What Car?

[Ash]

Hi,

I will be need to purchase a car in the next few weeks due to a change in employment. I've been trying to decide whether to go with used or new, and have decided that with the NCT and all that new would be best and involve less hassle. The one car I like is the Polo, but on further inspection it appears to be quite expensive - you can only have items such as electric windows and central locking by paying over the odds for a comfort pack. Can anyone suggest another car that would be as reliable and safe as the Polo? My maximum budget would be around 11k. Oh, there is one car I'm not mad on, the Toyota Yaris.

Many Thanks
Ash.

[PaulKanters]

Ash, why waste your hard earned cash on a brand new car and loose all that money the moment you drive it out of the forecourt! You can get MUCH more car out of your 11k if you go for a car that's only a year or a couple of years old. If you buy the car through a dealership, you can bargain a great deal because they are stacked up to the roof with trade-ins so they'd love to see them go and will be prepared to take a cut on them. Drive a hard bargain and you could drive off in a top spec Golf, Passat, BMW or any other car you they have sitting on their forecourt that looks good to you. In a lot of cases the car will come with at least 6 months to a year full warranty, so there shouldn't be too much to worry about.

And for christs sake, let's not be so paranoid about the NCT, because most fairly youngish 2nd hand cars will literally fly through the NCT. There will be absolutely nothing to worry about if your car is normally serviced and maintained, and has never been in an accident.

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Paul Kanters
Nothing beats Classic Motoring!
welcome.to/classiccarsireland (http://welcome.to/classiccarsireland)
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[Phil]

I have to agree with Paul. I never bought a brand new car. I always buy a car that is about 3 years old. I have to say I have never regretted it. On some models a car can be nearly half the price after three years and depending on the garage you can get six months to a years warranty on it.
After three years the price deprecation starts to slow down to a more valuable speed.
I am in the progress of buying a second hand 98 BMW 320i with alot of extras, thanks to the guy who owned it before me. I got it for about ten thousand less than a brand new one today with no extras. You know BMW cars, they come with nothing.

[Ash]

Thanks guys for the info. As I previously stated I was thinking of a second hand car, but I have my mind made up to buy new. Anyone have any suggestions on that aspect?

Thanks, Ash.

[Junior]

<FONT face="Comic Sans MS">Phil I'm suprised you let this one slip by .. Ash I'd reccommend firstly that you have a look at the showroom on this site and browse thru some of the cars available .. if you are interested I know where there is a lovely Yaris for sale as well ... ;)

cheers
Junior
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[Ash]

Thanks Junior. I used the car locator and picked out the following cars that are within my budget :

Renault Clio
Opel Corsa
Hyundai Accent
Seat Ibiza
Fiat Punto
Nissan Micra
Skoda Fabia
Daihatsu Sirion
Daewoo Lanos 3dr

Now I'm all confused as to which one's are the best! Has anyone here first hand experience of any of these cars, or know anyone who drives one? Which ones would you strongly recommend, and which ones should I avoid? I don’t want to splash out on a car that turns out to be more trouble then its worth.

Thanks,
Ash.

[smokie]

A friend of mine bought a Hyundai Accent and she's delighted with it.

Its a good bit bigger than most of the others you listed except for the Lanos.

Its got the extras you're missing in the Polo i.e electric windows, central locking as standard.

Its also got a three year warrantee which is rare in the list above.

I reckon the Accent feels as big as cars in the class above like the Astra, Focus etc. and is much nicer to drive than the smaller Yaris etc.

[Anders]

Let's get real here for a moment. Do under no circumstances buy any Hyundai or Daewoo product.

It's essentially between the Fiat Punto, the Skoda Fabia, and Renault Clio. I think Punto would win on looks, but probably has dodgy reliability. Skoda get very good reliability ratings and I wouldn't worry about the badge. The Clio has gotten fairly good reviews, so it's worth looking at too. I would test drive all three.

[Chancer]

I'm just wondering why you wouldn't recommend a Hyundai or Daewoo product Anders? OK so they're cheap Korean cars, but surely that can’t be all that bad? I don’t know myself as I haven’t go first hand experience, but the Hyundai Accent does look like value for money, and the model is new so there should be a lot of improvement over the older model. And didn’t both these makes score highly in the recent JD Power survey?

[Spikey]

What about the SEAT Leon? It got good reviews and it's a nice looking car. I belive it gave the clio a run for its money.

As far as I know though the clio is still the fastest hatch out there for the money. But for how long?

Spikey

[Junior]

<FONT face="Comic Sans MS">
Renault Clio - With The new face lift not bad
Opel Corsa - Cack
Hyundai Accent - Should be spelt Accident
Seat Ibiza - Not Bad but for your cash underpowered and over weighted
Fiat Punto - Not Bad but still
Nissan Micra - Cack
Skoda Fabia - Oustanding Car of this group
Daihatsu Sirion - Cack
Daewoo Lanos 3dr - Cack

There are the Votes of Junior ...

I just don't like those Jap/korean look a like things they do not light my fire or prove any mechanical or technical masterpieces .. The Skoda as part of the VAG group has now got prestige by association from the other marques in the group.

The Skoda will surisingly hold it's value as well but the only drawback is that when selling it on you may have to sell back to a Skoda Dealer to get a fair price.


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Junior
http://juniorsweb.hypermart.net

[This message has been edited by Junior (edited 03 May 2000).]

[This message has been edited by Junior (edited 03 May 2000).]

[Paul]

Hi,

I have a Clio and I think it's great. Smooth and quiet and comfortable.

Punto is also a god car but I'm not too sure about after sales service - reason I didn't get one.

Accnet. This was my secod choice because it's a local garage and you are getting a big car for the money. I think the new ones are ugly but there are loads of them around. Selling well.

[Anders]

When it comes to the used market, where any Daewoo or Hyundai are gonna suffer big time, it's a lot to do with emotional value. Why would anyone ever buy a used Daewoo? The brand has no value, the cars look really strange, etc.

[Spikey]

It depends on the person Anders. Not everyone has the luxury to buy a particular model.

If the car is in good nick and gets your from A to B and is at the right price..... well there's your anwser.

I have no car at the moment myself, but I am trying to get the cash together for a car and I would'nt be too worried about the make/model along as it's in good condition.

Spikey