A very boring 'What Car?'
Discussion
My Ford Puma is now at that stage where the ever expanding list of niggles and faults is getting a bit annoying, so I'm looking to change. The criteria:
High priority:
- Economical, I currently work as a chinese delivery driver whilst I am looking for an apprenticeship/career path. Cover over 100 miles in a night, the pay/tips are good but petrol is my own expense. I don't mind this but obviously the less I spend the better
- Reliability, probably the most important part. No car = no work = no money = me in the s
t
- Low insurance, I'm a 19 year old male and I live in Birmingham so I'm prime to be hammered by insurance. Cheaper the better but I dont mind paying more for a better car
Medium priority:
- Comfort, my Puma wasn't the best at this. I spend up to 6 hours nearly constantly a night driving around. I'm reasonably tall with long legs so a nice driving position would be brilliant
- Looks, I understand beggars can't be choosers but there's no harm in wanting something that looks nice
- Equipment, as above really. E/windows a must, A/C would be nice, as would a sunroof
Low priority:
- Xenon/projector headlights, don't ask why but I have a thing for them. Doesn't really matte but this was what drew me to a Puma haha
Budget is up to £1,000. Car MUST have a good amount of MOT and tax but I suppose thats my problem to sort
For reference, my previous cars
- 2002/02 Fiat Punto 1.2
- 2004/04 Fiat Punto 1.2
- 2000/V VW Golf Mk4 1.4
- 1999/V Seat Ibiza 1.4
- 2001/Y Ford Puma 1.7
Cheers all!
ETA, wouldn't say no to a diesel, in fact would probably make more sense. No automatics.
High priority:
- Economical, I currently work as a chinese delivery driver whilst I am looking for an apprenticeship/career path. Cover over 100 miles in a night, the pay/tips are good but petrol is my own expense. I don't mind this but obviously the less I spend the better
- Reliability, probably the most important part. No car = no work = no money = me in the s
t- Low insurance, I'm a 19 year old male and I live in Birmingham so I'm prime to be hammered by insurance. Cheaper the better but I dont mind paying more for a better car
Medium priority:
- Comfort, my Puma wasn't the best at this. I spend up to 6 hours nearly constantly a night driving around. I'm reasonably tall with long legs so a nice driving position would be brilliant
- Looks, I understand beggars can't be choosers but there's no harm in wanting something that looks nice
- Equipment, as above really. E/windows a must, A/C would be nice, as would a sunroof
Low priority:
- Xenon/projector headlights, don't ask why but I have a thing for them. Doesn't really matte but this was what drew me to a Puma haha
Budget is up to £1,000. Car MUST have a good amount of MOT and tax but I suppose thats my problem to sort
For reference, my previous cars
- 2002/02 Fiat Punto 1.2
- 2004/04 Fiat Punto 1.2
- 2000/V VW Golf Mk4 1.4
- 1999/V Seat Ibiza 1.4
- 2001/Y Ford Puma 1.7
Cheers all!
ETA, wouldn't say no to a diesel, in fact would probably make more sense. No automatics.
Edited by BenMk3 on Tuesday 24th June 05:55
Something with a VW group diesel. Maybe Fabia TDi? It won't be a Puma, unlikely to have aircon and HIDs, but it'll cost a lot less in fuel.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...
This Octavia will cost more to run, but has aircon and will be more comfortable:
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...
This Octavia will cost more to run, but has aircon and will be more comfortable:
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...
BenMk3 said:
Been looking at 1996 on Rover 414s. Is this a Rover or Honda engine?
Here you go.http://www.the75andztclub.co.uk/forum/showthread.p...
I imagine that the Civic may be expensive for you to insure because a lot of them get modded and crashed by young drivers.
How about an old Accord/Corolla/Avensis? Similar reliability and AT brings up loads of Accords under 1K. Insurance might actually be cheaper. They tend to be well equipped.
Delivery driving means a lot of short journeys. For me, this would rule out a diesel. I would go with petrol. A hybrid might be a good choice but there is nothing under 1K (looking on AT it seems you need at least 2K for a Gen1 Prius) and the older ones are quite frumpy.
At this price point I would personally go with a Japanese make. The Fiesta is a good possibility though; I imagine that maintenance could be done fairly cheaply.
How about an old Accord/Corolla/Avensis? Similar reliability and AT brings up loads of Accords under 1K. Insurance might actually be cheaper. They tend to be well equipped.
Delivery driving means a lot of short journeys. For me, this would rule out a diesel. I would go with petrol. A hybrid might be a good choice but there is nothing under 1K (looking on AT it seems you need at least 2K for a Gen1 Prius) and the older ones are quite frumpy.
At this price point I would personally go with a Japanese make. The Fiesta is a good possibility though; I imagine that maintenance could be done fairly cheaply.
BenMk3 said:
Civics seem to cost stloads to insure even for the non VTEC 1.5s.
Been looking at 1996 on Rover 414s. Is this a Rover or Honda engine?
