Buying a VW Fox, any advice?
Discussion
A lady friend of mine has asked me to come along to a test drive with her in the above motor car (Not strictly PH I know...)
Can't find any buying guides on-line, I was just after a bit of advise on anything to look out for/test?
I have no mechanical knowledge unfortunately, so the only thing I know to do is the HPI check.
Having only bought one car myself (In warranty) I don't know my way around MOT's, V5C's so any pointers there, not in particular relation to the car would be great.
I'm not sure what her budget is, but I suspect it'll be the bottom end. So we'll probably be looking at older, higher mileage examples.
Failing this I'd probably get her to look at an Aygo.
Any advise much appreciated
Can't find any buying guides on-line, I was just after a bit of advise on anything to look out for/test?
I have no mechanical knowledge unfortunately, so the only thing I know to do is the HPI check.
Having only bought one car myself (In warranty) I don't know my way around MOT's, V5C's so any pointers there, not in particular relation to the car would be great.
I'm not sure what her budget is, but I suspect it'll be the bottom end. So we'll probably be looking at older, higher mileage examples.
Failing this I'd probably get her to look at an Aygo.
Any advise much appreciated
HBFS said:
Why not, unreliable or something?
Just not particularly good. For a city car it's quite big, and there's not a lot of room inside. That's down to it being based on the Polo platform. As a result it's "de-contented" compared to the Polo, with not a lot of kit and I'm guessing less soundproofing. But alongside that you're still paying the "VW tax" just because it's a VW. I feel qualified to comment after spending 40k/20 months driving one.....
I bought a 20007 1.2 Fox from auction for the other half and due to a change in circumstances ended up sharing it with her whilst we built our house. It had done 19k when I bought it - replaced disks (and pads) soon after due to them being warped and for the next 40k it only needed consumables and never let us down. The only irritation was faulty central central locking which I never managed to sort. Not the best car in its class by a long shot and not very economical either but it seemed solid enough.
I bought a 20007 1.2 Fox from auction for the other half and due to a change in circumstances ended up sharing it with her whilst we built our house. It had done 19k when I bought it - replaced disks (and pads) soon after due to them being warped and for the next 40k it only needed consumables and never let us down. The only irritation was faulty central central locking which I never managed to sort. Not the best car in its class by a long shot and not very economical either but it seemed solid enough.
davepoth said:
Just not particularly good. For a city car it's quite big, and there's not a lot of room inside.
Disagree. The major USP of this car is that it is big inside and has an above average sized boot for its class (but still just a 4-seater). Reasonably fun to punt about. Engines shared with the contemporary Polo. 1.2 willing but noisy (OK around town but a pain on the motorway), 1.4 quieter but gutless (no discernible performance advantage over 1.2 and higher RFL). Not particularly economical though compared to say my wife's 1.2 Fiat 500. Two specs: standard and Urban. Standard very basic: no cenral locking, manual windows etc. Urban has what you would expect (remote locking, electric windows etc) but air con still a rare and expensive option. No major issues as far as I am aware but don't expect VW "halo" quality, so expect some rattles and electrical faults possibly. It did without the blue interior lighting of all its VW contemporaries and the lights were switched on using the stalk unlike all the other VWs for example. Think more like Fiat in terms of quality. A Ford Ka or Citroen C1/107/Aygo will be more fun on short journeys but possibly not as comfortable on long journeys or as spacious. My money would still be on a Fiat 500 1.2 though: more sylish, nicer quality, more comfortable, more refined, more economical, lower RFL than all of the above. Ours has been extremely reliable as well!HeatonNorris said:
Don't is the only advice I can give.
A late Lupo or Seat Arouser is a much better purchase.
not sure if a seat arouser is what she's after! I'm guessing mobile Phone auto correct?!A late Lupo or Seat Arouser is a much better purchase.
They're pretty rubbish TBH. The Vauxhall Agila looks kind of funky but you should really be pushing her into an MX-5. You know you want to!
Compared to the Lupo it replaced, the Fox was a bit of a disappointment if I'm honest. Shoddy Brazilian build quality, not very well specced given the price. My old flatmate had one, and to echo one of the comments on here, the build quality was what I'd expect of Fiat rather than VW. For the same money, a later Lupo would be a better bet, maybe even a GTi. Aygos I can only give good feedback on them. Had one to roll around in for a few months and it was excellent, very frugal and well built, only downside was the boot was a little tricky to get everything in as it's only the glass that opens rather than the whole tailgate, but unless your friend is hauling around a large amount of toolkit on a daily basis it shouldn't be too much of an issue. Of course, the Aygo is the same as the Pug 107 and Citroen C1, so go for the cheapest of the three, usually that means the Citroen.
But back to the original question, a Fox isn't the wisest choice for the money, the Lupo was fantastic, and I maintain it is a better car than the Fox, and the Fox's replacement, the Up!, is pretty good despite VW insisting on having an exclamation mark in the name, and the price is a little on the high side for me.
But back to the original question, a Fox isn't the wisest choice for the money, the Lupo was fantastic, and I maintain it is a better car than the Fox, and the Fox's replacement, the Up!, is pretty good despite VW insisting on having an exclamation mark in the name, and the price is a little on the high side for me.
if she insists on VAG, then look at a low mileage Lupo instead, the Sports/S model are a good place to start. A lot of very good and well maintained cars out there (middle class, middle aged home-counties favourite) or as somebody has already mentioned the Toyota Aygo is reliable, cheap to insure (crossover parts with Citroen and Peugeot cheap to repair-which also make for low running costs) and a reasonable drive
the Fox is not nearly as nice as either of the above (which should both be available in comparative condition for less)
the Fox is not nearly as nice as either of the above (which should both be available in comparative condition for less)
I had one of these for a year and half a brand new 07 one.
The electric windows constantly broke.
The boot lock constantly broke.
The ABS was lethal/frightening.
It was very thirsty for such a small car.
Everything is cheap plastic that marks and looks really scruffy.
And the stereo always broke.
Oh and the central locking.
Needless to say I got P***ed off at constantly taking it back to VW With either the windows stuck open or the doors wouldn't lock and I just give up on the boot and took the parcel shelf out and launched everything over the back seats... so I got adventurous I bought a focus...diesel
The electric windows constantly broke.
The boot lock constantly broke.
The ABS was lethal/frightening.
It was very thirsty for such a small car.
Everything is cheap plastic that marks and looks really scruffy.
And the stereo always broke.
Oh and the central locking.
Needless to say I got P***ed off at constantly taking it back to VW With either the windows stuck open or the doors wouldn't lock and I just give up on the boot and took the parcel shelf out and launched everything over the back seats... so I got adventurous I bought a focus...diesel
billzeebub said:
if she insists on VAG, then look at a low mileage Lupo instead, the Sports/S model are a good place to start. A lot of very good and well maintained cars out there (middle class, middle aged home-counties favourite)
I'm not sure if the Lupo is a better car than the Fpx TBH. Better quality maybe? A Polo 1.2 of similar age(chain drive rather than belt drive I believe) is a better and more plentiful car than either the Fox or Lupo. The "S" model or later "Match" would be the one to go for.Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff