Suggestions on 4k budget

extra-ordinary_

Missus' 01 Fabia is on it's last legs and not worth fixing and she wants something new with a budget of 4K. Her work commute is about 3 miles and annual mileage is low so she's looking at petrol. We've been looking at Mazda 3, Volvo C30, Focus, Civic, as an example, but she's open to almost anything as long as it's reliable, with possibly 1.8 her max engine size. Do you have any preference in the models I've listed or have any other suggestions?

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime

Volvo C30 I've always liked the look of, don't see many of them about , cracking looking car

They come 1.6D too aswell as petrol models but I don't know size or which would suit you more.

Engine wise etc they are more based off ford cars now I think but good all the same.

They do hold value too so not too sure with your budget but should get an 08 out of it hopefully or possibly coming up another few hundred euro

selectamatic

Toyota prius would be worth considering.

Richard_parker

civic 4 door (fd chassis code) is a great car and can be bought for that money nowdays, however they only come 1.8 in petrol as 1.3 hybrid would cost at least another 1500 on top of your budget.

jharr100

Richard_parker wrote: »

civic 4 door (fd chassis code) is a great car and can be bought for that money nowdays, however they only come 1.8 in petrol as 1.3 hybrid would cost at least another 1500 on top of your budget.

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/honda-civic-2007-hybrid-automatic/17055022

This shape?

Richard_parker

Yup that shape. I actually never looked at pre 2008 due to tax rates, hybrids are 190e for 2008 car, 1.8 570e vs 640e.
Hybrids only come with automatic gearbox. As far as hybrids go, I think Prius is better as Honda used NiMH batteries at that time which were know to give problems when not in regular use or if driven on short commutes only due to short charging times. If IMA light is on run away. Batteries sometimes can actually be sorted by balancing but that isnt your usual diy job and its very time consuming.

OP states 3 mile daily commute, I would suggest 1.8 with manual gearbox (6 speed standard). Lovely car to drive and the last civic with independent suspension(up to 10g 2017 car), which to me means a lot but most people probably dont care. I own a civic 9g diesel and I hate it for that reason alone, horrible on most Dublin streets/roads, would have been a perfect car otherwise. I also own 2000 civic 4 door with only 40k miles on the clock, that car is light years ahead when it comes to handling and comfort.
FD in good condition should serve its owner for years with only minimal maintenance, honda are know for their reliability and trouble free ownership.
Focus isnt even in the same league here, 1.4 is donkey slow while 1.6 isnt that economical at all even less so with all the servicing/fixing it needs all the time (coilpacks, heather matrix know to leak coolant into cabin, hardest job ever to fix etc ...)
Volvo and mazda are also nice, most will prefer the design of those to civic and they can also be gotten with 1.6 engines while civic is either 1.3 hybrid or 1.8.

extra-ordinary_

Thanks for the suggestions...the Prius hadn't even crossed my mind - would she not be into possible battery worries with a ten year-old hybrid?

Nuw

extra-ordinary_ wrote: »

Thanks for the suggestions...the Prius hadn't even crossed my mind - would she not be into possible battery worries with a ten year-old hybrid?

It shouldn't be a problem on most, the system is designed to last. If you can find one with service history within budget, you should be safe. If she's interested in hybrid, I'd suggest trying both the honda civic and the prius as they're two different animals. If she wants reliability that won't break the bank, either of them should be up for the job.

ba_barabus

Nuw wrote: »

It shouldn't be a problem on most, the system is designed to last. If you can find one with service history within budget, you should be safe. If she's interested in hybrid, I'd suggest trying both the honda civic and the prius as they're two different animals. If she wants reliability that won't break the bank, either of them should be up for the job.

As hybrids go the Honda isn't a patch on the Prius. Reliable yes but not as economical.

RobFowl

extra-ordinary_ wrote: »

Missus' 01 Fabia is on it's last legs and not worth fixing and she wants something new with a budget of 4K. Her work commute is about 3 miles and annual mileage is low so she's looking at petrol. We've been looking at Mazda 3, Volvo C30, Focus, Civic, as an example, but she's open to almost anything as long as it's reliable, with possibly 1.8 her max engine size. Do you have any preference in the models I've listed or have any other suggestions?

I'm going to be really cheeky here but on a 3 mile commute would she consider cycling?
Far cheaper and good for you too..
We are thinking of changing to a 1 car family and when you look at the potential savings its very tempting..
Rob

Prezatch

VW Golf - I have the 1.9 version of the model below and it's an extremely reliable and sturdy car. Link is over budget by 1k but you might get cheaper from private seller

https://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/volkswagen/golf/used-2008-volkswagen-golf-low-mil-dublin-fpa-175541055347481

ace_irl

I have a 04 Ibiza and the little thing has never let me down *knocks on wood*

For such a small commute it will cost barely anything in Petrol, I travel from one side of Dublin to the other every day for work and it only cost me €70 in petrol a month. You should be able to get a fairly decent one for your budget.

Cee-Jay-Cee

Richard_parker wrote: »

Yup that shape. I actually never looked at pre 2008 due to tax rates, hybrids are 190e for 2008 car, 1.8 570e vs 640e.

€70 extra tax is hardly a reason to discount a car :rolleyes:

acronym Chilli

Cee-Jay-Cee wrote: »

€70 extra tax is hardly a reason to discount a car :rolleyes:

Or if you did, it would be by some quantifiable cash amount related to €70 (like 2 or 3 years' tax).
Was listening to Planet Money's interview with Thaler on Behavioural Economics. Not sure if there's an identified bias/failure related to this scenario type. However, it's a bona fide example as it does drive overall prices of used cars in the market.