Sorry to do this but.....

[HillmanImp]

I need modern-ish car advice. As you know Mrs Imp crasher her Mazda 2, She is looking for a new car, slightly bigger than the Mazda and she is looking to spend somewhere between £3,500 to £4,500 on another car (I am trying to convince her to pocket the difference and spend £1,200 on a Focus but she ain't listening). This is not a lot by Pistonheads standards but its crackers money on a car to me but its not my choice.  

 

I have only ever once spent a lot of money on a car and that was a Vauxhall so it turned to shit and I ended up losing £3k on it. Since then I have only ever bought old shite that I can throw away if I need to, should the worst happen and something expensive breaks. I know nothing about buying modern cars and want to do my best to avoid buying a right lemon (although realise this will always be a possibility) so for some reason I am here looking for some advice from a bunch of people who drive defunct marques such as Talbots, Triumphs, Panhards, Austins, Rovers and Austin Rovers.

 

I am going to go to the car people and Carcraft today for a look around to see what sort of car she fancies. Its okay I am not so clueless that we are going to buy a car from these chumps, its just there are a lot of cars in the same place we can look at so we can narrow the choices down as to what she wants. 

 

She probably wants a petrol as her mileage will only be between 8-12k per annum so a diseasel would be pointless but because they were so popular around that time we may have to look around a bit to find a petrol version of a particular car. Try finding a petrol Seat Leon, its like a needle in a haystack if the haystack is loads of diseasel Leons and the needle is a petrol one  (or something like that). In that case I will need to consider particle filters and DMFs wont I? Or because of them issues should I avoid diseasels at all costs? Although saying that an automatic might be nice, removing the DMF issue as she probably uses quite a lot of fuel by not changing gear enough but is not essential, as I realise that they are probably a bit rarer in the smaller cars we are looking at. But do modern autos have their own problems? I honestly don't know.

 

I have got this website which tells me when timing belts needs to be done. http://www.mytimingbelt.com/ which is fine. Are there any other OMG MUST REPLACE at specific intervals items that I need to know about on a modern car that could cause catastrophic failure that would cost more than the cars worth to repair? What things do I need to look for in the service book?

 

Also is there some sort of buyers guide for these newer cars that is not simply a review telling me about how much legroom they have and what bootspace there is? I have been looking online and cannot find anything other than reviews by wannabie Chris Goffeys under the 'buyers guide' header. It would save me pestering you guys every time we saw a car if I could just find somewhere that told me what I needed to look out for on each car or any potential pitfalls that would just want to make me avoid them altogether?

 

Cars she is sort of keen on before seeing them in the flesh are: 

 

Volvo C30 - 5 doors seem rare so this is probably a no-no.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2007-Volvo-C30-1-8-S-3dr-FULL-SERVICE-HISTORY-2-OWNERS-FROM-NEW-3-door-Hat-/251827439857

 

Mitsubishi lancer hatchback. These seem pretty cheap but are hard to find.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2010-MITSUBISHI-LANCER-2-0-DI-D-GS2-/141558025594

 

Bit big but I think she likes these. Mazda 6. They seem proper cheap, even compared to Mazda 2 & 3s. Why is this? I know the earlier ones rusted like shite but these looks nice, especially the estates. 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2010-60-MAZDA-6-2-2d-163-TS2-5dr-High-Specification-/321677021886

 

She doesn't like the shape of the Ford Focus for some reason and she also owned a Vauxhall Disastra and it was the shittest car she ever owned before she also sold it for about a £3k loss after 18 months of ownershit so they are both out.

 

Am happy for any other suggestions though to run past her. I looked at Kias etc but they seem to be about the same price as all the other cars of the same age. I thought that they were meant to be cheap cars, or am I totally out of touch?

 

If this needs to go in the non autoshite section, that's fine. I realise its not very autoshite. Just after some advice really.

[philibusmo]

Surely a 6 month old MG6 has to be well within budget and they really are shite in every conceivable way other than steering feel.

[cort16]

Mercedes cl500?

Another Mazda 2 it seemed to do a good job.

 

No diesel , no automatics and nothing with a turbo . Also no renaults unless its an avantime .

 

I'd go for for a Civic type-s 1.8 vtec . In budget, reliable , decent mpg and nice interiors .

[r.welfare]

Civics are good. Early Qashqai? My wife has a petrol 1.6 manual; slow but smooth, has averaged 37mpg mixed in the 6,000 miles we have had it so far, timing chain, seems well screwed together and a decent sized boot.

 

Volvo never made a five door C30. A 1.8 or 2 litre petrol Mazda 6 would be OK if you break out the Waxoyl now. I like petrols because I don't like stuck injectors, DMFs or DPFs.

 

I think these days for moderns you want to find evidence it has had the oil changed as frequently as possible; timing chains and breathers hate sludge. One of the things that attracted me to the Qashqai we bought was that it had been serviced every 12k miles on the dot by a Nissan dealer; bang on the Nissan schedule and that's low, mileage wise, by modern standards. That and the fact it was cheap because it had done 105k miles in four years as a lease car.

 

I'm personally going to be changing the oil every 5-6k to be on the safe side which will work out every 4 months or so.

[cort16]

The qashqais are good right enough although for that budget it might be a bit leggy .

[EssDeeWon]

That 35,000 mile MK2 Granada in Barnsley if Trigger doesn't end up buying it, hands down!

[Sloth in a bowl]

Autotrader search with:

Make: Any

Price Min: £3500

Price Max: £4500

Fuel: Petrol

Mileage: upto 40,0000

Body: Hatchback

Doors: 5

Gearbox: Manual

Engine: 1.4 to 1.6

 

Comes back with a load of choice:

[Cavcraft]

CarCraft?

I wouldn't.

[philibusmo]

CarCraft?

I wouldn't.

The lack of the suggestion of a 106 auto surprises me

[NorfolkNWeigh]

How big are 2009 ish Seat Ibizias? A neighbour has got a 5 door 1.6 Sport that looks nice , he's always raving about what a great car it is ,good on fuel etc- although he did have a C70 T5 before.

[oman5]

Put another grand in the kitty, brand new Dacia sandero

[trigger]

Have you thought about a Jazz?

 

 

I've never driven one but I've looked at a few for friends and i've been a passenger in my mates birds one and they seem a pretty decent motor, they hold their money well and going by the amount of OAP's and young mums with them they can't be that bad.

[Pillock]

Friends don't let friends buy modern diesels.

 

DMF, DPF, tiring to drive because 1000rpm power band, and resale values will be the same as Rolf Harris's Greatest Hits on Minidisc - remember there's all sorts of plans to up the tax on diesels because we've "just" realised they're damaging to health, wouldn't be too surprised if they make it retroactive to remove diesels from the roads.

 

Petrol cars of that size are cheaper anyway, because the great unwashed think they're expensive to run because they do 10mpg less on the big table of made up figures.

 

Another vote for Civic, plenty of spec and cool looks. Appear to be well built. Mondeo? Petrol will avoid most of the issues.

[Pillock]

Also, not sure about Carcraft (shocking that they've ripped off the Cavcraft name and appear to be damaging the fine reputation) but I found AvailableCar (same sort of idea) invaluable for helping to choose. All cars unlocked, and no salesmen on the forecourt so you have to go and ask to speak to one - so no pestering by a man in a cheap suit. They don't care much for cash payers but a great help for sitting in as many motors as possible in a short time, even some you perhaps didn't realise existed.

[JohnK]

How big are 2009 ish Seat Ibizias? A neighbour has got a 5 door 1.6 Sport that looks nice , he's always raving about what a great car it is ,good on fuel etc- although he did have a C70 T5 before.

This.

 

I had a 10plate Ibiza 1.6 Sport from 2010-2012 and it was a very capable car. I racked up 38k in that time and it was valued at 6k private sale, for a 2.5 year old motor with 6 months warranty remaining. That's half it's value to you and me.

 

Should be well within your budget and they drive very well and look good too. Mine was a 3dr which looks nicer than the 5dr in my opinion, but the father-in-law is onto his second and like me has never had any complaints.

 

Interior wise it was the most roomy in it's class too.

[bigfella2]

Isn't the Volvo c30 just a badge engineered Ford focus. In that case not worth paying a premium over a focus.

[twitcherman]

Be wary of autos - many of the diesels will be robotised manual boxes with witchcraft clutches. I wouldn't touch one of these out of warranty, AND they still have DMFs.

[Honey Badger]

A vote for a pre 2005 civic type S, better made than later ones, very tough and very comfortable, got a creaking 2 litre engine as well. Interior isn't as plasticky and less squeaks and rattles. Chain instead of a timing belt as well.

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Honda-Civic-2-0i-VTEC-VSA-Type-S-/400851121519?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item5d5496b56f

 

Decent Accord might be another option, some good choices in spec for that price range as well.

[Albert Ross]

_{It's very worth paying a premium Volvo over the Focus.  I did it 16 months ago, moving from a 2006 Focus Ghia with the optional heated leather and other toys, to a V50 SE Lux with even more toys. For saying it's the same platform, it's a different animal entirely. Better materials, better screwed together, and more planted on the road. That said, The Focus was a manual 1.6 Petrol, the Volvo is a Diesel Auto (Powershift, twin wet clutch manual with electronic Automatic control)  Personally avoid the petrols though, go for the 2.0  Diesel or for incredible fun and economy, the 2.4 D5. The higher trims specs are the ones to aim for. R Design is a supplementary spec. on top of the vehicle spec itself. My Son has a V50 R Design Sport. Less toys, but lowered chassis and stiffer suspension. Mine's more comfortable, and suits me with the extras.}

[hairnet]

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201502261264140/sort/default/page/1/model/sandero/make/dacia/radius/200/postcode/m160ra/quicksearch/true/usedcars/onesearchad/used%2Cnearlynew%2Cnew?logcode=p

 

haggle and it might come close to 4500

[purplebargeken]

Hyundai i30? Nice looking things for a modern. 

[Ghosty]

C30 5dr doesn't exist, FYI. That's a V40.

 

Agree with pre-05 Civic.

Similarly, Corolla/Auris?

[gordonbennet]

Another vote for one of the dwindling number of low mileage pre 06 Civics, 2 litre S type the one to have (chain cam), my daughter's on her second, she does a lot of miles and hammers the fuck out of them and they simply do not go wrong, easy DiY servicing too even have adjustable tappets, choose the right spec and it'll be on 195/65 x 15's which as every shiter knows is just about the cheapest size out there.

Asked her what she'll replace the current one with...find me another dad when the time comes, or a Corolla T Sport.

 

Agree wholeheartedly about avoiding modern Diesel, they aint worth a tinkers spit no more.

[Cavcraft]

I never hear good things about modern(ish) Mazda diesels.

[HillmanImp]

Well, just been to Carcraft. What an experience. I understand when reading this why people suggested I was wary of it, should probably have read this before I went. 

 

Got in, had to sit down with some random guy who was trying to be my best friend, who nervously went through some sort of presentation about how Carcraft works, how they are there purely to serve me and how they offer things that no other outfits that sell cars can offer. He explained the situation regarding their incredibly low finance deals (I saw some were as low as 20%, so lower than Wonga I will give him that) and how they offer a guarantee instead of a warranty. A warranty is what their competitors offer and a guarantee is MUCH better and thats why I should buy a car from Carcraft (I keep trying to type Cavcraft here as I am used to typing that more). He then took down a false address and email, for some reason told us that a family member died last night and then finally let us look round the cars. 

 

Civics are good. Early Qashqai? My wife has a petrol 1.6 manual; slow but smooth, has averaged 37mpg mixed in the 6,000 miles we have had it so far, timing chain, seems well screwed together and a decent sized boot.

 

Mrs Imp had a wander around the Carcraft greenhouse and I was immediately disappointed by her early gravitation towards the MPVs however she did comment straight away on how horrible the Nissan Puke was so its not too bad. She did however like the Quashqui, she liked the high up seating position but from coming back home and looking online she really would be looking at the bottom end of these with the budget she has plus it will be getting bought locally as she will not travel across the country to look at a car like I will so we have to take our pick of local machines sadly. When we were there I did wonder if we might have trouble with one of them and asked her to look at some other similar cars which we might have been able to get cheaper in the real world but she was not really taken with any which was good with me TBH as this sort of car really doesn't float my boat at all. 

 

She did like the Mazda 6 though as it was very roomy and said she did actually like the Ford Focus in the flesh. So we are off to look at a Ford Focus tomorrow that is just down the road from us to see what she thinks of driving it.

 

I'd go for for a Civic type-s 1.8 vtec . In budget, reliable , decent mpg and nice interiors .

 

A vote for a pre 2005 civic type S, better made than later ones, very tough and very comfortable, got a creaking 2 litre engine as well. Interior isn't as plasticky and less squeaks and rattles. Chain instead of a timing belt as well.

 

Civics are still an option but not the earlier shape as 'they are too old'. She used to really like the newer golf ball ones but is 'not as keen now'. They seem to go for a lot, I am not sure if that is just because I am living in Bradford or not though? Might have to look and see what the prices are further afield but as we will not be travelling too far for a car these may be rules out.

 

Have you thought about a Jazz?

 

She did like the Jazz, this is another on the maybe list for her but the thought of her buying one of these and me having to drive it sometimes fills me with dread because of this: 

 

and going by the amount of OAP's and young mums with them

 

I am not willing to give into middle age that easily. However they were nice inside..........

[HillmanImp]

 

No diesel , no automatics and nothing with a turbo . Also no renaults unless its an avantime .

 

I like petrols because I don't like stuck injectors, DMFs or DPFs.

 

Friends don't let friends buy modern diesels.

DMF, DPF, tiring to drive because 1000rpm power band, and resale values will be the same as Rolf Harris's Greatest Hits on Minidisc - remember there's all sorts of plans to up the tax on diesels because we've "just" realised they're damaging to health, wouldn't be too surprised if they make it retroactive to remove diesels from the roads.

 

 

All noted, I was wary of them for these reasons anyhow am glad to have it confirmed. Along with this:

 

 

I think these days for moderns you want to find evidence it has had the oil changed as frequently as possible; timing chains and breathers hate sludge. 

 

Is how it needs to be played I think. There doesn't seem to be much out there as far as what to watch out for on a particular model. I think it is avoiding cars with more expensive bits and get one with a good service history.

 

How big are 2009 ish Seat Ibizias? A neighbour has got a 5 door 1.6 Sport that looks nice , he's always raving about what a great car it is ,good on fuel etc- although he did have a C70 T5 before.

 

I had a 10plate Ibiza 1.6 Sport from 2010-2012 and it was a very capable car. I racked up 38k in that time and it was valued at 6k private sale, for a 2.5 year old motor with 6 months warranty remaining. That's half it's value to you and me.

Should be well within your budget and they drive very well and look good too. Mine was a 3dr which looks nicer than the 5dr in my opinion, but the father-in-law is onto his second and like me has never had any complaints.

Interior wise it was the most roomy in it's class too.

 

I think the boot might be a bit small. One car I was surprised about was the Yaris. how BIG is are they now? It was about the same size as the Golf next to it, I thought it must have been an Auris. Boot was still a little small for what we needed though which is why she wants to move up from a Mazda 2, but only just.

 

Put another grand in the kitty, brand new Dacia sandero

 

I will not be suggesting that she does that, I have to drive this too sometimes.

 

 

Surely a 6 month old MG6 has to be well within budget and they really are shite in every conceivable way other than steering feel.

 

 

You are a sick, twisted individual.

 

[r.welfare]

They do Ibizas as a mini estate; problem solved. I believe they are called ST which is good for bragging rights with the Fast Ford crowd down the pub.

[cort16]

The Mazda 6 is nice (the 2010 model) and you can get petrol ones for around 4 grand as I was looking at them when I bought my BMW, which was shite.

 

 

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201502241197854

[HillmanImp]

Hyundai i30? Nice looking things for a modern. 

 

Hmm, they do seem to be in budget don't they? I may run that past her as they are a quite big. Defo one I had not thought of. 

 

Whilst it will be the most predictable outcome of any of these 'what modernish car should I get' threads, I am actually hoping she does end up liking the Focus. Even if it goes tits up there will be thousands of other ones in the country which you can cannibalize for parts which will be cheap and they are not predominantly driven by old people or owt, so I wont feel like a pratt driving it, they just don't have an identity they are just a bland capable car. 

 

They do Ibizas as a mini estate; problem solved. I believe they are called ST which is good for bragging rights with the Fast Ford crowd down the pub.

 

I had looked at them as a girl at work got one the other week. I nearly crashed into her overtaking her the first night she got it as I was driving the Celica and went to overtake her and the car in front of her which was doing about 25 in a 60 but instead of indicating I switched on the windscreen wipers as the stalk on a Celica is on the correct side, which I am no longer used to having been ruined by European cars.  She went to pull out at the same time but got a surprise when I was already moving out to get past her. I had to ram on the brakes when I saw her indicate and start to pull out. 

 

Anyhow, I digress. All the estate Ibizas locally seem to be quite over budget sadly.

 

 

The Mazda 6 is nice (the 2010 model) and you can get petrol ones for around 4 grand as I was looking at them when I bought my BMW, which was shite.

 

 

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201502241197854

 

I think I might try and push her in that direction if she doesn't like the Focus as they are very nice looking cars and nice and spacious. I think the problem might be finding a good one locally as they are quite scare in petrol form.

[dieselassist]

thing about all modern Mazdas is the price of the parts - stuff like suspension bits seem to be very pricey; they have a decent rep as regards 'reliability' but when they do need bigger bits you can be 'hit hard' in the pocket...

 

...Volvo are similar; reasonably reliable, but the price of the bits can be frightening when/if they need repair for whatever reasons...

 

Don't let her get talked into a 'mazda 6' diesel  - they can seem to make a decent, long lasting diesel motor mazda, and you can buy recentish mazda diesels with 'engine problems' for pocket change...