Help me find a car, got max 15k

Scipio

Scipio

Scipio

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Joined
7 Jul 2011
Posts
15
Hi guys.

I'm a total car amateur, no idea about anything.

I've been driving a 98 VW Polo 1.0L with no power steering the past 5-6 years and it's served me well with few problems and relatively cheap repairs when needed.

I'm 24 years old now, and decided it's time to upgrade.

I can push up to 15k for a car right now, ideally no more than 13k though.

I drive probably 20 miles/day average, largely town driving with the occasional motorway trip.

I've been quite keen on getting a coupe or a more 'sporty' design of car and primarily been looking at:

A5/e92/Alfa GT/159 4-6 yrs old, less than 50k miles

why? Pretty simple reason which I might get ripped apart for - they look nice to me. I'm not really into driving, cars are mostly for getting from a to b and beyond that I simply want a nice looking car with a reasonable ride and MPG.

I was looking at diesels but I guess with my mileage it wouldn't really make sense? I was also thinking about getting extended warranties incase of big issues which may arise, again not so sure about this.

Can anyone give me some advise/direct me in the right direction or suggest particular models in those ranges which would suit my needs?
 
Mileage doesn't really warrant a diesel. Extended warranties usually become expensive after about 60,000 (or unavailable).

I think one thing that'll be said is: why do you want to spend up to 15k on a 5 year old car? Not worth it IMO. Guess you could pick up a Scirocco if you like VW but there's plenty to choose from.
 
AndrewNR said:
I wouldn't consider any of them as 'sporty', unless the e92 is an M3, which for 15k is unlikely.
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Sorry, maybe I'm using the wrong term, but i meant in the looks department but again I'm probably using the wrong word.

cheechm said:
Mileage doesn't really warrant a diesel. Extended warranties usually become expensive after about 60,000 (or unavailable).

I think one thing that'll be said is: why do you want to spend up to 15k on a 5 year old car? Not worth it IMO. Guess you could pick up a Scirocco if you like VW but there's plenty to choose from.
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[TW]Fox;23976629 said:
In which case, why spend £15,000? I'm sure you can think of better things to do with that sort of money than spend it all on a car if you are not really into cars that much.

You can buy Alfa 159's for half your budget if you like the look of those. Ditto Alfa GT.
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I haven't got any other outgoings and no expensive hobbies. I've got seperate savings for a house/flat deposit in the next year or so. I budgeted with an A5 in mind tbh and was willing to save a little more if needed. I was under the impression Alfas are quite expensive to maintain hence why I put them last in that list.
 
Scipio said:
I haven't got any other outgoings and no expensive hobbies. I've got seperate savings for a house/flat deposit in the next year or so. I budgeted with an A5 in mind tbh and was willing to save a little more if needed.
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Just not sure why you'd spend that much money on a reasonably old car unless you were really into cars. I'd spend that sort of money on a car of that age but then I love cars and I'm happy to put up with faff to own the sort of car I want.

But if its just A to B? Whats the point? You can buy the Alfas you want for half the price and keep the cash for something you actually care about.

Even the current 3 Series Coupe starts at £9k for a sub 60k mile 325i if you are not bothered about having all the toys:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif.../page/9/postcode/pl11aa/radius/1501?logcode=p

You can get a £45 a month BMW warranty on that, too.

Just can't see the point in buying a 15 grand car if you dont really care about cars beyon getting from A to B.

Buy something for £10k and go on a fantastic holiday. A £15k A5 will only depreciate anyway.
 
AndrewNR said:
Alfas probably cost as much as their equivalents in running costs - it's the depreciation you have to watch out for.
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Fair enough, I'll do a bit more research on the matter

[TW]Fox;23976817 said:
Just not sure why you'd spend that much money on a reasonably old car unless you were really into cars. I'd spend that sort of money on a car of that age but then I love cars and I'm happy to put up with faff to own the sort of car I want.

But if its just A to B? Whats the point? You can buy the Alfas you want for half the price and keep the cash for something you actually care about.

Even the current 3 Series Coupe starts at £9k for a sub 60k mile 325i if you are not bothered about having all the toys:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif.../page/9/postcode/pl11aa/radius/1501?logcode=p

You can get a £45 a month BMW warranty on that, too.

Just can't see the point in buying a 15 grand car if you dont really care about cars beyon getting from A to B.

Buy something for £10k and go on a fantastic holiday. A £15k A5 will only depreciate anyway.
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Below 10k would be great. I'll keep my eye out, still trying to keep the mileage lowish so that when it comes to selling it on it's still below 60k on the clock
 
Scipio - how much do you take home per annum? Without knowing this, it's hard to say whether 15k for driving a car you like the look of is a good idea or not.
 
Robbie G said:
Scipio - how much do you take home per annum? Without knowing this, it's hard to say whether 15k for driving a car you like the look of is a good idea or not.
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Right now 35k, next year probably 39-40k and a steady increase like that for the next 2-3 years after which there should be a more noticeable jump.

edit: that's before tax and student loan+pension which take about 300-350/month.
 
Scipio said:
Right now 35k, next year probably 39-40k and a steady increase like that for the next 2-3 years after which there should be a more noticeable jump.

edit: that's before tax and student loan+pension which take about 300-350/month.
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Personally I would never spend close to half my annual gross pay on a car. People see smart A5s driving around and forget that most people that drive them have got them through their company, often salesmen that spend most of their waking hours in a car.
 
Scipio said:
Right now 35k, next year probably 39-40k and a steady increase like that for the next 2-3 years after which there should be a more noticeable jump.

edit: that's before tax and student loan+pension which take about 300-350/month.
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How do you only pay £300-350 Tax+NI+Student Loan+Pension?

On £35k you should pay:

-£426 income tax
-£272 NI
-£140 Student Loan
-? Pension

So at least £840 without pension contributions...
 
Robbie G said:
Personally I would never spend close to half my annual gross pay on a car. People see smart A5s driving around and forget that most people that drive them have got them through their company, often salesmen that spend most of their waking hours in a car.
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Looks like car companies are grossly overpricing their new cars then!

Even 15k will only get you basic new Focus or Astra these days and i doubt Ford and Vauxhall are aiming these cars at people on 40k+

I know that isnt hugely relevant here as he wants a premium used car but i dont think 15k on a car is out of the ordinary for someone on 35k+
 
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