£4000 to spend ... or possibly a bit more

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Wed 7 Nov 2012 09:47
£4000 to spend ... or possibly a bit more - eddie c

We need a second car for my wife to commute to work, 6 miles across town, for shopping, dropping off kids and one 60 mile round trip per fortnight.

Ideally we would like something very reliable, safe and reasonably cheap to run for 4K-ish… although we’re undecided whether to push the boat out and find an extra 1.5K for something a bit newer such as a 2009 Fiesta/Yaris?

Would the extra 1.5K give us something significantly better in that price bracket or will 4K give us what we need together with confidence and peace of mind?

Any suggestions or advice gratefully received.

Edited by eddie c on 07/11/2012 at 09:47

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Wed 7 Nov 2012 10:36
£4000 to spend ... or possibly a bit more - bear807
An i10 might fit your budget. Not sure what sort of Yaris or fiesta you could get with 5.5k might be 08/58 with 20-40k on the clock
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Wed 7 Nov 2012 12:58
£4000 to spend ... or possibly a bit more - balleballe

Mazda 2. 4k could buy you one like this:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201240487274791/sort/default/usedcars/maximum-age/up_to_4_years_old/model/mazda2/make/mazda/onesearchad/used/onesearchad/nearlynew/onesearchad/new/postcode/ne82af/page/1/radius/1500?logcode=p

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Wed 7 Nov 2012 13:09
£4000 to spend ... or possibly a bit more - Engineer Andy

Possibly take a look at the previous Mazda2 (if you can't find a decent newer version), based on the Ford Fusion (but better looking), which has a reasonable sized boot, good visibility and appears to drive better than the Fusion. Stick with a petrol one as the relatively short journey to work won't be that different in terms of mpg to the diesel (takes time to warm up and is more expensive to buy).

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Wed 7 Nov 2012 13:25
£4000 to spend ... or possibly a bit more - Dabooka

I can't quite believe I'm suggesting this, but the Note might be worth a look*. I know a couple of people who have them for exactly what you've described and love them for a variety of reasons. 4k might get you an 08/58 from a dealer too.

*dons hard hat and heads for bunker

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Wed 7 Nov 2012 16:38
£4000 to spend ... or possibly a bit more - 72 dudes

Agree with most of the others, go Japanese and petrol.

Price depends where you are in the country but an 08/58 Note would cost £6k in these parts (East Anglia, get orf my tractor), but there'd be plenty of Micras, Yaris, earlier Notes, Mazda 2's, all good and reliable. Don't rule out a Clio or 207 either.

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Wed 7 Nov 2012 17:46
£4000 to spend ... or possibly a bit more - Happy Blue!

The Nissan Note is an excellent suggestion. Always look at petrol for this type of motoring. You may find older Hyundai i30s at that price as well.

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Wed 7 Nov 2012 18:04
£4000 to spend ... or possibly a bit more - unthrottled

Ask your wife!

For a start, women tend to be better at choosing cars than men. Also, men tend to pick cars with seats and driving positions that suit their (generally taller) frames than the person who will actually be driving the car.

For this sort of driving, technical spec is irrelevant.

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Wed 7 Nov 2012 19:37
£4000 to spend ... or possibly a bit more - eddie c

Thanks for the replies everyone.

I currently drive a 1.2 petrol Jazz and do 16K a year on mainly A roads. It may well be that my wife takes the Honda and the 'new' car will be mine, however i'll need to make sure that the economy is comparable with what I'm getting now.... £45 gets me approx 360 mile (6 days to and from work at 60 miles per day)... which pans out at about 12.5p per mile... or about 48mpg.

Her last car was an Almera, so she now has an irrational hatred of Nissans.. so the note is a no go.

Anything I should consider for my daily commute which may offer similar economy?

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Wed 7 Nov 2012 20:27
£4000 to spend ... or possibly a bit more - sandy56

Look for something petrol, japanese and with a service history, forget about the badge.

A 1.8 petrol avensis, corolla, mazda 2 or 3, pays your money etc...

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Wed 7 Nov 2012 22:51
£4000 to spend ... or possibly a bit more - Avant

in your position I'd go for a (petrol) Yaris, or a Corolla / Auris if the Yaris is too small. The Yaris is very good as a 1.3, too sluggish and no more economical with the 1.0 engine.

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Thu 8 Nov 2012 11:06
£4000 to spend ... or possibly a bit more - Ed V

Honda's Jazz is very flexible internally so that might be a consideration for her.

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Thu 8 Nov 2012 12:23
£4000 to spend ... or possibly a bit more - veryoldbear

Yaris is spot on. We've had one on similar duties for four years and it's never missed a beat.

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