nippy town car for Mrs £4-5
Discussion
Hi,
ive been looking for a new car for the Mrs, she was driving a 2011 (FK) Civic 1.8 but the poor visability and ride are annoying her and its a little too big for parking/around town. so ill take over that as the family car (2kids) and she wants a small nippy car to do school run/shopping etc.
she wants: 5 doors, funky interior, bright colour outside like a fiat 500/beetle (typical) and nippy engine, like the ep2 2.0 "type S" she used to drive, she doesn't rev cars so torque would be more useful, BUT she only does about 4k mile a year short jorneys so a petrol is defo needed.
I want something reliable, no turbo petrol problem engine/worries., a big engine as possible, fuel & insurance is not an issue.
she wants a Nissan juke/fiat 500x but they are too expensive. we settled on a mk7 fiesta 5 door, we are creeping into the facelift 2012 models but not many 1.4/1.6 out there, the 1.0 eco bost seem to be a rusty nightmare waiting. the 1.25 are just about quick enough, shed get used to it, but private sales ive seen are neglected, and dealers are more expensive.
she likes the looks of the seat Ibiza, but the interior is a bit naff, she thinks the Polo/fabia looks too boring.
were even going to look at a Jazz later as ive found one in light blue that looks ok, and shes happy. but I cant gt past the pensioner vibe lol.
I wish the Mito did 5 doors, that would be ideal.
anything else you can thing of that's not to boring but 5 doors and smaller than a focus/golf? I really want to buy private as you get more for your money, but theres not much about that isn't very tired/uncared for.so im looking at small dealers now. im in Swansea so the stock of local cars is a bit limited. and I don't want to travel away too much as I don't have the time.
thanks for reading the waffle.
ive been looking for a new car for the Mrs, she was driving a 2011 (FK) Civic 1.8 but the poor visability and ride are annoying her and its a little too big for parking/around town. so ill take over that as the family car (2kids) and she wants a small nippy car to do school run/shopping etc.
she wants: 5 doors, funky interior, bright colour outside like a fiat 500/beetle (typical) and nippy engine, like the ep2 2.0 "type S" she used to drive, she doesn't rev cars so torque would be more useful, BUT she only does about 4k mile a year short jorneys so a petrol is defo needed.
I want something reliable, no turbo petrol problem engine/worries., a big engine as possible, fuel & insurance is not an issue.
she wants a Nissan juke/fiat 500x but they are too expensive. we settled on a mk7 fiesta 5 door, we are creeping into the facelift 2012 models but not many 1.4/1.6 out there, the 1.0 eco bost seem to be a rusty nightmare waiting. the 1.25 are just about quick enough, shed get used to it, but private sales ive seen are neglected, and dealers are more expensive.
she likes the looks of the seat Ibiza, but the interior is a bit naff, she thinks the Polo/fabia looks too boring.
were even going to look at a Jazz later as ive found one in light blue that looks ok, and shes happy. but I cant gt past the pensioner vibe lol.
I wish the Mito did 5 doors, that would be ideal.
anything else you can thing of that's not to boring but 5 doors and smaller than a focus/golf? I really want to buy private as you get more for your money, but theres not much about that isn't very tired/uncared for.so im looking at small dealers now. im in Swansea so the stock of local cars is a bit limited. and I don't want to travel away too much as I don't have the time.
thanks for reading the waffle.
Edited by browna on Friday 17th May 08:51
browna said:
I wish the Mito did 5 doors, that would be ideal.
How about a Giulietta?The Swift Sport does come in 5 doors- https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
If outside the budget then the non-sport Swift with the 1.5 litre engine would be an easy option, you'd have loads of choice. My wife had one (3 door though), and it was a great car.
Russ T Bolt said:
Not driven one but the Swift (Sport ?) always gets good comment when this type of question comes up.
Don't know if they are available as 5 doors though.
Post 13 plate I think it is they are available as a 5 door, but the 1.5 petrol GLX/SZ4 was always available as a 5 door and is a plucky little motor with 101bhp. We ran one for 77k miles and it never put a foot wrong once. Don't know if they are available as 5 doors though.
Check out the Clio 1.6 VVT Initiale or the 2.0 VVT - if you can find one it's a very luxurious and quick little car. The Micra 160SR 5 door would also be worth considering too.
thanks, id forgotten the swift did 5 doors, I used to have a mk1 swift sport, and it was good. boot might be touch small but ill defo try and find a 1.5 to test.
also ill look into the clios, not really a French fan from days of old, but im willing to be open them haha. and hadn't considered Micras but they look decent too, and I do like a bit of Japanese reliability.
also ill look into the clios, not really a French fan from days of old, but im willing to be open them haha. and hadn't considered Micras but they look decent too, and I do like a bit of Japanese reliability.
browna said:
thanks, id forgotten the swift did 5 doors, I used to have a mk1 swift sport, and it was good. boot might be touch small but ill defo try and find a 1.5 to test.
also ill look into the clios, not really a French fan from days of old, but im willing to be open them haha. and hadn't considered Micras but they look decent too, and I do like a bit of Japanese reliability.
