Cheap 17 year old lad car (for me)

[Blackhawk47]

Thousands (millions?) of people drive "worse" cars than that on motorways and normal roads every day.

My corsa b with zero creature comforts whatsoever except a radio was "alright" on the motorway. It did 70mph with relative ease and was actually surprisingly comfortable.

What you and many other people seem unable to grasp is not everyone wants to rent a hugely expensive premium badged car with an even more expensive options list, just to get them from A to B.

A new Skoda Citigo (like a VW UP) would be a lot nicer to be in than the photo I posted above, do you not agree?

I'm not for one minute saying the OP should go and lease one for 3.5 years as per what he said originally. That is a bad idea.

But if he wants fixed cost motoring over for example two years, and can afford the £120 odd a month then why is that a bad thing?

You really think a 9 year old C1 with 72k miles on it will still be worth £1k in a few years with say 100k miles on it?

 

[lordrobs]

Yeah a near 10 year old C1 is alright and good on the motorway...

What world do you people live in?

This is interior of the Peugeot 107 (identical to the C1) I had as a accident repair courtesy car. You must have low standards if that is what is considered good these days.

Who said it was good on the motorway? I said it wasn't as out of its depth as I'd thought it would be. I assumed that with a 1L 3 pot I'd be struggling to keep up with the trucks but that wasn't the case. I'm not saying it is an S-Class rival.

A C1 or five times the cost to rent a Skoda Citigo was the context and IMO for a new driver the former is the better option. I know not every new driver has a bump but I clipped a bollard parking in my first year, on my old banger I wasn't heart broken. Most of my friends ended up doing something (scraping a wheel up etc.) as well.

Not sure this justifies the extra cost for me, hardly exuding quality is it and that is the top spec elegance model!

 

[wesimmo]

I

I had an S reg fiesta when I was 17, 1.25 litres of purple glory. Was somewhere around 900-1000 for insurance. Just get something to do the job and forget looking 'cool'..spending such money on mods for a crappy little car seems mad anyway

Bide your time and keep your money for better cars. Now I've breached the arbitrary milestone of 25 my 350z insurance is about £400

I bought a beater 1.25 fiesta for £500 to tide me over after my car was written off. For a couple of weeks of driving about on short trips it was a surprisingly fun little car.

At that age, cheap car with a decent chassis and save the insurance cost for when you can get something half decent.

You're obviously not going to listen to any of us if you're like me as a young 'un though, but at 41 i regret elongating the wait for a decent car with silly choices when i was young and wasting money.

 

[Skillmister]

A new Skoda Citigo (like a VW UP) would be a lot nicer to be in than the photo I posted above, do you not agree?

It may be a bit nicer, but a it's a lot more expensive and the cost isn't really justified.

 

[HangTime]

yep, kinda sad how the insurance industry is allowed to discriminate by age/postcode and pull numbers out of thin air, imagine if i walked into a pub to order a pint and the reply was "errrm, £100, because your young", and then when i pay £100 for the pint i then refuse to drink it or else the next pint will be even more expensive.

First of all the 'discrimination' is implicit/essential to a risk based industry like insurance, if you weren't allowed to rate according to those factors it would just mean one of two things; either insurance would be 'unfairly' increased for other drivers to subsidise the higher risk drivers, or they would just flat out refuse to insure the higher risk drivers because they become highly loss-making. The fact they can rate based on age and postcode is the very reason those people are able to get insurance in the first place.

In terms of your analogy, pubs do 'discriminate by postcode' in that for example a pint in some parts of central London will typically cost more than a less affluent area. The age part is an interesting one but have you noticed how some pubs operate challenge 25? Or some bars/clubs even refuse entry to punters under the age of 21? That's age discrimination.
It's bit of flawed analogy anyway because the pub doesn't have to carry an ongoing risk based on what you do for the next year completely outside their control.

 

[BinnsY]

Yeah a near 10 year old C1 is alright and good on the motorway...

What world do you people live in?

This is interior of the Peugeot 107 (identical to the C1) I had as a accident repair courtesy car. You must have low standards if that is what is considered good these days.