Rover 414 is A K series engine, of that year it is unlikely to have had the updates needed to prevent head gasket problems. Unless the owner shows proof that any work has been done if the reliability is one of your top requirements look elsewhere. If you did get one a good gentle warm up/ cool down and regular coolant checks are good practice. tloads to insure even for the non VTEC 1.5s.Been looking at 1996 on Rover 414s. Is this a Rover or Honda engine?
Definitely agree with the 90's Japanese is the way to go. Old shape Colt should be solidly reliable , you might just pick up a new shape if you don't mind a high miler.
Good Look
AmitG said:
I imagine that the Civic may be expensive for you to insure because a lot of them get modded and crashed by young drivers.
How about an old Accord/Corolla/Avensis? Similar reliability and AT brings up loads of Accords under 1K. Insurance might actually be cheaper. They tend to be well equipped.
Delivery driving means a lot of short journeys. For me, this would rule out a diesel. I would go with petrol. A hybrid might be a good choice but there is nothing under 1K (looking on AT it seems you need at least 2K for a Gen1 Prius) and the older ones are quite frumpy.
At this price point I would personally go with a Japanese make. The Fiesta is a good possibility though; I imagine that maintenance could be done fairly cheaply.
The accord sixth gen is a great car, but parts can be incredibly difficult to find if you need a non service item. I sold my 02 accord as virtually everything was unobtainable, and Honda UK just couldn't care less. I had a coolant pipe fail, the part was discontinued when the car was just three years old. Shame as it was a fantastic car. I'd (and did) go for anything VAG as VW group seem to be the complete opposite and everything is available with vw group (well, seat at least) only too happy to help owners of older cars, genuine parts are very cheap as well, through someone like Trade Parts Specialists. How about an old Accord/Corolla/Avensis? Similar reliability and AT brings up loads of Accords under 1K. Insurance might actually be cheaper. They tend to be well equipped.
Delivery driving means a lot of short journeys. For me, this would rule out a diesel. I would go with petrol. A hybrid might be a good choice but there is nothing under 1K (looking on AT it seems you need at least 2K for a Gen1 Prius) and the older ones are quite frumpy.
At this price point I would personally go with a Japanese make. The Fiesta is a good possibility though; I imagine that maintenance could be done fairly cheaply.
BenMk3 said:
Civics seem to cost stloads to insure even for the non VTEC 1.5s.
Been looking at 1996 on Rover 414s. Is this a Rover or Honda engine?
All 1.4s are K-series. The Honda D-series engined ones are the 1.6es on the earlier 'wedge' shape cars (except some of the later cabrio and coupes with the later interiors, which are K-series), and some of the later-style 416 automatics. The diesels are meant to be pretty bullet-proof on those, though, if the K-series seems too risky to you (it's not as bad as everyone says, but its still an issue).tloads to insure even for the non VTEC 1.5s.Been looking at 1996 on Rover 414s. Is this a Rover or Honda engine?
The right car for this job is the Nissan Micra K11 ('93-'02), really. It's not fast, it's not sexy, but its dirt cheap (to buy and for consumables), ultra-reliable and good on fuel. It's got quite an upright driving position which may or may not be to your tastes but the seat goes quite far back and is comfy and the pedals aren't offset which was the #1 thing for me. Not all of them have AC and electric windows but a lot do.
Cheapest thing on fuel I can think of is a Saxo/106 diesel; the problem is the offset pedals are really uncomfy on a long drive, so I wouldn't reccommend one to be honest.
I've got a Toyota Corolla 1.4 now (late '90s shape), which is dull as anything but probably a reasonable option. The gearing in it is really short, so it gets rubbish MPG on a run (only about 41-ish) but you can drive around in 5th at 30 without it bogging down so probably gets quite good MPG around town. Having said that, it's more expensive than a Micra and the seat is a bit too firm for my tastes.
Edited by ImpossiblyDaft on Sunday 29th June 17:16
Usually a "bugeyed" Corolla costs pennies to run and will likely outlast human civilisation. Just don't go round corners too quickly... I'd have to slow to 25mph for corners my brother could take in his Pug 306 at 40mph. Mind you, his Pug was at the garage all the time... 
However, any car has its good and bad examples. At £1000 you buy the best kept example of anything that isn't completely crap and doesn't cost you too much to run. If I had to pick a model I'd steer you towards 90's Japanese cars but better a mint example of a Citroen Xsara than a battered Corolla with a bent chassis. Best of luck.
However, any car has its good and bad examples. At £1000 you buy the best kept example of anything that isn't completely crap and doesn't cost you too much to run. If I had to pick a model I'd steer you towards 90's Japanese cars but better a mint example of a Citroen Xsara than a battered Corolla with a bent chassis. Best of luck.
MJ85 said:
That's the badger. OP - buy this - a taxi of choice until a year or two ago.Bonefish Blues said:
MJ85 said:
That's the badger. OP - buy this - a taxi of choice until a year or two ago.Your job is the same as a taxi. Around here Octavia mk1 TDis used to dominate the taxi rank and they should be in budget. Same 110bhp engine as in the Bora recommended earlier. Also the Leon and Toledo, which is a saloon Leon but less popular so even cheaper, come with this engine. I was also thinking 306 HDi 90. They go on forever and well under budget. Skoda Fabia SDi also a goer.
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