First car advice

[TW]Fox;28271642 said:
My girlfriend had a Corsa which was replaced with a Mini a few years ago.
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Ah that makes more sense :p

Dis86 said:
Yuk no. Avoid.

As has been said focus is a good bet. It's a bit bigger. More reliable. Cheap to fix if it does go wrong. Good range of engines. Good range of equipment.
Obviously it's down to what you like at the end of the day but keep in mind things like the focus and golf are very common for a reason. They're good.
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They are very common, which is why theres a lot more claims for them and from what I'm lead to believe this could lead to higher premiums.
At the end of the day it's a number theyve pulled out of thin air :p
 
~Divine~Wind~ said:
At the end of the day it's a number theyve pulled out of thin air :p
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No, it's not. It's a number that's arrived at following complex calculations and expert level balancing of risk.

They are also not stupid, just because there are a billion Focus and loads of people therefore crash them doesn't mean they'll cost more to insure than the worlds only <insert name of rare car here>.
 
[TW]Fox;28272122 said:
No, it's not. It's a number that's arrived at following complex calculations and expert level balancing of risk multiplied by a number theyve pulled out of thin air
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fixed ;)

A number of agents have stated to me when getting quotes that the premiums are very much linked to the amount of claims they have on any given car.
 
~Divine~Wind~ said:
A number of agents have stated to me when getting quotes that the premiums are very much linked to the amount of claims they have on any given car.
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I wouldn't expect somebody on the phone in an insurance company call centre to have any more understanding of how premiums are calculated than I would have somebody in an airlines call centre to understand how planes work :p

It is hugely more complex than that - obviously number of claims is a factor but the idea that 'there are more Focus so more claims therefore more premium' massively over simplifies it, for a start I'd expect it to be claims per 1000 cars or something similar which removes the 'pick a rare car lol' thing.
 
Buy an old honda for first car unless you are good on mechanics or know a model especially. Clio looks nice, too nice !

multiplied by a number theyve pulled out of thin air
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Its small things like all the things that go beep to tell you off for not wearing a belt, lowers premiums and costs when you crash.
 
[TW]Fox;28272857 said:
As a first car for somebody who has just passed his test?

Really?
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Well he did say he was keeping it a while, he'll appreciate the extra power in years to come, take it easy at first is all. At 28 his insurance premiums shouldn't be too high and will soon drop sharply.
 
Nothing he has said has indicated he wants that level of performance though - infact he posted a Corsa that does 0-60 in 14 seconds. Therefore why would he want to put up with the combination of extra running costs and extra purchase costs (It's several thousand more expensive than that Corsa and no newer).
 
[TW]Fox;28272929 said:
Nothing he has said has indicated he wants that level of performance though - infact he posted a Corsa that does 0-60 in 14 seconds. Therefore why would he want to put up with the combination of extra running costs and extra purchase costs (It's several thousand more expensive than that Corsa and no newer).
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Well if the OP wants to buy a Corsa and be bored to tears with it within 3 months that's his choice. :p
 
Not everyone buys a car for enjoyment. Feels weird saying that as a petrol head but there are people who just need an a to b vehicle and if thats the case theres nothing wrong with a corsa
 
norm said:
Well if the OP wants to buy a Corsa and be bored to tears with it within 3 months that's his choice. :p
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Bored to tears is exactly what most of the population are for most of the time in their cars, let alone someone that's just passed their test, who would typically just want it to get from their student halls to their girlfriend's house whilst not bankrupting them.
 
At 28, insurance shouldn't be all that bad, even for a new driver.
Long past the age of doing silly stuff to impress your friends.
 
OpenToSuggestions said:
Got to laugh at the stupid hot hatch recommendations.

A man looking at a 1.2 Corsa is not in the market for a 2.0 Clio Sport.
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haha! It probably wouldn't be for me (atm at least).

I'll look more at the Focus I think. I've heard the electronics on Ford's can go wrong lots though? Corsa was just my first idea but, having thought about it more, I'm not sure I look the look of them.

Might also consider a Golf.
 
I sometimes wonder how many people here have actually driven the cars they slate.

The 2006ish on Corsa is a pretty acceptable car (the previous iteration was admitedly shocking) - particularly considering about £4.5k will buy you a 5 year old one with reasonable spec. The same money will only really buy a fiesta with nothing but electric front windows rocking wheel trims and the lot.

Is the Ford a better car? Yep - Is it a much better car for someone who doesn't really care about cars (evidenced through the sx4)? Nah

OP i would quite honestly just fire through as many insurance quotes on different cars as you can then come out with a list of 2 or 3 that are acceptably cheap. Then pick whatever is the 'best' car of them.

You don't get many particularly bad modern cars if all you're after is transport to build up some no claims
 
My last purchase was a 5-door 1.25 Picanto with c. 20k on the clock for this sort of budget.

You can get them still in warranty for 3-4 years, and given the size of the car they're actually pretty nippy. More so than the 1.6 Diesel Golf I use at the moment.
 
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