old banger needed, advice on which to buy please

fridgeracer

fridgeracer wrote: »

is a Seat Arosa 1997 worth £595? Its 77K miles, says it has full service history, has MPG in the 50's even though it's petrol, the one im looking at is very clean and tidy on the pics. Did VW build Seat's in 1997? i.e. is it a VW car with a Seat badge or is it an unreliable old "real" Seat? I'd rather go for a civic but their MPG is crap compared to this smaller car and for the same price, why not?

bump. i really would prefer the civic tbh because its in the top 10 for most reliable car of past decade. but is the old pre facelift arosa good and reliable or not? ive done some digging and it seems VW built them along with Seat in partnership - so German quality engine there however is it better to spend 600 quid on a higher mpg arosa or a lower mpg civic?

avantra

I would also go for a Rover 25/45 diesel, yes you might need to replace the fuel pump at one point which is around £500 fitted, the trim will fall off in droves, water will probably leak in but these cars are solid and very cheap. Stay away from the petrol versions.

[Deleted User]

After totaling up all my invoices, I've spent nearly £500 on repairs on my 11 year old 206 last year. Hope it's not the same this year.

andygb

Deleted_User wrote: »

After totaling up all my invoices, I've spent nearly £500 on repairs on my 11 year old 206 last year. Hope it's not the same this year.

It all depends what kind of repairs they are Lee and how much the car is worth to you. I have to replace all the shocks and springs on my 12 year old Mondeo, which will cost around £400 including fitting, but that will mean the suspension is sorted for a good few years (it already had wishbones and droplinks last year), and the car drives like a five year old.
If you are replacing bits which just wear out, then that is something which will have to be done on any car, so I never worry too much about brakes, tyres or suspension components.

steve-L

fridgeracer wrote: »

why not?

Is probably the attitude

At least you can never really tell.
Yes the Civics of the years you are looking at are reliable but you really never can tell. An expert mechanic will be able to spot a lot of obvious things but never everything.

The newer Civics (not an issue for you) went through a 'bad patch'
on reliability... that said, bad patch in Honda terms....

Don't malign the 106D and 306D and Citroen counterparts either, just because their current models are unreliable. The pre-electroncs car's in the era you're looking were pretty reliable and pretty decent MPG.

Actually it makes them more of a bargain because all French car prices tend to be depressed based on a combination of reality and rumour. I had two 90's PUG's and my mother had a 106D ... I wrecked a gearbox on one but of the three that was the only major repair needed doing.

My mother swapped the 106 for a Corsa ... (1.2) ..... I have always wondered what possessed her to do that when the 106 had no probs.... (she just wanted something else as in a change).

[Deleted User]

andygb wrote: »

It all depends what kind of repairs they are Lee and how much the car is worth to you. I have to replace all the shocks and springs on my 12 year old Mondeo, which will cost around £400 including fitting, but that will mean the suspension is sorted for a good few years (it already had wishbones and droplinks last year), and the car drives like a five year old.
If you are replacing bits which just wear out, then that is something which will have to be done on any car, so I never worry too much about brakes, tyres or suspension components.

Yep, some of the repairs I don't see needing to be done again. Like the catalyst converter and one of the injectors that I had done last year. Other repairs were front discs and pads, rear shoes and cylinders.

fishybusiness

is a Seat Arosa 1997 worth £595? Its 77K miles

Looking at ebay prices, and if it is in good nick it probably is.

andygb

mkirkby wrote: »

Surely only relevant if you care whether it works or not? Mine doesn't; never has and it doesn't bother me.

I think that it is relevant, because on some models (particularly in the VAG range) it creates extra problems by being in the way when trying to carry out services and cambelt changes.
A banger should be the cheapest reliable car avilable for the price, and it really does not matter if it doesn't have extra bits of kit like aircon, and eletrical things which can go wrong, like power windows and central locking.

steve-L

andygb wrote: »

I think that it is relevant, because on some models (particularly in the VAG range) it creates extra problems by being in the way when trying to carry out services and cambelt changes.

Though that's true I wouldn't let it stop me getting an otherwise good car!
I did have to pay someone to switch the clutch cable on my old 306 GTi-6 just because of the AC.... but....

A banger should be the cheapest reliable car avilable for the price, and it really does not matter if it doesn't have extra bits of kit like aircon, and eletrical things which can go wrong, like power windows and central locking.

Again, I had a central locking problem.... but so long as you can over-ride it with a manual key..... ???

atrixblue.-MFR-.

Arosa compared to the civic and concerto is a league of its own. super mini vs hatchback you cant compare these cars because weight and running costs are entirely different.

the civic is common car that can be a bit more to insure than the concerto but essentially the same kind of engine and specs just its body is different.

a well looked after honda civic or concerto wil be a good buy, i would want to see recent reciepts for work completed any outstanding advisories for the last few MOT (check online) to make sure there no underneath corrosion i should be worried about (as well as visual inspection) although honda's tend to rust around the arches on the rear and sills thats not a whole lotta problem.

the arosa, can cost the same amount to repair as a golf in terms of engine and gearbox, but service bits, excluding suspension parts, can be cheap, the arosa suffers with poor trim and poor seating you wont get adults in the back and expect them to be comfy thats for sure, its worse than a calibra for seating.

look at all the cars you wish to have in you considderation box check tax and insurance costs, and go to forums such a VWforums, honda forums and look at what the owners are saying about them and what cheap fixes for problems that have arisen with them.