Emergency! Family car died, 3800 or less for replacement

Supercell

Our 12 year old car died today and its apparently terminal (more to fix than its worth).
With two adults and three small children we have to get a replacement asap for shopping, school runs etc. There isn't a second car in the household.
We were saving up for a replacement but were hoping not to have to get it for another year or two.
Savings are about €3800 and we don't want to borrow if possible.
Any recommendations for a bangernomics type family car? (with 3.8k budget in mind), reliability is key consideration as money is tight.
We are based in Dublin and with no means of transport now except public we cannot travel far to view.
Thanks for any advice.

bazz26

Maybe a Toyota Corolla Verso? Should be reliable and seats 7 with the option to fold down the 3rd row if you need boot space.

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/toyota-corolla-verso-1-6-vvt-i-luna/14407880

Supercell

bazz26 wrote: »

Maybe a Toyota Corolla Verso? Should be reliable and seats 7 with the option to fold down the 3rd row if you need boot space.

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/toyota-corolla-verso-1-6-vvt-i-luna/14407880

Thanks Bazz, that ticks all the boxes, I guess if I got another three years out of it at least it would owe us nothing.

Bigus

Get a quote on a rental for a week to take the pressure off and help you buy right or better still borrow a car and transfer insurance.

Cee-Jay-Cee

Supercell wrote: »

Thanks Bazz, that ticks all the boxes, I guess if I got another three years out of it at least it would owe us nothing.

That car has low miles and the Toyota engine is good for at least 150k miles so there are years of driving left in that car. If it suits your needs (and its within your budget) then go and look at it, take it for a test drive and see what you think. Don't offer anywhere near the asking price if you are interested, you should be able to get that car for €3400 and if the seller isn't playing ball, walk away and tell him to give you a call if he changes his mind.

bennyc

Supercell wrote: »

Our 12 year old car died today and its apparently terminal (more to fix than its worth).
With two adults and three small children we have to get a replacement asap for shopping, school runs etc. There isn't a second car in the household.
We were saving up for a replacement but were hoping not to have to get it for another year or two.
Savings are about €3800 and we don't want to borrow if possible.
Any recommendations for a bangernomics type family car? (with 3.8k budget in mind), reliability is key consideration as money is tight.
We are based in Dublin and with no means of transport now except public we cannot travel far to view.
Thanks for any advice.

I have a Vectra 08, dont really like the car but its as cheap as chips to run and service, low tax too, a few good examples of SRI and SAT NAV models out there around 3K.

loyatemu

Renault Scenic? - we're now on our third (last 2 have been Grand Scenics with the extra seats in the boot)
http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/renault/scenic/used-2005-renault-scenic-megane-1-dublin-fpa-2817435616455943660

things to watch out for are the electric windows, and the automatic handbrake.

ShadowHearth

loyatemu wrote: »

Renault Scenic? - we're now on our third (last 2 have been Grand Scenics with the extra seats in the boot)
http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/renault/scenic/used-2005-renault-scenic-megane-1-dublin-fpa-2817435616455943660

things to watch out for are the electric windows, and the automatic handbrake.

I know it's not my area of expertise, but my brother in law had old scenic for almost 10 years and he upgraded to one of those shapes, 06 1.6 petrol. I kind of liked it, had a lot of toys for that age and ride quality was very decent, 1.6 isn't horrible on mpg too. A lot of car for the money if you ask me.

loyatemu

ShadowHearth wrote: »

I know it's not my area of expertise, but my brother in law had old scenic for almost 10 years and he upgraded to one of those shapes, 06 1.6 petrol. I kind of liked it, had a lot of toys for that age and ride quality was very decent, 1.6 isn't horrible on mpg too. A lot of car for the money if you ask me.

that one is a 1.4 - it won't be quick but it'll get you from A to B.

sergiot

the corolla verso has some issues ( 2002) i know a lady she had her car broken down, the clutch failed and the gearbox also, costed over 500 to get fixed

Supercell

Anyone any thoughts on a Focus or a Mondeo? , we have the Multimac car seat for the kids so doesn't have to have three full size seats in the back, though that would be a bonus.

Something like the below?

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/ford-focus-1-4-low-mileage/14045947
https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/low-mileage-mint-mondeo/14134236
https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/ford-focus-automatic-48-000ml-price-drop/14284287

Supercell

loyatemu wrote: »

Renault Scenic? - we're now on our third (last 2 have been Grand Scenics with the extra seats in the boot)
http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/renault/scenic/used-2005-renault-scenic-megane-1-dublin-fpa-2817435616455943660

things to watch out for are the electric windows, and the automatic handbrake.

