Best Car for Less than 2K

kayman78

After seeing Top Gear last week, I was wondering, what is the best car you could get in Ireland for less than (or not more than) 2000 quid. Taking into consideration, condition, reliability, fuel economy, TAX and of course model. The post Celtic Tiger era has surely consigned many cars to this category.

fryup

here you go mate......a tad old but still look great (imo) and great fun to drive

http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/2323420

http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/2312498

fryup

fryup wrote: »

............
http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/2312498

Surely this seller is a trader, so many cars get pictured there.

kayman78

I had a 306 rental while my other car was being serviced about 5 years ago. You see a lot of them about so I presume they are pretty reliable.

Compton

the petrol pug is a fine car, shes no DTurbo though

_Conrad_

RoverJames wrote: »

Surely this seller is a trader, so many cars get pictured there.

It says
"business name: DG trade" on the ad so it's not hiding it




@OP it depends what you mean by best... do you want fun, speed, economy, reliability, space, looks? which aspects are the most important?




My personaly view of the best cars (for me) that i can get for 2 grand are 90s big volvos or a nice E34 BMW 5 series or maybe an LS400 or an old Jag. I like lots of space and comfort and a big solid car.


If you want economy etc there are plenty of cheap cars out there, mk3 golf/vento diesels are very solid, great on fuel and very reliable, but very slow and very dull.

90s corolla will give ok economy and extremely good reliability

you lose out on too much if you try to focus on cheap tax though as you're stuck with 1.0 to1.3 type things. I'd rather pay a bit of tax and have some really comfy big old barge to tip around in, or else have something like an old 1.9 diesel vw that'll do great mpg and keep going and going and be extremley easy to keep going.

kayman78

Thanks Conrad.

Being a bit greedy really. Looking for something that looks reasonably good and some fun also. However, fuel economy is important since I have a bit of a commute - So definitely diesel and prob not bigger than a 2/2.1L. Reliability is key though (to get to work!)

Is the BMW 5 series a reliable car? I was just under the impression it might be troublesome to keep on the road and a nightmare to maintain (same with Merc). The Lexus 4L is too much for me I think.

At the same time, for less than 2k I think I can afford to have a little fun with this.

itarumaa

Peugeot 406 HDI might be a good choice, nice to drive, cheap to buy, I am not sure how long it would last tough.

I personally solved this issue by bying Ls400 but I think for you op 18mpg in the city might be a bit much

_Conrad_

kayman78 wrote: »

Thanks Conrad.

Being a bit greedy really. Looking for something that looks reasonably good and some fun also. However, fuel economy is important since I have a bit of a commute - So definitely diesel and prob not bigger than a 2/2.1L. Reliability is key though (to get to work!)

Is the BMW 5 series a reliable car? I was just under the impression it might be troublesome to keep on the road and a nightmare to maintain (same with Merc). The Lexus 4L is too much for me I think.

At the same time, for less than 2k I think I can afford to have a little fun with this.

An abused, neglected bmw isn't good, but once you look after them properly they're seriously good cars. The E34 isn't overly complicated anyway and it fairly straightforward.
People who've usually never owned them or been near them seem to have this myth ingrained into their brains that because it's a BMW it's some kind of tempermental supercar. Once kept happy and well minded there's no issue. Old mercs were always fine too once looked after, from the mid 90s on though the build quality in the mercs seemed to go out the window.


the lexus certainly doesnt lack comfort, power or toys but they do love their auld sup of petrol being very heavy and 4 litres of v8 lovelyness. Can be a bit difficult to find certain bits in this country for them as they're rare but if you were prepared to try the UK as well you'd be alright. Not a great option running costs wise though

domrush

an alfa romeo 156 maybe?

Lex Luthor

domrush wrote: »

an alfa romeo 156 maybe?

Beat me to it

kayman78

Thanks Guys. The Alpha Romeo is not something I would have thought looking at. Simply because (again wrongly or not) I was under the impression that these were notoriously unreliable. I recall an old workmate buying a new one of these in 03 and saying after, it was the worst decision he ever made. Great to drive, but it was costing him an arm and a leg in garages.

I've also been looking at Primeras (2002 - newer model) and while probably reliable, I was wondering if people had experiences with them.

Citroen C6, SAAB, Passat are all on my list. I have pretty much decided on 2L diesel now to keep running costs down.

pajo1981

The money these petrol yokes are goin for is insane:

http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/2323975