I forgot about the Yaris SR too - if you can get a 1.8 it'll be similar to the Civic in terms of torque.also ill look into the clios, not really a French fan from days of old, but im willing to be open them haha. and hadn't considered Micras but they look decent too, and I do like a bit of Japanese reliability.
Russ T Bolt said:
Not driven one but the Swift (Sport ?) always gets good comment when this type of question comes up.
Don't know if they are available as 5 doors though.
If his Mrs is complaining about the ride, a Swift Sport might not be a good choice.Don't know if they are available as 5 doors though.
And if his Mrs doesn't like revving cars, most of the Swift Sport's horses will remain unused.
oh god, she's seen the "new" beetle on the website of the dealer were visiting later. she always wanted one, and this is a clean low mileage one. haha. eesh, ill have to play up the cramped rear seats and 3 doors.
zoe and leaf is very interesting, we could charge it on the drive too. what happens with the batterys on these as they get older? as long as it could last 4-5 years it would be ok. looks like £50 month battery lease, which is prob more than we use in petrol.
zoe and leaf is very interesting, we could charge it on the drive too. what happens with the batterys on these as they get older? as long as it could last 4-5 years it would be ok. looks like £50 month battery lease, which is prob more than we use in petrol.
browna said:
oh god, she's seen the "new" beetle on the website of the dealer were visiting later. she always wanted one, and this is a clean low mileage one. haha. eesh, ill have to play up the cramped rear seats and 3 doors.
zoe and leaf is very interesting, we could charge it on the drive too. what happens with the batterys on these as they get older? as long as it could last 4-5 years it would be ok. looks like £50 month battery lease, which is prob more than we use in petrol.
ZOE, yes, you need to worry about battery lease. Vast majority of Leafs are battery owned, however. Easy to find. So Leaf probably your best bet. 2011 is the oldest Leaf you can find, these have mostly suffered a bit of battery degradation by now and are down to about 60 miles range from an original 90. Which, considering you charge it back up to full every time you park at home, isn't much of a problem for short run local use only.zoe and leaf is very interesting, we could charge it on the drive too. what happens with the batterys on these as they get older? as long as it could last 4-5 years it would be ok. looks like £50 month battery lease, which is prob more than we use in petrol.
There are some good specialist forums out there if you're interested, lots of information. My Leaf is a 2015 car and still has all its original battery capacity. As I charge at work, and it has no road tax, my only running costs are MOT and insurance. It's bloody fantastic.
Double your budget and you'd be looking at BMW i3...
so this week sometime were going to view a Mazda 2 1.3 Tamura is the 2011 facelift in a lovely (apparently?) lime green lol.
its low mileage around £4k so id be happy, seem like they are basically a mk7 fiesta with some more reliable mazda parts hopefully. cross finger she likes it and it isn't a lemon, or should I say .... lime...... sorry lol.
anyone got any experience/opinions of owning these cars?
its low mileage around £4k so id be happy, seem like they are basically a mk7 fiesta with some more reliable mazda parts hopefully. cross finger she likes it and it isn't a lemon, or should I say .... lime...... sorry lol.
anyone got any experience/opinions of owning these cars?
ElectricSoup said:
browna said:
oh god, she's seen the "new" beetle on the website of the dealer were visiting later. she always wanted one, and this is a clean low mileage one. haha. eesh, ill have to play up the cramped rear seats and 3 doors.
zoe and leaf is very interesting, we could charge it on the drive too. what happens with the batterys on these as they get older? as long as it could last 4-5 years it would be ok. looks like £50 month battery lease, which is prob more than we use in petrol.
ZOE, yes, you need to worry about battery lease. Vast majority of Leafs are battery owned, however. Easy to find. So Leaf probably your best bet. 2011 is the oldest Leaf you can find, these have mostly suffered a bit of battery degradation by now and are down to about 60 miles range from an original 90. Which, considering you charge it back up to full every time you park at home, isn't much of a problem for short run local use only.zoe and leaf is very interesting, we could charge it on the drive too. what happens with the batterys on these as they get older? as long as it could last 4-5 years it would be ok. looks like £50 month battery lease, which is prob more than we use in petrol.
There are some good specialist forums out there if you're interested, lots of information. My Leaf is a 2015 car and still has all its original battery capacity. As I charge at work, and it has no road tax, my only running costs are MOT and insurance. It's bloody fantastic.
Double your budget and you'd be looking at BMW i3...
1/3 battery loss on a leaf?! Wow thats bad. Limited to a 60 mile round trip that in a few years will be even less. But the biggest issue with a leaf for me is the awful looks!
