What car for my 85 y/o mum?
Discussion
Hi all, sorry for another what car thread but I need to look at types of car I'd never consider for myself.
My stepfather has finally killed my mum's 2005 Corolla by driving it into a fence post. We are trying to convince him to stop driving (another thread topic...). Mum's driving is OK still, so she's looking for a replacement. Mostly local journeys with the odd run from London - up to a couple of hours.
Requirements:
My thoughts so far:
Skoda Yeti 1.2 DSG
Citroen Cactus BlueHDI100 with ETG6 box
Any thoughts? Any lease deals - I can only find manual boxes?
Cheers all
My stepfather has finally killed my mum's 2005 Corolla by driving it into a fence post. We are trying to convince him to stop driving (another thread topic...). Mum's driving is OK still, so she's looking for a replacement. Mostly local journeys with the odd run from London - up to a couple of hours.
Requirements:
- Small-ish. They're both quite tall and not skinny, so the rental Micra they have is too small.
- Higher driving position. Easier to get in and out, improved visbility.
- Auto
- Low boot sill (or hatch) even better
My thoughts so far:
Skoda Yeti 1.2 DSG
Citroen Cactus BlueHDI100 with ETG6 box
Any thoughts? Any lease deals - I can only find manual boxes?
Cheers all
My 81-y-o FiL is looking for a new car with similar requirements, though sounds like he's a bit smaller built. Kia and Hyundai are high on his list - 7 year factory warranty, and, he thinks, fixed priced servicing too. Both brands seem to be getting a lot of favour with hire companies here too. All are available with autobox here - not sure about the UK.
How about a Leaf or Zoe?
Will suit them if most journeys are short-ish.
Zoe lease deals about £180 pcm.
Leaf maybe £220pcm but its a bigger car and would probably suit your Mother and step father better.
New 30kw version will do 120+ miles doing mostly urban driving.
My mates parents have had a Zoe for nearly a year and love it.
I get my Leaf on a 3 year lease on 22nd and the local Nissan dealer matched the best online deal I could find.
Will suit them if most journeys are short-ish.
Zoe lease deals about £180 pcm.
Leaf maybe £220pcm but its a bigger car and would probably suit your Mother and step father better.
New 30kw version will do 120+ miles doing mostly urban driving.
My mates parents have had a Zoe for nearly a year and love it.
I get my Leaf on a 3 year lease on 22nd and the local Nissan dealer matched the best online deal I could find.
Don't get a modern diesel for short trips. The DPF will clog and present a bill.
Why lease? Why not another cheapo Corolla or similar? They liked the old one, and you can replace that for less than 1 year's lease. With the best will in the world, at 85 anything could happen to stop them driving inside the next 3 years and you don't want to have to cough for the cancellation charges, better to be able to get rid of a £1500 item that owes you nothing and won't make anyone cry if it has to die after a scrape or incident.
Why lease? Why not another cheapo Corolla or similar? They liked the old one, and you can replace that for less than 1 year's lease. With the best will in the world, at 85 anything could happen to stop them driving inside the next 3 years and you don't want to have to cough for the cancellation charges, better to be able to get rid of a £1500 item that owes you nothing and won't make anyone cry if it has to die after a scrape or incident.
Honda Jazz.
Previous model Hybrid CVT - the pick of the range
Current Jazz - 1.3 CVT - grades from SE up have front and rear sensors and lots of standard safety kit.
High driving position, low sill, flat seats/magic seats, and the Jazz has been the UK's most reliable car for 9 years running.
New car deals include 5 years servicing for £555...
Depending on your location I would be happy to help..
Previous model Hybrid CVT - the pick of the range
Current Jazz - 1.3 CVT - grades from SE up have front and rear sensors and lots of standard safety kit.
High driving position, low sill, flat seats/magic seats, and the Jazz has been the UK's most reliable car for 9 years running.
New car deals include 5 years servicing for £555...
Depending on your location I would be happy to help..
Thanks for ideas so far. I agree about the DPF, but they do longer runs at speed (we're about 30 mins up the A1M) which should keep it clear. Electric is a no-go, they've just moved to a flat with parking but no power.
I thought about another Corolla, but physical limitations were starting to make that hard for him to get out of. She also just spent £400 on discs and pads for her old one, and the idea of an older car then needing maintenance is probably not right for them.
CR-V is an idea, they may perceive it as too big, and it looks to be over double the cost of the Skoda/Citroen.
Kia Soul may work...
I thought about another Corolla, but physical limitations were starting to make that hard for him to get out of. She also just spent £400 on discs and pads for her old one, and the idea of an older car then needing maintenance is probably not right for them.
CR-V is an idea, they may perceive it as too big, and it looks to be over double the cost of the Skoda/Citroen.
Kia Soul may work...
B.J.W said:
Honda Jazz.
Previous model Hybrid CVT - the pick of the range
Current Jazz - 1.3 CVT - grades from SE up have front and rear sensors and lots of standard safety kit.
High driving position, low sill, flat seats/magic seats, and the Jazz has been the UK's most reliable car for 9 years running.
