£1k or less - shed, banger, something fruity?

[funkyrobot]

My trusty Mazda3 was sold this morning. Therefore, I'm after something cheap and cheerful to fill the void. At the moment, I don't need a vehicle to get to work. The car I'm after will be used for evenings, weekends etc. It will need to be large as I am tall, my fiancee is tall and we have a two year old (so safety is important too).

What could I get for £1k or less? Anything that could be classed as a bit fruity/different out there? Or am I stuck with normal stuff like a Ford Focus?

Also, I would like to take the opportunity to learn spannering whilst owning this car. Something easy to work on would be a bonus. My current spannering experience involves diagnosing and fixing a coil pack issue on my fiancee's Polo. I'm as beginner as beginner can be.

Cheers all.

[funkyrobot]

Good suggestion.

[funkyrobot]

SebringMan said:

You wouldn't go far wrong with a Clio 172 for this money as long as you are not fussy about mileage.

Will it fit 2 tall people and a two year old ok?

Ta.

[funkyrobot]

Pazuzu said:

I bought a 2001 Jaguar XJ8 for slightly over that budget - highly recommended

It has to be something like this.

[funkyrobot]

UberMeister said:

Volvo V40/S40 T4

A good, safe option. Thanks.

[funkyrobot]

MiggyA said:

E46 prices are low right now (possibly as low as they'll get). Not that exciting but a 2.5 or 2.8 (or fairly ropey 330) could be found for around that money if you're patient, and they have a good crash rating.

Thanks. I've actually been looking at e39's. For some reason, I really like them.

E46 is a good shout though.

[funkyrobot]

mikeyr said:

Yes, but you might find you are cramped and the driving position is a little bus like anyway. Boot space isn't massive for the assorted kid paraphernalia.

Focus is a decent steer?

My mazda was a Focus underneath. I guess there isn't much wrong with them.

Ta.

[funkyrobot]

Do these look ok?



http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/252572870061?_trksid=p20...



http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/122169271694?_trksid=p20...

[funkyrobot]

Thanks for the above.

Been looking at E39's.

Saw a nice Honda Accord near me, but is sold quite quickly.

[funkyrobot]

https://www.gumtree.com/p/seat/SEAT-TOLEDO-1.9-S-T...

Boring, diesel (may not be the best choice at this price point), local and cheap.

I know the old 1.9 is an ok engine. Looks like cam belt and water pump was done somewhere between June 2013 and June 2014. Recent oil service and new tyres.

Ok?

[funkyrobot]

Found a 2001 Honda Accord. MOT until June 2017. Only thing I can see is this MOT fail this june:

'Offside front subframe mounting prescribed area is excessively corroded floor pan'.

Rusting?

[funkyrobot]

irocfan said:

Puma - don't laugh, had 4 adults in one (driver was 6'7")

I won't. They look like really good, cheap cars.

Only issue I would have is getting my daughter and her seat in and out.

[funkyrobot]

ClaphamGT3 said:

Yes, structural corrosion which *should* have been fixed to an at least adequate standard in order to pass on re-test.

Be aware that MOT failures for corrosion on cars that don't have a reputation for corrosion often indicates a badly executed accident repair

Thanks. I guess Honda's don't usually rust?

[funkyrobot]

DanQyou said:

Could you get a decent Prelude in that budget?

Have seen one or two on my searches. Would they fit two tall people and a two year old?

I've seen a few Nissan Almera's. However, I'm not sure if they would be big enough for my needs.

Seen a few Accords, but they all have mega miles on. Quite a few Volvo's. Plenty of Ford and Vauxhall examples.

[funkyrobot]

Looks great.

[funkyrobot]

I would love to. However, after doing my research, it seems that they need money throwing at them. Not what I want to do at the moment.

[funkyrobot]

Citroen C5's any good?

Found a 54 plate 2.0 hdi one with year's MOT and 130k on the clock. I'm not doing mega miles, so a diesel is probably a bad idea. Only just over £500 though.

Just realised the steering wheel looks like it has melted.

Edited by funkyrobot on Sunday 23 October 21:39

[funkyrobot]

defblade said:

Seriously? You want a £1k car that will not, at some point, need money throwing at it? Japanese and a dose of luck for you then!

The only expense in the last year or so of running my E39 that has been higher than about £100 was 4 new tyres and you can hardly blame the car for that. Paid £1350 May '15 and have spent roughly £540 on stuff beyond tyres/oil since, some of which was preventative rather than strictly necessary.

I know a sub £1k car will need money at some point. It's just that if you read my thread on here about the e39, there are a lot of people saying they are expensive to keep.

I do like the cars and tales like yours give me a bit of confidence.

[funkyrobot]

defblade said:

I think most of the people who are saying they're expensive to keep are loving and cherishing them rather than shedding them (flame suit on ). Currently, many shedable E39s about, that's not going to last forever - come back in a couple of years when the remaining half decent ones are heading back up over £4k.

But so long as gearbox and rust troubles are going to do in the majority, why not be one of those who enjoys top class shedding until the death happens?




Personally, I'm starting to look for my perfect, low mileage, E39 Touring to run over the next few years and hopefully cash in on the rise if I can keep it under the everyone-else-thinks-it's-magic 100k miles by then

To be fair, I've been looking for something cheap for a week or so now. As I live in Lincolnshire, it's as if I'm surrounded by terrible cars.

It's a rarity to find anything with an MOT longer than early 2017 and anything that doesn't look wrecked. There are some examples out there, and I do find the occasional one.

I seem to be surrounded by Ford, Vauxhall and Peugeot examples too. Hard to find a Japanese make around here that is in good nick.

Might as well go for a shed E39 then.

[funkyrobot]

Looks good.

I was looking at Almera's. However, I then read about the fact that they have a timing chain issue on the 1.5 engine. Sort of put me off.