Looking for an economic car for around £4500 - £5000 pls help

NikkeiJones

It's likely that I'm going to be comuting for a round trip of 74 miles per day in the near future and our car is less than reliable. My P'sIL have gifted us £3500 towards getting a new car but I have no idea what to look for. Please can you help we're looking for a car that meets the following criteria:

5 door
Low TAX (less that £200 a year)
Big boot (to fit two large dogs)
Low insurance
Reliable
Economic

Any suggestions???

Weird_Nev

Skoda Octavia Diesel?
Volvo V70 Diesel?
Passat Estate?
I Found a Saab 9-5 Diesel with a 3.0 V6 that still gets 40Mpg and is "old" tax bands for £2,795 last week.
If they're not THAT large, then a Fabia Diesel.
Ford Modeo Estate?
Audi A6 Estate?
Honda Accord 2.2 Tdi Estates - These look like a bit of a winner IMO. Good engine, nice cars, loads of room.
Go for older, well maintained, and if needs be swallow a £15 increase in yearly tax Vs slightly lower on paper economy and a couple of grand saving in purchase price.

Weird_Nev

How about a BMW to make the neighbours think you've been promoted?

lovethymini

Renault Scenic. Economical, cheap to tax and run, very versatile, nice driving position. We've had ours for 6 months and I'd happily recommend the 1.9Dci which returns 50mpg on a motorway run and 40ish around town.

scheming_gypsy

Weird_Nev wrote: »

Volvo V70 Diesel?
.

i'd agree with that, you can get about 55mpg from a big daft 2.5TDi and you wouldn't need to spend all the money to do it.

chris1973

Instead of just looking at MPG and buy price why not check out the reviews of used cars on the 'Honest John' website?

Whether your 'new' car does 30mpg or 50mpg is going to seem peanuts in comparison, if you need to spend £1200 on 4 new injectors and a new common rail at some point in the future

Sure MPG is a factor, but its not the be all - end all in relation to the cost of running a car - how reliable it is, and how much servicing / repairs cost is also up there in the order of importance. If a vehicle has a history of 'known' flaws and expensive faults, better to be aware of them NOW rather then when its at the side of the road with its hazard lights flashing

consumers_revenge

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3463093



Just swap the dogs for miniture poodles!