Advice Buying a used car

[BOF]

I can not read your username without the Dumb & Dumber clip coming into my head. "Mock YEAH" "ing YEAH" "bird YEAH".

Anyhoo, back on topic. I recommend going the sports car route because there'll be a point when you can't. I did and I'm so glad I did. I wouldn't go down the wolf-in-sheeps-clothing route either. Get yourself a sports car. There are plenty of affordable ones out there cuz the kids who want to drive them largely can't afford the insurance.

[darrenm]

I would say in the USA and Australia, GM is the better option to Ford but in Europe and the UK particularly I'd say it's the opposite. I've owned both Ford's and Vauxhall's, All the Fords were far better cars than the equivalent Vauxhall I've owned. But that is just comparing two manufacturers out of the dozens available. Before any one points it out  I would agree plenty of the alternatives are better than both Ford and Vauxhall.

I thought it was the other way round. Ford seems to get a lot more fandom in the US and Australia, even if they don't outright win against the GM boys. In the UK, at least in the 80s and early 90s, Fords were pretty low on every measure going. Their odometers only had 5 digits because they weren't expected to get to 100,000 miles, the Fix Or Repair Daily acronym was fairly accurate, and outside of a few ex-Capri owners and Cosworth owners, they were seen as just above Skoda. Vauxhall meanwhile, with the mk2 and mk3 Cavalier, the Astra, the Senator, the Nova, beat them in all areas. While Fiestas and Escorts were knackered after 80,000 miles, Cavaliers as taxis were happily doing 300,000 miles.

 

Course that all changed in the late 90s and neither have been particularly good since then, until about 3 or 4 years ago when the economic climate forced VAG, BMW to build to a comparable price point.

[StefanAVFC]

Golf's aren't even small.

 

And far more young adults/middle aged people drive Golf's than teenagers 

[darrenm]

I can not read your username without the Dumb & Dumber clip coming into my head. "Mock YEAH" "ing YEAH" "bird YEAH".

Anyhoo, back on topic. I recommend going the sports car route because there'll be a point when you can't. I did and I'm so glad I did. I wouldn't go down the wolf-in-sheeps-clothing route either. Get yourself a sports car. There are plenty of affordable ones out there cuz the kids who want to drive them largely can't afford the insurance.

but then the tax on anything above K band is ridiculous and the fuel prices are silly. It's why anything quick these days depreciates quicker than a Tottingham midfielder.

 

Ahem, my 2 suggestions are lower than band K, will do reasonable MPG, and will still be quite quick

Edited September 6, 2013 by darrenm

[leviramsey]

Golf, not small?

I thought the identification of Lilliput with Britain was meant to be satirical!

[AVFCforever1991]

Golf, not small?

I thought the identification of Lilliput with Britain was meant to be satirical!

 

Britain small and US small are two different things

[darrenm]

Depends on the golf. Mk1 was tiny and is about the same size as a lupo, or a bit smaller than a vw up. It's progressively gotten bigger since then and is now a medium sized car.

[AVFC_Hitz]

 

Golf, not small?

I thought the identification of Lilliput with Britain was meant to be satirical!

 

Britain small and US small are two different things

 

 

I'd be positively athletic in some parts of the US.

[ArteSuave]

Has OP made his choice yet?

[Shillzz]

Hello fellow Villa supporters and occasional random internet people.

 

I know next to nothing about cars, but I'm soon going to be needing a new one.  I'm almost 25 and currently have a W-reg Fiesta, which is the second car I've owned, the first being a P-reg Fiesta.  Clearly, I'm not a particularly thrill-seeking type in general.

 

However, the car's on its way out and I'd like to get something slightly more exciting before I become boring and have to spend all my money on children etc, and I've moved house recently so will be driving a slightly longer to get to/from work (little over an hour a day though, so not a huge amount of time really).  I'm probably looking at £4k tops, although I'd possibly stretch to £5k for something ideal.

