New Car

Gigi · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:04

Hey guys, first time posting in Motors so treat me well!

Following a disasterous first car, where everything went wrong, tyre blew when going round a roundabout, engine cut out when braking, overheated etc etc... i've decided to get a new car.

The car i'm looking at is a 2008 reg Toyota Yaris. Its cheap to run, cheap to insure and will do me for a run about.

The only thing i'd like to enquire about, or see whether it is a concern is the fact its only done 7700 miles.

Is this something to be concerned about? and if so, what should I be looking for when I test drive this?

cheers for the help

DM · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:09

Dont be worrying about the low miles, you wont be having any problems with that car

antijoke · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:09

Probably been owned by some coffin dodger and driven once a week to go to Asda.

Jon1818 · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:10

How many previous owners has it had? Has it been serviced?

I bought an 07 punto with 1000 miles on the clock last year having been owned by FIAT UK for 2 years, as it had been kept in good condition there was nothing to worry about but you need to check where it has been stored etc... might be a good idea if you decided to buy it to have an oil change.

Firestar_3x · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:11

I wouldn't be happy with a low miles car, you stand a real chance that it could be in a worse state than one which has done many many more miles.

Gigi · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:13

Its being bought from a Toyota Dealership, so the full service, history, shabang.

@Jon1818 - any reason for an oil change? (im a car noob) - is it bad for the oil to be sitting around for long periods of time?

@Firestar - How would it be in a worse state?

Thanks for the advice!

DM · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:15

What hes saying is lots of short trips are worse for a car than long ones, the other side of that coin is its new enough for that not to matter if you ask me, also your going to get a Toyota warranty so who cares.

Jon1818 · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:16

Gigi said:
Its being bought from a Toyota Dealership, so the full service, history, shabang.

@Jon1818 - any reason for an oil change? (im a car noob) - is it bad for the oil to be sitting around for long periods of time?

@Firestar - How would it be in a worse state?

Thanks for the advice!

Yes it is bad for the engine oil to be sitting around, an oil change would generally mean that the car would run more smoothly. And firestar probably means that a car with high mileage but with a large service history and a number of new parts would be in better condition that a car with low mileage that has sat around for a while. Not always the case though, it depends from car to car.

topshot · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:16

Lots of short journeys, it isnt good for cars to sit around for long periods. Just make sure all servicing has been done

Firestar_3x · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:17

It's low millage for one of two reasons:

1) Long distance infrequent trips

2) Lots of short trips

it's very unlikely to be 1, so it's going to be 2.

Short trips are bad for a car in many ways, these are some of the reasons:

- Engine never warms up
- Exhaust always has water sitting in it, so it's rusts from the inside out
- Lots of clutch wear
- Additional gearbox wear
- Interior wear could be excessive

The list goes on and on, short trips are a total killer for a car.

thepeteh · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:23

Firestar_3x said:
short trips are a total killer for a car.

I totally agree that short trips are bad for a car, but I don't think this car will be dead because of it.

Gigi · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:25

Firestar_3x said:
It's low millage for one of two reasons:

1) Long distance infrequent trips

2) Lots of short trips

it's very unlikely to be 1, so it's going to be 2.

Short trips are bad for a car in many ways, these are some of the reasons:

- Engine never warms up
- Exhaust always has water sitting in it, so it's rusts from the inside out
- Lots of clutch wear
- Additional gearbox wear
- Interior wear could be excessive

The list goes on and on, short trips are a total killer for a car.

Ah right, I see.

Didnt quite realise the effect of short trips on a car.

I'll certainly make sure its been well serviced and check the history of the car.

Thanks again!

Raymond Lin · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:25

First of all, how much and what trim level is the Yaris you are looking at and what engine? I just got an 08 plate Yaris last month too.

In terms of trim level, I would not get it lower than T3, I would try to get T-Spirit (or TS for short) one if I were you. So you get ally wheels and Air con/Climiate control.

In terms of engine size, I'd get the 1.3 over the 1.0. There is also an Yaris SR which has a 1.8L engine, which is what I got.

Look for extras like:-

Bluetooth
USB
Electric wing mirrors
Keyless entries and keyless start
Parknig sensors
Protection pack (rubber thing on the side of the door)
3 or 5 doors (5 door ones can fetch a couple of hundred pounds more)

7,000 miles in 3 years is a tad low, that's like 45 miles a week. It sounds like it was a shoppnig trolley! lol

Toyota service is very reasonable, i got my 20k done at the Toyota dealer and it was £140 parts and labour inclusive (oil change, filters changed, inspection checks etc). Look to see if it has the offical capet installed, I got an advisory from my service for not having official carpets....they wanted £56 for some, I got some secondhand off ebay for £9.

Is there a particular model you are looking at?

Overall, the Yaris is pretty bullet proof. I never heard anyone have serious problems with the car - engine, gearbox, clutch etc.

ins0mn1ac · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:27

Massive overreaction on the cars health here imo

Raymond Lin said:
Overall, the Yaris is pretty bullet proof. I never heard anyone have serious problems with the car - engine, gearbox, clutch etc.

Words I'd never use on a current car lol. fate = tempted!

Maccy · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:29

I'm sure it'll be fine, just have a look over the service history.

Firestar_3x · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:31

Maccy said:
I'm sure it'll be fine, just have a look over the service history.

What does that tell you about the cars mechanical condition?

s0ck · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:31

The owner of this car did lots of short trips:

DM · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:32

Yea he deserved that, he bought one with with the velour seats, no wonder it died.

Maccy · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:33

Firestar_3x said:
What does that tell you about the cars mechanical condition?

Granted, but there's a very pessimistic attitude in this thread.

pcoltrane · 30 Jun 2011 at 14:35

Firestar_3x said:
It's low millage for one of two reasons:

1) Long distance infrequent trips

2) Lots of short trips

it's very unlikely to be 1, so it's going to be 2.

Short trips are bad for a car in many ways, these are some of the reasons:

- Engine never warms up
- Exhaust always has water sitting in it, so it's rusts from the inside out
- Lots of clutch wear
- Additional gearbox wear
- Interior wear could be excessive

The list goes on and on, short trips are a total killer for a car.

All of this might be an issue when you are comparing an 10 yr old 60k mile car that did all its miles around town vs a comparable 100k miler that has only cruised motorways.

However in a 3 yr old car with only 7,700 miles on the clock its a complete non issue IMO! How much additional wear can you do in under 8k miles?

I would choose a 7,700 mile car over much higher mileage version regardless of the type of journeys they have both done.

We don't even know if it is the case that this car has done only short trips anyway!

If the price is right, the condition is good and it's been properly serviced and maintained then the low mileage is a nice bonus.