Time to replace my first car - £4,500 budget

blueboy2001 said:
You want a post 2006 facelift car, which is easy for your budget. The suspension was tweaked, soundproofing was improved and the 2.0 got a 6 speed gearbox.

I wouldn't look at anything other than a Sport - the spec is well worth it, all 2.0 Sports have cruise, climate control, xenons, auto lights, auto wipers. Leather was an option, but became standard on 58 plate cars onwards, these also have piano black trim and and MP3 compatible CD changer and aux port. You can add these to the earlier cars with something like an XCarLink.

The saloon and hatch are quite a bit different in terms of bodywork - even all the front end panels and bumpers are different. Sport models have different bumpers and grille, but some of the later models like the Takara also got the Sport parts.

Pre-facelift Sport Hatch: http://images04.olx.co.uk/ui/1/03/79/1999479_1.jpeg
Facelift Sport Hatch: https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/...0cjvgDe1PFfLOWGW2tKTQuwUrbwFJqs_Xat4gZcNsrZNI
Pre-Facelift Sport Saloon: http://parkers.bauercdn.com/Images/Cache/External/325x0/USEDCFS-440084531884206.0.jpg
Facelift Sport Saloon: http://images.motoring.co.uk/images...-bose-6a2ea9f807fd47d73f781920a6435020-m2.jpg
Click to expand...

Thank-you blueboy, that really helps. So I should be looking for a Sport with rectangular front fogs then as that'll be the facelift, right?

E.g. this one, just a shame it's 300 miles away, I really need to find one a bit closer:
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...ode/ab424tg/page/4/quicksearch/true?logcode=p

This one isn't quite so far away:
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...radius/1501/page/8/postcode/ab424tg?logcode=p

Think it might be a case of just waiting for the right one to appear a bit closer to home though so I can at least go and see it without needing to take an entire day off in the process.

davey36 said:
I looked at saloons when I looked at 3's as I prefer them.

The only downside if you do look for saloons OP is they are rarer than the hatchbacks (at least in my area anyway)
Click to expand...

I actually don't mind the look of the hatchback and I think I prefer it overall but you're right, there are even fewer saloon Sports than hatches.

Voxination said:
Those are cruise control :)

I'll +1 everything that blueboy said, you definitely want a facelift and for that budget you should achieve one, I sold my 2006 2L Sport (facelift) with 49k on it for £4200, so just keep hunting, don't rule out distance, and see what comes up.
Click to expand...

That's reassuring thanks, really liking the look of these now and seems like one would be a substantial upgrade over my current car. What was fuel economy like when you had one? Any known/common issues or problems to keep in mind or look out for? Quite like the idea of cruise control, never driven a car with it before!

Still need to run some insurance quotes to find out what the damage will be there, although hopefully with my age and driving experience it shouldn't be too much of an increase.
 
TheVoice said:
That's reassuring thanks, really liking the look of these now and seems like one would be a substantial upgrade over my current car. What was fuel economy like when you had one? Any known/common issues or problems to keep in mind or look out for? Quite like the idea of cruise control, never driven a car with it before!
Click to expand...

Chain driven engine so no belt to worry about, just buy one that's got a good history and use common sense. Check briefly for rust around wheel arches as Mazda's seem to like rusting, but other than that they're pretty reliable.

Averaged 33 MPG overall with mine, could hit mid 40s on a motorway run if I was trying.
 
Cool, sounds pretty good to me. Now seems to just be a case of waiting and searching for some to pop-up that I can go and see at some point.
 
Vox, something I've noticed on at least a few I've looked at on Autotrader/Pistonheads so far is corrosion on the alloys around the Mazda badge insert, any idea if this is a common thing?
 
That's pretty common tbh, mine had it and pretty sure geekman's did too. Sadly it's typical Mazda paint protection.

This is the only shot I have decent enough to show what it was going like on mine, and this is probably the best wheel there was, others were worse.

I5Ufuvh.jpg


It's starting to bubble under the paint and will eventually break through.


Is it worse than that or around the same? If this is a car you're considering keeping for a while you could always pay out for a full refurb on the wheels, will fix them up nicely but won't be cheap.
 
Just use it as bargaining tool to reduce the price on the purchase. A full refurb will be roughly £50 a corner.
 
Hah, that's nothing. I'd post a picture of mine but it's far, far worse than that. It's bubbling round the badge and the rim and struts on all 4. Unfortunately the previous owner didn't realise it was an issue so didn't get the wheels replaced when Mazda were doing it. Will get them refurbed one day.
 
Voxination said:
Is it worse than that or around the same? If this is a car you're considering keeping for a while you could always pay out for a full refurb on the wheels, will fix them up nicely but won't be cheap.
Click to expand...

The few I'd noticed it on (from the terrible dealer photos) were much worse than that, this was one of them:
http://pictures2.autotrader.co.uk/i...46ee97565e1ec3893fa8f08&width=1024&height=768

Some others seem absolutely fine though. One more thing to look out for either way, thanks for the info!
 
Okay, so this one popped up not too far from me this morning:
http://www.struans.co.uk/used-vehicles/search/3337/mazda-3

Spoke to the dealer and got them to upload photos just now, and also discussed part-exing my Astra. He's going to call me back in a bit but I do want to ask about condition etc because it's a bit cheaper than others I've seen with higher mileage so I'm curious as to why.

Regarding part-ex, what's the process there? Never sold or part-exchanged a car before so this is new to me. This'll also only be the second time I'll have bought a car in my life so any advice or pointers there would be useful.

Just heard back from the guy, £500 value for my Astra. Not great...
 
