What should I be looking for at the 4k mark, small family car wise

iMacMart

iMacMart

iMacMart

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Hi Guys

Me and the missus have around 4k for new car, we also have a 2.0 SMax which is the main family car, what I'm looking for below

  • 1.2 engine size (or below)
  • Good fuel consumption
  • 5 door
  • AirCon
  • Bluetooth
  • CD Player
  • Comfortable for 60+ miles round trip week days
  • Cheap servicing
So what I have in mind is

  • Ford Fiesta
  • Corsa
  • Polo
Is there anything I should be looking at with the above in mind

Many thanks

M
 
A few cars back my missus had a Grande Punto 5 door that was nice, had bluetooth, dual zone climate and USB music player but that was a 1.9 diesel, very economical as well.

Not sure how old your willing to go but 4k may not get what you want in a newish motor.

Most people on here will recommend a Yaris but I don't know the specs of those.
 
Forgot to say it would probably be a Copart (Cat D) as we did with the SMax so PAV would be more like 5k-6k maybe more if we are lucky (Or the father-in-law is)

Yaris isn't one I'd considered to be honest, but will do now
 
Why has it got to be such a small car with a tiny engine if you have kids and are going to be doing 60 mile round trips in it? Surely none of the above mentioned are practical for any of that?
 
iMacMart said:
No I do the 60 mile round trip to work and back, wife drops the kids in the SMax
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Have u done quotes on 1.6 hatchbacks or things like 2.0 Mondeo's as I bet there not much more to insure than things like Corsa's etc with so many of them being crashed by kids it goes on statistics.
I don't think a 60 mile round trip will be wise in such a small car.
 
I could do a 60 mile round trip in the fiesta most days without any issue. Same with the Polo if it has to be a small car.

I wouldnt' totally discount the Corsa if you're talking an undamaged value of circa £6k, but would say the other two are easily better cars
 
Dav4 said:
Why has it got to be such a small car with a tiny engine if you have kids and are going to be doing 60 mile round trips in it? Surely none of the above mentioned are practical for any of that?
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I assume so it has cheap running costs for a second car, whilst still being a 5 door that the Kids can squeeze into should the need arise.


iMacMart said:
Is there anything I should be looking at with the above in mind
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Seat Ibiza (although the 1.2 seems fairly rare in 5 Door), or if you are not a brand snob - Skoda Fabia.


Dav4 said:
Have u done quotes on 1.6 hatchbacks or things like 2.0 Mondeo's as I bet there not much more to insure than things like Corsa's etc with so many of them being crashed by kids it goes on statistics.
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Insurance will still be cheap as it's done on risk profile i.e. if he is not a "kid" that will crash, he won't be paying much - the car is only part of the risk. A 2.0 Mondeo will likely cost more in fuel and road tax, when I believe the idea here is to have a cost effective second car.
 
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Armageus said:
A 2.0 Mondeo will likely cost more in fuel and road tax, when I believe the idea here is to have a cost effective second car.
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A nicer Mondeo may well be £car tax cheaper in the first place though. At that kind of price, running costs are comparable. Fuel economy on a 60 mile round trip will probably favour the larger engines too if it's a motorway/a road run, rather than a tiny engine struggling at 70.

It isn't as simple as smaller car = cheaper.
 
MichaelAwkward said:
A nicer Mondeo may well be £car tax cheaper in the first place though. At that kind of price, running costs are comparable. Fuel economy on a 60 mile round trip will probably favour the larger engines too if it's a motorway/a road run, rather than a tiny engine struggling at 70.
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Specifically a 2.0 Mondeo was mentioned (compared to a 1.25 Fiesta - both 2010 Zetec models):

VED Band: Mondeo - I (£225), Fiesta - D (£110)
Insurance Group: Mondeo - 17, Fiesta - 6
MPG - Mondeo - 35, Fiesta - 52

Consumables and other parts for a Mondeo will also be more e.g. Fiestas generally have smaller wheels and so Tyres are generally cheaper. Less gadgets and luxuries as well means less to get wrong.

MichaelAwkward said:
It isn't as simple as smaller car = cheaper.
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No it isn't - but in this case, as a second small car (which I believe is firmly what the Op wants), then it makes sense
 
Think I'd rather do ~20,000 miles a year in a Mondeo or similar sized car than a small hatchback. More comfortable and toys for the money.
 
The little 3 cylinder diesel fiesta are quite a nice car, fairly good size and a little bit of power to overtake if needed, cheap tax and good MPG to go with it.
 
Armageus said:
Seat Ibiza (although the 1.2 seems fairly rare in 5 Door), or if you are not a brand snob - Skoda Fabia.




A 2.0 Mondeo will likely cost more in fuel and road tax, when I believe the idea here is to have a cost effective second car.
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Hi Guys

No I'd be happy with a Skoda :) as long as it had the toys AC, BT, CD player

I'm really looking for best value for a small car, but I'd like to compare 60 miles round trip for a 2L D or a 1.2 petrol (Is there any place I can do that online) I think the SMax might fair better than I think

Tax and fuel cost is the main focus as its the second car, I'll drive the SMax at the weekends but would like some comfort in my 300 miles a week work journeys :D
 
Armageus said:
Specifically a 2.0 Mondeo was mentioned (compared to a 1.25 Fiesta - both 2010 Zetec models):

VED Band: Mondeo - I (£225), Fiesta - D (£110)
Insurance Group: Mondeo - 17, Fiesta - 6
MPG - Mondeo - 35, Fiesta - 52

Consumables and other parts for a Mondeo will also be more e.g. Fiestas generally have smaller wheels and so Tyres are generally cheaper. Less gadgets and luxuries as well means less to get wrong.



No it isn't - but in this case, as a second small car (which I believe is firmly what the Op wants), then it makes sense
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Don't know we're u got the mpg from for a Fiesta? My sisters 1.25 Fiesta Zetec gets 32mpg and she drives slow! We're as my 3.0 V6 Mondeo gets 25mpg ragged everywhere so u can't base anything off figures that are quoted.
I guarantee a Mondeo or Focus would get better mpg than a tiny engined car on the motorway and they will be more comfy and enjoyable to drive
 
Your sister's is broken then :)

My wife has a 56 plate one still the 1.25 engine, book for that year is 46, and I can achieve 40 without trying. A newer one while not being able to get the 52mpg book figure, I would expect 45 to be achievable.
 
Indeed, even our 2011 1.4, with its ancient engine hits an easy real world 40mpg on the same mixed commute that the type R achieves circa 28mpg on.

I don't think they're anything like an ideal commuting car for reasonable distance, but I could definitely live with it
 
Do people just have no concept of what cars are worth? £4k for a Yeti(even bumped)? It'd have about 200k or be needing lots of work to restore
 
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I agree that having a bigger car is nicer for the commute. I used to do a 100 mile round trip as a commute and bought a 1.9 sdi polo for it. This would be a car with similar power to the small petrol motors the OP is considering. While it was easily doable, it wasn't particularly fun or relaxing. When I swapped to the Passat, things were much better.

Although, I did run the Polo on a 50/50 mix of veg oil and diesel so it was quite cheap, but in actual mpg terms, the tdi 130 Passat was mildly more efficient, I suspect mostly as it wasn't as laboured at motorway cruising speeds.
 
rodenal said:
Do people just have no concept of what cars are worth? £4k for a Yeti(even bumped)? It'd have about 200k or be needing lots of work to restore
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People just dont bother to read the requirements and throw suggestions out there without thinking. The yeti is a very good car for this requirement, if you ignore the budget..... The cheapest one on AT is a CATD at £6450. OcUK motors specialises in silly suggestions :)
 
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