New car suggestions

mintymoneysaver

My 03 Nissan Primera is unfortunately eaching the end of the road ( possibly £1000 of work needing doing!) so am looking into a new car ( not brand new, obviously!)

So my requirements are:

Seats 4 adults comfortably, but not neccessarily as big as a Primera

Boot big enough to get golf clubs, or a week's worth of luggage in

Mostly for shorter journeys, with a longer trip ( 2 hours+) possibly every couple of months.

Engine size- this is a 1.6 but quite happy to go lower

Cost £5000 plus whatever we get trade in for this car which is still driveable but probably needs a new cam belt!

Easy and cheap to repair.

Any suggestions?

rodenal

I'd go for the newest mid size hyundai / kia you can find. The Ceed and i30 are both decent cars, otherwise check the usual suspects of focus/mondeo and have a look at the mazda 3 too

Lum

Agree with the above, it sounds like you're the kind of a person who keeps a car until it's nearly dead, so depreciation is not an issue for you.

Given that, the cars with heavy depreciation, namely the Korean ones, are the ones to go for as you'll get a much better car for the same money.

If you're looking for something practical and sensible, there's nothing really wrong with Korean cars made in this century, other than the standard caveats of buying any used car.

mintymoneysaver

If only I didn't have to run them into the ground! I've loved this car, and never really had any trouble with it. From when we bought it in 06 it's only had a new battery, regular servicing and two new windows as the mechanism went, but unfortunately now the sensor is showing the cam shaft. It's run for ages with the warning light on, but just noticed a loss in power, almost like a fuel blockage over the last week or so. It's done 83,000 and if it's going to need a massive job like that doing it's just not financially viable.

superfran_uk

If you like Nissan what about a Note? Slightly smaller but you can trade in and get an 08/09/10 model depending on what you get for it and it's still big enough for a family of four plus luggage?

mintymoneysaver

Have been looking at all the cars that have driven past me this week now, just to see which I like! I'm a girl, it has to look right! Think the Note and the Ceed would be a bit too small from what I have spotted this week. What do we all think of a good old Astra, as there seem to be some good buys on them...
.

flashg67

Ceed & i30 are as near as dammit Astra sized? I do like the Astra, and there's plenty of choice - have you looked at the Focus or an older Golf - but can recommend the i30 from personal experience and you'll probably get a newer car that is unlikely to have been thrashed by a boy/girl racer - us Korean car owners are a sensible lot you know (yawn)

mintymoneysaver

Really? The ceed looked a lot smaller when driving past it! Am on the lookout for a Hyundai too, but there don't seem to be many near me at the moment... Focus always seems to look smaller too, but I'm open to persuasion. Isn't the insurance high on a golf? Plus I'd like one as new as possible ( just for the show off value!):rotfl:

Thanks for your help.

flashg67

Does 'mintymoneysaving' and showing off go together?

All these cars are smaller than a Primera but I've just done a round trip from Lancashire to Luton airport in an i30 with four people & all their luggage with no problems!

I don't think insurance will be too bad on the Korean stuff - mine was another £30 a year over my Fiat Punto.

You really need to get inside some and test drive 'em - boring as this is will sound, I've found over the years that it's just as important how reliable a car is and is it a nice place to 'be' rather than just going on exterior looks - you don't see that from the inside - I'm sure Halfords & ebay will have some bling for Korean cars anyway by now :T
Also I don't think you'll notice the difference in power - a modern 1.4 is as powerful as an older 1.6 anyway.

Good luck - once you start looking, it's a minefield!

mintymoneysaver

Thankyou again. I'm not a bling girl at all, believe me! It's just that I so rarely get a new car my heart is telling me why have an older one, when it could be newer! And you're right, the inside has to be right! I'll definitely look around for your Hyundais.

flashg67

Don't dismiss the Kia Ceed though - it shares a lot with the Hyundai i30 because Kia own Hyundai (or is it t'other way round?)- anyway, they're based on the same car underneath, if that make sense! I always go for the newest I can afford, even if it's not the coolest or latest thing out there!