Toyota Aygo 2010 left me cold - anything else £20 road tax?
Discussion
Cashing in my rarely used Focus to free up some money and looking to go shedding with something cheap tax <£20 as I'm barely driving 2k a year these days.
Had a test drive of a very low mileage 2010 Aygo 1.0 68hp today but while the power output was pretty much what I was expecting I was left feeling really cold with the completely numb steering and also the ridiculously lonnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnng gear ratios in 1st and 2nd. Basically you can drive everywhere in 1st gear, even on motorways
. Okay I may be exaggerating slightly about the motorways but the ratio is so long that it makes pulling away from a standstill on hills more of a chore than it should be as you need a gazillion revs otherwise it will stall. It's like trying to set off in 2nd gear in any other car 
.
I've not driven the C1s or Peugeot 107s but do I understand correctly that these have the same running gear and so I'll have the same issue with these too? Are they all the same in this respect (steering and gear ratios)?
I have noticed from viewing quite a selection of all 3 types over the past few days that the vast majority of them under £1500 (private) and under £2000 (dealer) look like they've been through a demolition derby when you see them in person or have moon mileage so if you want a decent one without scuffed and dented panels you need to up your budget by quite a margin. On the plus side they do seem to hold their value well and go for comparatively strong money if the bodywork is good.
Anything else in the £20 tax bracket and <£2000-2500 worth looking at? I've seen Chevloret and Hyundai's i10 offerings but they don't appeal to me. No diesels as I'd be forever unclogging the EGR.
Had a test drive of a very low mileage 2010 Aygo 1.0 68hp today but while the power output was pretty much what I was expecting I was left feeling really cold with the completely numb steering and also the ridiculously lonnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnng gear ratios in 1st and 2nd. Basically you can drive everywhere in 1st gear, even on motorways
. Okay I may be exaggerating slightly about the motorways but the ratio is so long that it makes pulling away from a standstill on hills more of a chore than it should be as you need a gazillion revs otherwise it will stall. It's like trying to set off in 2nd gear in any other car .I've not driven the C1s or Peugeot 107s but do I understand correctly that these have the same running gear and so I'll have the same issue with these too? Are they all the same in this respect (steering and gear ratios)?
I have noticed from viewing quite a selection of all 3 types over the past few days that the vast majority of them under £1500 (private) and under £2000 (dealer) look like they've been through a demolition derby when you see them in person or have moon mileage so if you want a decent one without scuffed and dented panels you need to up your budget by quite a margin. On the plus side they do seem to hold their value well and go for comparatively strong money if the bodywork is good.
Anything else in the £20 tax bracket and <£2000-2500 worth looking at? I've seen Chevloret and Hyundai's i10 offerings but they don't appeal to me. No diesels as I'd be forever unclogging the EGR.
Lukas239 said:
Why focus on the tax which is almost certainly the single smallest expense you'll encounter?
Spend less on the car and the rest covers insurance and tax. Now a much less limited range of cars to choose from.
I know but it's a man maths thing. I don't want to be spending ~ £200 a year in tax when I'm only doing a couple of k in it, irrespective of the fact I could buy some left field snotter for a few hundred quid if I tried hard enough. It's much the same reason why the vast majority of people avoid snotters in the top tax brackets. Also from my observations over the past couple of months of looking, pretty much everything at £600 and below is absolutely knackered and "part-ex to clear, no warranty" at dealers and very very few private ads at that price level, probably because people don't want the hassle and chop them in to dealers as part-ex for something newer. If they're selling it privately themselves then there seems to be an unwritten rule that it must be advertised for at least a grand regardless of age, mileage etc and even though it's not realistically worth more than a couple of hundred quid they are insulted if you try to knock more than £100 off.Spend less on the car and the rest covers insurance and tax. Now a much less limited range of cars to choose from.
The only other option is to bid and buy blind from an Ebay no reserve auction and that's very much a pure luck thing whether or not you get yourself a bargain or a money pit.
There's also the insurance cost to factor in as well. A mate of mine is looking to replace his old Civic 1.4 petrol on a Y-plate and said I could have it for £200 which is £50 less than what he paid for it 3-4 years ago. Nothing wrong with it mechanically. I ran some insurance quotes and the cheapest was just short of £900 (!). Tax is £160 for them so no amount of man maths is going to get those figures to work beyond a year.
Just bought a Skoda Citigo to replace my wife's Panda, largely through safety concerns (read Fiat Panda safety ratings. The Citigo is a revelation in terms of quality and features etc. The Citigo and it's siblings the VW Up and the Seat Mii categorically must be the best cars in class based on our brief experience so far
nikaiyo2 said:
Lol my mum got a C1 last year (she liked the red roof!) I could not believe how high the clutch was, so test drove 3 of them at the same dealer as I could not believe that the clutch was not knackered!
So yeah the C1 is like it
Yeah just been for a test drive in a C1 and that was the same So yeah the C1 is like it
. The steering had noticeably more 'feel' to it on the C1 than the Aygo I drove yesterday. It was quite nice to drive actually and with 81k on the clock the engine was much more perky than the Aygo which only had half that. Going to test drive another Aygo now so will find out if it's an Aygo thing or whether the one I drove yesterday was a dog.Try a Panda / Fiat 500 / Ford Ka (all basically the same car). The 1.2l petrol in the Ford is still a bit of a slouch at approx 12seconds 0-60mph but then that is the reality of the performance levels in these cars. I just sold a nice Ka (59plate 59k mileage) for £2k so there are viable cars out there, but many will be high number of owners and lacking service history, such is the norm at this age and pricepoint.
Nickp82 said:
Suzuki Swift 1.2 models are £20/30 tax, they are quite fun and well put together. Looks like it is only the leggier ones that will fit your budget though.
A Splash or Alto would also fit the bit. My mother in law has a 1.0 Splash, £20 tax and runs on fresh air. It's also very tough and quite a nippy little thing. Lots of space too.Lemming Train said:
Yeah just been for a test drive in a C1 and that was the same . The steering had noticeably more 'feel' to it on the C1 than the Aygo I drove yesterday. It was quite nice to drive actually and with 81k on the clock the engine was much more perky than the Aygo which only had half that. Going to test drive another Aygo now so will find out if it's an Aygo thing or whether the one I drove yesterday was a dog.
If you don't mind paying £30 tax then there are some very good options: . The steering had noticeably more 'feel' to it on the C1 than the Aygo I drove yesterday. It was quite nice to drive actually and with 81k on the clock the engine was much more perky than the Aygo which only had half that. Going to test drive another Aygo now so will find out if it's an Aygo thing or whether the one I drove yesterday was a dog.Alfa Giulietta 170
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Clio GT Line 120
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Mazda3 Sport Nav 120
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Mini Cooper 135
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
DS3 Puretech 110
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Thanks for the suggestions chaps . Unfortunately the Citigo, Up, Mii and others suggested are all either out of my price range (under £2500) or there's simply none in the area and my days of travelling all over the country for cars are long gone. I did see a Ka that ticked the boxes but while the bodywork was in good condition, getting down on the ground and having a good look underneath revealed quite extensive rot taking hold, including a few advisories on the last MOT.
This afternoon I've test driven another Aygo and also another C1 Splash. Unless I've gotten unlucky and both Aygo's were dogs, there is a distinct difference in the steering feel compared to the C1s. The Aygo had the same numb, floaty feeling as the 1st one yet both of the C1s had a decent feel to them with a nice touch of 'resistance' through the steering wheel when going around roundabouts. The Aygo's felt quite 'oversteery' which I didn't like.
The 2nd C1 had bad leaks as the spare tyre well was full of water. The salesman was unimpressed by my discovery and really didn't see the funny side when I cracked the obvious joke about why the model was called Splash . Needless to say I've given that one a swerve.