OpenToSuggestions said:
OP: Why do you think the Astra is going to kick up big bills? As it is your first car I will assume it is something like a 1.6 petrol which means it doesn't have anything that can cause a big bill? If you know it is pending many repairs i.e. tyres + headgasket + exhaust + sill rust etc. then I get what you mean, but because it is old often means it is reliable as it is far simpler.

Whatever you do, avoid the 2.2 TDCI Mondeo. My dad had company Mondeos for years all new (or <6 months old) on a N, R, Y, 02 reg and they were all petrols and excellent. He then had an 05 Titanium X (ST diesel but without multispoke wheels or snazzy seats) and it was a dog, constantly misfiring wiyth repeated injector trouble.
Click to expand...

i used to have a mazda mx5 2.0 (mk 3 [NC2]) and an astra h 5 door 1.8. the insurance on the astra cost more than the mazda :D

for OP: if you dont need a lot of carrying load, give mx5 a chance. you should be able to pick up a early mk3 1.8 softtop (2006-2007) for your budget. and because it;s a small car, it will do very high mpg, i managed 40-45mpg while i had it. :) otherwise, i think mazda 3 is good value for money as second hand car.
 
Would call both of the above a good price. You're paying more on ross's link for the leather and lower miles, but both look like quite a decent buy :)
 
rossk26 said:
Seems a decent price

But then so does this one! http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201310169304555

Part-ex is extremely easy and hassle free, hence the value not being to your satisfaction. If you want more, sell it privately.
Click to expand...

Looks very nice, too far over my budget though!

XE11 said:
i used to have a mazda mx5 2.0 (mk 3 [NC2]) and an astra h 5 door 1.8. the insurance on the astra cost more than the mazda :D

for OP: if you dont need a lot of carrying load, give mx5 a chance. you should be able to pick up a early mk3 1.8 softtop (2006-2007) for your budget. and because it;s a small car, it will do very high mpg, i managed 40-45mpg while i had it. :) otherwise, i think mazda 3 is good value for money as second hand car.
Click to expand...

MX5 doesn't really appeal to me, and there are going to be times when I need the ability to carry stuff so it wouldn't be practical.

Looking at the one I posted a little closer, I'm starting to wonder about the previous owner a little. They've moved the front plate down for some reason, and it's got black-tinted badges on the back instead of the standard silver ones (along with the 3 and Sport badges removed).

Also found this one which isn't too far from me:
http://www.eastportgarage.co.uk/vehicle-details/index.aspx?VehicleId=1133043

Was going to take a trip down that way today and see both of them, but with perfect timing as usual, my Astra's decided to throw me the middle finger in the form of an engine management warning light, so I'd rather not end up stranded somewhere miles from home, even with RAC cover.

Crap.
 
TheVoice said:
Looking at the one I posted a little closer, I'm starting to wonder about the previous owner a little. They've moved the front plate down for some reason, and it's got black-tinted badges on the back instead of the standard silver ones (along with the 3 and Sport badges removed).
Click to expand...

Not sure about the front plate, but they've probably attempted to fully de-badge the back then got to the Mazda badge and realized it's bolted on, so have just plastidipped it black to blend in instead.

Tyres should be able to tell you how decent the owner was, if they're good brands then wouldn't worry too much, but if they're mega cheap, would avoid it.
 
TheVoice said:
Looks very nice, too far over my budget though!
Click to expand...

It be sold now anyhow! It was a cracking price, and I was tempted myself. It has the gloss black interior trim which looks very nice!

Hopefully another pops up when I'm really starting to look. Good luck with your search too.
 
Voxination said:
Not sure about the front plate, but they've probably attempted to fully de-badge the back then got to the Mazda badge and realized it's bolted on, so have just plastidipped it black to blend in instead.

Tyres should be able to tell you how decent the owner was, if they're good brands then wouldn't worry too much, but if they're mega cheap, would avoid it.
Click to expand...

I'll keep any eye out for that, thanks.

rossk26 said:
It be sold now anyhow! It was a cracking price, and I was tempted myself. It has the gloss black interior trim which looks very nice!

Hopefully another pops up when I'm really starting to look. Good luck with your search too.
Click to expand...

Thanks, and you with yours! The gloss black interior does look great, weird how just a small thing makes such a difference. Seen a few hatch 3s with it but they've all been really far away and too expensive for me.

Astra seems to be in a behaving mood now so I'm going to make a couple of calls about the two 3s I've posted just now and hopefully go down and see them today.

Being that this is only the second car I've bought I still have stupid questions: is it worth paying for an HPI check or RAC data check? How about an MOT check, I assume they're free from looking at the DVLA site, I'd just need the test number of the car itself. Anything else worth doing/checking? When I bought my Astra the dealer already had the HPI check there ready but I don't know if that's standard practice or whatnot, and I'd rather make sure I'm thorough this time!

Thanks again for all the help folks.
 
I ran a HPI check when I bought mine, just to check there was no outstanding finance or it hadn't been written off. Worth it for peace of mind when it's a couple of £.

The garage also provided me with a printed copy too.
 
Cool, I'll see what they're providing and go from there.

Trip is cancelled now anyway, the blue one apparently isn't actually ready to be viewed despite being up on the website. They're going to call me when it's ready, so I'll have to try and go down there later in the week. Annoying.
 
Days later and still not actually seen one of these cars in the flesh yet. Place in Falkirk with the light blue one are waiting for a replacement part for the ABS system to arrive so they can get it fitted, they're hoping it'll be ready for viewing by the weekend. The other black one seems to have sold already.

Starting to wish I'd just set my sights on a more common car now!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom