Daewoo Matiz?

LuckyStar

I'm on the lookout for my first car and don't want to spend a fortune but don't want a death trap either. I love Toyota Yaris' but they are a bit dear, as it is my first car I might give it a few dents

I've been looking on Carzone and have seen loads of Daewoo Matiz- all 99 or 00- for about 200-2500, with mileage of less than 100K miles usually. What's the catch? Are these reliable cars or are they going so cheap because they're not reliable? I got a quote off the Quinn direct site, the insurane was about 1100- little difference to the Yaris.

I know nothing about cars by the way But I would prefer not to be driving an oul skanger-banger!!!. I would be using it to get to Tallaght and back 5 days a week.

Tea drinker

Well, if you are anything like me your first car won't be the last you dent:)
I think the matiz are pretty economical, if underpowered. I think most have a 3 cyliner 800cc engine. The yaris may be faster, but whether it's harder on juice or not I don't know. Would be way more expensive to buy though. I don't know of any specific problem with matiz, but I have little experience with them other than driving one a few years ago.

Stephen

I learned to drive in an 800cc Matiz
We never had a problem with it while we had it (for approx 2 years, my mother was the 2nd owner of it). I wouldn't feel confident of coming out of a crash unscathed in one though - if you open the doors you can see how very thin they are :eek:
The 3 cylinder 800cc engine is grand for going around town but you wouldn't want to be going anywhere distant on any kind of a regular basis in it. Our one never went on a motorway in its life!

Michael G

LuckyStar wrote: »

I've been looking on Carzone and have seen loads of Daewoo Matiz- all 99 or 00- for about 200-2500, with mileage of less than 100K miles usually. What's the catch? Are these reliable cars or are they going so cheap because they're not reliable?

Nothing wrong with them as such; it's a very basic car and the brand has low residual values. But 100K on a petrol engine is probably a bit high in mileage especially if the car has been mostly driven around town. A car with 100K put up in two or three years mainly on motorway and dual-carriageway driving is going to be a lot better than a car that has done 100K over eight years at urban speeds.

I haven't looked at prices on Carzone but a Nissan Micra might be a better bet, or a Skoda Fabia (especially a diesel, because diesel engines last longer). The Skoda has Volkswagen quality but the brand doesn't hold its value like Volkswagens.

LuckyStar

Thanks for the replies so far, I need a car that will keep me somewhat safe if I crash, or else I may as well be driving something made of tinfoil. I have been looking at Renault Scenics aswell. The boyfriend who has a car, as do plenty of his friends, says I should get a Japanese car as they are the most reliable. I know small cars are meant to be best for beginners but I really like estates and like the length of the Matiz and the Scenic. If anyone else has any suggestions of a cheap safe beginner's car I would welcome them. I am not familiar with a lot of the car terms though. I basically want a decent sized hatchback or estate that is economical, safe and will get me to work 5 days a week and maybe the odd weekend away down the country. I would also like it to look nice, not an aul tin box (Fiat Cincequento springs to mind!).

Michael G

LuckyStar wrote: »

I have been looking at Renault Scenics aswell....I know small cars are meant to be best for beginners but I really like estates and like the length of the Matiz and the Scenic.

Well if it's one or the other, go for the Matiz. My brother and his wife had a Scenic and couldn't wait to get rid of it. Everything went wrong, starting with the radio. They also have an old Matiz as a second car and have never had the slightest mechanical trouble with it. I'm not suggesting that you should just go by their example — but it fits in with reliability reports on both cars.

Having said that, the Renault does have a fairly good safety rating. I don't think a Cinquecento is going to give you much protection in a crash.

moe_sizlak

the matiz is ugly as sin and you would need to be getting it for a song as you wont be able to give it away if you ever decide to part with it

why not buy a ford focus from around the turn of the decade , fantastic car which for some reason are not that expensive second hand unlike the vw golf which i think are not as good as the focus

zilog_jones

I can't see the Matiz being in any way safe. Same goes for any similarly small car from that era - Fiat Seicento, etc.

For €2000-2500 you could easily afford a proper supermini of a similar age (Matiz at that price is a rip-off TBH, but Carzone prices are usually inflated), e.g. Ford Fiesta, VW Polo etc.

groupb

Autocar magazine rolled a matiz at 13mph in reverse. It is as far as I know the only car they would'nt give a rating to because of its questionable stability. I know know of two matiz(es?) that have rolled in the skerries area. The scenic for all of its questional reliability , is one of the safest and best designed cars on the road and is much larger than the matiz.

LuckyStar

groupb wrote: »

Autocar magazine rolled a matiz at 13mph in reverse. It is as far as I know the only car they would'nt give a rating to because of its questionable stability. I know know of two matiz(es?) that have rolled in the skerries area. .

What does this mean? Sorry i'm a beginner!

groupb wrote: »

The scenic for all of its questional reliability , is one of the safest and best designed cars on the road and is much larger than the matiz.

is it not reliable?

aside from its reliability I thought it would be safer than a small car because of its size.

vengeance52

i drove one, hated it, it was very light and interior was drab. Get something better, yaris, corolla, fiesta, polo. Any of these would be worlds better

groupb wrote: »

Autocar magazine rolled a matiz at 13mph in reverse. It is as far as I know the only car they would'nt give a rating to because of its questionable stability.

That means that the car is unstable and at slow speeds, that car rolled onto its roof when turned sharply.

LuckyStar

vengeance52 wrote: »

i drove one, hated it, it was very light and interior was drab. Get something better, yaris, corolla, fiesta, polo. Any of these would be worlds better



That means that the car is unstable and at slow speeds, that car rolled onto its roof.

jesus i'm confused... it turned upside down? i feel dumb:(

Oilrig

Lucky Star, you're not dumb.

The general gist of what has been posted is that you should avoid the Matiz (I concur) and get yourself a popular model, ie Yaris, Focus etc, be prepared to go back a year or two to meet your budget but it will be worth it in the long run.

Best of luck!

LuckyStar

i was thinking they looked a bit too good to be true at that price.

Does the age of a car make much difference or should I focus more on its NCT and mileage?