Friend advice £6k VXR finance or save?

hurfdurf

hurfdurf

hurfdurf

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Friend of mine wants a car.

He specifically wants a 9 year old Crosa VXR...

He is planning on spending almost £6k on said VXR, most of that being financed.

He believes that the Corsa to be a good buy because it will give him some, and I quote, "street cred".

I have disagreed, and pointed out how he will be driving a 9 year old Corsa, stuck with it due to the finance as it depreciates, and is a terrible purchase.

I have advised him to get a £500 banger/walk/bus/use his partners car, until he can stretch to £10kish for a mid range nicer BMW used approved or equivalent.

Should he buy the Corsa VXR? Correct me if you think I am wrong.
 
If you’re worried about him being stuck with the finance as the Corsa depreciates why does this not carry over to the BMW and why is spending another £4K going to make it any better?

I wouldn’t recommend a 9 year old Corsa but if you’re worried about his finances I probably wouldn’t recommend a 10k BMW either!
 
TBH, if he's interested in street "cred" then an old Corsa will be much better than an old BMW. One just says "got a practical car", the other says "I wish I was rich but all i could afford was this old BMW".:p Then again i've never seen the fascination with BMWs on this forum over any of the other brands in a similar segment.

Just any normal hatchback is probably the best bet. Say a Focus or something. Especially true when taking into account repairs and service costs. Ford are going to be a lot cheaper than BMW.
 
Illusion said:
If you’re worried about him being stuck with the finance as the Corsa depreciates why does this not carry over to the BMW and why is spending another £4K going to make it any better?

I wouldn’t recommend a 9 year old Corsa but if you’re worried about his finances I probably wouldn’t recommend a 10k BMW either!
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Because he will be bored with the Corsa within a week of owning it, and fed up being in a poorly built tiny hatchback within 2 weeks. The BMW he could keep and be happy with for a significant amount of time.
 
Amp34 said:
TBH, if he's interested in street "cred" then an old Corsa will be much better than an old BMW. One just says "got a practical car", the other says "I wish I was rich but all i could afford was this old BMW".:p Then again i've never seen the fascination with BMWs on this forum over any of the other brands in a similar segment.

Just any normal hatchback is probably the best bet. Say a Focus or something. Especially true when taking into account repairs and service costs. Ford are going to be a lot cheaper than BMW.
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Are you seriously telling me you would be more impressed with a young guy owning a Corsa over something like this

https://usedcars.bmw.co.uk/vehicle/201708128282047?quoteref=d574e9aa-6762-43a4-9bdb-d4f2a49cd364

media
 
The Corsa "D" (2006-2015 shape) suffer from rusting on the rear quarter where the bumper meets the quarter at the sides. The 1.6 turbo engine in the Corsa VXR has a cylinder 4 piston made out of chocolate, get a compression test done on the engine and if cylinder 4 is lower than the others then walk away as its already on its way out and a replacement engine/rebuild is expensive. The Corsa VXR has the dreaded M32 gearbox. A possible gearbox seemingly made out of chocolate too. Bearings failing. Blowing out the casing etc. Not great in terms of reliability.
 
hurfdurf said:
Because he will be bored with the Corsa within a week of owning it, and fed up being in a poorly built tiny hatchback within 2 weeks. The BMW he could keep and be happy with for a significant amount of time.
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Standard OcUK reaponse! Also, are you inside his head as you seem to know how he'll react?

Have you driven a Corsa VXR? It'll be more fun to drive than any sensible BMW in that pruce range.

If he's financing a £6k car surely £10k is quite a number of years away...
 
hes wants a Corsa, but you suggest a BMW?

Why not get a Civic. Similar class as the Corsa (more Astra, but still), surely higher street cred if you get one with the skirts and that jazz? Should be a lot cheaper to keep on the road than a Corsa? Win win I would say
 
let him get what he wants, his money his choice, work hard play hard and all that. We often waste money on cars and never learn ( maybe its just me)
 
chaparral said:
Am guessing a Crosa VXR would be far more fun to drive then that boring BMW to young person
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I'm 20 (still considered young, right? :D), I would prefer a RWD car... but something JAP like a 350z. Depends on how old he is, anything is better than a Vauxhall though...
 
£6k on a hot hatch surely screams Civic Type-R or Clio 182. Might even get a Trophy for £6k which is unlikely to depreciate.

Both have “street cred” like a VXR and are great drivers cars.
 
hurfdurf said:
Are you seriously telling me you would be more impressed with a young guy owning a Corsa over something like this

https://usedcars.bmw.co.uk/vehicle/201708128282047?quoteref=d574e9aa-6762-43a4-9bdb-d4f2a49cd364

media
Click to expand...

I wouldn't be impressed with either, an old BMW is an old BMW so unless he gets private plates it'll still show up as one. As I said though I'm not a fan of BMWs, maybe when I'm 55 I may start to change my mind. ;)

Either way he's obviously got a limited budget to begin with. What are the maintenance costs on that going to be compared to your average hatchback.
 
I don't think I could drive a Corsa VXR without feeling like a chav. Embarrassing cars. Especially in standard guise... Bright green with the Vauxhall badge removed, wheels painted black, Halfords Vibe subwoofer in the back... :p

A Clio 197 would be a much better buy IMO. Don't the VXR's have some issue with the engine block cracking or something else equally catastrophic?
 
How old is your friend. And will this be his first or second car?

Edit - LOL @ street cred claim...
 
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