First-ish car questions

jack.mitchell

jack.mitchell

jack.mitchell

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Joined
15 Apr 2008
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West Didsbury, Manchester
Ok, so I owned a Polo 1.4CL when I first passed my test, sold that before I went to uni, now 5 years later, uni finished; I need a car to get to my new job.

I want something easy, cheap to run and not prone to breaking - or if so cheap and quick to fix. Basically a cheap run-a-round.

I have looked at:

Clio 1.5D
Polo (Diesels)
Peugeot 206 Lx Diesels

My top top budget is around 2k if it's going to get me something worthwhile, but I would rather get something around the 1-1.5k mark.

I don't really know that much about cars so I might be missing something obvious here but I've gathered that small engine diesels are the place to be for what I'm wanting, does anyone disagree or have some other bargain suggestions?
 
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If you're doing any long journeys, you might find that a small engined diesel is a little...lacking. That said, great for urban/town driving.
 
I'm not looking to do mega miles, its going to be a run around town car, to and from work (10 miles?) and maybe the odd long journey here and there.
 
Then just get a small petrol car, no point getting a diesel, little Focus or something.
 
As said, a diesel is no good for you - unless those few long journeys are very, very long.
 
Are diesels not cheaper to run, repair and more reliable though? I'm more interested in knowing the why rather than a point blank answer (although suggestions are welcomed), I've done research here and there but static websites can only inform you so much!

Why would a little Focus be better than a Clio diesel for example, initial price point? Do petrol costs and maintenance not out weight this or is it that diesels more economical on long journeys?
 
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jack.mitchell said:
Are diesels not cheaper to run, repair and more reliable though? I'm more interested in knowing the why rather than a point blank answer (although suggestions are welcomed), I've done research here and there but static websites can only inform you so much!

Why would a little Focus be better than a Clio diesel for example, initial price point? Do petrol costs and maintenance not out weight this or is it that diesels more economical on long journeys?
Click to expand...

Diesels cost more to service, need more servicing have more to go wrong.

The only advantage in a diesel is economy, but you dont do enough miles for that to work.

So you buy a nice little economical petrol something or other :)
 
Diesel cars cost more than there petrol equivelant
Diesel costs more per litre than petrol (Usually 5p+ a litre)
Dieseles have more to go wrong and will cost more when they do

Unless you do a lot of miles anuall, 15k+, you wont reap the benefits
 
Ok thanks guys, that clears that up! How do you lot feel about Punto's they seem to be pennies for the dozen and nice little cars - I prefer the 2006+ models but they seem to go for a bit more.

Are there any specific cars I should stay away from or well known to be notorious, or is there so much choice and variance out there that this doesn't really happen?
 
i also surjest you get a small petrol as you wont feel the benifit of a diesel unless your doing longish journeys

but just on a sidenote. i bought a vectra DTI 2.0 (02) in jan 2008 with 96k on the clock. and have since done 129k.(i did about 20k miles first year but havent needed to travel much init since) the things that have went wrong are:

crankshaft sensor (£40)
new seals (£50)
starter motor (£15 scrappy, i think cant remember exactly)
stearing rack went (£25 for a scrap yard one and £25 for tracking, my dad fitted it)
new battery (£65 from halford with a student card thing)
2nd hand back box (got a v6 stainless steel one for £30)
not taking into account brakediscs/tyres.

i still got my vectra and is still going strong but this is just my rant that not all diesels will breakdown instantly and need a new fuelpump and cost £1500 to fix.

tbh its rare i use my vectra now i have my astra, just use it for transporting bikes to the track but keeping it ticking over for my girlfriend for when she passes. what girl wouldnt want a vectra dti as a first car! >.>
 
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Personally i would keep away from Punto's MKII's & the MKIIb here why

Very very prone to head gasket failure, even if the car been properly serviced

Eletric power steering can fail, either the motor which is a simple job, or the steering column which isn't and very expensive as it need to be replaced.

Coil packs fail a lot, sometimes killing the ECU in the process.

Prone to leaking oil, no matter how many time you get it sorted.

Gearbox is very weak, and can go at anytime.

I know a couple of people that had Punto's in the past both ended up in the scrapyard due to problems that were to expensive to fix.
 
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It is amazing how many people recently have decided they need a diesel for 10 mile trips. Not just on this forum as well people i know have jumped to the same conclusion. They think its cheaper to run Diesel COZ OF THE EPIC MPGZZZ
 
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