Need a good cheap car.

dceire

I'm fresh off the boat from Canada and need to get myself a solid cheap car to get me around and commuting.

I've about €2000 to spend max but would prefer to keep it as close to €1500 as possible. It needs to be something that will be cheap to run and insure. I've been looking along the lines of a Focus, Golf, Leon, Almera or maybe even a little Polo. Any suggestions are most welcome.

unkel

dceire wrote: »

I'm fresh off the boat from Canada

You get yourself back on that boat, quick, before it leaves :eek:

Seriously, check the bangernomics thread. Loads of cheap good cars in there!

dceire

unkel wrote: »

You get yourself back on that boat, quick, before it leaves :eek:

Seriously, check the bangernomics thread. Loads of cheap good cars in there!

Haha yea, not the best time to be getting in

Any opinions on a Clio?

thewintermute

dceire wrote: »

Haha yea, not the best time to be getting in

Any opinions on a Clio?

Have a '99 Clio (1.2) for less money than you're looking to spend if you're interested. It's NCT'd etc, doesn't need anything. PM me if you're interested, was going to sell it after Christmas.They're a very reliable little car as you will see from the number of them still motoring around.

dceire

Cheers for the offer but I'd probably be looking for a 01+ face lift Clio if I was going for one.

If anyone knows of or is selling a polo, golf, bora, focus, leon, clio or has any other suggestions please give me a shout.

coylemj

Polos and Golfs hold their value very well in Ireland so for 1,500 you'd be looking at an older vintage model of VW than for the other models you quoted, you should see this as soon as you check the 2nd hand websites.

Rich Daddies buy their daughters brand new Minis for their 21st birthday, not-so-rich Daddies buy secondhand Golfs and Polos!

johndaman66

coylemj wrote: »

Polos and Golfs hold their value very well in Ireland so for 1,500 you'd be looking at an older vintage model of VW than for the other models you quoted, you should see this as soon as you check the 2nd hand websites.

Plus they're very very over-rated for what they are. I had reason to drive a 1996 Polo for a few weeks at one stage and it was dirt. Absolutely wouldn't hold a candle to the likes of a Starlet or Micra.

dceire

I've had two 98 Polo's as my 1st and 2nd cars (1st one was written off by a little scumbag) and thought they were a great little car. I then had an Astra for the past four years but stupidly sold it before leaving. It was one of the best examples of a 00 Astra around and was pretty much bomb proof. I don't think I'd get a similar Astra again because I know I'd never get one anywhere near as solid or with as much kit as was on mine. That happened with my second Polo and I only kept it for 6 months.

I've been looking at 00/01 Polo's for around the 2k mark. They are out there but are snapped up pretty sharpish. I need a car asap but I'm not going to go for the first decent car that shows up. I just need to keep the old eyes peeled I guess.

Timmaay

The Jap cars from then are much better in my opinion (micra, starlet), I've seen a good few golfs/polos from then give hassle the engine electrics, the likes of distributors etc.

cadaliac

Peugeot 206 maybe?
Otherwise:
You should look at something a little harder to tax like a 1.6, 1.8 or even a 2.0.
Offset the tax bill for a year against the purchase price and you could be pleasantly surprised.
For instance - a 2.0 Mazda 626 will fetch about 1k for a 00 or o1.
same for 1.8 or 2.0 Primeara's or saloons of that nature.
A 1.1 micra or 1.0 car with cheap tax would probably be about 1.5k to 2k to purchase. Horses for courses really,but you shouldn't blinker your options.