First Decent Car

aproctor · 24 Mar 2010 at 00:17

[TW]Fox;16217747 said:
No, but it does mean that perhaps you are not best placed to challenge the notion that its the best.

In all fairness Astras are very good cars and handle well.

paradigm · 24 Mar 2010 at 00:28

aproctor said:
In all fairness Astras are very good cars and handle well.

Compared to a horse and cart?

Morba · 24 Mar 2010 at 00:32

aproctor said:
In all fairness Astras are very good cars and handle well.

Focus is better

Stormster · 24 Mar 2010 at 00:48

At handling? Is that all?

I'm with Aproctor and I've driven both Focus's and Astra's.

shimy182 · 24 Mar 2010 at 01:02

Changing the tone a bit here !

How do Accords compare to other suggestions?
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif.../page/6/postcode/cv13aq/radius/1501?logcode=p
tis a poor ad with no details of the car, but imo looks nice atleast

You might also want to elaborate on Decent, as I may dare suggesting nissan Qashqai's?

EDIT: also rolling
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif.../postcode/cv13aq/page/5/radius/1501?logcode=p
Newer gen S40's are also awesome. though for price range mileage might be a tad on the high side... though more of less solid none the less!

BigglesPiP · 24 Mar 2010 at 01:04

Mondeo alternative: http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1573222.htm

YorkshirePadd26 · 24 Mar 2010 at 02:26

BigglesPiP said:
Mondeo alternative: http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1573222.htm

Ah jap Mondeo yes, tbh you'd be better with a proper Mondeo parts/insurance would be cheaper

firefilesuk · 24 Mar 2010 at 02:40

Lmao at £4K for a mondeo with 107K on it yeah right, mondeos just arn't built to the same standards of bmw and the like and this is coming from a mk2 mondeo owner and previous e36 owner, i'd be going for an E46 325 with that budget and only doing 8-10k a year.

stulid · 24 Mar 2010 at 03:16

Mazda6 is a very nice car, but being biased I would look for a accord, maybe not a tourer as they cost that little bit more.

Sonea Fifer · 24 Mar 2010 at 07:19

chumpit said:
But was also looking at the over salons, saw a xtype jag black, to bad their almost as reliable as a alfa...

Really? I thought these were actually pretty good car, do you have any proof to back up your lack of reliability claim?

Back on topic - you really cant go wrong with the Mondeo as many have suggested, insurance isn't going to cripple you, you should fit in no problem considering your height and it should be a nice step up from a Scroton

[TW]Fox · 24 Mar 2010 at 10:18

aproctor said:
In all fairness Astras are very good cars

The Astra is not a 'very good car' by any stretch of the imagination. They are quite poor.

paradigm · 24 Mar 2010 at 10:24

firefilesuk said:
Lmao at £4K for a mondeo with 107K on it yeah right, mondeos just arn't built to the same standards of bmw and the like and this is coming from a mk2 mondeo owner and previous e36 owner, i'd be going for an E46 325 with that budget and only doing 8-10k a year.

So are you saying a 107,000 mile Mondeo will fail because they are built poorly?
If so, then you are talking absolute twaddle.

I'd also certainly NOT recommend a cheap e46, especially for someone who just wants A CAR, they didn't specify wanting driving dynamics, 50:50 weight distribution, and RWD, they wanted A CAR. Something that a cheap e46 won't be very good at without attempting to drain your wallet.

This is coming from an E36 and E46 owner.

[TW]Fox · 24 Mar 2010 at 10:28

firefilesuk said:
Lmao at £4K for a mondeo with 107K on it yeah right, mondeos just arn't built to the same standards of bmw and the like and this is coming from a mk2 mondeo owner and previous e36 owner, i'd be going for an E46 325 with that budget and only doing 8-10k a year.

I wouldnt want a £4k E46 325 without at least a grand in the bank for the things that WILL go wrong and will need replacing on it simply to bring it up to scratch.

My Mondeo cost me pennies to run - literally. I think in all the time I had it I spent a massive 100 quid fixing it.

My BMW has cost me many times more. Worth every penny as the BMW is a fantastic car, but out of warranty 6 cylinder+ BMW's are not care free zero hassle motoring - they come at a price.

The Mondeo just.. works. Sure the interior isn't quite to BMW standards but the mecanical bits are just fine and even if they break, are dead cheap to source and dead cheap to fix.

You say your opinion is formed from owning a Mk2 Mondeo. I think thats probably more to do with the fact that your Mk2 Mondeo is between 10 and 14 years old rather than because it has 100k on it. You have a £500 Mondeo, the OP is looking at a £4k Mondeo. There is quite a difference..

Morba · 24 Mar 2010 at 11:58

Stormster said:
At handling? Is that all?

I'm with Aproctor and I've driven both Focus's and Astra's.

No, at everything in my experience, hence why for 4 years we have had a focus (well 2). Both times we tried astras to compare, both times the focus was better. This is probably reflected in the price of 2 eqiuvalent vehicles

Cuchulain · 24 Mar 2010 at 12:08

[TW]Fox;16220554 said:
The Astra is not a 'very good car' by any stretch of the imagination. They are quite poor.

Curious comment from you considering your diety Clarkson say's

All things considered, then, this is not just an acceptable effort from Vauxhall (which would be a first) but probably the best family hatchback you can buy today (which is astonishing).

[TW]Fox · 24 Mar 2010 at 12:17

Cuchulain said:
Curious comment from you considering your diety Clarkson say's

About the Mk4 Astra? Really?

Mind you, I guess that will be from the cars release date - 1998, and before the Focus.

So what was the competition? The Ford Escort? The Nissan Almera? I guess you could poo in a box and it'd be better than either of those two.

Cuchulain · 24 Mar 2010 at 12:23

[TW]Fox;16221324 said:
About the Mk4 Astra? Really?

Mind you, I guess that will be from the cars release date - 1998, and before the Focus.

So what was the competition? The Ford Escort? The Nissan Almera? I guess you could poo in a box and it'd be better than either of those two.

Could you not think of any other manuf./models for 98-04?

Why don't you back up your claim on just how bad a MK4 Astra is with some solid facts?

Meatball · 24 Mar 2010 at 12:23

Barge-in

[TW]Fox · 24 Mar 2010 at 12:25

Cuchulain said:
Could you not think of any other manuf./models for 98-04?

There are loads, all of which are better than the Astra - but were not around at the exact moment the Mk4 came out. It was released on an R plate and just about pre-dated both the Mk4 Golf and the Mk1 Focus.

Compared to the Escort sure, its good, but compared to the Escort so is a pushbike.

Why don't you back up your claim on just how bad a MK4 Astra is with some solid facts?

Solid fact in an entirely subjective issue? Very good.

Cuchulain · 24 Mar 2010 at 12:28

[TW]Fox;16221384 said:
There are loads, all of which are better than the Astra - but were not around at the exact moment the Mk4 came out. It was released on an R plate and just about pre-dated both the Mk4 Golf and the Mk1 Focus.

Compared to the Escort sure, its good, but compared to the Escort so is a pushbike.

Solid fact in an entirely subjective issue? Very good.

You said, and I quote

The Astra is not a 'very good car' by any stretch of the imagination. They are quite poor.

Someone posted a link to a mk4, this doesn't mean he has to buy a MK4 with his budget.

So tell me, flying in the face of independent reviews, why is the astra "quite poor"?