 

Basically, I want something that's fairly reliable (I'm hardly wealthy, being in my second year of teaching at the moment, and know very little about maintenance/repairs myself) but fun/sporty, without looking ridiculous, costing too much to run, or being too big.  I would love an RX8 - I've always liked them and apparently they're great to drive - but the economy is terrible and, from what I've read, I fear that I'd be paying for expensive repairs after a few months.

 

However, I've not really seen anything else that I really want.  I thought about a Fiesta ST but they seem a little boy racer-y, and an MX5 but they look a bit like a woman's car to me, and I've heard they're awful in poor conditions.

 

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

 

RX8 is a good choice, and they're pretty cheap. Lots of fun, though expensive to insure and tax. If you want an exciting car, then an RX8 will be a definite winner, just be prepared to offload it again in 24 months time when you get fed up of the expense.

 

Failing that, something like a Nissan 320/330 perhaps.

[darrenm]

Hello fellow Villa supporters and occasional random internet people.

I know next to nothing about cars, but I'm soon going to be needing a new one. I'm almost 25 and currently have a W-reg Fiesta, which is the second car I've owned, the first being a P-reg Fiesta. Clearly, I'm not a particularly thrill-seeking type in general.

However, the car's on its way out and I'd like to get something slightly more exciting before I become boring and have to spend all my money on children etc, and I've moved house recently so will be driving a slightly longer to get to/from work (little over an hour a day though, so not a huge amount of time really). I'm probably looking at £4k tops, although I'd possibly stretch to £5k for something ideal.

Basically, I want something that's fairly reliable (I'm hardly wealthy, being in my second year of teaching at the moment, and know very little about maintenance/repairs myself) but fun/sporty, without looking ridiculous, costing too much to run, or being too big. I would love an RX8 - I've always liked them and apparently they're great to drive - but the economy is terrible and, from what I've read, I fear that I'd be paying for expensive repairs after a few months.

However, I've not really seen anything else that I really want. I thought about a Fiesta ST but they seem a little boy racer-y, and an MX5 but they look a bit like a woman's car to me, and I've heard they're awful in poor conditions.

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

RX8 is a good choice, and they're pretty cheap. Lots of fun, though expensive to insure and tax. If you want an exciting car, then an RX8 will be a definite winner, just be prepared to offload it again in 24 months time when you get fed up of the expense.

Failing that, something like a Nissan 320/330 perhaps.

Do not go near an rx8. It will break. Massively. And cost you a lot of money to fix. Low mpg, drinks oil, horrific cars.

[leviramsey]

Plus you'll be a wankel.

[Troglodyte]

Has OP made his choice yet?

 

Think I'm going to get something not quite as sporty or exciting as the RX8, but still a quick car that's pretty reliable and economical, and go with a Seat Ibiza 1.9 TDI FR.  I'd thought about them before and started looking again after darrenm's suggestion of a Cupra.  I don't really want to stretch to one of those financially, but the FR still seems pretty quick and 53mpg is great.  Tax and insurance won't cost a fortune either.

[darrenm]

Has OP made his choice yet?

Think I'm going to get something not quite as sporty or exciting as the RX8, but still a quick car that's pretty reliable and economical, and go with a Seat Ibiza 1.9 TDI FR. I'd thought about them before and started looking again after darrenm's suggestion of a Cupra. I don't really want to stretch to one of those financially, but the FR still seems pretty quick and 53mpg is great. Tax and insurance won't cost a fortune either.

Keep £250 aside for a remap to get cupra power. Also fr bushes are harder than cupra and need replacing a lot. Most people replace them with cupra. Apart from that they're a lot cheaper so you can't lose!

Good choice.

[choffer]

Hello fellow Villa supporters and occasional random internet people.

I know next to nothing about cars, but I'm soon going to be needing a new one. I'm almost 25 and currently have a W-reg Fiesta, which is the second car I've owned, the first being a P-reg Fiesta. Clearly, I'm not a particularly thrill-seeking type in general.

