include the cost of insurance for the car? Depending on the age of your wife this could be a very big factor.
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Thanks guys for the feedback - in reply to Armitage Shanks, the grand would be for the car alone, insurance would be separate.
I got a copy of Autotrader lastnight and leafed through the budget buy section - a worry I have is that if something went on the car a new part, i.e. for a Civic would be pretty expensive.
Also, cross-thread I know, is it worth doing an AA/RAC inspection on a vehicle in the less-than-a-grand department?
Lastly - concerning mileage - what's a good mileage to look out for - obviously, an older car with hardly any miles wouldn't be great news, but neither would galactic mileage... is 100k too many miles?
Thanks for the responses, it's a really great help.
Pootle
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I have just had a quick look on autotrader and saw a couple of good condition Honda Civics with about 80K miles - one with full Honda Service History and all receipts which is good. Try and get as much history about the car as you can to validate mileage etc. Make sure you can test drive it and check for smoke out of the exhaust. Open bonnets and doors and check for any accident damage along the seams. If it looks damaged ask about the repair. Also check the chassis number and engine serial number against the documentation. The BBC link below details what to look for when buying a used car.
IMO the Honda Civic is a very reliable and robust car. Cars that have been looked after and serviced correctly will last for 200K plus miles. Also looked at some Mk2 or 3 golfs but for the same money these were 110K miles
bbc.co.uk/motoring/buying_advice/usedcar.shtml
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>>Likes the Ford Ka (thinks it looks good), but I'm thinking that we would end up with something problematic at that money.>>
A Ford Ka and Fiesta are pretty much the same vehicle under the skin.
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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>>I saw Top Gear a while back and they managed to get their hands on ridiculously cheap cars that garages wanted to get rid, they had been brought in as part-ex. >>
The reason for this was that the cars were not worth very much, but it would cost a garage a three figure sum to dispose of them.
So what would you do under the circumstances - sell them for a pound coin each or fork out hundreds of pounds for disposal?
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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Personaly I would go for the best late 80's early 90's VW polo or golf if you take your time you can find good examples. Speaking from experience 2 years ago i bougt my Daughter a 88 polo FSH 76k for 300 quid last year my nephew bought a 90 golf 1.3 with 50k for 600 quid. & this year i bought mrsmm a immaculate 88 Scirroco 1 owner FSH 76k for 650
They are sturdy relaiable & cheap to run
The down side being usualy no power steering and poor brakes
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I would avaoid a pre 1990 Polo, the brakes are absolutely dreadful. Also they do rust, quite badly infact if it goes untreated. Sills, fuel tank, front valence, all prone. Pierburg carbs a nightmare when they start giving trouble as well. Stick to fuel injection, 1990 onwards for the Polo (recognised by rectangular headlights rather than round).
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To further add to mrmender and Xilenos posts:
'81-'91 Polos do have very heavy brakes but don't rust that readily (in a different league altogether when compared to a Fiesta or Nova). Like X says, if its left untreated it can get quite bad, but there are plenty out there where rust isn't an issue, so don't accept a rusty one.
The phase 3 (91-94) seem to fair well, just look out for scabs on the arches and less so the sills. (Doors can go, but this is normally cosmetic and due to careless owners). These ones too can suffer from a leaky fuel tank (where the filler neck is, there is a void which can trap road muck) but you can have a new tank bought and fitted for ~£100 these days.
I agree with Xileno, get a later one if you can (91-94), as the injection models seem less problematic as far as running/starting is concerned and are more economical. Mine went wrong, and like most of these later Polos, the trouble was with the distributor, which is the only real source of niggles and is easily sorted.
The 1043cc isn't the quickest 1 litre around but has admirable levels of torque and remains quite economical, even if fitted with a 4 speed box. 1.3's perform better and can be just as economical as the 1.0's so you might want to make that a priority, but don't dismiss the smaller engine untill you've tried it. Best spec: the 'Genesis' model (93-94)
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To further add to mrmender and Xilenos posts: '81-'91 Polos do have very heavy brakes but don't rust that readily (in a different league altogether when compared to a Fiesta or Nova). Like X says, if its left untreated it can get quite bad, but there are plenty out there where rust isn't an issue, so don't accept a rusty one.
Quite agree Roberson the only plce they go realy badly is where the fuel filler pipe and inner sill meet. My Daughters 88, i would not say is a especialy good example but has never been welded all i've done is put new break discs pads runs realy well we had probs with the carb too, but was easily solved.
Now she wants a Corsa 'cos they look nicer!
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With regards to French cars being a money pit - not necessarily so, although I will admit its the luck of the draw.
My phase 1 306 came with little history has been good so far, little has gone wrong.
1 accelerator cable, wiring in the drivers door needed some tape. Thats it.
Plus, insurance is cheap. In my first year I was getting qutoes only a few £ more than a small micra/fiesta.
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