What car should I buy?

jennimoo

I am looking to get a new (not actually 'new' may be a few years old) car, and after reading some of the advice on here thought I would post my details, in the hope of some good advice!

I drive aprox 20,000 miles a year, lots of work mileage, mostly on motorways, but some town driving.

My priorities are economy to run (fuel consumption low) and safety.

I think a small to medium is big enough, as don't have lots of kids or stuff to transport (although room for a small child in a few years might be useful!)

I'm not sure how much I can spend yet, but hopefully around £4-5,000.

Any suggestions?

Jenni x

Hintza

Not sure if I agree with your priorities.

You do quite a few miles so you want something that will be reasonably comfortable with a decent engine. If you buy something too small i think you will find it tiring and will probably be thrashing it too hard.

If it was me I would be looking for a petrol 1.6 -1.8 litres or perhaps a diesel 1.9 - 2.0 litres..

Without making any actual suggestions perhaps a Golf or Seat Leon or similar would be about as small as I would go.

Find something you enjoy driving.

Good luck someone will be along who knows that segment of the market better than me.

pullthepin

07/08 astra, a bit more but well worth it

jennimoo

I agree that comfort is important, but as I am currently doing the miles is a '98 Fiesta that rattles like mad, I think I will appreciate anything that is better than that!

I'll take a look at those ideas.

What would you say on another (newer!) Fiesta or a Focus? I've also driven a Yaris before, and really liked that, but it was years ago. A smaller car though.

Jenni x

jeannieblue

You have to have comfort doing those miles. Don't go smaller than a focus - lots of them around at good prices. If you can afford it, how about a Corolla?

Personally, if I was doing those miles, I would have something bigger - Mazda 6, Mondeo, Avensis size. Diesel would be a good choice. Comfort and support, Toyota seats are good and how about a RAV 4?

In my dream world, for comfort, I would have a Land cruiser - I'll dream on.

Plus ( and here's how I will now offend 300 million people) I would avoid Fiat and French vehicles, especially citroen.

Keith

Fabia VRS?

goldspanners

ive got a 1.6 petrol focus, fuel economy is average for this size of car and engine, on a run i can get up to 45 mpg, around town closer to 30 mpg,its comfortable to drive and build quality is pretty good ( no rattles or squeeks!)
also they are very popular which means there are plenty to choose from especially with a budget of £4-5 k you should be able to find a great example.
try both petrol and diesel see which suits you better. you will get better mpg from the diesel but then again diesel is more expensive, but doing 20k a year you would make this back in mpg im sure.

kitchpoo

it is a good time to buy an ibiza as the new one is launched and old share unregistered stock is heavily discounted resulting in lower used prices. Avoid the 1.2 and in for a 1.4 or any diesel

BillScarab

Have a look at an Octavia, probably a diesel with that annual mileage. They're roomy, cheap and reliable. They also pretty economical. Othere than that a Focus is a good bet as there are plenty around to choose from and they're decent cars.

AdrianHi

Skoda Octavia gets my vote too. For £5K you should be able to find a 50-70K miles 3 year old. Get the 1.9 TDi 130bhp diesel, just as good if not better on fuel on the motorway (despite what EU official figures may say) than the 1.9TDi 110bhp.
If you can stretch a bit more to £6-7K you could get the newer model Octavia with the 2.0 TDi 140bhp engine.

jennimoo

Thanks for all the advice. In the end I bought an 04 diesel Focus, and it's great!