Need Help Picking a Used Car

evolutionqy7

Hey

Just looking to go for a new car and just wondering could anyone help me out. Mainly have my target set on VW Golf but was considering an Opel Astra too.
I do no more than 150 miles per week, but do drive more during the summer.

Original budget was 5k, but I managed to stretch it out to 6 in hope of getting a better car with lower mileage and higher year. I picked these 4 golfs below and the 5th is a V Astra. Dont need a huge amount of extra's, though cruise control would be nice. Any ideas which one would be a better pick?

VW Golf 1

VW Golf 2

VW Golf 3

VW Golf 4

Astra

Any help appreciated

colm_mcm

First 2 are most likely dealers posing as private sellers.

evolutionqy7

colm_mcm wrote: »

First 2 are most likely dealers posing as private sellers.

Why do you say that?

colm_mcm

Because if you google the number they've got others for sale and will take a trade in.

Id rather buy off the owner, you can tell more about the car, another golf there has been owned for 4 years.

evolutionqy7

colm_mcm wrote: »

Because if you google the number they've got others for sale and will take a trade in.

Id rather buy off the owner, you can tell more about the car, another golf there has been owned for 4 years.

Thanks. Id still have to consider other ones. I'm going to be ringing them all tomorrow, there's no miles written down on the 3rd golf, though she does FSH

colm_mcm

I'd be a little wary of the one in clare, roads aren't the best, and that one looks like it might live by the sea.

Still worth a shot though.

jca

I'd go for the red 06 Dublin car or the Astra. Be mindful that the Astra will be very difficult to shift on later because of that Vauxhall badge.... Just one of those things I'm afraid..

JustLen

He's right the roads back there are pretty bad.
I'm 100% sure those number plate surrounds are from mark mcguire motors which would mean it was almost certainly imported from the UK at some point.

Not saying thats a bad thing, as with any car verify the mileage

evolutionqy7

How come now one is mentioning golf 4 ?

I picked the Golf 1 partially cause of the color. Had a black car before and it was a huge pain to keep it clean outside.

Then No. 2 looks fairly clean apart from the dirty boot., but that doesn't really bother me.

No. 3 looks OK, its a bit annoying there's no mileage, when your deep down in the country you generally tend to travel a lot frequently. Its also the cheapest of the whole lot, so if there was something wrong id have spare money to get that sorted quick.

No. 4 Doesn't look bad either, spec'd similar to no.3 and has low miles, I presume it was used mostly only in city. Im going to Dublin Friday anyway so can check that out.

Then again last time I went to look at cars, most of them were lovely and shiny on the picture. When I got there they were bumpy with lots of scratches.

colm_mcm

Number 4
Tax discs vertically stacked on dashboard, German plates with Offaly reg, tinted back windows, missing badge on boot, sunstrip

Screams "AVOID!!!" to me for some reason.


That's all the golfs ruled out by me so maybe I'm too picky

jca

Number 4 is a skanger. Avoid at all costs.

evolutionqy7

No.3 with the lady owner has 180'000 miles, as said when you live in the country you drive a lot.

Going to throw this one in for consideration.

http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/4724389

Fairly well spec'd, just NCT'd and Tax till end of year. No alloys, but I can live with that

declan_8

evolutionqy7 wrote: »

Hey

Just looking to go for a new car and just wondering could anyone help me out. Mainly have my target set on VW Golf but was considering an Opel Astra too.
I do no more than 150 miles per week, but do drive more during the summer.

Original budget was 5k, but I managed to stretch it out to 6 in hope of getting a better car with lower mileage and higher year. I picked these 4 golfs below and the 5th is a V Astra. Dont need a huge amount of extra's, though cruise control would be nice. Any ideas which one would be a better pick?

VW Golf 1

VW Golf 2

VW Golf 3

VW Golf 4

Astra

Any help appreciated

Why limit yourself to a Golf.

There may be better options out there than a 7-8 year old golf. These mk 5 golfs are not as reliable as you would expect. They do hold their money though so hence you will struggle to get one with sub 120k miles especially in diesel at under 6k. At 150 miles a week you should consider petrol as it might make more economical sense.

Would something like this fit the bill

http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/4544931

evolutionqy7

declan_8 wrote: »

Why limit yourself to a Golf.

There may be better options out there than a 7-8 year old golf. These mk 5 golfs are not as reliable as you would expect. They do hold their money though so hence you will struggle to get one with sub 120k miles especially in diesel at under 6k. At 150 miles a week you should consider petrol as it might make more economical sense.

Would something like this fit the bill

http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/4544931

I'm not really limiting. Just the ones I picked. The car there is way over budget. I picked diesel's cause they seem to deliver the most miles per gallon. Plus I like the look of them.

I just sold my Monday and got less than 1/4 of what I paid for it after 3 years. Hence why I was sort of targeting golf's. They seem to hold value. I like Astra's and Corsa's are okay too.

Had Peugeot before and liked it. Not pushed for the 207 though.

colm_mcm

Weird thing about that blue golf is that this is the description



05D88654
Make VOLKSWAGEN
Model GOLF
Description 1.9 D TDI SPORT 105BHP 5DR
Fuel Type DIESEL


The sport thing has me confused. its a uk spec car and seems to be missing its alloys. Think it was a sort of special edition that sat slightly lower in the lineup to the SE.


Uk Sport (2005-2007):
ABS
Semi-Auto 'Climatic' Air conditioning with Pollen filter
RCD300 10-speaker (8-speaker 2006 onwards) CD Radio
Cloth seat trim
Driver's airbag
Electric Heated mirrors
Folding rear seats with 3 head restraints
Front electric windows
Isofix child seat anchor points
Speed sensitive PAS
Passenger's airbag
Remote locking (2 flip keys)
Side airbags
Space saver spare wheel
Traction control (ESP)
Alarm with interior protection
16" alloys (Either ‘Hockenheim’, 'Imola' or ‘Mugello’ depending on model year)
Lowered sports suspension (sits 15mm lower than standard Golfs)
Height adjustable Sports seats with Lumbar support
Full colour-coded exterior (strips, mirrors and handles)
‘Midline’ trip computer
Leather trimmed 3-spoke steering wheel




Its a nice looking car otherwise and I've dealt with westend before and they're sound enough.

MidlandsM

Westend are good dealers indeed.

declan_8

evolutionqy7 wrote: »

I'm not really limiting. Just the ones I picked. The car there is way over budget. I picked diesel's cause they seem to deliver the most miles per gallon. Plus I like the look of them.

I just sold my Monday and got less than 1/4 of what I paid for it after 3 years. Hence why I was sort of targeting golf's. They seem to hold value. I like Astra's and Corsa's are okay too.

Had Peugeot before and liked it. Not pushed for the 207 though.

I understand what you mean in that a golf holds good value. We have a 2005 one and I honestly couldnt say I would buy another. There has been lots of things go wrong with it in the two years of ownership, they just don't seem to be as good as the previous version golf from my experience. Ive always been a golf fan but If was to change the golf I wouldn't look past a Honda as they seem to be coming out tops in terms of reliability theses days.

evolutionqy7

declan_8 wrote: »

estly couldnt say I would buy another. There has been lots of things go wrong with it in the two years of ownership, they just don't seem to be as good as the previous version golf from my experience. Ive always been a golf fan but If was to change the golf I wouldn't look past a Honda as they seem to be coming out tops in terms of reliability theses days.

Idk. Seems as nearly everyone around me has a Golf these days. Neither of them seem to complain. Most of them said they get no bother from them either. So just going by that and what ye reply to me :-) no one has came on the thread screaming stay away from golfs yet. So I'll take that as a good sign.

My mother had oldish enough Civic as her first car. Gave her lots of hassle. Something went wrong with the engine.

colm_mcm

If you don't find a golf, have a look at the seat leon as well. Basically the same car but arguably more stylish on the outside.

Also, the jetta, which is a golf with a boot.

declan_8

evolutionqy7 wrote: »

Idk. Seems as nearly everyone around me has a Golf these days. Neither of them seem to complain. Most of them said they get no bother from them either. So just going by that and what ye reply to me :-) no one has came on the thread screaming stay away from golfs yet. So I'll take that as a good sign.

My mother had oldish enough Civic as her first car. Gave her lots of hassle. Something went wrong with the engine.

Fair enough, looks like I'm the only one trying to sway you away from the golf so.

When buying just ensure it had a good service record and has had a timing belt change at some point. Clutch and flywheels are also common problems which has been replaced on ours @130km. We have to replace the starter motor now too as the car is slow starting when warm, another common problem.

Get a decent spec as the lower spec ones will be harder to shift when you want to move it on again.

Ardennes1944

I recommend my car in my sig OP

evolutionqy7

Ardennes1944 wrote: »

I recommend my car in my sig OP

Too expensive to run petrol cars these days My Mondeo was a 1.8 Zetec petrol
It wasn't the most powerful car, but it burnt fuel like there was no tomorrow

I had to drive it like a saint to keep the MPG reasonable. Its a nice looking car Good luck

tobsey

evolutionqy7 wrote: »

Too expensive to run petrol cars these days My Mondeo was a 1.8 Zetec petrol
It wasn't the most powerful car, but it burnt fuel like there was no tomorrow

I had to drive it like a saint to keep the MPG reasonable. Its a nice looking car Good luck

You said you're doing 150km a week. At 9l/100km in a petrol, That's about 25 euro a week. In a diesel at 6l/100km that's 15 euro a week. To get a diesel of that vintage you're looking at a 1.9tdi which is the guts of 600 euro to tax. A 1.4 petrol is about 360. All figures ate rough but the running costs will only be about 200 euro a year dearer to run. Whereas you'll be buying a high mileage low spec diesel for the same price as a low mileage petrol. Petrol all the way for you OP.

evolutionqy7

tobsey wrote: »

You said you're doing 150km a week. At 9l/100km in a petrol, That's about 25 euro a week. In a diesel at 6l/100km that's 15 euro a week. To get a diesel of that vintage you're looking at a 1.9tdi which is the guts of 600 euro to tax. A 1.4 petrol is about 360. All figures ate rough but the running costs will only be about 200 euro a year dearer to run. Whereas you'll be buying a high mileage low spec diesel for the same price as a low mileage petrol. Petrol all the way for you OP.

150 miles :-) That's just the average week. I know the tax is going to be exact the same as it was with the Mondeo. I just don't see anything like the golf or Astra appealing with a petrol engine. They all seem to have higher fuel consumption and your going to have to drive carefully to achieve it.

The only car I was considering was a Corsa with a petrol engine. Can't find a 1.4 though. They all seem to be 1.2 litre ones.

Ardennes1944

ignore the fact im selling a 1.8 but i had a 1.4 before it and i genuinely did not notice any real difference in fuel consumption between the 2 unless i gave it the beans. a 1.4 engine sucks in my opinion, it has almost as bad fuel consumption as a 1.8 without the fun. id stick to a 1.2 over a 1.4

evolutionqy7

Ardennes1944 wrote: »

ignore the fact im selling a 1.8 but i had a 1.4 before it and i genuinely did not notice any real difference in fuel consumption between the 2 unless i gave it the beans. a 1.4 engine sucks in my opinion, it has almost as bad fuel consumption as a 1.8 without the fun. id stick to a 1.2 over a 1.4

I'm just going by figures I can find on websites and reviews online.

1.2 seem to have little power VW was the first choice, it seem roomy enough, diesel engines are economical, and even if I drive it harder, its going to drop down to what I would expect to get on a petrol engine driving lightly.

The only problem I can see as pointed out was the tax. It wouldn't be going down.
What are Corsa's like from experience, only know one person that ever drove one, but she had a diesel one I think.

Not exactly this car, but there seems to be a couple of Corsa 1.2 Sxi 3 door which are all pretty much the same mileage.

Was planning on having a look at this one, as its very close to me its getting fustrating when people don't show the mileage up, generally it means that there's a lot on it :S

If I could afford a 08 Golf id jump on it straight away, its silly with the before and after 2008 road tax. It has the same engine, yet tax bands are different

MuppetCheck

We bought an identical 07 Corsa for herself in late 2011 with only 36k km for less than the one linked from the dealer. 5300 if my memory serves me correctly.

evolutionqy7

MuppetCheck wrote: »

We bought an identical 07 Corsa for herself in late 2011 with only 36k km for less than the one linked from the dealer. 5300 if my memory serves me correctly.

Maybe im not looking right, but majority of them seem to be around 100k km.

There are a few with lower mileage, though some of them look neglected. Im just about to finish my dissertation, once that's done might have a more thorough look for vehicles.

TBi

Just remember diesels are more expensive to service and repair. They have turbo's which will need to be replaced, dual mass fly wheels which will need to be replaced around the same time as the clutch, plus the high pressure fuel line injectors might be a problem. Also 1.9TDi's needed a special engine oil when new and could be damaged if it wasn't used.

I'm doing 120km a day now for my commute and a diesel would be worth my while. If i was doing 200km per week i'd definitely get a petrol for the lower running and repair costs (unless you are buying 2008 or newer car).

Lastly remember that a diesel only makes sense on long drives, in city driving it could work out at the same or lower MPG than a petrol. Start/stop motoring spins up the turbo plus the heavy weight of the engine will use a lot of diesel.

colm_mcm

TBi wrote: »

Lastly remember that a diesel only makes sense on long drives, in city driving it would work out at the same or lower MPG than a petrol. Start/stop motoring spins up the turbo plus the heavy weight of the engine will use a lot of diesel.

The same or lower mpg? No chance of better mpg?
Where are you getting this info?

TBi

colm_mcm wrote: »

The same or lower mpg? No chance of better mpg?
Where are you getting this info?

Depends on the car of course, a big diesel will get lower MPG around town than a small petrol car. I.E. comparing a 1.0L micra to a big 3L Audi A6. I know that's a big difference in cars but still applicable to more similar cars, depending on the size and weight of the diesel (big iron block) compared to a light petrol (smaller and aluminium) engine.

The same way driving a car fully loaded with passengers will get lower MPG than one with just the driver.

Generally the diesel will always give better economy but it might not be the 25% you'd get on a long run. If it's only 10% better then the cost savings in diesel might not outweigh the extra cost of maintaining the car itself, not to mention the initial outlay in price.

colm_mcm

If you look at your post you'll see that you say a diesel will do the same or worse mpg in the city.

I take your point on overall ownership costs but i know delivery drivers who record their real mpg and there's no way they'd get what they're getting mpg wise on a petrol.

Also Diesel blocks aren't nearly as heavy as they used to be.

TBi

colm_mcm wrote: »

If you look at your post you'll see that you say a diesel will do the same or worse mpg in the city.

Spelling. I meant to say could but said would. Some diesels are less efficient than petrols, however generally for the same car with different engines the diesel is more efficient.

Although again, you'll have to drive a lot of miles to offset the higher cost of a diesel engine.

evolutionqy7

Seeing as I crossed out buying a diesel that's below 08

That put out most cars I liked out of the picture.

09 Peugeot 207

08 Vauxhall Astra CDTI

If those two fail then , 207 Zenith

Cant really think of anything else to go for under my budget, id be willing to pay VRT and get the 207 moved over here. I don't know

Im stuck without the car for now So clock is ticking.

anoda_username

The Astra seems to have very low miles for a diesel?

evolutionqy7

anoda_username wrote: »

The Astra seems to have very low miles for a diesel?

It does. That's why it's in there. I'd obviously would have to do a motor check before, looks too good to be true :-)

TBi

Consider a Kia Cee'd. My friend bought one against my recommendation and to my surprise it was quite good. Much better spec for the price than golf or focus and quite affordable second hand.

evolutionqy7

TBi wrote: »

Consider a Kia Cee'd. My friend bought one against my recommendation and to my surprise it was quite good. Much better spec for the price than golf or focus and quite affordable second hand.

Yeah I don't think I can go as far as that.

colm_mcm

evolutionqy7 wrote: »

Yeah I don't think I can go as far as that.

http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/4425147

RWD

colm_mcm wrote: »

Number 4
Tax discs vertically stacked on dashboard, German plates with Offaly reg, tinted back windows, missing badge on boot, sunstrip

Screams "AVOID!!!" to me for some reason.


That's all the golfs ruled out by me so maybe I'm too picky

Did anyone spot the JDM sticker on the back window of the astra,a wanna be jap car owner,IMO I would prefer a 1.3 diesel astra.

declan_8

Alternative to the Kia

http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/4833194

colm_mcm

declan_8 wrote: »

Alternative to the Kia

http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/4833194

Nice find.
That's a deluxe model too.

evolutionqy7

The Hyundai is nice. I drove a rental petrol one when on holiday wasn't very economic but a nice car to be in. We had a white one and it looked awesome. Red looks sweet.

If it was only a year older.

Kia looks Ok. Though both of them were taken in the dark and have a lack of details and pics
Just noticed, Kia unfortunately does not qualify cause its 3 door

colm_mcm

Cc based tax on that 07 isn't exactly high and you won't get an 08 diesel for anything near 6 grand.

evolutionqy7

colm_mcm wrote: »

Cc based tax on that 07 isn't exactly high and you won't get an 08 diesel for anything near 6 grand.

I know, but I've sort of listen to the advice in previous answers to try to look for a smaller engine petrol car or somehow a 08 petrol or diesel, when I had the Mondeo its the tax that had the biggest hit on the economy not the fuel consumption.

I recalculated stuff and I can stretch max to 7000 or 7200 max, id be looking for it to have tax and NCT at least for half a year.

colm_mcm

Right. How much p/a do you want to spend on tax?

evolutionqy7

colm_mcm wrote: »

Right. How much p/a do you want to spend on tax?

No more than 400-450

400 Max would be the sweet spot.

colm_mcm

That's fair enough, but it needs to be pointed out that 1.6 tax is €514 and you'd pay an extra €1200 just to save €114 a year on tax. (€2.10ish a week)
That's before you get to the fact that the diesel will save you multiples of this amount in better fuel consumption and cheaper diesel prices.

evolutionqy7

colm_mcm wrote: »

That's fair enough, but it needs to be pointed out that 1.6 tax is €514 and you'd pay an extra €1200 just to save €114 a year on tax. (€2.10ish a week)
That's before you get to the fact that the diesel will save you multiples of this amount in better fuel consumption and cheaper diesel prices.

Depends on what diesel it is, I had a quick look at the i30 , if its just a plain diesel the MPG doesn't look that outstanding to what I found on the web, it looks fairly OK on the CRDi Premium model though at 60 MPG

Fair enough when you put it that way, its just that the amount in one go is a hit.
Ill think over it, but that was the reason I sort of ruled it out, on top of the fact that it doesn't have any details on the car and the pictures are crappy, might give owner a text tomorrow see can she put up better pictures. Don't want to be wasting a days trip to be disappointed.

evolutionqy7

Coming back. The i30 looks really good. Check out a good couple of reviews online and they seem to be getting nothing but praise.

I'll look into the 07 i30 even though I'd really prefer the 08, the 08 seems to have a few extra following that year.

TBi

i30 and Ceed are basically the same car. I prefer the look of the Ceed.

Why not call up a few sellers asking above 7k and say you'd like to see but your budget is only 6k.

You might get a lot of No's but you only need 1 yes