Advice on buying a new car.

shaz77_2

I'm looking for a second hand car, priced around the £1000 mark, year of manufacture 2000 or newer strong enough to pull a trailer so a 1.4 or above would be ideal.

Does anyone have any recommendations?
Thanks in advance.

Francophile

Try the autotrader online

ballyblack

some useful reading here;

Honest John Website, the full story on all popular models on sale in the UK since 1990.

http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/index.htm

motorguy

Autotrader online lets you put in parameters like that in its 'advanced search' facility.

I dont think there are any particularly 'bad' brands out there as such. No doubt someone will say i've had a ford for ten years and hasnt cost me a penny, someone else will then say oh mate had a ford and it cost a fortune to run...

Dont be afraid of the more obscure brands. I'd rather have a one owner low mileage Daewoo for £1000, rather than a 4 owner vauxhall with no history.

Look for a privately owned car
Ask how long they've owned it
Ask why they are selling it
Ask is their name on the tax book - If not, run a mile, their a trader avoiding their legal responsibilities.
Ask has it a service history.
Check it has a years or close to a years MOT

dodo69

If its any use my neighbour is selling his 2000 Mitsubishi Carisma 1.6. Seems a good car -very economical and superbly maintained. About £1250 I think. PM me if interested.

marty306

I'd recommend a mazda 323 or Nissan Almera as they are both are generally unpopular cars (on style grounds) but are cheap to buy second hand meaning a newer car for your £1000. Even a larger car like the primera petrol or diesel could be in your price range for the year too so if you're searching autotrader as a guide keep the search fairly open.

I always recommend as low a milage as possible japanese car to anyone as they'll generally speaking be the most reliable cars if not the most stylish/roomy/comfy/economical cars.

Bigcammy

Have to agree with the Nissan, I had a Primera with 150k miles on it, absolutely solid reliability and a great roomy car, 40mpg from a 1.6 petrol engine, great car.

ballyblack

Agree that the mazda Mazda 323 & Nissan Almera are good choices for the reasons stated
However don't get obsessed with very low mileage as this can mean its being used on a lot of cold/start short journeys, not good for engine wear.

Contrary to belief, a younger car with higher mileage is much better than an older car with low mileage, also its more likely the mileage is genuine

Similar orginal post on Honestjohn forum;

http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?f=2&t=58901

shaz77_2

Thanks for all the good advise, I am interested in buying a Toyota Corolla much like the one in this link (which is sold), are there any good outlets or private sellers in NI that sell this type of second hand car? I am currently having difficulty via the usual mediums e.g. autotrader etc.

motorguy

shaz77 wrote: »

Thanks for all the good advise, I am interested in buying a Toyota Corolla much like the one in this link (which is sold), are there any good outlets or private sellers in NI that sell this type of second hand car? I am currently having difficulty via the usual mediums e.g. autotrader etc.

Thats an Avensis in the link, which is mondeo sized, not focus sized like the corolla. The Avensis will always be cheaper than a corolla as its relatively unloved because of its size.

Do you really need a diesel? You will pay a premium for a diesel car and there is a great risk in northern ireland that its been run on cheap fuel from somewhere - particularly if its anywhere near the border regions - a pump for a diesel car is anywhere between £500 & £1000, injectors go, heater plugs go. I had a corolla diesel as a runabout a while ago and spent significant money on it every month keeping it running.

Also that car is only mot'd to june, its now nearly february, so you'll have just four months of driving before you're having to worry about MOT. Aim for a car with at least 10 months MOT.

You WILL pay a premium for any toyota corolla, and i'm not sure its worth it.

ballyblack

particularly if its anywhere near the border regions -

That is a common misconception.

Proximity to the border means nothing to a rogue diesel retail outlet (a lorry tanker of rogue diesel can deliver anywhere in Ni within 2 hours)

If anything diesel purchased just over the border in the South of Ireland is probably more genuine than diesel purchased in say North Antrim