Most Economical Car under £500

[Travisxr3i]

Hi all,

I am a university student who is travelling 25 miles to and from uni 5x per week.

I am not particularly fussed for the time being about what car I own. I am just after the cheapest runaround (Tax & MPG) for under £500 for the next 2-3 years. (I do have 3 years no claims and live in a really good area for insurance)

The commute is half countryside lanes and half motorway.

I have been told that a Suzuki Alto might be my best bet but wanted to ask on here if there's anything that could be better?

Thank you in advance!

Travis

[rallycross]

Mitsubishi Colt cz

[zedx19]

Toyota Yaris

[Shaqq]

Toyota Yaris?

[kiethton]

Unless you have low emissions zones to contend with id be looking at:

Renault clio 1.5dci
Diesel peugoet 205
Skoda Fabia/Felicia diesel
VW Lupo/Seat Arosa 1.4tdi
Citroen Saxo/AX/BX diesel

Can fix the majority of the above with a hammer, parts are cheap and plentiful, they should each average +60mpg and should all be available for <£500.

None are particularly comfortable/luxurious however.

[Truckosaurus]

kiethton said:

...

Can fix the majority of the above with a hammer, parts are cheap and plentiful,....

Indeed. I suspect at the bottom end of the market a single breakdown or repair might well outweigh the fuel savings between a 30mpg car and a 50mpg one.

[Travisxr3i]

Thanks so much!

No low emission zones to contend with thankfully.

I'll get looking into all of those.

[Fattyfat]

Another vote here for a Yaris

[designforlife]

Yaris gets my vote too.

[blue_haddock]

Most economical car under £500 is whichever one is least likely to break down.

the difference between 30 mpg and 40 mpg for the fairly small mileage you are doing is minimal so a reliable car doing 30mpg may be better than a 40mpg car that needs a new clutch or turbo.

[RazerSauber]

A Diesel Mk3 Mondeo might come under this bracket. They're decent on fuel I believe. My vote would be Yaris, although the 1.2 Corsa's might be alright too. I'd be weary of a Corsa at that price bracket though.

[ph9]

I've got a Yaris. I was given it because the garage advised the previous owner it would cost a fortune to get it through its MOT. I've since put over 30,000 miles on it. Road tax isn't particularly cheap (I think it's 145 per year) and insurance is about 160 to 180. It's very comfortable, and drives pretty well. As has been said, the motor factors seem to have parts available for very reasonable prices. I fitted good tyres, and have replaced wheel bearings, accelerator cable, handbrake cable, brakes, exhaust, and battery. After realising it might last longer than first expected, I treated it to a basic service (oil change etc.). It now needs new anti-roll bar bushes. Other than the fact that mine is quite rusty underneath, it seems quite easy to work on, and repair bills at my local garage are usually low.

[imck]

Yaris ! 1.3 Engine if you can find one. Much more capable than the 1.0

[ph9]

I meant to say that I get about 50 mpg out of the Yaris. I've seen up to 58 mpg per tank average on the over-optimistic trip computer. The actual consumption is usually around 49 or 50 mpg on A roads with a short run across town.

Downsides include a fair amount of road noise (that might just be my particular car / tyres). Also, the steering isn't the greatest, but it did improve after I fitted a new battery (it's electric PAS).

The 1.0 seems nippy enough on A roads and quieter dual carriageways. I think it would struggle slightly in heavier motorway traffic if you had to build up speed after slowing down, but that's the same with many smaller cars.

[FiringOnThree]

+1 for Yaris. Go for the 1.3 or the d4d

[nobrakes]

Definitely do not get swayed by or obsessed about getting the most economical mpg car.


Condition is more important and economical.

[whytheory]

I would go with a petrol Yaris, Micra, or Almera, a good one shouldn't break and that's what will make it cheap to run.

[funkyrobot]

whytheory said:

I would go with a petrol Yaris, Micra, or Almera, a good one shouldn't break and that's what will make it cheap to run.

Just be careful of timing chain issues on the Almera. In fact, avoid them as they do seem to suffer from that problem.

Micra would be great. K11 only though. Watch out for rust.

Yaris seems a good buy.

If you need something a bit bigger, look at the trusty old Focus. I'm running a 2004 1.6 petrol one and it isn't too bad on fuel.

[hyphen]

Whatever has a full years mot and a seller who was happy to get work done as needed.

[anonymous-user]

I have a Megane 1.5 DCI, 60MPG all day long (seen an indicated 72MPG on the motorway at 60MPH) and £30 annual road tax.

I actually replaced it with a new shed recently but I have just not gelled with it and I am going back to the Megane.