Small car for my dad

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Hi all,

After some advice as my dad wants to get rid of two cars we've had for about 10 years now both from 2005 -Jazz & Corolla - and replace them with either a Polo, Fiesta or Yaris (unless anyone can suggest anything else).

We went down to a dealer today and we found a £5k 12 plate Fiesta Econetic 1.6T diesel with around 75k miles on the clock - any thoughts on this? He liked that it was solid small car but has never had a diesel before but the £0 PA tax and the insane mpg figures are attractive. He'll be doing maybe 7-8k miles a year and hoping to keep it for 6-7 years.

I was originally thinking about a newer 1.0 Yaris or Fiesta ecoboost petrol but the running costs of this diesel fiesta are pretty damn good - any thoughts on this?

Cheers :)
 
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How tall is your dad? I found the yaris weirdly small even though I'm not particularly tall (i fit fine inside a Micra for example). It did ride extremely well, was fairly refined for its class and the engine pulled well for a 1.3 though.
 
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In that size of car I'd take petrol over diesel any-day (especially with the shifting ground for diesels in general).

How so? I've read reviews mentioning it's a bit loud and rattly when you're ragging in but he's not gonna be redlining it at all.

How tall is your dad? I found the yaris weirdly small even though I'm not particularly tall (i fit fine inside a Micra for example). It did ride extremely well, was fairly refined for its class and the engine pulled well for a 1.3 though.

Maybe 5"9' - we sat in one today and I didn't find it particularly small and I'm 6"2'! Also should mention he's after really low running costs so close to £0 annual tax and good mpg (hence the 1.0 suggestion).
 
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How so? I've read reviews mentioning it's a bit loud and rattly when you're ragging in but he's not gonna be redlining it at all.

There are some very nice, very efficient, small petrol engines available.

Given a straight choice I'd always drive petrol rather than diesel. If you haven't driven diesel cars you need to get some time behind the wheel.

With larger cars and motorway miles the power and economy of the bigger diesels is hard to beat.
 
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Maybe 5"9' - we sat in one today and I didn't find it particularly small and I'm 6"2'! Also should mention he's after really low running costs so close to £0 annual tax and good mpg (hence the 1.0 suggestion).
I found it was when i tried to drive it. The passenger seat would go much lower than i could adjust the driver's seat so my knees were to close to the wheel to be comfortable.

Have you tried the little city size cars? Aygo, i10, up! etc.

Edit: have you factored in depreciation if all you're looking for is a cheap to run car?
 
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7-8k is a no-no for a diesel, costs of servicing, dpf, dmf etc will outweigh the fuel saving.

Citigo would be my small car choice, nicer on any longer journey than the aygo imho
 
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7-8k is a no-no for a diesel, costs of servicing, dpf, dmf etc will outweigh the fuel saving.

Citigo would be my small car choice, nicer on any longer journey than the aygo imho

Really?? I looked up what a 'DPF' is and it looks expensive should it need replacing... but why would servicing be more expensive? Does the turbo add extra complexity?
 
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Really?? I looked up what a 'DPF' is and it looks expensive should it need replacing... but why would servicing be more expensive? Does the turbo add extra complexity?

Its a line commonly trotted out for diesels, but if your looking at an older car and especially a small one its highly likely it may not have a dpf (which for low milage use will tend to clog).

Remember modern turbo petrols can be just as complex.

That said, unless he's clocking up the miles then a petrol would be a more sensible option, more refined drive especially on short hop journeys.
 
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With the mileage your dad is doing, i'd steer him clear of diesels. Especially if he's planning on keeping it for 6-7 years. I can just foresee expensive problems down the road with a clogged DPF.

Whilst the mpg's are nice, they're normally only achievable on long motorway runs. My 3 hour trip up to Manchester i can get 60-65 MPG, whereas if i ever have to take a 10 min trip around town, i think it struggles to get and stay above 40.
 
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Steer clear of diesels, especially the 1.6 diesel. Horrible, underpowered, clattery thing which needs to have the nuts revved off it to get it to go at an acceptable pace and only bought by those who want the absolute cheapest mode of transport.
 
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We have a 2012 1.4 petrol Fiesta that must be worth around the £5k mark now.

Titanium trim gives you a decent amount of "stuff" for the money and although the 1.4 in particular was designed in the dark ages it's been a perfectly reliable little thing that has realistically cost next to nothing to service and run. All i would change is the engine - the 1.6 is better or the 1.25, though don't think it can be had in titanium
 
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