Cheap(ish) first car...any suggestions?

gazfocus

I have my theory test booked for the end of February and my driving instructor said I should book my practical as soon as the theory is passed, so I've started looking for cars.

I want an Automatic car (I just feel more comfortable driving it) and have a maximum of £1500 to spend. I'm also quite a large guy so a corsa or such won't be any good for me

Can anyone suggest what sort of car I should be looking for and what kind of age?

Thanks

rictus123

Do you not like focuses? A 206 is good size for insurance size..

Kurtis_Blue

At that money do not limit your self to one car, make a list of a few you will be happy with and buy on quality.
eBay autos, sub 100k, sub £1,600

gazfocus

Kurtis_Blue wrote: »

At that money do not limit your self to one car, make a list of a few you will be happy with and buy on quality.
eBay autos, sub 100k, sub £1,600

Thanks - is it a good idea buying cars off ebay? Never thought of looking on there.

atrixblue.-MFR-.

dont go pug/citroen at all renault maybe, VW polo small outside quite roomy inside, focus, escort, your quite limited with automatics.

gazfocus

rictus123 wrote: »

Do you not like focuses? A 206 is good size for insurance size..

Not over keen on focuses but will consider all cars that are big enough atm

Kurtis_Blue

gazfocus wrote: »

Thanks - is it a good idea buying cars off ebay? Never thought of looking on there.

Same as buying any where, inspect properly, paperwork, HPI etc.. then eBays great.

Kurtis_Blue

MMMmmmm tempted myself.

catflea

Kurtis_Blue wrote: »

MMMmmmm tempted myself.

Not as a first car though........... :cool:

206's are TINY inside. I tried to drive one for my lessons - got a refund from the instructor as it was just too small (I'm 6'2" and had my knees wedged against the steering wheel!)

OP, how old are you? Less than 25 and you really need to be looking at as small as possible....

Fiestas are OK, Yaris, Even a Lupo (not sure if they ever did an auto version tho)

gazfocus

thanks for the suggestions so far. I'm 25 so size not a huge issue. Been looking at Vauxhall Vectras and a 1.9 is about £1400 to insure. I'm learning in an Astra so already use to a bigger car

UnoriginalGuy_2

What do you mean by "big guy" do you mean tall, fat, or both?

I just ask because the answers will help us help you. Also a lot of small cars work really well for tall people, don't judge a car by its body size.

This site helped me a lot: http://www.tallclub.co.uk/reviews/index.asp

£1400? I got £700 insurance on a Smart Car, also 25 (male). Keep in mind that you can actually shift cash from the insurance into the car if you buy something nicer (e.g. Heap of junk costs £500, insurance is £2k, or spend £1k and the insurance is only £1500). Due to lot's of factors like the "type" of people who drive old heaps of junk and also the chance of it getting stolen.

Strongly recommend you read the insurance fiddling guide on this site.

You can also shift money from the cost of fuel into the cost of the car (e.g. 25 MpG = £500/year, 40 MpG = £400/year) you now spend £100 more when you buy it and make twice your money back in two years.