Car Purchasing Advice.....

Paddytheman

Hello all,

I would appreciate if you could advise really quickly on the below, I am only driving 2 months and we currently have a Polo 1.4, I also currently drive team members to matches with 3/4 adults in the car.

Looking to buy a 2nd hand car leaning towards Polo, Clio, 207 driving 120-150 km per week on average with maybe one road trip per month. Possibly adding to the family next year so suppose this has to be taken into account. Budget of 5,000-6,000 and thinking 2006 onwards.

My good lady wife had always previously driven a diesel and wanted to return to one which I have talked her out of from reading posts on here given our weekly mileage, now she is adamant to get a 1.1 or 1.2 max due to believing it will be more economical and save on insurance and tax.

So my questions:

1. Given that I have only driven a 1.4 is it worth considering dropping to 1.2 or less for the reasons above, I would gladly pay the tax difference to have a little extra pepp when required(car load of ball players)?
2. Are French cars generally more troublesome as this has been flagged with me?
3. Would you recommend any other models, granted I am only getting comfortable with our Polo and live in City Centre so a hatchback would be required, I also like the Leon?

Thanks in advance for any advice

bazz26

Well if you are planning a family then space will need to be a consideration otherwise you could find yourself being forced to upgrade sooner again. You may need something that can hold a buggy and other things that accompany a baby. Taking that into account I would look at something from the next size up from a Polo/Clio like a Golf, Focus or Corolla, etc. They are not that much more difficult to drive/park than the likes of a Polo to be honest.

If you are not in a hurry to upgrade then I would get some more driving time under your belt in the Polo and once you are comfortable driving that then consider upgrading.

Also there is not a huge difference in running costs between a 1.4 litre car and a 1.2 litre to be honest.

Paddytheman

Thanks Bazz, really had my head turned by the Seat Leon, reading some great reviews about them!

_Kaiser_

Paddytheman wrote: »

Thanks Bazz, really had my head turned by the Seat Leon, reading some great reviews about them!

The Leon is basically a Golf with a different body I think anyway which itself is basically a bigger/more powerful version of the Polo

bazz26

The only let down on that model Leon is the interior. That dashboard is terrible, mountains of cheap nasty Fisher Price plastics everywhere.

Del2005

If there's a baby on the way all the car's you've listed are too small. You'll need at least the hatchback version of the Golf/Focus size cars and maybe even the Golf+ or CMax. Also the Polo/Clio aren't really designed to carry several adults as they have cheaper running gear than the next class up.

Driving around town a 1.1 or 1.4 isn't going to be much different on fuel, but on a long spin the 1.4( or 1.6) will be a much nicer drive.

French cars have a bad rep, but they've been working to improve it. But it doesn't really matter as all companies can make a dog car and it's just down to doing enough checks before purchasing to try and avoid buying the dog car.

Paddytheman

Thanks for the advice folks:)