I've decided to pull the trigger
on the 1st C1 Splash I saw yesterday. Unmarked blue bodywork and it's like new inside, 2010, 81k, 2 previous owners, FSH, long MOT, aircon, leccy windows, dry boot and everything works. Met in the middle with the dealer at £2k which on the face of it sounds toppy but if you've spent any time looking at these on the second hand market the vast majority of them at this age and older are complete dogs covered in dings and scratches, also a large number of Cat C/D/N/S insurance write-offs too. Given how well these seem to hold their value I'd rather pay the bit extra for a minter and keep it mint then if my circumstances change I reckon I could get back most of what it cost if I choose to sell it on.
. Unfortunately the Citigo, Up, Mii and others suggested are all either out of my price range (under £2500) or there's simply none in the area and my days of travelling all over the country for cars are long gone. I did see a Ka that ticked the boxes but while the bodywork was in good condition, getting down on the ground and having a good look underneath revealed quite extensive rot taking hold, including a few advisories on the last MOT.This afternoon I've test driven another Aygo and also another C1 Splash. Unless I've gotten unlucky and both Aygo's were dogs, there is a distinct difference in the steering feel compared to the C1s. The Aygo had the same numb, floaty feeling as the 1st one yet both of the C1s had a decent feel to them with a nice touch of 'resistance' through the steering wheel when going around roundabouts. The Aygo's felt quite 'oversteery' which I didn't like.
The 2nd C1 had bad leaks as the spare tyre well was full of water. The salesman was unimpressed by my discovery and really didn't see the funny side when I cracked the obvious joke about why the model was called Splash
. Needless to say I've given that one a swerve.I've decided to pull the trigger
on the 1st C1 Splash I saw yesterday. Unmarked blue bodywork and it's like new inside, 2010, 81k, 2 previous owners, FSH, long MOT, aircon, leccy windows, dry boot and everything works. Met in the middle with the dealer at £2k which on the face of it sounds toppy but if you've spent any time looking at these on the second hand market the vast majority of them at this age and older are complete dogs covered in dings and scratches, also a large number of Cat C/D/N/S insurance write-offs too. Given how well these seem to hold their value I'd rather pay the bit extra for a minter and keep it mint then if my circumstances change I reckon I could get back most of what it cost if I choose to sell it on.ZX10R NIN said:
If you don't mind paying £30 tax then there are some very good options:
Alfa Giulietta 170
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Clio GT Line 120
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Mazda3 Sport Nav 120
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Mini Cooper 135
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
DS3 Puretech 110
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
All great cars but I think you missed OPs budget Alfa Giulietta 170
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Clio GT Line 120
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Mazda3 Sport Nav 120
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Mini Cooper 135
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
DS3 Puretech 110
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Lemming Train said:
Yeah just been for a test drive in a C1 and that was the same . The steering had noticeably more 'feel' to it on the C1 than the Aygo I drove yesterday. It was quite nice to drive actually and with 81k on the clock the engine was much more perky than the Aygo which only had half that. Going to test drive another Aygo now so will find out if it's an Aygo thing or whether the one I drove yesterday was a dog.
The C1 is not a bad little car to drive, she had an old shape KA prior (well 4 KAs) and they are great fun to chuck about, the C1 is not as good . The steering had noticeably more 'feel' to it on the C1 than the Aygo I drove yesterday. It was quite nice to drive actually and with 81k on the clock the engine was much more perky than the Aygo which only had half that. Going to test drive another Aygo now so will find out if it's an Aygo thing or whether the one I drove yesterday was a dog.
.She has an Airscape Flair model (I think) so it has loads of kit as standard, and it all seems to work just fine.
It uses virtually no fuel, its amazing, its like its powered by air. I drove it yesterday, to go from Winchester, to Portsmouth, Back to Winchester via Fareham and Southampton, it used about a 1/4 of a tank!
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