Help with car for a new driver!

thepeganator

thepeganator

thepeganator

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Portsmouth/Salisbury
Firstly, as so many people seem to say, sorry for the "spec me" thread,

I'm looking for my first car, taking my test for the second time very soon, and want/need something pretty quick.

I know I need something larger, my parents are moving abroad at the end of the month, and I need something with 4/5 doors that I can get a reasonable amount of stuff (including sometimes my bike) in.

My price range will probably top out at around £1000, and allocation for insurance will be around £2000 for the year max.
Obviously funds can be taken from one to the other slightly.

Things I have looked at so far:
Ford Escort 96-99
Citroen Xsara 98-2001
BMW 316 94-98
Ford Mondeo 2000ish

Not really sure where else to go from here, BMW sounds like has passed with Quinn going (offering £1800ish insurance on a 316).

Wondering if there are any better cars in the price range/need bracket.

Also wondering where the best place for insurance is for younger drivers, I'm 19 (20 in 5 weeks), with no no claims bonus, have an almost limitless number of people I could add to a policy with 15 years+ NCB.

Thanks!
 
Sounds like you want a largish car. Get a mk2 Mondeo with a lot of tax and MOT and be done with it. I wouldn't spend the entire £1000 mind, if you do go this route.
 
thepeganator said:
Sounds like Mondeo is the way to go.

Any ideas on insurance and people to go with?
Click to expand...

For a rough (normally bad) idea, run through the comparrision sites, but also try any others you find on google and see on TV etc.

Janesy B said:
www.adrianflux.co.uk
www.performancedirect.co.uk
www.premiumchoice.co.uk
www.4youngdrivers.co.uk
www.academyinsurance.co.uk
www.skyinsurance.co.uk
www.ckinsurance.co.uk/car_insurance.html
www.noeldazely.co.uk
www.bell.co.uk
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Try all of them, don't forget to use the phone though, not just the internet, also, add people as named drivers with clean licenses held for many years. :)

Morba said:
its not all about the engine you know.

new driver, young, bmw = premium. which the op has already noticed :p
Click to expand...

I found that for about £20 more I could insure a 328 instead of a 318. The lower end BMWs are indeed loaded for younger drivers.
 
escort out of that lot hands down.

reason being:
if it goes wrong there's millions around and parts are cheaper than the others from a dealer.
they hardly ever go wrong and even the 1.4/1.3 OHV engines don't need so much looking at other than the tappets but they do require a touch more mechnical nouse to 'know' if its ok or not.
there's millions on the road and any that are still left and in decent nick have been looked after. any which weren't will look tatty.

last year my sister bought an escort after i went to see it with her - told her is was a top car and just needed an oil change to make sure but otherwise it should last her years. it was a 1.6 zetec 5dr escort in pretty good nick minus a scrape on the drivers door. she swapped it for an Astra without me knowing - 2 weeks later it was scrapped. Women..... lol..... :D
 
The insurance I'm going with is Bell, for about £1,900 but have owned the licence for a year when I get the insurance. Bell is the only company I've found so far thats under £2,000.

Don't bother with Direct Line, etc.;)
 
mglover070588 said:
I have not seen a single escort in the last 3-4 years that has not had shagged rear arches.

The last gen escort was not a particularly good car, just look how few there are left around these now.

Mondeo>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Escort.
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STA41423-1.jpg


My P reg Escort didn't have shagged arches ;)

Although the Escort is no Mondeo, it isn't as bad as people like to make out and in the 14 months I owned it I spent about £300 in maintenance and that's about it.
 
Honda Accord, Toyota Carina, Nissan Primera - reliable cars and big inside!

Shouldn't cost the earth to insure!
 
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