Looking for a car for £500

Redstag194

For £500 you could well be buying a world of pain! As with everything in life you get what you pay for, so if the car looks too good to be true, be careful it probably is!

I am guessing that you won't be getting a proper RAC/AA inspection, but at least carry out an HPI or similar check, it may seem like £20 you could save but in the long run it could mean you don't buy a stolen car or write off. Worth it in the end. (If you are buying this weekend then there is a code I've found which I've already posted on the site HPI2425APR, gives you 20% off).
Good luck!!!

fatbelly

If you do look for a sub-£500 car and come across a Skoda Felicia, they're usually OK - particulaly with a VW 1.9 diesel engine on board. I think they were made until 2000. I had one a few years back and it never missed a beat.

anewman

fatbelly wrote: »

If you do look for a sub-£500 car and come across a Skoda Felicia, they're usually OK - particulaly with a VW 1.9 diesel engine on board. I think they were made until 2000. I had one a few years back and it never missed a beat.

To be honest there's nothing wrong with the other engines either, the 1.6 is VW engine code AEE and reasonably good, even the 1.3 Skoda pushrod engine isn't bad, and has a cam chain instead of a cambelt (although these can need replacing after a while once they become noisy). The Felicia is NOT based on the Polo (Honest John isn't 100% honest, or simply mistaken).

catflea

But dont buy one blindly on whats been said above. Most of them may be ok (I really dont know about them, so cant comment) but theres still the possibility of buying an absolute stinker.

gravitytolls

Having spent £300 on a new clutch, I'd be inclined tyo get the head done, presumably you thought it was worth spending money on a week ago.

£500's high, but presumably that includes the radiator? Maybe ring around a few garages. Our garage does a head gasket for £250~£300 depending on the skimming (?), whereas others in the area charge much more.

Doooford

...and on a wing and a prayer I managed to find a Rover 420 with 100000 miles on the clock for £495. It had a full service history including mileage history. Recently changed cam belt and 12 months MOT. So far have done almost 1000 miles in it and it all seems good.
Just need to make sure my AA Membership is all paid up and pray a bit. On a serious note though it is a seriously well looked after car and a great find. It was found on trade-it by my partner and was a bit out in the sticks! :T

tammigirl

well done..I recently bought a suzuki alto for £450 X reg with 56.000 miles on the clock, full service history from a little old man who lived out in the countryside...I have had it for 4 months now and it goes like a dream.

joanne_d_3

Doooford wrote: »

...and on a wing and a prayer I managed to find a Rover 420 with 100000 miles on the clock for £495. It had a full service history including mileage history. Recently changed cam belt and 12 months MOT. So far have done almost 1000 miles in it and it all seems good.
Just need to make sure my AA Membership is all paid up and pray a bit. On a serious note though it is a seriously well looked after car and a great find. It was found on trade-it by my partner and was a bit out in the sticks! :T

Hey , we used to have a rover 420 , it was the "si" model.....loved it !!!

We never had a seconds trouble out of it , ran like a dream !

It was a 1998 model , and we owned it from 2000 , unforunately my husband was involved in an accident in it in 2007 and the insurance company wrote it off:(

Ours had the honda engine in it as oppossed to the rover engine (which everyone knows about re overheating.....).

Hopefully you will have happy motoring in your "new" car...i know we always did in our rover:(

Joanne

jaz_2

catflea wrote: »

But dont buy one blindly on whats been said above. Most of them may be ok (I really dont know about them, so cant comment) but theres still the possibility of buying an absolute stinker.

Indeed. I owned a Felicia for about 18 months, not an experience I'd care to repeat. Despite boasting FSH, low mileage and one owner from new it turned out to be the most unreliable pile of junk I've ever owned.

mikey72

jaz wrote: »

Indeed. I owned a Felicia for about 18 months, not an experience I'd care to repeat. Despite boasting FSH, low mileage and one owner from new it turned out to be the most unreliable pile of junk I've ever owned.

I owned a Favorit. Brilliant little car for next to nothing.