Advice on cheap small automatic for learner - £2k to spend

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rob7475 said:

To be fair to the dealer they were honest and told me they can’t confirm when the gearbox fluid was last changed as it hasn’t been stamped in the service book. There’s lots of honda dealer stamps in there so i’d hope it’s been done at some point. 

Hoe much should I budget for a fluid change if I decide to go for it?

The CVT fluid should be changed every 2 years- or 25,000 miles, I've seen figures around £100. The Honda CVT is one of the more reliable ones, it would be worth doing if the car is a keeper. 

rob7475

FindMyWayBack said:

rob7475 said:

[Deleted User] said:

OP, is there any reason she can't use yor 'main' car for practice?

Yeah - it’s a nearly new merc e class 🤣. 

I did say she could practice in it but she doesn’t fancy it - it’s too big apparently

This sort of thing sends me into orbit, you did SAY she could practice in it, it's TOO BIG, what tosh, tell her to get her backside into it and drive the thing, she is an equal, stop the condescension.

TBH I'm quite happy to get a cheap car for her to learn in. It means I don't have to pile bags of plaster and other stuff into the boot of my car. I can use her car for the trips to Wickes and the tip and keep mine nice and clean 

rob7475

just thought I'd update on this. After finding a few cars from private sellers who all turned out to be traders (one of which tried very hard to cover his tracks but I sussed him out in the end which he was less than impressed about), we ended up agreeing to buy a 58 plate Honda Jazz with low miles and full main dealer service history from a dealer on Saturday. It ran very well but had had a few scratches etc that had been touched up over the years. I was surprised at how roomy it is for a small car. Hopefully it'll give us a few years of reliable service

BOWFER

Did you drive the Jazz?
CVT boxes aren't for everyone, the constant mono-tone drone of the engine can drive some people nuts.

rob7475

BOWFER said:

Did you drive the Jazz?
CVT boxes aren't for everyone, the constant mono-tone drone of the engine can drive some people nuts.

We took it out for a bit of a drive and the gearbox was fine. The drone wasn't too noticeable. I couldn't find another small car with a normal reliable auto box. They all seem to be automated manuals which have reliability issues. I'll keep up with fluid changes on the cvt and hopefully it'll run for long enough for her to pass her test. She'll probably want to upgrade to something a bit 'nicer' after that.