power steering is it essential in a small car?

eurotrotter · 29-05-2006 5:00pm #1

im gonnaget either a corsa micra starlet or fiesta?
do i need power steering?
is it necessary in order to be able to sell the car later on>

thanks lads
ed

peasant · 29-05-2006 5:41pm

quick and simple answer(s):

1) no

2) yes, definetely

If it is a new(ish) car that you're after, you should get PAS, if possible. It will be easier to sell on plus some new small cars these days seem to be desinged with power steering in mind, so the can be heavy without it.

On an older car I wouldn't make power steering the deciding factor over condition etc

colm_mcm · 29-05-2006 5:42pm

depends on how old the cars are.

cantdecide · 29-05-2006 5:47pm

don't do it. if you have to ask whether it has power steering or not in 2006 means the car is a heap. theres a world of cars out there for under a €1,000. you may have to give up that dillusional comfort zone feeling that you get from having a teeny tiny car. get one with everything including a proper engine- you're worth it

Tipsy Mac · 29-05-2006 5:53pm

I have driven small cars with and without power steering, the only times you will miss the power steering is parallel parking or when moving incredibly slow doing manouvers. It's a nice thing to have but I wouldn't worry too much about it, especially if it's your first car. Any car after 97 or so should come with power steering as standard, any small car before this will not be worth a whole heap so it's not really going to make much of a difference in a car worth €2000 if it has power steering or not.

colm_mcm · 29-05-2006 5:55pm

cantdecide wrote:

you may have to give up that dillusional comfort zone feeling that you get from having a teeny tiny car.

care to elaborate?

cantdecide · 29-05-2006 6:07pm

that's just my little hobby horse. i hate it when people drive disproportionately small/ crap cars because they will save a small percentage of their total motoring costs. or worse still-the fiesta is the perfect car FOR A GIRL. i love that one.
my philosophy is, if you're going to be a motorist- do it right. there is so many financial fronts anyway that tweaking one or two won't do a whole lot so you may as well go first class and stop thinking like a pauper.

colm_mcm · 29-05-2006 6:33pm

cantdecide wrote:

that's just my little hobby horse. i hate it when people drive disproportionately small/ crap cars because they will save a small percentage of their total motoring costs. or worse still-the fiesta is the perfect car FOR A GIRL. i love that one.
my philosophy is, if you're going to be a motorist- do it right. there is so many financial fronts anyway that tweaking one or two won't do a whole lot so you may as well go first class and stop thinking like a pauper.

Exactly how far up your own a**e are you, have you ever heard of living within your means?

cantdecide · 29-05-2006 6:44pm

colm_mcm wrote:

Exactly how far up your own a**e are you, have you ever heard of living within your means?

Means shmeans- i've just bought a house and i'm broke. i'm going to england to buy 325 (look it up- it's a real car) for €1500. micras, often costing thousands, feel cheap and insignificant and work if you live in paris or london. in ireland you are dilluding yourself if you think they are fine.
super minis have no place in ireland. too much open road.

ps i take exception to you accusing me of having my "head up my arse".

colm_mcm · 29-05-2006 6:49pm

Not everybody wants to spend €961 a year taxing a car. not everyone wants to be placed in a high insurance group, and spend large amounts on petrol.

There are people (not me!) who see a car as an appliance to get them from one place to the next, the main criteria being cheap to run, reliable, unlikely to get stolen or vandalised, and easy to park. your 325 doesn't meet any of these.

cantdecide · 29-05-2006 7:07pm

we could live in tents in fields and wear shoe boxes on our heads. They're just as effective as houses and hats.

Squirrel · 29-05-2006 7:09pm

cantdecide wrote:

Means shmeans- i've just bought a house and i'm broke. i'm going to england to buy 325 (look it up- it's a real car) for €1500. micras, often costing thousands, feel cheap and insignificant and work if you live in paris or london. in ireland you are dilluding yourself if you think they are fine.
super minis have no place in ireland. too much open road.

ps i take exception to you accusing me of having my "head up my arse".

I'm driving a Micra and it's a real car too. I'm a 17 year old guy and am actually broke. I'm talking I could be legally declared bankrupt, so means are everything.

Means shmeans? Go get yourself one of these then. Sure you're willing to get what you cll a "real car", why don't you do it properly? It's apparently out of your means just as even something such as a 1.6 Golf is out of mine.

colm_mcm · 29-05-2006 7:12pm

cantdecide wrote:

we could live in tents in fields and wear shoe boxes on our heads. They're just as effective as houses and hats.

I think you're missing the point by a long way.

TempestSabre · 29-05-2006 7:17pm

cantdecide wrote:

Means shmeans- i've just bought a house and i'm broke. i'm going to england to buy 325 (look it up- it's a real car) for €1500. micras, often costing thousands, feel cheap and insignificant and work if you live in paris or london. in ireland you are dilluding yourself if you think they are fine.
super minis have no place in ireland. too much open road.

ps i take exception to you accusing me of having my "head up my arse".

In fairness hes being polite.

The running costs of an old 325 (325i I assume) are going to far out weight any saving you make in buying the car and depreciation. Its also a horrible car to drive in traffic (that hard clutch) which is what you need a city car for. Light, nippy and easy to park. Horses for courses.

cantdecide · 29-05-2006 7:21pm

i work with a guy who bought an '89 200 TE for €200. my brother bought a '90 200E for €1000. a friend bought a '96 626 for €450 another guy i work with bought a '98 primera for €600.
how much did you spend on your micra? clearly everything you had and you needn't have.
we actually don't have insurance groups in ireland in case you haven't noticed. tax is a formality which allows you to release value in cheaper bigger cars.
you are probably insured with quinn direct- try asking them for a quote for a 1.7td vectra. probably no change and then you'd have a) a proper car, b)diesel economy and c) adequate power for driving conditions in THIS country

Squirrel · 29-05-2006 7:28pm

cantdecide wrote:

i work with a guy who bought an '89 200 TE for €200. my brother bought a '90 200E for €1000. a friend bought a '96 626 for €450 another guy i work with bought a '98 primera for €600.
how much did you spend on your micra? clearly everything you had and you needn't have.
we actually don't have insurance groups in ireland in case you haven't noticed. tax is a formality which allows you to release value in cheaper bigger cars.
you are probably insured with quinn direct- try asking them for a quote for a 1.7td vectra. probably no change and then you'd have a) a proper car, b)diesel economy and c) adequate power for driving conditions in THIS country

I'm actually on my mam's policy as a named driver. I went looking just there on a 94 Mk3 Golf 1.4 with Quinn, and they wouldn't quote me online. The Micra can reach 120kph no problem, so it's prefectly adequate for driving conditions in this country.

Are you going to get the Ferrari or equivalent? Or is it out of your means?

cantdecide · 29-05-2006 7:29pm

colm_mcm wrote:

I think you're missing the point by a long way.

i think you're missing the point.

what car company had the slogan "the thinking person's ......"
that is the most patronising thing i ever heard as a car lover, and it panders to the people who clearly couldn't care less about cars.
i do care about cars and i do know it's almost a false economy to buy a small car. when you sit back and look at the car you end up with- you've just sacrificed any chance of getting the best bang for your buck.

TempestSabre · 29-05-2006 7:33pm

cantdecide wrote:

i work with a guy who bought an '89 200 TE for €200. my brother bought a '90 200E for €1000. a friend bought a '96 626 for €450 another guy i work with bought a '98 primera for €600....

cantdecide wrote:

....i'm going to england to buy 325 (look it up- it's a real car) for €1500.

cantdecide wrote:

....
my philosophy is, if you're going to be a motorist- do it right. there is so many financial fronts anyway that tweaking one or two won't do a whole lot so you may as well go first class and stop thinking like a pauper.

So your idea of first class is to drive a thirsty big auld money pit...

Stop it your killing me...:D

cantdecide · 29-05-2006 7:35pm

Are you going to get the Ferrari or equivalent? Or is it out of your means?[/QUOTE]

don't be ridiculous. you can afford a good car, but you are letting your misperceptions of running cost rule your head. but if i could buy it i wouldn't be thinking about fuel consumption.
you forget that i once was once 17. back in 1999. i paid quinn £4k and got a 1.6 for £800. 1ltr quote was £200 cheaper

cantdecide · 29-05-2006 7:38pm

TempestSabre wrote:

So your idea of first class is to drive a thirsty big auld money pit...

