Changing car.....but what to pick!?

aoife2k

Ok, so I know all you guys on here are probably sick to the back teeth of these kinds of threads but I am of the wimmin variety and I'm finding it hard to decide what to buy.

Currently have a Toyota Corolla '00. It's failed me on some very important occasions over the 3 or so years i've had it, so my mum reckoned it was time for a change (it'l be her money after all). Something reliable is what she keeps sayin. Obviously it'll have to be reliable, i'll be up and down to Limerick a lot.

The ones I'd like (really really really want) are an Audi A4 1.9 TDI etc etc...

But i'm kinda thinking maybe a Lexus IS 200 would be a good buy...what yez think? Sure itself and Toyota are basically the same thing right?

cantdecide

What's your budget/ annual mileage?

You you mean up and down from Limerick to Donegal??

ninty9er

Driving Limerick to Donegal must be a painful experience. For something comfortable drive one of these.

I've driven that particular car but I've decided to hold out for something a bit more sporty. We're only young once or so I'm told:D

That one has heavy wear around the door handle on the driver's door for the mileage and needs a fairly comprehensive valeting, the rear view needs refixing to the windscreen. But my God it was a dream to drive. The tiptronic is class on it.


I'd say €6250 at most for it though.

aoife2k

Well milage i'm not sure about but yeah, from donegal to limerick. It's an ok drive, i don't really mind it and now that Ennis is bypassed it'll be much much better!

Budget hopefull around the €15/16,000 mark it depends on the mothership as she's going to be the bank. Also 2.2ltr will put her off big style. If i'd my way it'd certainly be goin to that size of engine but unfortunately not for another while yet.

What about the Lexus, good car?

E92

C5 is not going to be reliable. IS200 will be heavy on petrol for someone who is doing the kind of driving you're talking about.

ninty9er

E92 wrote: »

C5 is not going to be reliable.

Not necessarily true.

The 2.2 isn't all that ridiculous on insurance...depends on your age etc....over 21 and a full licence you should be fine especially being of the female variety. The Cruise control should also keep the licence points free.

Being diesel it'll be cheaper to run, they can be iffy on reliability, but it was only minor electrical issues that we had with ours and nothing you won't come across in a Passat or 3 Series.

How about a Vectra??

cantdecide

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=810129

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=702236

eh...eh....??

Why rule out large cc cars?

aoife2k

The mother refuses to let me get a high cc car... I'm going back to college, she's funding that, plus buying me a car and fully financing that so I don't want to be too cheeky.

I've been trawling cbg.ie all evenin but can't find anything that's taking my fancy. Jeez, i'm sooo frickin picky. Plain = not good, needs to have somethin nice and sporty done to it. Not over the top and before you jump to conclusion I'm not a 'girl racer' either... Just like my car to look nice

cantdecide

aoife2k wrote: »

The mother refuses to let me get a high cc car...

This is one of the most made points on this forum as it's true. Spending €16,000 on a car and ruling out higher cc cars because of negligable cost increases only removes perfectly valid options and is on the verge of foolhardy.

Insurance tends not to vary much from car to car for an individual like it once did. If have 16k in your skyrocket and you are cribbing about the difference in tax on sub 2.0 cars, you need your head examined. You could always spend a little less on the car to allow for said negligable differences.

What about a sport Passat (factory lowered suspension makes it very sleek). Diesel economy for the long trips. Handsome car IMO. Think of it as more practical, comfortable A4. Most have 1/2 leather seats.

Here's one. Haggle the price for a straight sale and put aside a few quid for a set of alloys and it'll be a headturner http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=629602

peasant

They do the Citroen C5 in a 1.6 diesel also (supposed to be quite good)
http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carid=827180
Wouldn't necessarily recommend this particular dealer, though

Or this maybe
http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carid=820001
same engine as the Citroen

ooops ...sorry ..that one is a van


also have you considered SEAT ?

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carid=351182

or


http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carid=802890

pete4130

Why not something like these

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=838654

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=800387

Comfortable, nippy enough, reliable, not large cc but plenty of power. Parts and serviceing are cheap as chips? good mpg to boot as well?

LuciferGary

had a 99 IS200(BEAM), great car, now driving 02 316iSE saloon, 1.8L, good for young drivers, tax ok, insurance affordable and cruise control is good for motorway.

aoife2k

cheers for all the advice you guys!

I had thought about all those cars you've sent links to. Saw a passat yesterday and thought, hmmm...maybe i'd like one of them. A dude in the place where my brother works was sellin his Leon which was a very nice car but he sold it before i got a chance to look properly.

My brother currently has a Focus...'00 model 1.6 i think. It's alright but it's too fidgety. Gear stick feels like it came out of a €2 shop and everythin feels cheap in it but it's a nippy little thing.
Ok, i'm really being too picky now so i'll hafta sit with the mother and have a wee flick through Auto Trader or Aoife's Porn as my mates in college called it Another one I was considering was the Honda HRV? I've been drawn to them recently but know nothing about them.

Just found this: http://www.cbg.ie/Cardetail.aspx?CBGID=-6&ID=1658713&NumPics=33&Make=VW&Model=Passat%201.9%20TDI%20(CHOICE%20OF%2013%20PASSATS%20IN%20STOCK)%20HIGHLINE&frmFilter=#

ninty9er

Depending on where the majority of your driving will be (Limerick or Tír Chonaill) I'd also drive an automatic to see if you like it...I know I did!!

Pat_Mustard

You want someting reliable, and your Toyota has let you down so I'm sure you will be reluctant to get another Jap, I may be wrong though. So, why not buy German? You mentioned the Audi, I would, Audi make the best Diseasels in the world. Just look at this year's Le Mans lap leaders. Another option would be a BMW 3-Series, a Mercedes C-Class or a VW Passat, or, dare I tempt you with a Golf GTi?

Also, I'd be reluctant to buy that VW Passat, there's nearly 70k miles on it and it's barely three years old.

aoife2k

Really?! Well i'm guna hit a few of the local dealers near where I live (donegal) and try out a few cars to see what i like. Is automatic not weird? I like feelin in control and changin down the gears myself when i'm overtaking...vroom vroom lol

You could very well tempt me with a Golf GTi....Oh how i'd love one. But it's all down to mothership, if i can convince her that one of those (Audi etc..) would be reliable (which i know they are), not too expensive to run then she may just fork out for it so all you're persuasion skills are needed please cuz i'll make her read them!

Pat_Mustard

Automatics ae fine if you do a lot of long distance driving. Do you? I'm like you in that I need to be in control.

cantdecide

Pat_Mustard wrote: »

Also, I'd be reluctant to buy that VW Passat, there's nearly 70k miles on it and it's barely three years old.

All diesels end up with lots of miles, that's what it's for and since they're the best diesels in the world and all....

Sneaking a sport model Passat under mum's nose will be a lot easier than a golf gti.

OP, if you're not doing enough annual mleage along with the long trips, you can't justify a tdi.

Petrols are significantly cheaper up front. VWs 1.8 20VT (150bhp) petrol engine are bulletproof in the passats are the same spec as the ones in the earlier mk4 Golf GTis. Here's one, another sport model with low mileage in your budget. It's a tiptronic auto so you can still change down at will.
http://search.autotrader.co.uk/es-uk/www/cars/VOLKSWAGEN+PASSAT/Ne-2-4-5-6-7-8-27-44-49-53-61-64-67-103-133-146,N-22-41-63-85-4294967158-4294967159/advert.action?R=200749300102204&distance=257&postcode=NE13+6PE&channel=CARS&make=VOLKSWAGEN&model=PASSAT&min_pr=6000&max_pr=8000&max_mileage=60000

aoife2k

I'll be doin plenty milage....I find my own car drinks an awfull lot of petrol, can't bloody well keep any in it! So you reckon a diesel would be better than a petrol for the long distances i'll be doin?

