Best Car For... Long Commuter on Budget

ManWithoutPlan

Hi Guys,

I have a car that is dying at the moment and its time for an upgrade. As the name suggests, I don't have a plan at present and I'm hoping the esteemed and knowledgeable gentlemen/ladies here can offer some advice on what I should look out for, what type of car would suit best, what would be my options... etc?

Essentially, the conditions I have are:
* Daily commuter who does approx 350 miles pw (averaging 18-20k miles per year)
* Needs to accommodate a family when not commuting/weekends
* Shoestring budget (i.e. 3000 euro inclusive of the cost of repairing any damage of said bought car and passing NCT if it has none)
* Cheap to maintain (i.e. parts to replace aren't overly expensive and complicated to put in)
* Will keep said car for at least 4-5 years

My thoughts are a Diesel car, however I'm afraid of being killed on the tax and insurance (seeing that the budget will only get me a pre-07 car for the tax on car engine size) as I've heard these are better for long commutes. I was also thinking that the mileage I do is heavy enough that I would need something in the region of 100k miles. Manual transmission also as I try to avoid automatics for the extra expense if the automatic gearbox breaks.

I currently have a 1.6 petrol pre-07 car so the tax/insurance is quite expensive already and its at the point its costing a small fortune to maintain; it probably won't pass the NCT to boot.

Not too hung up on dints or visual looks, I just need it to drive me to work and the family on outings or when the partner needs it on the weekend.

What do you guys think?

bazz26

Being honest a weekly commute of 350 miles is not huge in the greater scheme of things. A diesel would give you a better return on what you have at present but most are larger capacity engines than petrol models and your budget is pretty small so finding something that hasn't had it's best days behind it will be challenging.

Might be worth sticking with what you have at present, see how it goes and hopefully allow you to increase your budget longer term.

ManWithoutPlan

Interesting point on the diesel, and was concerned that any diesel car (or any car for that matter) at the budget would need some work (as you said, they'd had their best days behind it). Would there be much of a difference in a more-used diesel car as opposed to petrol?

Again I just need it to last me handful of years before I move on again. Keeping the current car is not an option. The cost of the repair for the car for the problem its facing is more than half the value of it. With the other issues it has, the only option is to move onto another car.

The Guvnor

I would based on the mileage look at a petrol as some will give a good mpg and are generally speaking more affordable to buy and less troublesome than the diesel equivalent - imo.

Would you consider importing from NI etc? You'll get more choice etc.

ManWithoutPlan

If I import from the NI, I'd be hit on VRT which would be too much on my budget. Wouldn't risk not registering.

Does MPG deteriorate with the age/mileage of the car? I'd be weary buying a car based of established MPG guides only to find that the wear of the engine gives worse MPG than initially thought.

Your point on the diesel is exactly what I was afraid of if I went ahead with one. From what I was told "diesel is the way to go for the distance your travelling...less wear on the car...cheaper in the long-term with low fuel..." but based off the comments so far, seems that my mileage isn't as big a deal, and I don't want another car that's more complicated to fix. I already know for the budget I'm on that any car I purchase isn't going to be perfect and will need extra work.

Idbatterim

with your budget you arent going to get an emissions diesel. The 1.6 is hardly much to tax... Id put current car through nct and take things from there... what car are you currently driving?

ManWithoutPlan

I'm thinking of what to do after NCT. Even if by miracle it passes I still need to move on. I've had the car a number of years now, mileage is very high, and there is problems that will cost far too much to fix for the value of the car itself.
Car is a 00-VW Golf.

If I did to go for a car, based on the conditions above, what would be everyone's suggestions? (Type, Engine, Fuel, Mileage, Etc.)
Also, what could I reasonably expect to get on the shoestring budget?

Idbatterim

see 3k wont get you deem a "cheap tax" car, unless you go for smaller cc on old system. is it motorway or city driving you do, or a mix of both?

the bangernomics thread might be worth a look...

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057493741&page=217

are there four or five in family? with four, something like a focus could be a good bet...

ManWithoutPlan

Four. And a mix of motorway, rural and urban.

I understand I'm looking for a golden triangle, but I'd settle on getting as close to as I could. While I consider the tax expensive for a 1.6, if I saw a fairly decent car that met other criteria but was 1.6 or even slightly more, I'd settle for it.

Again I'm shopping for what other people would buy if given the same conditions.

Idbatterim

If you go into carzone. You can set all your criteria. I.e max price, engine size, fuel , min and max year etc. I'd do that and take a look. I'm assuming you would want to come up to at least 2005...

RayCon

Shoestring budget , reliable , economical-ish , 4 dr , NCT'd til next March ...

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/2004-1-4-honda-civic-nct-low-mileage/11673808

RayCon

or the newer 1.8 version ....
https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/honda-civic-saloon-vtec-140-bhp/11529936

ManWithoutPlan

It'd be nice to move up some years. I'm not sure if the 15-year rule for insurance is coming into play with all the insurers yet (not due insurance till later this year and hasn't been mentioned).

@RayCon
They are nice choices! Much appreciated. Especially liked the first one for the low mileage.

So far based on the comments, a diesel overall would suit better but as my budget is too low, most diesel cars would be more problematic in the long-run. Also, my mileage doesn't seem to be as high as I would have thought in comparison to others so Petrol would suit. I'm not too hung up on tax as I already pay tax for a 1.6 petrol, so long as it'll last me and is cheap to maintain.

Are Honda's overly expensive to maintain (parts et al)?
And am I wrong to consider anything over 150k as high mileage?

bazz26

Honda's are not expensive to run. Some parts are more expensive especially from a main dealers but basic consumable parts are available spuriously and are no more expensive than other brands. They rarely give trouble though which more than offsets the price of some parts from dealers. Only real problem with the red Civic model from above is that the gearboxes can suffer from bearing trouble which makes them very notchy when changing gears. Will cost the bones of €700 for a reconditioned gearbox if needed.

Toyotafanboi

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/06-toyota-avensis/11879181

/thread

The 1.6 petrol should see the guts of 40mpg out on a run and is very reliable.

A nice jump up in the years from the Golf and a few toys too.

Not the most exciting vehicle but certainly fills the criteria of:
Sub 3k
Reasonable tax/ fuel economy
Can take a family of 4
Needs to last another 5 years

Don't let the 1.6 in the Golf fool you, they are rather "primative"... lots of 1.6 petrol cars would be better on fuel.

ManWithoutPlan

@bazz61
I'm guessing that when the bearing goes in the gearbox, making it "notchy" (i presume a grinding sound?), that this would be something the NCT would fail on, rather than something I could live with.
I think you had me when you said "They rarely give trouble". One thing I was concerned about Honda's was the price of the parts (which I my mind were more expensive to buy than most regular european cars). But if the basics can be bought from motor factors and are no more expensive than others then that shouldn't be a problem.

@Toyotafanboi
I quite like the fact its 2006 (and its a nice looking car). I presume that its sub 3k if you trade-in your existing (he has priced at 3.5k). Are T.Avensis's a reliable/cheap-to-maintain car?

Toyotafanboi

Those Avensis are very reliable. You just know you could buy that car, sit in and drive and do nothing else.

I just used that one as an example. You could haggle it close to 3k, but donedeal is overflowing with decent, NCT'd, 05-07 Avensis petrols for around €3k.

RayCon

For what it's worth , I've been driving Honda Civics or Accords for pretty much the last 20yrs (although I did have a Mitsubishi Colt once) and I have found them to be very very reliable.

The most expensive thing I ever had to replace was the EGR Valve on my 2001 Accord ... I was quoted €400 for new supplied and fitted, but eventually got a second hand one installed for €80.

Currently driving a Honda Accord 2.0 Type S 4DR and I love it.