Buying my very first car (used)

brungle

Hi all.

I've just recently passed my test at the grand old age of 27, and could do with some advice on the sort of car to buy/what to do etc.

I've got around £1300 to spend on a car, which I need to make for my journey to work and back (16 miles in total) and various other things, and could do with advice on what sort of car, what year, what to look for etc.

I would need this to last me for over a year if possible so that I can continue to save etc.

bigjl

In your position i would go for the nicest Fiesta or Corsa i could find. With a petrol engine preferably.

arcon5

Petrol engines don't last as long - but they are usually much more trouble free and cheaper to repair. Don't have to worry so much about pricey injector repairs, turbos, DMFs (most petrols are single-mass aren't they?).

I suppose being 27 you don't have to worry so much about having to buy a tiny clio or corsa or something due to insurance premiums. Something like a Ford Focus maybe? Or an Astra?

IamNotAllowedToUseMyName

Larger cars can be cheaper to buy, especially as you will not be competing with youngsters desperate to get their premiums low.

However, £1300 is not a lot of money for a car, make sure you have also considered road tax, insurance and running costs. You need to look for a long MOT and you need to be convinced that it is not only serviced but things like brake pads have got plenty of life in them. With that budget you are trying to find a car that you hope to spend nothing on, when it is being the end of its life, so it's going to be pot luck.

Without experience, steer clear of car auctions, and make sure you don't deal with some bloke in a pub car park selling you an amazing bargain. I've had friends who have had good experience using eBay, but be prepared to walk away - even if the seller calls you a time waster!

Stooby2

Just looking at Ford Ka's for my daughter and I've seen some good examples for around £1000. They're not the typical boy racer car so don't get knicked for spares so much, and I've found insurance premiums don't seem to be as much as other cars in the same size / price bracket.

AdrianC

Stooby2 wrote: »

Just looking at Ford Ka's for my daughter and I've seen some good examples for around £1000. They're not the typical boy racer car so don't get knicked for spares so much, and I've found insurance premiums don't seem to be as much as other cars in the same size / price bracket.

Old-shape Ka? <wince> Make sure you check VERY carefully for structural rot. They don't get nicked for bits primarily because there's so many rotten ones about.

brungle

Thanks all - I'll try to increase this to £2000 - would that be any good? Also, for a first car, is there anything you would recommend in regards to what to look for when buying a car - lowest mileage possible aside, Full Service History?...I'm just not very good at this sort of thing!

mb101_2

brungle wrote: »

Thanks all - I'll try to increase this to £2000 - would that be any good? Also, for a first car, is there anything you would recommend in regards to what to look for when buying a car - lowest mileage possible aside, Full Service History?...I'm just not very good at this sort of thing!

Clearly, spending more will increase your chances of getting a better, more reliable car, but we can't tell you what the "right" amount to spend is...

Lowest mileage possible is not necessarily best though. A higher-mileage but younger model is often more recommended as low usage and short journeys are also bad for a car.

Full service history is, of course, preferable. The best approach is to look for cars that meet your needs, are in budget, have decent reputation for reliability and which are quite common so that servicing and spares are cheap and readily available. It's also worth considering the seller - as you're at the cheap end of the market, do check online whether the dealer has a bad reputation if possible.

Basically, try and find the newest, best service history car from a reputable dealer and pick any model of the right size from a decent mainstream manufacturer i.e. Ford, Vauxhall, Nissan, Toyota, Honda, VW, Skoda. Once you have a car in mind, do then check for any specific known issues for the particular make/model/engine you're looking at.

londonTiger

youd probably want to budget £500 for add ons or repairs regardless of which car you buy.

interior addons like stereo, bluetooth device is a likely requirement. Espeically for a first time driver when it's your first car.

servicing, tyres and other misc motoring expenses likely as well. At that end of thew market just expect that the car is being sold because of an upcoming expensive service like brakes, cambelt etc.

£1300 can get you very decent cars but at the same time there are a lot of cars which are in need of serious tlc at that end of the market too.

e.g. in my mk4 golf I did a 200mile trip to Manchester and it took it like a trooper. They can be bought for £1300 or less.

jaydeeuk1

If you have a budget of £2k, spend £1k on the car and keep the other £1k for keeping it on the road.

I'd look at something mechnanically simply, old suzuki altos, daihatsu sirions, kia rio, or something that shares bits with common cars daewoo lanos, suzuki wagon r etc.

Mankysteve

Ford Ka are horrible cars, rust buckets and while cheap you still don't get alot of car for your money.

Corsa's of the price range your looking for are decent cars but are expensive to insure as they are a favourite of the boy racer which is shame.

Have look at what you can afford then do a couple of dummy insurance quotes to an idea of cost.

Also check the tax cost.

Check out honest john for real life MPG and reviwes as well.

Stay away from premium/prestige cars they can be had for peanuts but tare very expensive to repair.