DoubleD said:
ElectricSoup said:
browna said:
oh god, she's seen the "new" beetle on the website of the dealer were visiting later. she always wanted one, and this is a clean low mileage one. haha. eesh, ill have to play up the cramped rear seats and 3 doors.
zoe and leaf is very interesting, we could charge it on the drive too. what happens with the batterys on these as they get older? as long as it could last 4-5 years it would be ok. looks like £50 month battery lease, which is prob more than we use in petrol.
ZOE, yes, you need to worry about battery lease. Vast majority of Leafs are battery owned, however. Easy to find. So Leaf probably your best bet. 2011 is the oldest Leaf you can find, these have mostly suffered a bit of battery degradation by now and are down to about 60 miles range from an original 90. Which, considering you charge it back up to full every time you park at home, isn't much of a problem for short run local use only.zoe and leaf is very interesting, we could charge it on the drive too. what happens with the batterys on these as they get older? as long as it could last 4-5 years it would be ok. looks like £50 month battery lease, which is prob more than we use in petrol.
There are some good specialist forums out there if you're interested, lots of information. My Leaf is a 2015 car and still has all its original battery capacity. As I charge at work, and it has no road tax, my only running costs are MOT and insurance. It's bloody fantastic.
Double your budget and you'd be looking at BMW i3...
1/3 battery loss on a leaf?! Wow thats bad. Limited to a 60 mile round trip that in a few years will be even less. But the biggest issue with a leaf for me is the awful looks!
DoubleD said:
£50 a month for a battery lease on a Zoe is an issue if you only do a few miles as it costs more than petrol.
1/3 battery loss on a leaf?! Wow thats bad. Limited to a 60 mile round trip that in a few years will be even less. But the biggest issue with a leaf for me is the awful looks!
That is over 8 years and lots of miles, and is a worst case. All cars wear out. This is a significantly cheaper car to run over those 8 years than an ICE equipped vehicle.1/3 battery loss on a leaf?! Wow thats bad. Limited to a 60 mile round trip that in a few years will be even less. But the biggest issue with a leaf for me is the awful looks!
ElectricSoup said:
DoubleD said:
£50 a month for a battery lease on a Zoe is an issue if you only do a few miles as it costs more than petrol.
1/3 battery loss on a leaf?! Wow thats bad. Limited to a 60 mile round trip that in a few years will be even less. But the biggest issue with a leaf for me is the awful looks!
That is over 8 years and lots of miles, and is a worst case. All cars wear out. This is a significantly cheaper car to run over those 8 years than an ICE equipped vehicle.1/3 battery loss on a leaf?! Wow thats bad. Limited to a 60 mile round trip that in a few years will be even less. But the biggest issue with a leaf for me is the awful looks!
DoubleD said:
ElectricSoup said:
DoubleD said:
£50 a month for a battery lease on a Zoe is an issue if you only do a few miles as it costs more than petrol.
1/3 battery loss on a leaf?! Wow thats bad. Limited to a 60 mile round trip that in a few years will be even less. But the biggest issue with a leaf for me is the awful looks!
That is over 8 years and lots of miles, and is a worst case. All cars wear out. This is a significantly cheaper car to run over those 8 years than an ICE equipped vehicle.1/3 battery loss on a leaf?! Wow thats bad. Limited to a 60 mile round trip that in a few years will be even less. But the biggest issue with a leaf for me is the awful looks!
I think i'm a good few years away from accepting an electric car into my life TBH, lol. Annnyway... I ended up buying the little green mazda. it looks a nice bit different to all the fiestas on the road, the tamura trim helps. i couldn't find a 1.5 sport near us but the 1.3 was quick enough for the mrs and i felt it was (relatively) eager and nippy, its low weight makes it nicely chuckable for me. cross fingers it'll do us for a few years.
so now I have two sensible n/a petrol jap daily's, I can initiate my master plan of getting a fun, silly 2 seater to play with. im gonna start off with something really cheap like a mk3 mr2 to try out having a 3rd car. if it works out ok I can upgrade in a couple years. id really love a caterham/elise/tvr S, but baby steps lol.
so now I have two sensible n/a petrol jap daily's, I can initiate my master plan of getting a fun, silly 2 seater to play with. im gonna start off with something really cheap like a mk3 mr2 to try out having a 3rd car. if it works out ok I can upgrade in a couple years. id really love a caterham/elise/tvr S, but baby steps lol.
ElectricSoup said:
DoubleD said:
ElectricSoup said:
DoubleD said:
£50 a month for a battery lease on a Zoe is an issue if you only do a few miles as it costs more than petrol.
1/3 battery loss on a leaf?! Wow thats bad. Limited to a 60 mile round trip that in a few years will be even less. But the biggest issue with a leaf for me is the awful looks!
That is over 8 years and lots of miles, and is a worst case. All cars wear out. This is a significantly cheaper car to run over those 8 years than an ICE equipped vehicle.1/3 battery loss on a leaf?! Wow thats bad. Limited to a 60 mile round trip that in a few years will be even less. But the biggest issue with a leaf for me is the awful looks!
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