What Car? Circa £5,000

Ekim

Ekim

Ekim

Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
2,910
Location
London
Need some help getting a good idea of what the best value for money would be on a second hand car for around £5,000.

I haven't had much need for a car living in London and have always been able to use my Mum's car when I was at home. However my Mum passed away last week and as it was from the motability scheme it has had to go back (literally just dropped it off). I would have loved to be able to keep the car but it would have been well beyond my budget.

I am looking for a car that I'll primarily be looking to use on the weekends only, I will be getting the train to work every day.

My Mum's car was a VW Golf Diesel Automatic, and whilst I can drive manual think I would be happy to get another automatic again.

Been looking at 2006 reg VW Golfs on Autotrader which seem to fit in my budget but wanted to get some advice here as I have never had to buy a car so don't know what I am looking for and also thought people might be able to make a suggestion on what make model would be best.
 
I guess when you say 'value for money' you are looking at total cost of ownership rather than just purchase cost? In this case, I wouldn't say an automatic was best 'value for money' because it will be more expensive to fix if you have a gearbox problem than a manual.

Obviously if you need, or just want, an auto then that's fine, but you should give it some thought. You'll also be more limited in what you can get for your 5k than if you were choosing a manual car.

You can get a Honda Civic with average mileage on a 57/08 plate for your budget. You could probably get a Focus a year or so younger for the same money.
 
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First car that came to mind here was the Honda Civic but if you liked the Golf, you should also take a look at the Seat Leon - your budget should get you into an 08 plate. I'd avoid a diesel if possible, the petrol models are fairly reliable.
 
[TW]Fox;26502391 said:
Nothing in his post suggests he wants a 10-12 year 3 litre BMW. He's looking at regular hatchbacks, he just wants a half decent ordinary car.
Click to expand...

I was just getting in there first with a bit of sarcasm, as that seems to be favourite motor on here.

Mk5 golf is a decent enough choice though. If you can find someone local with vagcom, get them to give it a scan, make sure there is nothing niggling in there.
 
My concern, without having driven one, would be that the combination of a 1.6 and an auto 'box has the potential to be very sluggish. All the autos I've driven have been more powerful, larger cars. Someone I know got rid of his Focus 1.6 auto because it was very down on power and drank fuel compared to the equivalent manual. Both of these issues may have been disguised somewhat on your mum's car by the turbo diesel engine's frugality and power delivery.
 
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