What reliable car for under £1000?

[Adam32]

I am looking for a second car as a cheap run about. Years ago I had a Citreon Saxo that I paid £200 for and did 50 thousand miles. The only thing I replaced on it were brake pads, exhaust and CV boots. Looking for something equally cheap and reliable that I won’t be forever fixing / hunting around for parts. Ideally I want something under 12 years old. I used to be a fan of the old Honda Civics, but anything from the late 90s / early 2000s is getting a bit old now. What about something like a Toyota Yaris, Mondeo, Focus etc? What about old Dihatsu stuff? Anything else worth considering for budget / reliability? Really not bothered about the size / model of car, as I just need something cheap and reliable as a second car.

[Afromonk]

Whatever taxi drivers use? Toyota Avensis i guess.

[A Winner Is You]

At that end of the market the condition is far more important than the make and model

[Bobupndown]

It's a gamble at that sort of price. Could last 3 years or 3 days......

[Challo]

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Might be worth visiting this thread
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

[anonymous-user]

I purchased an Aygo in Feb this year for 650 with no MOT.

Total cost Inc MOT and a full service was £840.

I drove it for 6 weeks, commuting 55miles every day for 6 weeks. Put on something like 1500 miles on it. Never let me down, then sold it to an extended family member for £840.

If you can get an Aygo MK1, or a Yaris MK1. They are solid cars. If you can also find a Skoda Fabia SDI they are solid cars too.

[Adam32]

MuddyK said:

If you can get an Aygo MK1, or a Yaris MK1. They are solid cars. If you can also find a Skoda Fabia SDI they are solid cars too.

Do you rate those over the Toyota Avensis?

[Back2theFuji]

Just be careful with the Diesel Avensis, can be a right money pit, particularly the 2.2 D4D. Pre-DPF models might be better, not 100% sure.

BTW, £1000 for a car buys you very little now. Will be a Facebook / Gumtree job.

[wong]

Petrol and Japanese if reliability is the main criteria.

[757]

Challo said:

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Might be worth visiting this thread
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Yup, all here for you

[MattsCar]

Kia Cerato 1.6 petrol. Utterly undesirable, but utterly reliable. Consumables are pennies as the suppliers have more stock than what could be possibly be needed by the Cars on the road.

To give you an idea I will be selling a 2005 33k mile car with good service history, 4 new tyres, cam belt change for £1200 and would say that is the going rate.

[Om]

Citroen C1?

[Afromonk]

Personally i’d rather walk

[freakybacon]

Might be able to get a Nissan Micra k12 or Almera for that money.

[Chedders]

Astra H, an absolute cockroach of a car.

[soad]

freakybacon said:

Might be able to get a Nissan Micra k12 or Almera for that money.

I got a Nissan Note 1.6 (on 45k with new brakes and clutch) two years ago, but older than the OP wants and needs to up the budget slightly.

[Adam32]

soad said:

I got a Nissan Note 1.6 (on 45k with new brakes and clutch) two years ago, but older than the OP wants and needs to up the budget slightly.

Yes the budget is an issue, I don't understand why the price of these old cars has gone up so much? Especially when even the kids are driving brand new shiny stuff on PCP. Who is buying all these old cars? Many of these undesirable / old cars younger people would not be seen dead in. Are prices driven by the export market? As a comparison in 2015, I bought a 10 year old Saxo for £200 and ran it for 50 thousand miles. Not a chance to buying anything that cheap now.

[Turtle Shed]

Aygo all day long.

Had one for best part of a decade, fabulous little car.

[davidif]

Afromonk said:

Personally i’d rather walk

Typical throbber response I’ve come to expect from Pistonheads these days 🤔

[magpie215]

Adam32 said:

Yes the budget is an issue, I don't understand why the price of these old cars has gone up so much?

Because they scrap for what they used to sell for with a decent lump of test on them.