I've driven one for a 3 weeks as well when I had one as a courtesy car whilst my MX-5 was having bodywork done, and no I don't consider it a "good" example of what a car can be. But I do consider it a perfect example of the kind of car that is accessible and suitable for a 17 year old driver just starting out. The interior is certainly no worse than my 1996 Corsa B was and I had to wait until I was 18 to afford one of those. It's also got a fairly respectable 70bhp and whilst it won't be relaxing on a motorway it will be much more capable than my 45bhp Corsa was. You are spot on that the Citigo has a nicer interior, but is it really worth the cost increase? There's also the very real possibility that being a new driver it will get crashed or damaged all leading to even larger costs at the end of a lease period. At least on something like the 107/c1/aygo body panels are pennies and can be replaced with ease.

In regards to will it be worth £1000 in 3 years with 100,000 miles on it. I would say yes, somewhere in that region. See this 2005 107 with almost 100,000 miles for £900. Even at worst case your going to be talking £700-£800 assuming he kept the thing for three years.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201703213532484

Lets assume you only get £700 for it, it still brings out the monthly cost at £30 a month compared to the leased citigo. Or in other words 400% cheaper.

Ultimately though these examples are all rather silly as we aren't addressing the fact his insurance is in the £200 a month region which is simply obscene. I would suggest running something like a C1 for 12 months to get his first years NCB would be sensible, then sell it on. If he buys it for £2000 now I'll be amazed if it's worth less than £1500 in a year so it's effectively £40 a month for that year. But at this point he's 18 and has 1 years NCB. Those two points combined will bring his insurance costs down hugely and then he consider things like newer Fiesta Zetecs. Something that's actually worth sinking lease money into if that's the way he wants to go. Trying to have something nice enough to lease that you don't need to worry about crashing when you are still 17 is a loosing battle.

 

[grudas]

I'd stay away from c1 etc..

and get something a tad bigger like a fiesta, mazda 2, polo etc.

my first car was a mazda 3 2.0 but insurance was around 300/year more expensive than say a 1.2 fiesta.

 

[Blackhawk47]

The OP says he can't save up money, in the first post. So I'd reckon he doesn't have thousands of pounds in the bank right now to buy a half decent cheap used car.

 

[grudas]

The OP says he can't save up money, in the first post. So I'd reckon he doesn't have thousands of pounds in the bank right now to buy a half decent cheap used car.

if he can afford to spend 400/month on lease + insurance I can only assume that he's more than able to save up 1500 or so for a small car?

 

[lordrobs]

if he can afford to spend 400/month on lease + insurance I can only assume that he's more than able to save up 1500 or so for a small car?

Exactly and if that assumption is wrong then they certainly shouldn't be signing up to any sort of lease deal.

 

[Skillmister]

Or perhaps realise there are more than just two options. It isn't a) buy a £1k car for cash or b) sign up for 20k of finance. There is a middle ground. OP could get a £1-2k loan and pay it off over 6-12 months, then he'd have paid less per month than financing a new car, be free to chop it in for something better after a year when he's bored and most likely be able to sell the car for a bit to put towards said new car. Or heck, realise that after he's paid it off it's super cheap motoring and maybe decide its worthwhile keeping without hundreds of pounds going out of his account every month.

I know I keep banging on about my Corsa but I very nearly kept that and enjoyed hilariously cheap motoring for a while.

 

[theaterix]

Keep forgetting about this thread lol, and I change my mind from day to day, and while it is true, I could sink the £130 a month its gonna cost me for a Citigo into a cheaper car for the first year, the insurance costs are a few hundred quid more expensive on even a 2005 corsa because im guessing the theft rate is higher? I had some savings, but slowly wittled them away and yeah...
Im trying to live a fun life, but save up for the future at the same time and its difficult...
However, I have broken up with my girlfriend, so thats £5 basically everyday saved on buses, and takeaways, her spotify I paid for etc, it all adds up. My bank is feeling a whole lot more cushy this month than previous, but ive stopped buying pointless things (fish tanks, and discus) like in the past...
I could lend money off a grandparent or a parent and pay them back over a course of a year etc for a £2000 slightly newer car, but still cheap, to keep fuel costs as its theoretically more economical, will still have a decent return price in a year or so, and wont break down on me all the time, which is my main worry as knowing my luck it will happen last week of the month when im skint!
I am reading everything yous are saying and taking it into consideration so noones wasting their time trying to help at all!

 

[BinnsY]

I could lend money off a grandparent or a parent and pay them back over a course of a year etc for a £2000 slightly newer car, but still cheap, to keep fuel costs as its theoretically more economical, will still have a decent return price in a year or so, and wont break down on me all the time, which is my main worry as knowing my luck it will happen last week of the month when im skint!

