5k Hatchback

godinman

godinman

godinman

Soldato
Joined
26 Feb 2007
Posts
8,573
I did post this in someone elses astra thread, but didn't recieve any responses.:(:p

Me and my girlfriend are considering a new car, we have up to 5k to spend and have the following requirements -

Hatchback - we need a bit of practicality, we've recently bought a house and lug a fair bit of stuff around, it'd also be nice to get a bike in the back.

Petrol - We do about 7k miles per year

Reasonably newish, thinking 04/05

Bit of power - <8sec as a rough guide


That's all I can think of really, 3/5 door would be fine, we don't do any motorway cruising I just drive about 7 miles to work and back a week and potter about on the weekends, usually not too far afield.

Sadly, the astra seems to tick all of those boxes, you can get a 2.0T under 60k miles on an 05 plates for less than 5k, I've been in my brother-in-laws and to be honest thought it was quite nice.

Now, are there any better alternatives? What are they? Is the astra really that bad? I don't drive very fast, but just want enough power to overtake stuff safely.

Thanks for any advice.
 
We've an 07 Astra that we're just getting rid of. To be honest we've done about 30k miles in the last 2 years and its been great. Not had any problems at all. Does around 45-50mpg and is reasonably quick. Thats the 1.9 120bhp engine version.
 
I'll have a look at the focus options, I know she doesn't want a mondeo..What engine options in the focus would be roughly equivalent to the 2.0t?

It's not inner city driving, no. It's B road then an A road, nothing too fun unfortunately. :(

Marvt74, how did you find it to drive? Was it a 3 or 5 door, reckon you'd get a bike in the back?

Thanks for the replies.

edit - Saying that, I've had a look at the mondeos and they look pretty nice, hmmmm.
 
Last edited:
I found it fine to drive, i've not really got too much to compare it to though unfortunately, otherwise than a couple of crappy rental cars on holiday.

We've got the 3 door version and you'll easy get a big in. Its great for trips to the tip and moving house. Nice and roomy.

One thing to mention is that insurance is a lot higher than you'd expect. We currently pay £860 whereas we're looking at a 2l Alfa Giullietta and got quotes of pretty much half that!
 
I noticed it's something like insurance group 16, which is odd as the 200bhp version (I forget the name) is the same iirc? Will factor insurance costs into the car prices....

We were thinking 3 door, so that's good news too!
 
godinman said:
I'll have a look at the focus options, I know she doesn't want a mondeo..What engine options in the focus would be roughly equivalent to the 2.0t?
Click to expand...

Unfortuntely the mk2 focus doesn't come with equivalent engines.

The fastest petrol is the 2.0 143bhp which at 9+ seconds to 60 isn't that fast at all.

Of course you have the ST which is a much better car and nicer to drive but comes with a different price tag and fuel consumption.

I wouldn't want a Mondeo either - Civic sounds a good shout - you can also look at the Octavia VRS - the newer shape 2.0T

Much much nicer interior than the Astra and a nicer engine as well as better handling.
You might have to look around to find one within your budget with the miles you want but this for example looks very good imo.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...radius/1500/postcode/ec1n7un/page/2?logcode=p
 
Completely agree with that.

However there are more factors to be considered when one buys a car - even at this sort of budget.

I for one wouldn't want to get one because it's too big for example. If you use it mainly in a city and don't need the extra space then driving/parking/getting in&out will always be more of a chore than in a focus.

Others might see as too bland and an "old man" car. Obviously this is true to all equivalent cars - Vectra/Accord etc .

Mondeos are good value for money - no doubt about that - but at the same time one shouldn't be that surprised when people don't want to buy one
 
Thanks for all of the advice so far.

It's a toss up between the Mondeo and the Astra, I've got a question - What is the difference between an ST220 and a 3.0 Titanium X? Just trim? More options as standard?
 
ST body styling and wheels and suspension, more kit as standard, about 25bhp and a nicer exhaust/induction noise :)
 
Leon Cupra R? Cavernous boot, quick, 30mpg, comfy etc. Nice examples are available in budget. I have Civic Type R and a vanilla Cupra. The Cupra is a nicer car if less fun than the civic.
 
They look pretty good actually, don't think my gf is very keen on them tho, will check them out tho.

The rear seats in the Mondeo fold down don't they?
 
Bit of a bump for this thread, I'm still undecided!


The Mondeo is now out - it's too big unfortunately.

Focus - The only ones we like are the newer shape ST, but they're a couple of grand over budget, so are out.

Civic type S - She doesn't like them, and I'm not overly keen, so they're out.

Lean R Cupra - This is a possibility, what's the build quality like, aren't they basically a golf underneath? Would they be an uncomfortably hard ride?

A3 3.0 V6 - Are these any good? They're a little bit older for the budget, and the interiors seem incredible nasty on some of them...

S3 - With a stretch of budget, these are possible, how would these be in terms of reliability, and would the running costs be silly?


Which leaves me with the Astra 2.0T 04/05ish plate. I quite like the look of these, the engine sounds quick enough, and I like my brother-in-laws. Why does OCUK motors dislike Vauxhalls? Are there actual problems, or is it just a bit of lolvauxhall? Are they terribly built? Absolutely dire to drive?

I realise this is a lot of questions, but I'm confused, and after years of reading OCUK and thinking lolvauxhall whenever I see one, I'm now seriously considering getting one and can't actually think of a valid reason not to!

Thanks for any help.

edit - It seems to be a toss up between an Astra, A3 and Leon, with preference in that order.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom