Which One Would You Go For

Orchid

Hi,

So here is the dilemma. We need to buy a car soon. All the money we have is going towards our dream house which we are still searching for so we are on a very tight budget of as little as possible up to 10k.

The requirements are it has to be a dealer as we know nothing about cars, it has to be in Cork in case anything goes wrong with it shortly after we buy it and it has to be automatic. We are a small family of three. We don't do much driving, the commute to work is about 15 mins.

The plan is to buy a reliable car for the next 2- 3 years and once we have the house to look into buying a better newer one with additional finance.

So at the moment the automatic options I have come across are these
Www.driving.ie/used-cars/Toyota/Prius/1.5-5DR/49914006774467750/

Www.driving.ie/used-cars/Ford/Focus/GHIA-1.6/45414000017151940/

Www.driving.ie/used-cars/Nissan/Qashqai/2.0-PET/46113981652567770/

What I have also looked at when selecting these is for the mileage to not be crazy high. Which one do you think it's worth it? Any help will be much appreciated.

noelf

As you do low miles Nissan leaf should be on your list you would pay more for it but you wont have any fuel to pay for ..

Moneymaker

The Prius. It'll be the cheapest to run and probably the most reliable.

Don't be afraid to buy privately. It can be a minefield yes, but do your research online and use all the resources (such as here!) at your disposal.

The guide to buying a car stickied here is a must read for you also.

A Honda Jazz would be a good alternative too and you'd probably get one for way, way less then 10k.

vectra

noelf wrote: »

As you do low miles Nissan leaf should be on your list you would pay more for it but you wont have any fuel to pay for ..

Here we go again.
How much is a leaf going to cost?

Orchid

Thanks guys. I would love the Jazz but I haven't seen one available in Cork at the minute.

About buying privately I don't know. I am just petrified that with our luck it will stop working as soon as we give the money and drive off.

Moneymaker

Orchid wrote: »

Thanks guys. I would love the Jazz but I haven't seen one available in Cork at the minute.

About buying privately I don't know. I am just petrified that with our luck it will stop working as soon as we give the money and drive off.

Perfectly natural reaction.

Dealers arent a guaranteed safe sale either. Many a horror story.

If you have a friend who's knowledgeable you should bring them along, or pay a mechanic to come along.

noelf

vectra wrote: »

Here we go again.
How much is a leaf going to cost?

Had a look on motors.co.uk cheapest was £10500 with 20000 miles

Orchid

I looked up the leaf but I think it is a bit small for us.

Orchid

Guys, what do you think of this one

Www.carzone.ie/search/Renault/Fluence/AUTO-1.5/44113935253316870/advert?channel=CARS

Looks impressive and it's new and within our budget. Is it too good to be true?

Moneymaker

No, that's how much they go for.

Never driven one myself but the 1.5 dci engine is a tried and tested unit.

I couldn't tell you much else about it though.

Take it for a spin and see what you think.

MuppetCheck

Family member rented an auto one before and I drove it. Gearbox is surprisingly decent in it, and it was doing fantastic mpg too. The rest of the car is cheap and nasty though.

bazz26

That Fluence stinks of ex rental to me.

Orchid

bazz26 wrote: »

That Fluence stinks of ex rental to me.

I thought that also looking at the mileage and I know nothing about cars. Why is it bad to buy an ex rental? Isn't it ok if it has been serviced regularly and checked by the dealer? Apologies if my questions are stupid but I know no one who knows cars.

vectra

Skoda Octavie L&K with DSG ?

http://www.carzone.ie/search/Skoda/Octavia/Laurin-&/201415223092475/advert?channel=CARS

Orchid

vectra wrote: »

Skoda Octavie L&K with DSG ?

I love the Octavia but this one has too many miles and is a private sale so I wouldn't risk it.

vectra

Orchid wrote: »

I love the Octavia but this one has too many miles and is a private sale so I wouldn't risk it.

That is small mileage on that engine.
A friend of mine has an Octavia 140 Elegance with DSG and has hit 600,000

Orchid

vectra wrote: »

That is small mileage on that engine.
A friend of mine has an Octavia 140 Elegance with DSG and has hit 600,000

Wow, will definitely put it on our list then. We have to make a decision by the end of the week.

NIMAN

vectra wrote: »

That is small mileage on that engine.
A friend of mine has an Octavia 140 Elegance with DSG and has hit 600,000

:eek:

Where did he go on his holidays? The moon?

quenching

Buy a Prius, really!

Its one of the most reliable cars you can buy, its automatic, very spacious, and will hold its value very well. Its also VERY cheap to run, in fact its probably the ideal family car unless you are regularly driving long distances on the motorway.

As with anything though make sure it has a fully documented service history.

vectra

Sorry,
I got it wrong,

It was over 600,000

Here is a quote from him on another forum.
Sorry but no names.

After 8 years and 645,000kms of daily adventures, I am saying goodbye to my Octavia. It is staying within my company so I will be staying on this brilliant, brilliant forum, to help nurse it towards 700,000!!

Orchid

Ok guys, there is a new development with us. Although we expected it, we were hoping our car will leave us after we buy a new one... but it wasn't meant to be. It stopped today so we need to get something ASAP. The options we have in Cork at the minute are very few and we limited them to these 6

carzone.ie/search/Toyota/Prius/1.5-5DR-/49914006774467750/advert?channel=CARS

carzone.ie/search/Toyota/Avensis/RC-1.8-L/42313936051034850/advert?channel=CARS

carzone.ie/search/Ford/Focus/GHIA-1.6/45414000017151940/advert?channel=CARS

carzone.ie/search/Opel/Zafira/1.9CDTi-/45213996479022470/advert?channel=CARS

carzone.ie/search/Citroen/C4/GRAND-PI/46513986937274860/advert?channel=CARS

carzone.ie/search/Toyota/Avensis/MC-2.0-S/43813932561420960/advert?channel=CARS

I favour the Prius and the Citroen C4, DH favours the Ford GHIA and the Avensis.

What do you think?

colm_mcm

There's another thread on this here:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057223683