I have memories of growing up and my old mans Renault car being in the garage more often than not, he never got another one and it made an impression. Maybe they have got better over the years but personally not for me. Thanks for the suggestion anyhow.

JohnBoy26

sergiot wrote: »

the corolla verso has some issues ( 2002) i know a lady she had her car broken down, the clutch failed and the gearbox also, costed over 500 to get fixed

A clutch is a wearable part. It goes in every car and is down to the driver, mileage or both.

bazz26

sergiot wrote: »

the corolla verso has some issues ( 2002) i know a lady she had her car broken down, the clutch failed and the gearbox also, costed over 500 to get fixed

That has very little relevance to be honest, I could go out and burn out a clutch and make $hit of a gearbox in 15 mins. We don't know what caused the clutch or gearbox to fail. Was it excessive wear/abuse or component failure.

It's a bit like saying my iphone fell and broke, cost €300 to repair so don't buy an iphone.

niallb

I had a Renault Scenic for 8 years and it had three proper seats in the back which was great.
It gave little enough trouble, but was expensive when it did. Good suggestion though for size and features.

I bought an old 2003 Hyundai Trajet last year now that the kids are bigger - I've three kids too. I was buying in a serious hurry and it's worked out great. Might be bigger than you'd like, and your kids sound a lot younger than mine.

I got the 2l diesel model as at well under €2k I felt the extra roadtax was being absorbed, and the engine had low mileage for its age.
Here's a link to a 2006 one at €2450 on donedeal Hyundai Trajet Diesel 2.0 Crdi 7 Seater 5DR Model.
That leaves a bit left over in your budget for the higher road tax.
There's an '05 one there for half that price.

I'm able to take any seats out individually which is very flexible. With the middle seat in the centre left at home,
I have a really comfortable six seater with lots of space between the kids for elbow room :-)

Leaving one of the rear seats at home too gives a lot of extra boot space, though if you want a separate boot it's not for you.
As a bonus the front passenger seat turns around 180 degrees which the kids love if we're out for a picnic or something and the weather turns bad.

Supercell

Thanks Niall, that ticks all the boxes also, definitely will consider.

JohnBoy26

Supercell wrote: »

Thanks Niall, that ticks all the boxes also, definitely will consider.

If you value reliability then don't buy a trajet or a scenic.

Leonard Hofstadter

JohnBoy26 wrote: »

If you value reliability then don't buy a trajet or a scenic.

+1, under no circumstances should the OP consider a Scenic from that era, they are utter crap!

The Verso is the best suggestion thus far, boring as hell but it won't go wrong, although that one could be a bit rough and ready since it's got a towing hitch on the back (it also looks like it's missing the a/c button, which it should have if it's a genuine Luna model).

Supercell

As a follow up to this, got a Mazda 6 with 50K KM, spotless in and outside (and won't remain like that for long!!). Very relieved, thanks for all the advice!

Irish Steve

Supercell wrote: »

As a follow up to this, got a Mazda 6 with 50K KM, spotless in and outside (and won't remain like that for long!!). Very relieved, thanks for all the advice!

If you got the diesel variety, I would suggest being paranoid about using good quality oil, and changing it at the correct service intervals, as not doing so can be very expensive indeed, I've been working on a 07 estate that came in with low power, which has turned out to be a destroyed turbo. We then checked the oil strainer due to clues on the oil condition from the banjo bolt.

To say it was not good would be being kind to it, the carbon build up on the strainer had resulted in it being at least 80% blocked, which the turbo specialist said was a contributory factor in the failure of the turbo, we won't know until we can run it again if there has been any other damage to things like bottom end bearings.


A long soak in some kerosene, and then a blast with throttle body cleaner and the airline has restored it to a good condition, but the possible damage remains unknown.

corks finest

Supercell wrote: »

Our 12 year old car died today and its apparently terminal (more to fix than its worth).
With two adults and three small children we have to get a replacement asap for shopping, school runs etc. There isn't a second car in the household.
We were saving up for a replacement but were hoping not to have to get it for another year or two.
Savings are about €3800 and we don't want to borrow if possible.
Any recommendations for a bangernomics type family car? (with 3.8k budget in mind), reliability is key consideration as money is tight.
We are based in Dublin and with no means of transport now except public we cannot travel far to view.
Thanks for any advice.

Fabia

bazz26

Supercell wrote: »

As a follow up to this, got a Mazda 6 with 50K KM, spotless in and outside (and won't remain like that for long!!). Very relieved, thanks for all the advice!

corks finest wrote: »

Fabia

^^