Hunting for a €12k car

witless_steve

I'm looking for a decent smallish car for around 12k, I did a little research and found a couple of models that sounded good. I'm not the most knowledgeable about cars so I thought I'd post here and see if I'm completely barmy.

First off what I'm looking for is a saloon or smaller sized car, less then 5 years old, engine no bigger then 1.5L with air con if possible.

What have I been looking for?
Toyota Prius (circa 2004)
Toyota Yaris Sol with Lux Pack (circa 2006)
Renault Megane Hatch (circa 2004)
Renault Clio (circa 2006)

What I need to know:
Are the models I'm looking for nearly impossible to find on the forecourt?
Have I forgotten about some other reliable models from other brands that might be a better fit?
Is what I'm looking for within my budget at all or do I need to drop a few years to get something?

I hope you can help me with my car hunting.

guil

ya might get a 05 focus for 12/13 k i have a 05 saloon it's 1.4 and a great car the only thing that ever went wrong was the boot solenoid had to be replaced but notthin major and it's easy enough on petrol aswell

witless_steve

I thought I'd find it tough to get air con in such a small call but I found a few more that seem to have it.

Anyone know if Opel Corsas or Clio Monaccos are reliable?

Cheers for all the hints about Ford Focus' they seem like a nice car, must crunch the numbers some more and see if I can test drive one.

Am I very unusual in wanting air con in this country?

vectra

€13750 for a 08 SEAT Ibiza

€13500 for a 06 SEAT Ibiza 1.4tdi << Miser on diesel.;)

€12,950 for a 06 SEAT Cordoba 1.2 << Saloon version of Ibiza

A few for you to consider

Soarer

vectra wrote: »

€13750 for a 08 SEAT Ibiza

€13500 for a 06 SEAT Ibiza 1.4tdi << Miser on diesel.;)

€12,950 for a 06 SEAT Cordoba 1.2 << Saloon version of Ibiza

A few for you to consider

You say a miser on Diesel, but someone (can't remember who or what thread!)posted their kilometres per tank, and it came back at 45mpg.
Don't know if the guy was contantly on the redline or what, but I'd imagine you'd easily get that mpg from the 1.2 petrol.
Plus it has cheaper tax (€290 per year).
Plus petrol is cheaper (by around 10c per litre).
Plus petrol is better for the environment, even though the Greens would have you believe it's the fuel of Satan!

I'd go for the 08 out of that lot.

P.S. @ Vectra. I'm not having a go at your post

vectra

Soarer wrote: »

You say a miser on Diesel, but someone (can't remember who or what thread!)posted their kilometres per tank, and it came back at 45mpg.
Don't know if the guy was contantly on the redline or what, but I'd imagine you'd easily get that mpg from the 1.2 petrol.
Plus it has cheaper tax (€290 per year).
Plus petrol is cheaper (by around 10c per litre).
Plus petrol is better for the environment, even though the Greens would have you believe it's the fuel of Satan!

I'd go for the 08 out of that lot.

P.S. @ Vectra. I'm not having a go at your post

I know you are not having a go at me
I would also say that could have been me saying about 45mpg.. and i do drive it on a bit at times.
But seriously though... If someone well behaved had this they would be delighted.. I have read reports of owners getting a return of 900Kilometers per tank.. :eek:

Now if the OP could stretch a bit on the finance and buy a new one the tax would be €150 also ( which it is on mine )

Might even sell my one soon if all goes well.. would be a good bargain for someone. only 2.5k on the clock