[Misc] Used Car - low budget - help please

[Affy]

Hi all,

Looking for any recommendations as to where to go for a cheap used car.
We’ve just had our 2011 Grand CMax written off and getting around £5.5k from the insurers.

Not 100% sure what we want or where to go but need something which can fit me, the wife and two boys in car seats with a semi decent boot size (doesn’t need to be CMax size).
Any suggestions welcome and also any places to avoid also welcome.
Cheers

 

[The Grockle]

Others will probably be better placed to offer advice but I'd recommend buying a model of car that has been produced in the highest quantity because their parts tend to be cheaper and more readily available. An early mk7 2015 1.4 Astra should be in your price range, reliable and relatively cheap to fix.

The wait on parts for some cars is unbelievable at the moment. If you find a car you like, ring a main dealer with the reg to enquire about a few common fault parts if they are backordered it may give you an indication of their scarcity. Things like air flow metres, alternators ECU's ect. You can normally find common faults on certain vehicles from forums.

Avoid the Honda Jazz because many insurance companies won't touch them due to CAT theft, some are cheap second hand for this reason.

 

[PILTDOWN MAN]

Others will probably be better placed to offer advice but I'd recommend buying a model of car that has been produced in the highest quantity because their parts tend to be cheaper and more readily available. An early mk7 2015 1.4 Astra should be in your price range, reliable and relatively cheap to fix.

The wait on parts for some cars is unbelievable at the moment. If you find a car you like, ring a main dealer with the reg to enquire about a few common fault parts if they are backordered it may give you an indication of their scarcity. Things like air flow metres, alternators ECU's ect. You can normally find common faults on certain vehicles from forums.

Avoid the Honda Jazz because many insurance companies won't touch them due to CAT theft, some are cheap second hand for this reason.

Totally agree. Boring standard mass build cars are the best. Huge stock of pattern parts etc.

 

[DarrenFreemansPerm]

You’ll get a decent Kia Ceed for that money.

 

[spongy]

Skoda Octavia.

I've just bought one but the vRS model.

Would never normally have considered one but I drove the companys 2l diesel 2016 plate "mule" and after being a passenger in many a taxi and now driving one first hand I couldn't fault it.

Plenty on the 2nd hand market in either petrol or diesel, manual or automatic with a decent engine choice and a plethora of parts available.

It ticks all the boxes you're looking for, has plenty of room in the back seats for car seats and the boot is massive. The estate boot is cavernous.

Skoda has been VW/Audi owned for many years now and they share all the parts. But cheaper.

Test drive one in your budget and you'll be pleasantly surprised.

 

[DarrenFreemansPerm]

How about a regular C Max? We’ve got one, had it 6 years and covered 50,000 miles, it’s never missed a beat. Keep trying to come up with excuses to replace it but simply cannot justify it.

 

[happypig]

Skoda Octavia.

I've just bought one but the vRS model.

Would never normally have considered one but I drove the companys 2l diesel 2016 plate "mule" and after being a passenger in many a taxi and now driving one first hand I couldn't fault it.

Plenty on the 2nd hand market in either petrol or diesel, manual or automatic with a decent engine choice and a plethora of parts available.

It ticks all the boxes you're looking for, has plenty of room in the back seats for car seats and the boot is massive. The estate boot is cavernous.

Skoda has been VW/Audi owned for many years now and they share all the parts. But cheaper.

Test drive one in your budget and you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Not a bad rec.
It's often said Volkswagens are bought by people too poor to buy an Audi and too stupid to buy a Skoda.

 

[Drebin]

Skoda Octavia.

I've just bought one but the vRS model.

Would never normally have considered one but I drove the companys 2l diesel 2016 plate "mule" and after being a passenger in many a taxi and now driving one first hand I couldn't fault it.

Plenty on the 2nd hand market in either petrol or diesel, manual or automatic with a decent engine choice and a plethora of parts available.

It ticks all the boxes you're looking for, has plenty of room in the back seats for car seats and the boot is massive. The estate boot is cavernous.

Skoda has been VW/Audi owned for many years now and they share all the parts. But cheaper.

Test drive one in your budget and you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Very much this. I have an Octavia and very happy with it. I have an estate and the boot is indeed cavernous. Ideal for driving holidays.

 

[Affy]

How about a regular C Max? We’ve got one, had it 6 years and covered 50,000 miles, it’s never missed a beat. Keep trying to come up with excuses to replace it but simply cannot justify it.

We’ve had a few problems with our CMax (aside from being written off) so not quite so keen any more. But I appreciate it’s down to individual vehicles. I’ve had many fords over the years and this has been the worst. I’m pretty pleased it’s going tbh. I’ve not ruled out a CMax if one was available though so good to hear a success story on a different one.

 

[Greg Bobkin]

Hi all,

Looking for any recommendations as to where to go for a cheap used car.
We’ve just had our 2011 Grand CMax written off and getting around £5.5k from the insurers.

Not 100% sure what we want or where to go but need something which can fit me, the wife and two boys in car seats with a semi decent boot size (doesn’t need to be CMax size).
Any suggestions welcome and also any places to avoid also welcome.
Cheers

At that price, something with low mileage and in decent condition. Get onto Auto Trader, set £5.5k as a budget and see what comes up

 

[JamieR]

Octavia or superb. Can get a decent pre 2016 non ulez complaint diesel for that money or an older petrol version. Superb has masses of rear legroom and bootspace.

 

[JamieR]

3 week holiday for a family of four. 2 kayaks, 3 bikes and two paddleboards in boots along with all the holiday paraphernalia. The car swallowed it all.

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

Not a bad rec.
It's often said Volkswagens are bought by people too poor to buy an Audi and too stupid to buy a Skoda.

I have had 3 VWs, and cannot argue with you.

 

[Justice]

Drove to Scotland last year in an Octavia and couldn’t stand it. It was brand new yet I found it was a hard drive on the motorway. Didn’t enjoy the drive one bit.

 

[DarrenFreemansPerm]

We’ve had a few problems with our CMax (aside from being written off) so not quite so keen any more. But I appreciate it’s down to individual vehicles. I’ve had many fords over the years and this has been the worst. I’m pretty pleased it’s going tbh. I’ve not ruled out a CMax if one was available though so good to hear a success story on a different one.

Which engine did yours have? I believe Ford have had a lot of issues with their EcoBoost models, ours is a 1.6Td and it’s been faultless.

 

[Affy]

Which engine did yours have? I believe Ford have had a lot of issues with their EcoBoost models, ours is a 1.6Td and it’s been faultless.

Same - 1.6tdci. Injectors failed, water sitting behind the bumper rusted the connectors on the horn, alternator went, spare key stopped working (new battery so not that), child lock malfunction, central locking intermittently wouldn’t open all the doors, tailgate wouldn’t lift randomly. seatbelt sensor on one of the very rear seats didn’t work so if someone sat on it, it would “bing” constantly despite seatbelt being secure. It was fine for what it was and what we paid for it but was starting to const more than it was worth to keep it. The wife loved it however so getting rid of it was not an option until the decision was made by the insurers.

 

[Baldseagull]

Mrs. has a 2008 Honda Civic diesel, surprisingly spacious, boot is large, rear passenger doors can open up to almost 90 degrees, so putting kids in car seats in is a doddle, rear seats split and fold forward and back again easily for getting big shit in the back. Never had a problem in 10 years of owning it, used to do runs up north in it regularly, can't fault it, apart from getting hit with emission charges now in some cities. Think it cost £5k 10 years ago.

 

[Eric the meek]

I had a 2002 Citroen Berlingo Multispace 2 litre HDi from 3 months old until it finally died at 165,000 miles two years ago. Not much went wrong with it until then, except an electric window and the usual wear and tear items. Bits of trim did start to fall off towards the end, but nothing major.

The big advantage is the sliding rear doors on a tall car, which opens up a large space so you can lean in to fasten/unfasten child car seats. You can also use narrow car parking spaces which would otherwise not be an option.

 

[WATFORD zero]

At that price, something with low mileage and in decent condition. Get onto Auto Trader, set £5.5k as a budget and see what comes up

This is what I tend to do. Rather than look for a specific model, I have an idea (Big, Estate, Sporty, Runaround etc) and see what comes up with low mileage and a FSH. You can then check reliability/running costs of anything you fancy on t'inertnet

 

[happypig]

Which engine did yours have? I believe Ford have had a lot of issues with their EcoBoost models, ours is a 1.6Td and it’s been faultless.

According to Bob, who runs the garage I've used for 20 years, it's the 3 cylinder 1.0 engines that are bad; they fail after about 4 years, so just out of warranty.