Help With First Car?

MoneySavingStudent_2

Ok Here we go...

Im a 18 year old student and living with my boyfriend.
My boyfriend has just started his new job this week and so far so good.
I am at university and (because of this site) am managing my money well and getting the best rate/deals etc!

My question is.. whats the best little run about to get?
Im a learner driver (on and off) and my bf has past his test about 3 months ago.

Were wanting to by a little run about because it would be generally much easier for us and cheaper esp with the price of bus fare these days!

Which little car would u recommend? im looking to buy a used one.
What year should i go bck to? like how old? 10 yrs maybe?
What engine?
Something cheap to run and insure?

I hear the corsa's are nice pre 2004 or something that watchdog said because of handbrake issues or something?

anyway HELP!!! lol thanx!

BTW im looking for something cheap i could stretch to about £3000 but i would like that to include insurance for me and my bf.

goldspanners

you will possibly be looking at insurance premiums of around £1000 mark,so you will be left with around £2000.
at this price you should be judging each car you see on its own merits,at this age each car will more than likely have some kind of fault.
maybe look at ford ka's, fiestas. or maybe like you say a corsa.
or have alook at the older nissan micras very reliable,not the best looking but do the job.or similar jap cars,cheap and easy to repair aswell.

MoneySavingStudent_2

we got an insurance quote from !!!!!!!!! with me my bf and my mum on and we got a quote of a little corsa for around £680.

I looked at nissans and found a nice one in the paper tonight for about £1795 V reg 1.0 3 door. 16v 45,000 miles power steering etc from a company near us

do you think thats a good deal? or do u think someones trying to get rid of a rust bucket? lol

anewman

MoneySavingStudent wrote: »

I looked at nissans and found a nice one in the paper tonight for about £1795 V reg 1.0 3 door. 16v 45,000 miles power steering etc from a company near us

do you think thats a good deal? or do u think someones trying to get rid of a rust bucket? lol

It's impossible to tell without inspecting the car closely. Although at 45,000 miles, if it's been serviced yearly I would guess it should be fine. But it's best to swot up on what could be wrong with it and check everything possible before putting your money down, or even getting an independent inspection from RAC or AA etc. Don't pay the asking price though. The car market is very competitive, if the seller can get the car off their forecourt for £1,500 now, rather than £1,795 in a months time, they can get another car in that space and get even more money. But how low you can get it for depends on how much they laid out for it.

If you're willing to look around and want "cheap" you can get some decentish cars for around £500 that should see you through your education till you get a job and can afford something a little nicer. You will then have the extra £1000 plus for any unexpected repairs. No point maxing out all your money on a car and insurance etc, when you can get cheaper and when next week something bad could happen with a repair bill of £300 plus that you might be unable to afford. Bad things can happen to any car unfortunately, although they usually don't. Just unlucky if it does.

This website's a bit old now but have a quick look http://bangernomics.tripod.com/index.html

MoneySavingStudent_2

thanx!
I wasnt sure whether to go for £500 cars or not, but we had a look at a corsa a month or two ago and that was around £600 and it was pretty good but didnt have power steering which was a down fall.

Do you think a £500 car would be okay? im very aware that they maybe selling a bad car for cheap just to get rid and i wont realise til i get it home sorta thing!

How do you go about getting a member of the AA or RAC round to have a look?

anewman

Well here's my general experience which is only one (other people may well get similar cars and have them go banana shaped). I got hold of a Skoda Favorit estate 1994, 110k miles for £0, previous owner was going to scrap it, I think more because it was less trouble than trying to sell it. No power steering but I don't really miss it compared with the new astra I learnt in. You get used to it plus it's one less thing to go wrong. You would also be amazed at the luggage space. The rear seats don't just fold they're removable and it's like a van.

