What car should I get?

Toto Wolfcastle

After a few years of sharing a car with my dad I have decided that I want my own car. (I hate having a full licence and still having to take buses on occasion!) Problem is, I know very little about cars! I only have about 1500-2000 to spend on the car. So what car would you recommend for a 22 year old female? Something safe and reliable would be good! (Sounding like my mother here!)

I've been browsing carzone but I really don't know where to start.

AckwelFoley

Toyota Yaris
Ford Fiesta
Volkswagen Polo.

I personally like Opel, but for the money you have to spend it would buy you an Opel Corsa pre 2000, which have had alot of problms, so id avoid opel on that unless you could afford a newer model

Toto Wolfcastle

snyper wrote: »

Toyota Yaris
Ford Fiesta
Volkswagen Polo.

I personally like Opel, but for the money you have to spend it would buy you an Opel Corsa pre 2000, which have had alot of problms, so id avoid opel on that unless you could afford a newer model

I'd love a Polo, that's what I currently drive. (Well, what I'd actually LOVE is a Golf, but obviously wont be able to afford one!)

Good to know about Opel, had been looking at a Corsa but I'll strike that off the list now. Thanks.

SoupyNorman

janeybabe wrote: »

I'd love a Polo, that's what I currently drive. (Well, what I'd actually LOVE is a Golf, but obviously wont be able to afford one!)

Good to know about Opel, had been looking at a Corsa but I'll strike that off the list now. Thanks.

Hi,

Your budget is extremely restrictive. For 2k you want to be looking at what will last rather then what you want.
If you're not in too much debt then a car loan is the way to go. Driving something you have pride in is great. (a feeling I have discovered recently).

Toto Wolfcastle

bravestarr082 wrote: »

Hi,

Your budget is extremely restrictive. For 2k you want to be looking at what will last rather then what you want.
If you're not in too much debt then a car loan is the way to go. Driving something you have pride in is great. (a feeling I have discovered recently).

What I want doesn't really matter at this stage. What I need is something that gets me from a to b. I have no debts but I'm a student and I couldn't be sure I'd keep up with the repayments of a loan. Thanks for the advice though!

As for driving something you have pride in, I look forward to the day when I can afford that!

Lucifer

Nissan micra would be a good buy, very reliable and usually cheap to fix if anything goes wrong, while they are nothing special to look at or are not very powerful, they are a great starter car for getting around.

RICARDO1982

Check out the car sites something there might catch the eye, free ads papers do have some bargains but also attract some LEMONS because they are free and easy ads.
Make Sure you bring a mechanic with you as you dont want to be throwing your mogeney away. Good Cars are in your price range are
TOYOTA STARLET
NISSAN MICRA
HONDA CIVIC
MITSUBISHI COLT
SEAT IBIZA (The same as a polo) 97 98 99 newer model not as good.
2000 may get you a 1995/96 golf.
Keep away from French and Italian Cars

Volvoboy

bravestarr082 wrote: »

Hi,

Your budget is extremely restrictive. For 2k you want to be looking at what will last rather then what you want.
If you're not in too much debt then a car loan is the way to go. Driving something you have pride in is great. (a feeling I have discovered recently).

I really 110% dont agree with this statement.

If ya get a loan out (which i did for my 1st car costing €5000 over 5 years) you really dont know what is around the corner as in paying back the loan over x amount of years.

You may want to go traveling around the world and be constrainted to your loan.

I'm 3 years paying back loan 2 more left and i will never get another loan out for a car as long as i live, saying that i've always payed it back on time but its always on your mind ''oh is there enough money in my account to pay this months''.


OP i highly recomend that you stick to your budget of 2k You will no doubt pick up somthing reliable safe for your budget, last summer i ran a car that i had bought for €400 and ran it like i would anyother car, that includes long motorway driving to Belfast on a regular basis.

But i digress,

Op heres a list of cars under 2K, 1.4 and oldest is 1996 take your pick!

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=search&MakeID=&xMakeID=&ColourID=&xColourID=&xModelID=&Doors=&BodyID=&Engine_Min=&Year_Min=1996&Engine_Max=1400&Year_Max=&Price_Min=&Price_Min_integer=Minimum+price+entered+was+not+an+integer.&CountyID=&xCountyID=&Price_Max=2000&Price_Max_integer=Maximum+price+entered+was+not+an+integer.&BusinessID=&xBusinessID=&IsPrivateSale=&FuelID=&Mileage_Max=&Mileage_Max_integer=Max+mileage+entered+was+not+an+integer.&SortBy=MakeAsc&MaxRows=50&InsertPeriod=&ResultFormat=&submit=Find+%3E%3E

-VB-

Mental Mickey

RICARDO1982 wrote: »

Check out the car sites something there might catch the eye, free ads papers do have some bargains but also attract some LEMONS because they are free and easy ads.
Make Sure you bring a mechanic with you as you dont want to be throwing your mogeney away. Good Cars are in your price range are
TOYOTA STARLET
NISSAN MICRA
HONDA CIVIC
MITSUBISHI COLT
SEAT IBIZA (The same as a polo) 97 98 99 newer model not as good.
2000 may get you a 1995/96 golf.
Keep away from French and Italian Cars

I fcukin HATE statements like this!!!! :mad::rolleyes: Why do you say this?? Have you had a bad experience with French/Italian cars? What happens if this person buys a French/Italian car for example, and it turns out to be a big pile of festering dog poo????

OP, ignore all the x car is s***e comments, and go for what you think is best.....

Good luck.

pontovic

www.whatcar.co.uk

Excellent site for picking out the best cars in each class. Has good reviews, pics etc.

www.parkers.co.uk

www.honestjohn.co.uk

ShayK1

you might get a 00 Renault Clio for 2k.
I've a 99 clio with pretty high mileage. Good little car but its getting old now. If you can find one with low mileage I'd say go for it.

RICARDO1982

Mental Mickey wrote: »

[/b]


I fcukin HATE statements like this!!!! :mad::rolleyes: Why do you say this?? Have you had a bad experience with French/Italian cars? What happens if this person buys a French/Italian car for example, and it turns out to be a big pile of festering dog poo????

OP, ignore all the x car is s***e comments, and go for what you think is best.....

Good luck.

Well if consider my citroen ax blowing a head gasket, and my mates
puntos gearbox, head gasket and ECU failing... I would call them
bad experiences. These problems are alot less heard of on Jap Cars.
Maybe you have had a good French or Italian car thats fair enough.
I am saying generally they are troublesome....

Mental Mickey

RICARDO1982 wrote: »

Well if consider my citroen ax blowing a head gasket, and my mates
puntos gearbox, head gasket and ECU failing... I would call them
bad experiences. These problems are alot less heard of on Jap Cars.
Maybe you have had a good French or Italian car thats fair enough.
I am saying generally they are troublesome....

I reckon it's how people look after them/drive them that causes the problems......? Particularly young male drivers.

Turbodreams

RICARDO1982 wrote: »

Check out the car sites something there might catch the eye, free ads papers do have some bargains but also attract some LEMONS because they are free and easy ads.
Make Sure you bring a mechanic with you as you dont want to be throwing your mogeney away. Good Cars are in your price range are
TOYOTA STARLET
NISSAN MICRA
HONDA CIVIC
MITSUBISHI COLT
SEAT IBIZA (The same as a polo) 97 98 99 newer model not as good.
2000 may get you a 1995/96 golf.
Keep away from French and Italian Cars

+1 ...Fiats: the only cars where the bonnet hinges wear out before the tyres!

RICARDO1982

Thats a good point Mickey but i suppose the jap cars take a lot more abuse coz they r quite popular with boy racers too. examples 16V starlet, turbo starlet and vtec civic

landydef

Lucifer wrote: »

Nissan micra would be a good buy, very reliable and usually cheap to fix if anything goes wrong, while they are nothing special to look at or are not very powerful, they are a great starter car for getting around.

have to agree,the micra is the perfect starter car ,there cheap and reliable and personnally ive never heard of one giving much trouble
although sayin this you never know whats around the corner with any car no matter what its nationality
check for obvious things like rust in places where water would collect on sills etc.
also pull out the dipstick and check the oil

Mental Mickey

RICARDO1982 wrote: »

Thats a good point Mickey but i suppose the jap cars take a lot more abuse coz they r quite popular with boy racers too. examples 16V starlet, turbo starlet and vtec civic

Earlier today, I saw a f&^kin EEJIT speeding up my road(in a housing estate, with kids playing on the street). If I'd have caught him, I would've bloody decked him. And yes, he WAS a boy racer. You could tell a mile away.......he was driving a piece of s*&t car that probably cost quarter the price of his insurance!!!??

:mad:

RICARDO1982

Plenty of them Gobs***es around, driving around in their muppet mobiles...
Anyway whats a good car for this girl to buy?

Mental Mickey

RICARDO1982 wrote: »

Plenty of them Gobs***es around, driving around in their muppet mobiles...
Anyway whats a good car for this girl to buy?

I hate to say this, but I honestly think she'd be better off making up her own mind......???

I recently started thinking about changing my car(there's a thread about it elsewhere in this section), but I got completely confused with all the advice......??? :rolleyes:

I ended up choosing a Ford Fiesta Steel 1.4l Auto.............(a)because a family relative has bought them for years, and has never had problems, and she put me in touch with her car dealer, and (b)I like the look of 'em.

landydef

true but a short list might help,after all thats what she posted for!
1-nissan micra
2-peugeot 106
3-ford fiesta

ive always thought the more basic the car is,the less can go wrong

Mental Mickey

landydef wrote: »

true but a short list might help,after all thats what she posted for!
1-nissan micra
2-peugeot 106
3-ford fiesta

ive always thought the more basic the car is,the less can go wrong

Out of that list, I'd go for either the Micra(which I currently have), or the Fiesta.

Toto Wolfcastle

Right so I've pretty much narrowed it down to a Micra or a Fiesta, going on the advice here! I know people who have both and they seem to be pretty reliable.

Thanks again for all the advice!

Mental Mickey

janeybabe wrote: »

Right so I've pretty much narrowed it down to a Micra or a Fiesta, going on the advice here! I know people who have both and they seem to be pretty reliable.

Thanks again for all the advice!

Best of luck.

cj2007

janeybabe wrote: »

After a few years of sharing a car with my dad I have decided that I want my own car. (I hate having a full licence and still having to take buses on occasion!) Problem is, I know very little about cars! I only have about 1500-2000 to spend on the car. So what car would you recommend for a 22 year old female? Something safe and reliable would be good! (Sounding like my mother here!)

I've been browsing carzone but I really don't know where to start.

Id reccomend a polo. I have a newer one the 00 model and iv never had a days trouble with it and I know people with the 95 models and they are the exact same. Look at seat ibizas too they are made by Volkswagen.

bazz26

cj2007 wrote: »

Id reccomend a polo. I have a newer one the 00 model and iv never had a days trouble with it and I know people with the 95 models and they are the exact same. Look at seat ibizas too they are made by Volkswagen.

Most pre 2000 model Polos will not have power steering though which is handy for parking. Also Polos tend to be overpriced so on the OP's budget you would have to go back a year or two over a similar Fiesta or Micra.

My recommendation would be a 1.25 litre Fiesta. On the OP's budget you would be looking at better value from private sellers to be honest.

Toto Wolfcastle

bazz26 wrote: »

Most pre 2000 model Polos will not have power steering though which is handy for parking. Also Polos tend to be overpriced so on the OP's budget you would have to go back a year or two over a similar Fiesta or Micra.

My recommendation would be a 1.25 litre Fiesta. On the OP's budget you would be looking at better value from private sellers to be honest.

The 99 Polo I drive at the moment has power steering, but I don't think I can afford a Polo anyway! Thanks for the advice.

Steve

/gives tuppence worth

Stick with the Jap cars - Micra is probably the best bet - cheaper to service / fix / run + more reliable.