Bigger car advice

Dribbles

Dribbles

Dribbles

Associate
Joined
1 Jul 2009
Posts
207
Location
Edinburgh
Hi, just looking for some advice. I don't know a great deal about cars, but I have owned 4 or 5. I've currently got an 2001 Renault Clio which I dislike and is too small now.

I've got a 6 month old now and we are in need of something bigger! My budget is £4000. I want something reliable and decent fuel economy. I'm not bothered about looks or how fun it is to drive.
Cars that I've considered:
* Ford Focus
* Ford Mondeo
* Honda Civic 2001–2005
* Honda Accord
* Toyota Avensis

Should I buy private or from a dealership? I have bought cars with problems in the past.

Your help is appreciated.
 
They all sound perfectly suitable. In terms of where to buy from, if you pick the right car it shouldn't really matter but if youre buying from a reputable dealer you will have an added level of protection. Petrol would be the best choice if you want to give yourself the best chance of a hassle free life.

The only one I would probably remove from the list is the avensis, they aren't really very good at anything ( though with an engine after 2004ish not got any real bad points either). My dad has one he solely uses to cart dogs around in/if they're going somewhere on the odd occasion that they need room for stuff or people and tbh thats about as much use as i can imagine tolerating in it -whereas the others all have several good points and few negatives
 
Last edited:
The thing about the Avensis, and pretty much all Toyotas since the late 90s, is that they do everything well but do nothing exceptional. The definition of middle of the road.
 
rodenal said:
They all sound perfectly suitable. In terms of where to buy from, if you pick the right car it shouldn't really matter but if youre buying from a reputable dealer you will have an added level of protection. Petrol would be the best choice if you want to give yourself the best chance of a hassle free life.

The only one I would probably remove from the list is the avensis, they aren't really very good at anything ( though with an engine after 2004ish not got any real bad points either). My dad has one he solely uses to cart dogs around in/if they're going somewhere on the odd occasion that they need room for stuff or people and tbh thats about as much use as i can imagine tolerating in it -whereas the others all have several good points and few negatives
Click to expand...

Mine ('03 1.8L VVTI) used oil slowly but steadily but barring that was incredibly reliable, I don't think I needed to do anything bar servicing in the two and a bit years I had it. I'm not sure why it's worthy of taking off the list? I would say a major plus point for them over the competition is reliability - unless things went seriously downhill. It was a nice enough place to spend time although it could have used cruise control.
 
Private can be cheaper, but you need to know what you're looking for, or have a friend that does. You also have no comeback when buying private. Having said that, I generally do buy private because I know what I'm looking for, do plenty of research in advance and you can haggle a bit harder, especially if you buy from people that aren't used to selling cars!

IF you won't be doing a lot of mileage, I'd take the slight economy hit and buy a petrol. They will generally be cheaper, have covered less miles in that price bracket and car type, and have less of a tendency to throw up big bills (turbos & injectors etc)

Focus's drive really nicely, and there are thousands out there, so you can afford to be picky. Should easily be able to get a mk2 petrol for that money. Mondeos have a pretty cavernous boot and are similarly common.

Not familiar with Honda. Reliable reputation though, and one of my former boss's had a newer shape civic (2006) and was quite happy with it. Will the older shape offer you enough space? They're not that big...

Toyota, again, reliable. Taxi drivers car! I've driven an auris and it was the dullest, slowest, numbest pile of crap I've driven. Felt like all of the corners were squidgy, none of the controls felt like they were attached to the bits they controlled and it was very cramped inside for the size of the outside. It was a works pool car, and I'd usually choose the rattly 130,000 mile citreon berlingo vans over the auris!!
 
miniyazz said:
Mine ('03 1.8L VVTI) used oil slowly but steadily but barring that was incredibly reliable, I don't think I needed to do anything bar servicing in the two and a bit years I had it. I'm not sure why it's worthy of taking off the list? I would say a major plus point for them over the competition is reliability - unless things went seriously downhill. It was a nice enough place to spend time although it could have used cruise control.
Click to expand...


That's kind of what I mean really. There's nothing "wrong" with them, the 2004+ cars shouldntneven have the oil issue.....but they're just so so boring to drive and really quite nasty inside - whereas the accord is actually quite decent to drive as is the Mondeo, both are nicer inside and both are reliable in petrol form, they even look much better outside than the Avensis too (for me)

That's all I meant really, the Toyota just doesn't have anything that makes it stand out against those two for me.
 
Last edited:
Thanks, this is all useful advice.

I'm starting to lean towards a Focus. What should I be looking for when buying a focus? I've read that the wheel arches are prone to rust.

I've just had a quick look, these seem reasonably priced for the mileage and age.

Focus 1
Focus 2
Focus 3
 
The only thing I can think of is that there is a version of the 1.6 petrol that's really quite uneconomical for its size and output - I think it might even be the 115's you've linked to.

Not much in the way of rust issues that I know of but you can check that yourself if you go to view the cars.

They tend to develop rattles and creaks as they get older, so finding one without these would be the biggest driver for me aside from the ususal full history and good exterior condition.
 
You will be able to get a 2006+ shape civic for £4k i would think, rather than an older one.

1.8 petrol is reasonably economical and pretty much bulletproof. They have plenty of storage space too.
 
I was in a similar position to yourself, I needed a bigger car due to having a 14 month old. I ended up getting a e46 318i in good condition for 3k and put the other 1k in savings in case anything goes wrong.

If your patient and know what to look for you can get something nice for 4k.
 
Nissan Qashqai, though for 4K mileage will be high.

Actually forget the Qashqai they're closer to 5k.
 
Last edited:
If its town driving, then cars like the Mondeo and Accord, not the best choice in regards to economy.

I own a Honda Accord 2L, I've worked out I average about 35-37mpg on my daily commute which consists of M4 and Dually then rush hour in Cardiff City, My driving style is normal maybe a little on the heavy foot side of things, which all things considered is pretty good, Great car btw. :D
 
rodenal said:
That's kind of what I mean really. There's nothing "wrong" with them, the 2004+ cars shouldntneven have the oil issue.....but they're just so so boring to drive and really quite nasty inside - whereas the accord is actually quite decent to drive as is the Mondeo, both are nicer inside and both are reliable in petrol form, they even look much better outside than the Avensis too (for me)

That's all I meant really, the Toyota just doesn't have anything that makes it stand out against those two for me.
Click to expand...

Fair enough. I never really had an issue with the interior but had the car since 2003 and it was better than the Nissan Primera it replaced :p
Had orange backlighting on the dash which was good for night driving, I'm not a fan of blue so much at night although on the Golf you can turn the brightness down which makes it fine..
 
Prob get me slated but my Citroen xsara Picasso 2.0hdi does a good job for me.

I had a focus mk2 and it simply wasn't big enough for my little in and all his stuff if we go away
 
Thanks for all your advice, it's really helpful.

I've currently got quite a long commute of 25 miles each way every day. That said, I'm hoping to get a job closer to home this year. I'm currently getting 42 mpg from my Clio, so something around that or better would be good.

I like the idea of a Saab (so does my partner, she's Swedish....), however, the running costs bother me.

I'd love a 2006 Civic, though I've always thought they look small on the inside?

I think from all the advice, my best bet would be to keep an open mind, take my time and pick the right car!
 
The civics actually have loads of room inside for the class of car, particularly the back.

Just go out and have a look at everything you've mentioned/liked the sound of then narrow it down a little.

Its fairly unlikely you'll get 40+mpg from anything other than pure motorway miles from the larger cars, the focus sized ones might just sneak it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom