Had to grin when I read about being young a looking cool.

When we dropped down to one car for a 3 year period (I started running to work!!!!)

we sold a 35,000 mile volvo s40 1.8 year 2000 for £2500. with fsh.

a chap turned up after seeing the advert in the village shop window wanting a car for his daughter as HE was fed up fixing the thing, his daughter had bought the car because all her friends had one, and he was constantly fixing electrical then mechanical faults and he wanted to change...

the volvo has disk brakes front and rear, airbags, aircon etc etc. the clio she was running had none of that.....but it was cool......

he showed the car to his daughter, who refused to even drive it....he left in the middle of a arguement with her....24hrs later a middle aged couple bought it, and I still see them and the car almost 4 years later and they tell me its been very reliable and they've not changed anything apart from 2 tyres in the time they've owned it....

Alfa make cars that most red blooded males would love....(if they didn't have to pay for it and the repairs with there own money....saw a review on Ducatii motorbikes about 5 years ago,,,the wag reviewing the bike said you'd have to buy 2 one to ride whilst the other was getting the latest issues fixed.......oh dear.....

if it was my money, i'd sink as others have said, half the money into a 2k fiesta (cheap to fix) then after the first year when you get your 30% + no claimed discount then hunt around for something else...

also isn't is next year than female car insurance goes up to match males......hmmm another subject matter there....

we have two C1's in our family one of which my 20 year old daughter drives.

Reliability for both has been spot on, handle really well and fly along even on a motorway, its loves cruising around the 90 mark and holds it on the hills.

Road tax is £20 for the year ! returns an average of 60 mpg, 72 if we try hard, 57 just around town and insurance for a brand new one for my daughter was £330 fully comp in her name !

We did look at buying VW Polo for about 4k but the insurance was £1400 + £180 road tax + 40 mpg times that over three years and its almost paid for the new C1 ! Plus we would of had maintanance on the Polo.

The C1 came with three years free serviceing. Its the cheapest and most reliable motoring we have ever experinced and my daughetr loves hers and her friends are envious that she only has to fill it once a month !

Well i'm still looking at £1000 insurance+ on a c1/aygo, compared to between 1300 and 1600 on a bigger car. used it'd cost me 4k to buy, not sure if the saving is really worth it unless I plan on keeping the car for a long time. Seing as I'm likely to cause damage to it it being a new driver I can't rely on holding value.

I'm tempted to go with an 02 plate focus over a fiesta, outlay would be very comparable (insurance is surprisngly similar, fuel is more but with my mostly extra urban driving I don' think it'd kill me) A fiesta of the same year/price is far lower spec as things like electric windows seem to be a luxury item on a fiesta and more standard on the focus.

Crazy H, when my daughter was looking at cars the insurance quotes were horrendous, but the new car avenue started to drop down to around 6-700, we guessed may be the ins company think we take more care of a brand new car ! ,Even 2 year old model the same was dearer than a new one! then she restricted the milage and upped the excess, got it down to 525 then , on the advice of the ins company put Mum and dad on as named drivers and that dropped it to £330.00 wierd or what but true. So the policy is in her name and its her car. She was 19 when she bought it.