Charade or Puma? Which is better choice?

Brallaqueen

Hey guys looking for some experienced input from you if that is ok.

As some may remember I wrapped my Polo 1.0 around a bollard and have had no luck in repairing it (two garages and three spares places have all said they can't help). MOT is due at the end of the month so looking for a replacement.


I've been driving for 9 months now so looking for a smallish car under 1k and with long MOT.

The Polo has taught me that I want something with a bit of poke and something that doesn't feel quite so tinny and fragile when driving at speed, but that's counterbalanced by my relative lack of experience at driving.

edited to remove ad links

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I hate this car buying business.

bodgerx

Brallaqueen wrote: »

Hey guys looking for some experienced input from you if that is ok.

As some may remember I wrapped my Polo 1.0 around a bollard and have had no luck in repairing it (two garages and three spares places have all said they can't help). MOT is due at the end of the month so looking for a replacement.


I've been driving for 9 months now so looking for a smallish car under 1k and with long MOT.


What do people think about these two options?

NB - not my postcode!


Daihatsu Charade
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201308288511892/sort/default/usedcars/price-to/1000/make/daihatsu/onesearchad/used/onesearchad/nearlynew/onesearchad/new/page/1/radius/10/postcode/nn14ln?logcode=p


Ford Puma
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201309098691944/sort/default/usedcars/price-to/1000/make/ford/onesearchad/used/onesearchad/nearlynew/onesearchad/new/postcode/nn14ln/page/2/radius/10?logcode=p

Puma is an ok bet, but you'd probably be better with a Focus as it is a more modern design and there are more to choose from, so you can be pickier.

Can't really go wrong with Japanese, but not sure about the Charade, they are pretty bad to drive. Probably reliable though.

bodgerx

If you are after a Coupe, a Civic is a really good bet.

I owned this model year (in saloon form) and they are rock sold cars:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201309048616828/sort/default/usedcars/price-to/1000/model/civic/make/honda/onesearchad/used/onesearchad/nearlynew/onesearchad/new/page/1/radius/1500/postcode/yo178bd/keywords/coupe?logcode=p

Brallaqueen

thanks but the civic is a bit big for me - I'm used to smaller cars (learned in a mini and peugeot 106, drove polo)

scheming_gypsy

Brallaqueen wrote: »

The Polo has taught me that I want something with a bit of poke and something that doesn't feel quite so tinny and fragile when driving at speed, but that's counterbalanced by my relative lack of experience at driving.




Daihatsu Charade
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201308288511892/sort/default/usedcars/price-to/1000/make/daihatsu/onesearchad/used/onesearchad/nearlynew/onesearchad/new/page/1/radius/10/postcode/nn14ln?logcode=p

If you want something 'with a bit of poke', then a 58bhp 1ltr Charade really shouldn't be an option.
An MG ZR would fit into your price range, might even be able to pick up the turbo diesel. I had a ZS for a while as a run about and was a lot nicer than I expected, although they use the K series engine which can have dodgy head gaskets.

jimmy_cricket

Had a Puma for about eight years and loved it. Fantastic drive. The main reason I got rid is because the traction control will not turn off and it would not move on snow and ice. The other thing to watch is that it rusts around the wheel arches and the curved bit of the door frame at the bottom. It's built on a fiesta chassis so easy and cheap to repair.

MX5huggy

My Puma is Great, 154000 miles, does not miss a beat, in the last 3 years its needed an ABS sensor and I treated it to a cam belt. It goes plenty quick enough on the twisty stuff but does suffer from brake fade since I went back to standard disks.

OddballJamie

jimmy_cricket wrote: »

Had a Puma for about eight years and loved it. Fantastic drive. The main reason I got rid is because the traction control will not turn off and it would not move on snow and ice. The other thing to watch is that it rusts around the wheel arches and the curved bit of the door frame at the bottom. It's built on a fiesta chassis so easy and cheap to repair.

The obvious fix would have been a set of winter tyres.

OddballJamie

What an odd comparison between the two, OP if you want something that has space, five doors but drives like the Puma, look at Fiestas.

Brallaqueen

Thanks to all who have replied - I'm really torn between the two so all your input is really helpful in terms of making a decision.

Yes, the two cars are very different and this is part of my predicament. Both have long MOTS advertised (could be lies)

The Charade is like the Polo - small engine, compact car, perfect for running about town which I do a lot of. Private seller which seems to be a plus from what I have read. Assuming advert is true, it would be a good, sensible choice for a novice driver like myself. But it is boring as you like and frankly looks like a granny's car.

The Puma looks beautiful and all reports I have seen say it is great fun to drive. It is still quite compact but is faster and more powerful than the Charade, but is a lot older and doesn't have the modern equipment.Plus a trade seller which could mean a rip off is waiting to happen. It also might be too much car for me to handle safely. Definitely a 'thinking with the heart' type car.

Unfortunately I know f-all about cars and am reliant on mechanically minded family, they won't go further than 10 miles to look for a car as they have other demands on their time so options are limited. No Mazdas available right now, and have been told bad things about Renault Megane convertibles.

Not really thought about fiestas - they just don't appeal to me somehow and at the moment I'm restricting search to cars with 12 month mot advertised.

Brallaqueen

ford KA , 2000 W reg, 98000 miles, 1.3 L
12 months MOT, 550, trader

Renault megane, 1998 R Reg, 119000 miles, 1.6e L
12 months MOT, 695, trader

these are the two other potentials in my price bracket and I've heard bad things about both of them.