Oh and searcing in the north is prob not guna happen either, i'll try steerin clear of yellow plates cuz clearing them is quite expensive isnt it? I really don't know much at all do i !

cantdecide

Anything around 15k miles (24k KMs) +, you should. Especially when you'll be spend €15k ish anyway.

It always works out a little cheaper overall after paying the VRT and everything. An Irish car will cost €15k, going to the UK and getting it yourself will cost around €14 ish as an estimate. Far more variety and tehy tend to mind them better over there.

If you did it once, you'd do it again.

aoife2k

Ok so points to make to Mum about buyin a diesel high cc car:

1. Better fuel economy for the long journeys
2. Reliable German car
3. I WANT IT

tuxy

aoife2k wrote: »

I'll be doin plenty milage....I find my own car drinks an awfull lot of petrol, can't bloody well keep any in it!

The corolla is fairly easy on petrol but a lot depends on how you drive it. €40 of petrol gets me about 300 miles in mine. Diesel is defiantly the way to go with the milage you are doing though.

Why must it be a German car btw?

ninty9er

aoife2k wrote: »

Is automatic not weird? I like feelin in control and changin down the gears myself when i'm overtaking...vroom vroom lol

It's even better in an automatic. Plant your shoe in the floor and it drops for you, ah kickdown, can't wait to get mine:D:D:D If you are going to try auto, try one at rush hour in traffic and on open road to make sure the kickdown is working

cantdecide

aoife2k wrote: »

Ok so points to make to Mum about buyin a diesel high cc car:

1. Better fuel economy for the long journeys
2. Reliable German car
3. I WANT IT

Low end responsiveness for safer overtaking.
Better resale value.
Easier to sell on with higher mileage.
Cheaper insurance usually.
Normal servicing (ie oil service) is cheaper.

There's more but as a rule, if you are spending a lot of money anyway and you're doing lots of mileage it's a no brainer.

And seriously, try an auto, you'll love it.

ninty9er

aoife2k wrote: »

Ok so points to make to Mum about buyin a diesel high cc car:

1. Better fuel economy for the long journeys
2. Reliable German car
3. I WANT IT

While Toyota diesels in your budget might not be the best, though the 2.0 D4-D in the 03-present Avensis has served a few people I know very well, A Honda Accord Diesel would be a solid car to get if you coulod stretch a bit.

If you're buying for Diesel, note that VW, Audi, Seat, Skoda share the same engines, chassis' and such like. So there's no point going for the upper class marques if you want bang for your €.

beware the 1.9 90 bhp and 110bhp, look for a 130bhp TDi as opposed to TDi and definitely avoid the TDi

aoife2k

Excellent guys thanks so much again!

It doesn't have to be a german car but anyone I know who has one Audi, VW etc has said they're very good.

I know it's all about how you drive your car that reflects it's fuel economy but you know ther's always one car out of whatever many that's a bit dodge? Well I've got that one. First month after I bought it the cd player (toyota branded) decided to eat all my cds so for most of the 3 years i've had the car ther's been a hole in the dash where the cd player used to be. Alloys were completely wrong for the car, first spin to the cinema with my mates and I had to leave it at the side of the road cuz an ignition coil went. Few months later battery died and was stranded on the side of the road once again then after the NCT couldn't drive it home cuz another ignition coil went... all this happened within a few monts! It has my heart broke and I just want rid cuz it's not reliable. I want to know my car will start in the mornings when i'm down in Limerick and not randomly conk out when i'm on the N17!

tuxy

That is very unlucky. It's completely different to the experience I have had with my corolla. I guess it's a risk when buying any second hand car.

aoife2k

I know, it's a pure bummer so you can understand why I want (my mum want's me to have) a reliable car.

A friend of mine had a corolla, drove the ****e out of it put it through the NCT and didn't fail on a single thing. I got mine serviced before my NCT and i can't drive it home

I'm also after talking to the mothership and the twisting of the arm has begun AND i think it's working!

cantdecide

Sometimes common sense is a hard sell.

I keep saying this- when it comes to cars everyones a bloody expert and having someone whose head is full of old and outmoded ideas and cliches to look at the evidence can be quite hard when it comes to motoring. (Not that you're mum is one of these people but if she's open minded, she will see the reasoning is sound)

Beware:
You have a strong enough budget that its fair to assume you should have a reliable car but you'll never know if you will be the exception. Every car, bar none, has some issue or other.

If you see any cars you like, post a link and we'll give it the once over.

Biro

Why were you suggesting a 2 litre petrol Lexus but yet ruling out "high cc" cars like a 1.9 litre diesel?
Anyway, the IS200 is hard on petrol. And regarding automatics, they're fine in a diesel, cause if you start dropping gears and revving the balls off a diesel you're going to pay in the long run. You leave a diesel in gear and let the torque do the work. Nothing gets on my goat more than a flute driving a diesel like it's a petrol.
On the reliablility thing, 2 ignition coils and a battery aren't really that serious, and a CD player is negligable in rating a brand as being reliable or not. Anyway, Toyota don't make CD players! Japanese cars are still more reliable than German, however the German cars are still good. For your price range you can get an A4 tdi, Passat tdi, Avensis D4D, even probably a 316i (petrol obviously). There's plenty of options. The HRV are different alright, Honda are still no. 1 for reliability, along with Mazda in recent surveys.
And you should count yourself lucky no matter what you get! You are getting a car handed to you after all, and it's even being run for you. That's the best kind of car ever!

aoife2k

Biro wrote: »

Why were you suggesting a 2 litre petrol Lexus but yet ruling out "high cc" cars like a 1.9 litre diesel?
Anyway, the IS200 is hard on petrol. And regarding automatics, they're fine in a diesel, cause if you start dropping gears and revving the balls off a diesel you're going to pay in the long run. You leave a diesel in gear and let the torque do the work. Nothing gets on my goat more than a flute driving a diesel like it's a petrol.
On the reliablility thing, 2 ignition coils and a battery aren't really that serious, and a CD player is negligable in rating a brand as being reliable or not. Anyway, Toyota don't make CD players! Japanese cars are still more reliable than German, however the German cars are still good. For your price range you can get an A4 tdi, Passat tdi, Avensis D4D, even probably a 316i (petrol obviously). There's plenty of options. The HRV are different alright, Honda are still no. 1 for reliability, along with Mazda in recent surveys.
And you should count yourself lucky no matter what you get! You are getting a car handed to you after all, and it's even being run for you. That's the best kind of car ever!

1st off I posted here to get advice because as I said, i wasn't sure what I wanted and didn't know much about what cars would be good and i didn't know about them full stop.

2nd -> 2 ignition coils and a battery is serious to me if i'm stuck in the back arse of nowhere. CD player wasn't serious but i was just giving an over view of the mishaps with the car

3rd -> I know i'm extremely lucky to be gettin a car that's another reason i posted here, I don't want to be cheeky about it and demand that i want a certain car. I want to make sure my mothers money is going to be spent wisely.

Oh and I'm a flute that may end up driving a diesel like a petrol?

ninty9er

I don't think any of those comments were aimed specifically at you.

tuxy

Did that corolla have a full service history when you got it?

aoife2k

ninty9er wrote: »

I don't think any of those comments were aimed specifically at you.

I know they weren't but it annoyed me.

I bought the car at a local car dealer, it was his nephews car who was married and had a kid so he obviously looked after it (the muck the guy told me). I never went near him after the alloys incident, he accused me of abusing the car in the first 3 months I'd had it. I must have been going too fast over 'bumps'. The problem was solved when I figured it out myself and bought some new alloys.

The car had a full service history, he bought it off his uncle and it was serviced there everytime. But i brought it else where.

_Kaiser_

Well I have a 02 1.9TDI Passat (much like the one in the CBG link above) and she's an automatic. Great car and very good for long distance driving - I do at least 250 miles a week and have been up and down the country as well and can't fault the performance. Overtaking etc isn't an issue as she has enough power/torque to do it - even more if you get it remapped

The only thing I will say is that VW aren't as rock solid from a reliability standpoint as they used to be. I've had lots of "little things" go wrong with mine, and a few larger issues and the costs do mount up. Of course, it could be just my bad luck, but it's something to be aware of...

I'm hoping to change it this year but will probably buy another VAG car and definitely an automatic.. I haven't driven a manual in years and don't intend to start now

aoife2k

I'm seriously going to have to take one out for a spin sometime it sounds exciting!

I've wanted an A4 for a long time...I like the look of this one but I'm confused about how it's so cheap compared to others of a similar age and milage being more expensive??? http://search.autotrader.ie/www/cars_advert?country=IE&sort=5&currency=EUR&modelexact=1&make=Audi&model=A4&min_pr=1000&max_pr=15000&county_list=3_4_5_6_7_10_11_12_13_14_15_16_18_19_20_21_22_23_24_25_26_28_29_30_31_32_33&x=67&y=12&id=200752187680647

what do you think cantdecide? I'm just wondering though how much would it be to clear it?

Biro

aoife2k wrote: »

I'm seriously going to have to take one out for a spin sometime it sounds exciting!

I've wanted an A4 for a long time...I like the look of this one but I'm confused about how it's so cheap compared to others of a similar age and milage being more expensive??? http://search.autotrader.ie/www/cars_advert?country=IE&sort=5&currency=EUR&modelexact=1&make=Audi&model=A4&min_pr=1000&max_pr=15000&county_list=3_4_5_6_7_10_11_12_13_14_15_16_18_19_20_21_22_23_24_25_26_28_29_30_31_32_33&x=67&y=12&id=200752187680647

what do you think cantdecide? I'm just wondering though how much would it be to clear it?

My comments weren't aimed at you, like ninty9er said. No need to snap. My point was mainly trying to clarify as to when you said large cc cars, did you mean 1.9 diesels, as you seemed happy with a 2 litre petrol. I was just trying to clarify. And I'm not criticising your driving, sure you don't have a diesel car yet, how can I say you drive it in any particular way? Sure I don't even know you!
That car will cost €4117 to clear. Just a heads up, there are a massive amount of cars coming in from the UK by people who sell them on for a quick buck, most are Passats and A4's as they are in demand over here. Of what I've seen, a large percentage of them are clocked. Any car you buy that has a full dealer service history in the book, you're best bet is to ring that dealer and ask them if they have it in their records and do they have the recorded milage from the service intervals. A dealer stamp can be faked.
If you're buying from someone who bought in the UK to sell for profit (Don't get me wrong, no harm in making money, I'm not criticising!), then just remember that most poeple who buy a car to sell for a profit find and buy the cheapest they can, not necessarily the best they can. And that can be a big difference.

Biro

aoife2k wrote: »

2nd -> 2 ignition coils and a battery is serious to me if i'm stuck in the back arse of nowhere. CD player wasn't serious but i was just giving an over view of the mishaps with the car

That's a good point. You should consider joining the RAC or the AA (although from what I've heard from people's experiences, they prefered the RAC). The benefits of this would be that you'll get a rate if you decide to buy privately from them to go and give the car a check before you buy, and then you'll be covered no matter what happens or where. It's worth considering.

aoife2k

Apologies Biro....

You've a good point though. I need a man to be with me searching me thinks, one who is in the know!

cantdecide

As a rule, doubling the sterling price will give you an approx cost after VRT is paid. For your budget, it could well be from a UK main dealer at your budget.

If you send any enquiries to UK main dealers, make sure you ask them if any warranty would be transferrable. I don't know if they would be for a car out it's manufacturer's warranty. If they won't give you a transferrable warranty, they'll probably give you a better deal.

Biro

aoife2k wrote: »

Apologies Biro....

You've a good point though. I need a man to be with me searching me thinks, one who is in the know!

Ah no worries, it's hard to get tone across in text!
Ya, be careful buying no matter what it is. The majority of sellers, both private and trade are genuine, but there is an increasing amount of chancers out there with cars for sale with shady history or none at all. And often if it looks too clean, there may be a dodgy reason for it!

aoife2k

Defo, only thing is i'm fussy and if i'm lookin i won't look for plain. I won't have the money to add bits and bobs (not many but to make it look nicer) so if it comes with it already that's a bonus

bazz26

aoife2k wrote: »

I've wanted an A4 for a long time...I like the look of this one but I'm confused about how it's so cheap compared to others of a similar age and milage being more expensive??? http://search.autotrader.ie/www/cars_advert?country=IE&sort=5&currency=EUR&modelexact=1&make=Audi&model=A4&min_pr=1000&max_pr=15000&county_list=3_4_5_6_7_10_11_12_13_14_15_16_18_19_20_21_22_23_24_25_26_28_29_30_31_32_33&x=67&y=12&id=200752187680647

what do you think cantdecide? I'm just wondering though how much would it be to clear it?

Be careful looking at UK imports over here, alot of them can and have been clocked. Make sure you do the relevent HPI checks on them yourself which means you need the car's chassis number and old UK reg number. If the seller is giving you bull**** excuses or the runaround then walk away.

Personally myself if I was looking at a UK import I would not buy anything from a middleman over here trying to make a fast return on his investment. I would go to the UK and pick out my own car and do my homework.

BFassassin

What about something like this
http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=849095
I would like to get one myself and was wondering should the very high mileage be a concern?

ninty9er

BFassassin wrote: »

What about something like this
http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=849095
I would like to get one myself and was wondering should the very high mileage be a concern?

Wouldn't be worried about that mileage on a diesel Audi??

aoife2k

That high milage would put me off.....I found this little beauty on carsireland.ie. It's from the toyota garage where I get my own serviced...what's your thoughts?

http://www.carsireland.ie/detail.php?ad_id=98517&r=s.php%3Fm%3D7%26amp%3Bh%3D2%26amp%3Bg%3D1

I think it's nice looking, alright miles and grand price. Showed it to Mum and she did a complete U-turn on me. "you don't need a big car like that" etc... In fairness, now it's not like my corolla is huge, but it's not a small car either....

BFassassin

ninty9er wrote: »

Wouldn't be worried about that mileage on a diesel Audi??

Yeah i thought that. Its kinda hard to understand how someone can do that sort of miles in 6 years though. I know of cars that are 15 years old with similar milage to that audi

ninty9er

BFassassin wrote: »

Yeah i thought that. Its kinda hard to understand how someone can do that sort of miles in 6 years though. I know of cars that are 15 years old with similar milage to that audi

Quite Conceivable; 20k a year on a diesel like that is nothing. It could also be a 40k a year rep car for 2 years and then 4 years at 10k with a family driver.

aoife2k

Ok so what you guys are saying is that high milage on a car like shouldn't put me off?

cantdecide

aoife2k wrote: »

That high milage would put me off.....I found this little beauty on carsireland.ie. It's from the toyota garage where I get my own serviced...what's your thoughts?

http://www.carsireland.ie/detail.php?ad_id=98517&r=s.php%3Fm%3D7%26amp%3Bh%3D2%26amp%3Bg%3D1

I think it's nice looking, alright miles and grand price. Showed it to Mum and she did a complete U-turn on me. "you don't need a big car like that" etc... In fairness, now it's not like my corolla is huge, but it's not a small car either....

One of my pet peeves is actually people asking 'need little car for my little wife/ girlfriend'. Why must women go second class when it come to cars?? OP, your mum surely knows you are doing high mileage and long trips on probably not too many good roads. If someone like you doesn't need a better, more comfortable car, who does?? I certainly wouldn't be spending €15k on a toy car for your requirements.

As regards mileage, you have to ask yourself how many miles you will put on this car yourself. Buy it with 115k and put up 60k more in 3 years- not such a good situation. Buying with 70k is a much better situation if you can. When these cars are relatively new they have an artificially higher price even with big mileage so for marginally more, you could get a lot less mileage.

littlejukka

i'd be looking at an IS200 Sport for that sort of money, around 2003, maybe even 2004. to hell with economy.