9k motor for a mate.

[Doc_Love]

A friend has contacted me this evening. Needs a new car ASAP after his old shed catastrophically failed its pre MOT inspection. He has 9k absolute max to spend.

Reliable and comfortable is order of the day with decent mpg (no 5 litre V8's please) and lower echelons of foad fund license. Spends about an hour commuting on mixed roads including motorway. It is a car he will keep.for several years and prob till it dies. He is happy with manual or auto but would )love an auto as sometimes snarled up in traffic.

So far im thinking Infiniti Q30 or even Q50. I believe the 1.6t petrol is a reliable Merc unit?

He has sent me Mitsi ASX, 1.4t Mokka's, Quashqai and even a Ford Ecosport. Yes - he is desperate!

What would you recommend?

[silentbrown]

MX 5, of course.

How many miles a year?
Does he need to carry passengers/dogs/grandfather clocks?
Any mechnical aptitude/budget for repairs?
ULEZ?
Age of car?

[Pickle_Rick]

A Toyota of some sort to play it safe. Petrol or hybrid (hybrid will be auto) . Yaris, Auris, prius. All should be good for 300,000 miles.
Only thing to ever kill them is rust.

[borcy]

A 1.0T Civic, plenty about.

[Pickle_Rick]

borcy said:

A 1.0T Civic, plenty about.

Arent they the one engine to avoid, wet belt?

[borcy]

Pickle_Rick said:

borcy said:

A 1.0T Civic, plenty about.

Arent they the one engine to avoid, wet belt?

I thought they were pretty good, but might be wrong?

[Doc_Love]

silentbrown said:

MX 5, of course.

How many miles a year? Id say 8-10k
Does he need to carry passengers/dogs/grandfather clocks? Carries his young son regularly other than that not really. His old rustbucket was a Dacia Duster diesel which was a handmedown
Any mechnical aptitude/budget for repairs? None whatsoever. He will have a budget for consumables but not for cars that ride the edge of total borkage! Hence reliability as a key feature.
ULEZ? Useful but not totally necessary. His Dacia certainly wasn't!
Age of car? As new within reason. He's been looking at cars up to 10yrs old

[Doc_Love]

borcy said:

A 1.0T Civic, plenty about.

Thanks. Im certain the 1.0 Civic is a dreaded wet belt. Absolute no no from me.

[borcy]

That's fair enough, how about an Auris?

[Matt_T]

At that budget you are between the Gen 9 and Gen 10 Civics, except the Gen 10 will be higer mileage. The changeover was summer 2017.

I'd therefore suggest a Gen 9 with either the 1.8 petrol or the 1.6 diesel - both very good engines that will be trouble free.

https://www.pistonheads.com/buy/listing/19824108