Damage limitation on a snotter

[Chateauneufdupape]

For a few reasons I've decided to find a cheap sub grand snotter for general commuting and running about. I'd rather spend £500 or as little as possible, not through necessity (inb4 people telling me I can't afford a car or some such typical PH nonsense!)

Obviously any old shed can need money spending, but how likely that will be obviously depends on the sort of old heap I go for.

I have a list to choose from so far, the plan is to buy the first one of these I see with decent tyres, brakes and possibly some recent history, as cheaply as possible.

Please feel free to add to, or help me eliminate any from the list:

K11 Micra (would prefer something larger but have always had a strange hankering for one of these! I know to look out for rusty cross members and sills)
Honda Jazz
Honda Civic
Toyota Yaris
Corolla
Avensis
MK1 Focus (rust!)
MK3 Mondeo (again rust, and if I remember correctly rear subframe bushes)

The only diesels im thinking about:

106/Saxo 1.5D
Polo/Ibiza/golf/fabia 1.9 SDI

Something I would quite like is an auto or CVT, so any info about how good/bad/unreliable any of the above options are with auto box's would be great!

Thanks for reading!

[Chateauneufdupape]

Valgar said:

At that price range you never know how long it'll last so shop around for something that appears to be well cared for.

The K11 Micra is worth looking at for their sheer value for money, at your price range you there are plenty of examples so you can afford to turn one down if it doesn't look right.

Judging by the other thread the k11 Auto is strong and reliable.

It was that thread that inspired me to add it to the list

Sounds like the auto is amusingly nippy at low speeds too which could be a laugh!

[Chateauneufdupape]

CX53 said:

I'm in the market for a snotter soon when my little Suzuki sells.

Out of your list I'd personally discount the smaller cars like the micra and yaris but that's probably because after driving a small jap hatch as a daily for a while I wouldn't mind a bit more comfort. My neighbour has had an auto yaris for years though, cosmetically it's battered but they reckon it's indestructible mechanically!

I would choose either the Focus, Mondeo or Avensis, although the Mrs has a corolla and it's excellent, great for £950!

On my list is also a Lexus GS300 & Honda Accord

If you don't mind a small car then the pandas are pretty good, cost peanuts to repair. I had a 100hp and the belt change was 70 quid, so I'd imagine the smaller engined cheaper ones would be cheap to look after as well.

Also something like this might do http://retrorides.proboards.com/thread/187595/mazd...

I don't mind the small ones so much, all helps with economy, although a sensibly driven 1.8 or 2.0 mondeo would probably be perfectly acceptable and a lot better for the commjte too! The GS is probably a bit too thirsty for me at the minute (seeing as this is a money saving exercise!) but I do like them a lot.

That's a cheap little mazda seems to have had some work done recently too... A little far away from me but a bargain for someone

[Chateauneufdupape]

I like the thinking outside the box on the bike suggestion, but i do need a car im afraid, I do 25 miles each way commuting and don't fancy it on a bike

[Chateauneufdupape]

bearman68 said:

Personally, I would dump the Mondeo diesel, as there are known faults on the injectors. As with most diesels you then have DMF issues to worry about - £500 worth of work on a car the same value.
I personally would consider the B5 A4 / passat. I don't normally go for VW, but these have proven reliable over a long period of time.
The outstanding buy at this price range though is a Peugeot 406 2.0 Hdi. Troublesome electric window electrics, but after that, you should get 300k or more out of a decently looked after one. I've always fancied a Xsara with this engine in to, and I can imagine they would be good value / reliable. C5 is cheap to, and apparently very comfy.
We have also had very good service from a Alfa 147 JTD. Still quite nice cars in my eyes, though the front end bangs for fun.
It's worth having a think about safety on some of the older 106 / Saxo ideas you have put forward. Some of the Ncap vids are a bit worrying.

You make a good point about the mondeo diesels, I wouldn't look to get a diesel in any of the cars I posted apart from the smaller non turbo ones to be honest. I'm not a diesel fan, but the tirbo diesels I have had are very drivable and easy to live with day to day. I had an octavia TDI which was great for the £1500 I paid for it. Ive heard good things about the 406 HDI and it would certainly make a comfy commuter - however I do worry about any larger diesel car at this end of the market. I'm not sure I would be able to find something that isn't on its last legs at my budget, but I don't know.. Worth a look and I won't discount it.

Indeed the safety rating on some of these older tin cans aren't great, I do try my best not to think about it in this case a petrol mondeo or the like might be a good compromise!

Edited by Chateauneufdupape on Monday 23 May 08:20

[Chateauneufdupape]

Thanks for all the Input everyone, lots of food for thought here!

I've been spending some time on Google and also ebay looking in to some of the options suggested. I'm quite keen on some of the jap options for reliability, but open to anything reliable.

My problem is a lot of the cars im interested in don't have good praise for their auto box's, which is annoying. Any thoughts or experience here gratefully received, I want an auto to make for more relaxed comfortable commuting, so a hideous auto box would defeat the point.

[Chateauneufdupape]

I appreciate that a small auto of this sort of age/at this end of the market are never going to be as good as the newer 7 speed bmw autos or DSG etc but Im not expecting miracles, just something reasonably good for what it is.

Got a few lined up to have a look at tomorrow on my day off so will report back

[Chateauneufdupape]

Yesterday I went to see a primera, sadly it appeared to have a knackered gearbox which the seller was totally in denial about! I then had a go in an auto focus, I was very keen on the car but the gearbox was awful. I also called someone about a 406 which they insist is in lovely condition apart from the occasional misfire.

Today I am viewing a Honda Jazz, which if as described should be great! We'll see.

Thanks for the continued comments and ideas, it's made the search that bit easier.