Had it a year now. For MOT needed centre exhaust, brake pipe and handbrake adjustment. Paid a garage £100 + MOT and retest cost £60. Road tax £130. I changed oil myself, renewed spark plugs, leads, cap, and arm etc which cost me my time, cost of tools and ramps and the cost of the bits which was next to nothing. Oh new tyres all round £160. I also renewed a rear suspension spring cup that had rusted myself, cost of cup under £2 from main dealers and although not strictly necessary renewed the polyurethane bump stops on rear suspension at a cost of £15 each for parts. A wheel bearing has just gone (just means a peculiar noise at the moment at 70mph). Going to try replace that myself. Cost of parts £10, but got a quote of £45 from a garage all inclusive. The gear linkage is worn (floppy gear stick) and I want to take that out and renew the nylon bushes etc. I'm trying to do as much as possible myself to save paying the mechanics their wages (sorry mechanics). Oh and not forgetting taking off bubbling paint, wire brushing it etc and putting hammerite on it to try sort the rust out. My next car will probably be another Skoda Favorit (or the later model the Felicia which shares some of the same bits) and I'll have all the bits worth keeping off this stuck in my bin cupboard so I'll have a spare alternator or whatever else might be worth keeping as a spare.

That's one years worth of motoring on a shoe string. If you're willing to get a haynes manual and your hands dirty you can save yourself a little more money by doing as much as you can yourself. Nothing that has been needed on my car has actually meant it was unable to be driven at any point.

But this is just my experience, your mileage may vary etc etc. Could be luck?

As for vehicle inspections check the websites. Here's the AA one http://www.theaa.com/motoring-advice/vehicle-inspections.html Seems to be just over £100 so probably only worth it if you're spending close to £2,000.

MoneySavingStudent_2

sounds good but im no good at cars or anything of the sort!
I can change a windscreen wiper lol thats about all the experience ive had!
I just want something that will get me from a to b and on a weekend to c lol
Probs something small and what doesnt need much work but isnt perfect sorta thing! lol thanx for your help though!!
What car would you say doesnt stop going? something very reliable?

goldspanners

at one point or another they will all stop going,but the jap stuff is fairly reliable and cheap all round,as is the skoda that anewman has mentioned.
ANEWMAN! show her that skoda fabia that i saw you post on here the other day,the blue one for £500,that looked good value for money.
as anewman has said in other posts with the skoda you will get a newer car for £2000 than you will for a corsa,fiesta,as these are more popular and fashionable than the skoda,but just as good.

anewman

MoneySavingStudent wrote: »

sounds good but im no good at cars or anything of the sort!

Well before all this I never did a single thing with a car and this is my first one I suppose the main killer is the time. Need time to carefully read how to do the job and make sure you think you can do each step, then buy the tools and parts, then time to try get it done If time is something you don't have, easier to take it to a garage.

But I would say all the things I have experienced are pretty non-problematic in terms of car ownership. Much worse could have happened like clutch going, serious like engine failure, headgasket gone etc etc. The few things I didn't get done at a garage wouldn't have cost all that much anyway really, and cars need servicing usually yearly anyway - I wouldn't skimp on servicing just to save money or you're almost guaranteed an unreliable car that will break down.

goldspanners wrote: »

ANEWMAN! show her that skoda fabia that i saw you post on here the other day,the blue one for £500,that looked good value for money.

Well it's a felicia. It's posted here with pics. http://www.briskoda.net/forums/felicia-fun-forman/1-3mpi/98990/ Has some scratches on the back that would easily be sorted. Seems to be some uncertainty about whether the clutch is slipping but with such low mileaege I would doubt it. He has offered it at £500 and had no calls back.

Piccy.

MoneySavingStudent_2

ill probs go for something more then £500 but less then my original £3000.
My friend brought a corsa about 2 months ago, he brought it for about £1300, he had it for 45 min and the handbrake cable snapped! On a hill! luckly he was in it and managed to sort everything out ok and his drive is on a flat. But he had to pay to get it fixed etc
(but then again hes not a moneysaver!)

im very fond of citroen c2's and honda jazz's and ive seen a couple of 03 plates for around £2500. I have to learn to drive in this car too so it has to be a nice little thing that i wont freak out about if i bump our wall wen reversing in to the drive! lol

MoneySavingStudent_2

rather not go for the skoda and probs not go further back then 1998/1999 (mums opinion there) any reliable cars youve had that juat kept going?
Our familys always had rovers and ppl give them so much bad press but ours just havent stopped going!