VW Polo 1.4L

i_wanna_save_money!

Hi

I have just been offered a P reg VW Polo 1.4L for £300. This is off a friend who says it is a good reliable car, but they have got a new one.

Now, I will be getting it checked out if I decide to buy it, but the insurance quotes I have been getting are very high - around £1250. I have looked at quotes before when I was considering getting a corsa, and those quotes came in around £750.

Is the polo a higher risk car i don't understand it all .

Also, is this specific car going to have a massive road tax price when the new changes come in as I cannot find specific lists of cars on the net.

Thanks alot for reading

Hintza

Guess you are quite young. The car is most probably a Group 5 for insurance (SEE HERE).

Road tax for this will not be affected by the recent changes because it is older than 2001 and will remain in same bracket.

i_wanna_save_money!

Hi Hintza - I am actually 30, but have only just passed last week. That is a useful site - thanks. I am just so excited to have passed and want a car NOW!!! lol

oldagetraveller

Are those quotes for third party only or third party, fire & theft? I would have thought for a vehicle of that "value" (no disrespect intended, my first car was £50!) 3rd party only would be sufficient. Your age should improve quotes too, those seem a tad high to me.
You don't say whether you're male or female, if male you're not exactly in the "boy racer" class. If female that should go in your favour

i_wanna_save_money!

well, , I am 30, female, been passed since last week (woo hoo! ) , I put third party, fire & theft, as on moneysupermarket.com the only other option is fully comp. I thought it was very high too, which is why I am wondering if it is something to do with the type of car it is .

Also, I don't know whether I would be better putting full time student (which is what I am at the moment at college, and off to uni in september, or to put housewife which I also class myself as.

This is so confusing...

anewman

I found third party fire theft cheaper than third party only, no point paying more for less cover so do check the prices.

I imagine house wife would be cheaper but it's easy enough to do two quotes in confused.com and stick student in one and housewife in the other. Also try http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/insurance/car-insurance-job-picker/ Also if you have a hubby who's been driving a while, try sticking him down as a named driver, even if his policy lets *him* drive your car anyway, as it may reduce the cost of the policy for you. These are some things to try.

The VW polo seems a great buy if well maintained and in good condition. Think of it this way, if you buy a different decent car for £800, you might not be saving £500 on the insurance, and you'll get insurance cheaper next year with (hopefully) one years no claims anyway.

goldspanners

buy the car at £300,if you cant get insurance cheap enough sell the car on,if its in good nick then its worth more than £300.

fatbelly

£300 for a P-reg polo is good as long as there's nothing serious wrong with it and the mileage is not ridiculous. We're still running a G-reg (though it is getting close to the end of its life) and it has been trouble-free for its entire life!

Yours is seven years younger!

Keith

Try eCar and their Payasyougo policy, they will give you 1 years NCB in 8 months. This will mean you can stay with them for 16 months and have 2 years NCB at which point insurance prices start to tumble.

It's going to be expensive as you are inexperienced and according to the insurance companies will put the car into a tree.

Of course your not but they raise the insurance to pay for the risk of the other drivers who do.

anewman

Keith wrote: »

Try eCar and their Payasyougo policy, they will give you 1 years NCB in 8 months. This will mean you can stay with them for 16 months and have 2 years NCB at which point insurance prices start to tumble.

I think I got the calculator out to see if this would be worthwhile (as I use ecarinsurance), and it worked out cheaper to pay the full year. It's just a case of three quotes anyway. Compare one year, with monthly X 8 + monthly with 1 year NCB X 4. But if paying monthly is more convenient then it could be a good choice but the NCB earned may not be accepted by another insurer as it's not been earned over the specified periods.

i_wanna_save_money!

I just don't know what to do about this car. I know it is only £300, but £300 is £300. The price is slightly putting me off if that makes sense - as though it is too cheap and that there must be something wrong with it. I am having another look at it today as he doesn't want to sell it until the weekend when he picks his new car up.

I was supposed to be getting a mechanic friend to look at it for me, but he is going away tonight for a couple of weeks holiday, so I have no one to view cars with me.

I have had a look at this: http://www.topgear.com/content/buyersguides/02/7.html
and have got some tips on what to look for, but I am a total novice when it comes to this. Although he says it is a reliable car, I just don't wanna buy something that will be a crap car.

Sorry for moaning just don't want to waste my money. Incidently, the best quote I have found was at loyds TSB for £885.24 (plus quidco of £80) which I thought was reasonable, although I don't know if I can pay monthly.

I did not know it was gonna be this stressful to buy a car!!