Stop it your killing me...:D

is the best you expect for yourself to aspire to a shiny new micra??? not quite a megalomaniac, then.

colm_mcm · 29-05-2006 7:45pm

you haven't got a clue

Squirrel · 29-05-2006 7:49pm

cantdecide wrote:

don't be ridiculous. you can afford a good car, but you are letting your misperceptions of running cost rule your head. but if i could buy it i wouldn't be thinking about fuel consumption.
you forget that i once was once 17. back in 1999. i paid quinn £4k and got a 1.6 for £800. 1ltr quote was £200 cheaper

Running costs aren't the issue. It's any cost. 3 of us drive the Micra and we split the fuel costs and none of us are really in the position to drive anything bigger. Why would I buy a 1.7D Vectra now, when I could save for 3 years and get myself a Golf GTI or something. Going bigger now would delay me getting a car I want. I'm a car enthusiast myself. If I could get insured I definately would on my dad's MR2 Mk2.

I happen to quite like the Micra, it's not big, it's not exactly comfortable, but it is something I can drive, it has a good cd player. I like it. You mightn't, I don't like the E36 Beemer too much, but I won't say anything bad about it to you.

Money doesn't grow on trees, I want quite a lot of things, but I don't get them. I have to live within my means, just like everyone, and if that means driving a Micra over a Ferrari I'll just wait until I can afford my Ferrari.

TempestSabre · 29-05-2006 7:55pm

Its a car for getting from A-B. Nothing more. Aspiration gots nothing to do with it. Not everyones world revolves around their mode of transport.

I have more than one car, thanks for asking. Ones a 2L family saloon, the others a micra. The Micras the best car to drive around town. Light clutch & steering decent gear change, low geared. Theres a big difference in running costs which is nice.

No point using a spoon to slice a loaf of bread.

cantdecide · 29-05-2006 7:57pm

you can live within your means and have a good car.
the 325 is my tenth car. i've had big, small, black , white, good, bad, hatches, estates- all shapes and sizes and my conclusion-small cars are OVER-RATED they make you FEEL like your saving a fortune, when you're saving a pittance. i don't wear dunnes store clothes either.

colm_mcm · 29-05-2006 8:00pm

nobody cares.

Squirrel · 29-05-2006 8:03pm

cantdecide wrote:

you can live within your means and have a good car.
the 325 is my tenth car. i've had big, small, black , white, good, bad, hatches, estates- all shapes and sizes and my conclusion-small cars are OVER-RATED they make you FEEL like your saving a fortune, when you're saving a pittance. i don't wear dunnes store clothes either.

I don't drive the Micra because it's cheap, I drive it because it's what is there. They're over-rated in your opinion, fair enough, but imagine we all drove stretch limos, the traffic jams would seem huge. Small cars have a point. May I ask where you're from, cantdecide?

cantdecide · 29-05-2006 8:04pm

and that's what makes them ignorant.
small=cheap=good =wrong

Squirrel · 29-05-2006 8:10pm

cantdecide wrote:

and that's what makes them ignorant.
small=cheap=good=wrong

big=thirsty=awkward=good

To be honest other people like other things. Get a 530i. It's bigger, and has a more powerful engine, therefeore, by your reckoning, better.

TempestSabre · 29-05-2006 8:12pm

cantdecide wrote:

you can live within your means and have a good car.
the 325 is my tenth car. i've had big, small, black , white, good, bad, hatches, estates- all shapes and sizes and my conclusion-small cars are OVER-RATED they make you FEEL like your saving a fortune, when you're saving a pittance. i don't wear dunnes store clothes either.

I wonder what the safety rating is on your "good car"?

cantdecide · 29-05-2006 8:15pm

HAD ONE!!!!!!! ran perfectly. got bored

Squirrel · 29-05-2006 8:17pm

cantdecide wrote:

HAD ONE!!!!!!! ran perfectly. got bored

So you're downgrading? So your whole argument makes very little sense

TempestSabre · 29-05-2006 8:39pm

The answer to this thread was given already.

peasant wrote:

quick and simple answer(s):

1) no

2) yes, definetely

If it is a new(ish) car that you're after, you should get PAS, if possible. It will be easier to sell on plus some new small cars these days seem to be desinged with power steering in mind, so the can be heavy without it.

On an older car I wouldn't make power steering the deciding factor over condition etc

If you want to debate why an expensive to run old 3L sports car is a better supermini than a 1L Micra you should start your own thread. Probably in the humour forum.

power steering is it essential in a small car?

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