New car deals include 5 years servicing for £555...
Depending on your location I would be happy to help..
This. It's a car designed specifically with them in mind, and a very good one at it.Previous model Hybrid CVT - the pick of the range
Current Jazz - 1.3 CVT - grades from SE up have front and rear sensors and lots of standard safety kit.
High driving position, low sill, flat seats/magic seats, and the Jazz has been the UK's most reliable car for 9 years running.
New car deals include 5 years servicing for £555...
Depending on your location I would be happy to help..
I know this doesn't follow your requirements quite but...
My parents (70 and 78) have a Freelander and an IQ. The IQ now gets used for pretty much everything except towing the caravan. For such a tiny car it's pretty spacious (I'm 6'2" and fit in fine), and is very easy for them to get in and out of as being a 3 door it has long doors and is fairly upright seating position. It uses next to no fuel, costs £10/year road tax, and is about the easiest car to park you can imagine. No real boot but they leave the rear seats folded all the time giving a decent sized shopping capacity.
My parents (70 and 78) have a Freelander and an IQ. The IQ now gets used for pretty much everything except towing the caravan. For such a tiny car it's pretty spacious (I'm 6'2" and fit in fine), and is very easy for them to get in and out of as being a 3 door it has long doors and is fairly upright seating position. It uses next to no fuel, costs £10/year road tax, and is about the easiest car to park you can imagine. No real boot but they leave the rear seats folded all the time giving a decent sized shopping capacity.
mr_spock said:
Thanks for ideas so far. I agree about the DPF, but they do longer runs at speed (we're about 30 mins up the A1M) which should keep it clear. Electric is a no-go, they've just moved to a flat with parking but no power.
I thought about another Corolla, but physical limitations were starting to make that hard for him to get out of. She also just spent £400 on discs and pads for her old one, and the idea of an older car then needing maintenance is probably not right for them.
CR-V is an idea, they may perceive it as too big, and it looks to be over double the cost of the Skoda/Citroen.
Kia Soul may work...
You need an HR-V. Honda's compact SUV based on the Jazz Platform. Intermediate driving position. Available in 1.5 CVT (although there is a lead time because we sell the cars as soon as they become available)I thought about another Corolla, but physical limitations were starting to make that hard for him to get out of. She also just spent £400 on discs and pads for her old one, and the idea of an older car then needing maintenance is probably not right for them.
CR-V is an idea, they may perceive it as too big, and it looks to be over double the cost of the Skoda/Citroen.
Kia Soul may work...
GreatGranny said:
How about a Leaf or Zoe?
Will suit them if most journeys are short-ish.
Zoe lease deals about £180 pcm.
Leaf maybe £220pcm but its a bigger car and would probably suit your Mother and step father better.
New 30kw version will do 120+ miles doing mostly urban driving.
My mates parents have had a Zoe for nearly a year and love it.
Interesting option.Will suit them if most journeys are short-ish.
Zoe lease deals about £180 pcm.
Leaf maybe £220pcm but its a bigger car and would probably suit your Mother and step father better.
New 30kw version will do 120+ miles doing mostly urban driving.
My mates parents have had a Zoe for nearly a year and love it.
I was going to say the Honda Jazz seems like the archetypal old person's car to me.
If they're not doing a lot of mileage, especially short journeys, I'd go for a petrol over a diesel. The fuel economy difference won't be enormous in ££ and those kinds of journeys run the risk of giving problems with the DPF on a diesel if it's never getting up to a decent temperature. That's if they're not going for electric!
If the automatic answer to everything else is 'MX-5' then this is surely Honda Jazz, with bells and whistles and a big claxon saying 'obvious answer is obvious!' Gotta be a Honda Jazz.
Did I mention the Honda Jazz? Great car, very suitable for their needs. In silver. If not, then I recommend another Honda Jazz, in blue.
Did I mention the Honda Jazz? Great car, very suitable for their needs. In silver. If not, then I recommend another Honda Jazz, in blue.
Speed Badger said:
If the automatic answer to everything else is 'MX-5' then this is surely Honda Jazz, with bells and whistles and a big claxon saying 'obvious answer is obvious!' Gotta be a Honda Jazz.
Did I mention the Honda Jazz? Great car, very suitable for their needs. In silver. If not, then I recommend another Honda Jazz, in blue.
A bit left field, but have they considered a Honda Jazz in red?Did I mention the Honda Jazz? Great car, very suitable for their needs. In silver. If not, then I recommend another Honda Jazz, in blue.
battered said:
.... a Jazz is a good suggestion. It's not the pensioners' favourite for nothing.
The thing is, it`s just the UK that has this image of the Jazz.The car has a rather different fan-base in the states and Canada where it`s bought by youngsters and there are lots that are modified.
Anyway, we`ve got a Jazz (20 years until my wife and I will be pensioners) and it`s great. They`re really versatile, cost buttons to run and are utterly reliable.
I`ve offered to swap ours for something else but we can`t really think of anything that would be suitable.
The new HR-V is a good shout.
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