However, the car's on its way out and I'd like to get something slightly more exciting before I become boring and have to spend all my money on children etc, and I've moved house recently so will be driving a slightly longer to get to/from work (little over an hour a day though, so not a huge amount of time really). I'm probably looking at £4k tops, although I'd possibly stretch to £5k for something ideal.

Basically, I want something that's fairly reliable (I'm hardly wealthy, being in my second year of teaching at the moment, and know very little about maintenance/repairs myself) but fun/sporty, without looking ridiculous, costing too much to run, or being too big. I would love an RX8 - I've always liked them and apparently they're great to drive - but the economy is terrible and, from what I've read, I fear that I'd be paying for expensive repairs after a few months.

However, I've not really seen anything else that I really want. I thought about a Fiesta ST but they seem a little boy racer-y, and an MX5 but they look a bit like a woman's car to me, and I've heard they're awful in poor conditions.

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

RX8 is a good choice, and they're pretty cheap. Lots of fun, though expensive to insure and tax. If you want an exciting car, then an RX8 will be a definite winner, just be prepared to offload it again in 24 months time when you get fed up of the expense.

Failing that, something like a Nissan 320/330 perhaps.

Do not go near an rx8. It will break. Massively. And cost you a lot of money to fix. Low mpg, drinks oil, horrific cars.

I blew the rotor ( and he didn't even say thank you) within a week of having mine. To be fair it was the only problem I had with it in 4 years. Other than the crippling expense of petrol, oil, tyres and servicing of course

[Shillzz]

 

 

 

Hello fellow Villa supporters and occasional random internet people.

I know next to nothing about cars, but I'm soon going to be needing a new one. I'm almost 25 and currently have a W-reg Fiesta, which is the second car I've owned, the first being a P-reg Fiesta. Clearly, I'm not a particularly thrill-seeking type in general.

However, the car's on its way out and I'd like to get something slightly more exciting before I become boring and have to spend all my money on children etc, and I've moved house recently so will be driving a slightly longer to get to/from work (little over an hour a day though, so not a huge amount of time really). I'm probably looking at £4k tops, although I'd possibly stretch to £5k for something ideal.

Basically, I want something that's fairly reliable (I'm hardly wealthy, being in my second year of teaching at the moment, and know very little about maintenance/repairs myself) but fun/sporty, without looking ridiculous, costing too much to run, or being too big. I would love an RX8 - I've always liked them and apparently they're great to drive - but the economy is terrible and, from what I've read, I fear that I'd be paying for expensive repairs after a few months.

However, I've not really seen anything else that I really want. I thought about a Fiesta ST but they seem a little boy racer-y, and an MX5 but they look a bit like a woman's car to me, and I've heard they're awful in poor conditions.

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

RX8 is a good choice, and they're pretty cheap. Lots of fun, though expensive to insure and tax. If you want an exciting car, then an RX8 will be a definite winner, just be prepared to offload it again in 24 months time when you get fed up of the expense.

Failing that, something like a Nissan 320/330 perhaps.

Do not go near an rx8. It will break. Massively. And cost you a lot of money to fix. Low mpg, drinks oil, horrific cars.

I blew the rotor ( and he didn't even say thank you) within a week of having mine. To be fair it was the only problem I had with it in 4 years. Other than the crippling expense of petrol, oil, tyres and servicing of course

 

 

To add my experience to the mix - we had one in our house (not literally) for over 3 years and had no problem with it what so ever. It was expensive to run, but it's also cheap to buy, so it balances out.

[choffer]

Not forgetting, huge fun to drive

[darrenm]

Here's the rotor from my friend's RX8.

 

From what I hear you're very lucky if you get one problem free

 

[leviramsey]

Early this morning at the gas station. The only other car is an RX8, hood up. I get out, the RX8 is being driven by a reasonably hot (call it a 7/10) young lady. She asks me if I smell something burnt in the engine bay. I give it a sniff, yeah, there's definitely something burnt in an unpleasant way.

Disclaimer: this tale did not end with dhutwu.

Edited September 19, 2013 by leviramsey

[Troglodyte]

You measure age in tenths over there?