That's the most sensible bit in my opinion. Borrow money from the family (it's essentially a 0% loan) to get something decent. Try and keep on at yourself to pay them back and then upgrade to something a little more premium in a couple of years.

 

[theaterix]

That's the most sensible bit in my opinion. Borrow money from the family (it's essentially a 0% loan) to get something decent. Try and keep on at yourself to pay them back and then upgrade to something a little more premium in a couple of years.

Yeah, that would be my ideal situation, now its just convincing one I will pay them back (which I will, and have never lent money before, nevermind not paying them back) but yano, 17 year old lad has its difficulties overcoming the common stereotypes that are already set in stone..

 

[adolf hamster]

Yeah, that would be my ideal situation, now its just convincing one I will pay them back (which I will, and have never lent money before, nevermind not paying them back) but yano, 17 year old lad has its difficulties overcoming the common stereotypes that are already set in stone..

if family isn't an option how much can you realistically save per month? it all adds up and makes the difference.

there's cars at all ends of the market from the kleenex car (buy it at sub £500 with a years mot then run it till it fails then scrap it) to something a bit more sensible.

realistically £2k should get you a decent enough basic motor to serve your time in, i bought me ol' skoda at that expecting it to last 2 years, it lasted 5 and tbh i regret getting rid of it as it'd still come in handy as a runabout to save the bm some leg work.

 

[ShivP]

C1 are not a good idea
As a start pretty unsafe on high speed roads, very thin crappy eco tyres so little grip, slab sided so windy conditions can wobble you about etc
As above something larger Fiesta/Focus sized with a little more safe and predictable handling and also a little bit quieter etc would be better

I got insured last year 1 month after passing test at 17 for £1198, which is reasonable for the post code I live in

Renewal is up on 24th April, looking at quotes already and it's looking around £850 incl 1 year NCB and 1 year license holder

 

[BinnsY]

C1 are not a good idea
As a start pretty unsafe on high speed roads, very thin crappy eco tyres so little grip, slab sided so windy conditions can wobble you about etc

I'm sorry but this is ridiculous. It's a 4 star euro Ncap car based on the pre 2009 ratings when it was made.

http://www.euroncap.com/en/results/citroën/c1/15661

It only has thin tyres because it doesn't have a great deal of power thus it doesn't need incredibly wide tyres. The tyres are only one size down from something like a standard 2006 era nissan Micra at 155 va 165. It's also no more slab sided than the majority of small eco boxes. I wonder how things like the older Ford Fusions or Yaris verso's cope on a motorway?

I agree it absolutely won't be an ideal motorway car but trying to suggest it's inherently unsafe is crazy.

 

[Akagi]

Let me put it this way, someone I know had a 2011 C1 with very few miles in it. They came for a ride in my 2002 poverty spec 55HP Polo and said it felt like a Rolls Royce in comparison to their car.

They also said the one of the pop out rear windows decided to fall out when they were driving along one day and proceeded to smash on the road.

They chopped it in for a 2007 Ibiza soon afterwards.

 

[ShivP]

I'm sorry but this is ridiculous. It's a 4 star euro Ncap car based on the pre 2009 ratings when it was made.

http://www.euroncap.com/en/results/citroën/c1/15661

It only has thin tyres because it doesn't have a great deal of power thus it doesn't need incredibly wide tyres. The tyres are only one size down from something like a standard 2006 era nissan Micra at 155 va 165. It's also no more slab sided than the majority of small eco boxes. I wonder how things like the older Ford Fusions or Yaris verso's cope on a motorway?

I agree it absolutely won't be an ideal motorway car but trying to suggest it's inherently unsafe is crazy.

It's scary to drive. Yes I've driven one on A46 (normal 70mph dual carriageway) and it was slightly windy and I was ******** myself. Steering was all wobbly, car moved around on the road with the wind. It is difficult to drive at any sort of speed with any sort of wind

In comparison the Mk6 Fiesta I usually drive down there is like described above, a Rolls Royce

 

[adolf hamster]

shock horror as we discover you can buy quality, and it's not even that expensive.

i'd always preferr and older higher end car to a newer ecobox, in perspective my car i've spent about as much as a brand new dacia sandero, and yet it has more comfort, tech, refinement, power, safety equipment and all round quality feel, all i have to deal with is a little bit of greying plastic.