Relieving the strain

[WildfireS3]

As most of you know I have been considering getting a shopping trolly to relieve some of the strain off the S, this also gives me the oppurtunity to have the S off the road for modification/servicing. But the question is:

What do I go for?

So far in order of cost:

Peugeot 106 Diesel (1995)
Ford Fiesta Diesel (1996)
Ford Escort Diesel (1995)
Ford Mondeo Diesel (1994)

If I take a small loan (say £1k)

VW Golf TDI (1995)
Ford KA (1997)

If I take a slightly Bigger load (£2-2.5K)

VW Lupo E 1.0 (1999)
Toyota Yaris (1999)
VW Polo 1.3-1.4 (1997-8)

I did consider an Audi A4 Diesel or VW Passat TDI, but the insurance will probably kill me and to get a decent one I'd have to take a £3-4K loan, in chich case I would sell the S and get an Elise.

Obviously this depends on pay next month, the only thing that worries me is the secuerity of the job in taking a loan, as my company is run by numptties.

I still qualify for a graduate loan.

[ukbob]

Personally, I might opt for Ford Fiesta Diesel (1996) with no loan. You own a TVR Chris, you dont need to borrow money for another nice car (forgive me for saying "at your age") save your pennies... is my humble opinion, biased because I dont like loaned money of any kind

[shnozz]

escort of mondeo diesel. in view of your work situation, I would be loathe to take a loan. Plus you will have to think of 2 lots of servicing/things going wrong/tax/insurance and if you have a couple of bad months you will have all your spare cash tied up in paying off a loan.

escort or mondeo likely to be reliable, cheap as chips to fix when they go wrong and scrappie will provide the parts to fix it. Last thing you want to do is buy something like an A4 on finance, worrying about where you park it again the same way you do with the S. Buy a heap thats cheap to do plenty of miles.

[WildfireS3]

Hmmmm.. have spoken to the bank, not good. Plus the wages for this month have been delayed!! Looks like the shopping trolly will have to go on the back burner for a while.

[kentishS2]

shnozz said:

escort of mondeo diesel. in view of your work situation, I would be loathe to take a loan. Plus you will have to think of 2 lots of servicing/things going wrong/tax/insurance and if you have a couple of bad months you will have all your spare cash tied up in paying off a loan. escort or mondeo likely to be reliable, cheap as chips to fix when they go wrong and scrappie will provide the parts to fix it. Last thing you want to do is buy something like an A4 on finance, worrying about where you park it again the same way you do with the S. Buy a heap thats cheap to do plenty of miles.

Good advice Phil.

If you do spend a fair bit on a car like I did for daily use and then rack up the miles you will only find that it's worth begger all after a year or two. Precisely why I'm keeping my 4.5 year old VW until it gets uneconomical to repair or is (heaven forbid) written off.

Buy cheap Chris, you already have a lovely car sitting there waiting to be used and shown off.

[ukbob]

I agree, and I really would buy something cheap if I were you, debt is not a nice thing to live with, however large or small. How about the Escort then Chris?

[Tripps]

For fun around town the 106 or KA suggestions are good ones, as they both have a good FWD chassis and are entertaining (to a level) with minimum poke.

However, I'd agree with Phil, an old Mondeo - can't go wrong with them and they lap up the miles, as only a large car with some space and insulation between driver and engine can.