What car to get?

[ScottieGirl]

I need to get a car. My main requirement is reliability.  In Aus I drove a Toyota for 16 years, it just went on and on and on. Second requirement is 4 doors and I prefer hatchbacks. Toyotas here are more expensive than other Japanese makes particularly Nissan. I assume this is due to tariffs?

Anyone got any suggestions ? My budget is 15k to 20k

[VERYSTORMY]

You would get an Audi A2 for that price and for just over then new Audi Q2, which is one I am considering. Although you wouldn't get any optional extras, there isn't much you would want to add anyway as they come with most things as standard that other brands charge extra for.

I currently have a Vauxhall Mokka and find it pretty good.

[Guest]

On 5/3/2017 at 8:29 PM, ScottieGirl said:

I need to get a car. My main requirement is reliability.  In Aus I drove a Toyota for 16 years, it just went on and on and on. Second requirement is 4 doors and I prefer hatchbacks. Toyotas here are more expensive than other Japanese makes particularly Nissan. I assume this is due to tariffs?

Anyone got any suggestions ? My budget is 15k to 20k

Just did a quick car search on auto trader uk loads of suv's/cars in your price range nissans toyotas all sorts mate 

Edited May 6, 2017 by Sunset

[Home and Happy]

Personal Contract Hire is the way to go these days, keep your savings in the bank.

[Phil & Vikki]

The place to look is autotrader.co.uk, that will give you an idea of the kind of nearly new/second hand cars that you can get for that kind of money. One a car takes your eye, you can then go to the internet and do reviews on it, see what others say. Just don’t forget that mainly people voice their thoughts if they have a bad one, not so much if they have a good one, so take reviews with a pinch of salt. Also if someone has had a bad experience with a car, it does not mean that you will. Personal finance options are quite big in the UK. When we were there we had the finance through the dealer. Pay a deposit, pay a monthly amount and then the options at the end of the term (2 or 3 years) was to hand the car in and walk away, pay the remaining balance and keep the car or trade the car in and have a new finance agreement. These are good as you get a regular new car, but usually they tie you into a fixed amount of miles, which can be a pain sometimes.

 

For what it is worth we had Citroens and were always happy with them, cost, value and reliability.

[newjez]

On 03/05/2017 at 1:29 PM, ScottieGirl said:

I need to get a car. My main requirement is reliability.  In Aus I drove a Toyota for 16 years, it just went on and on and on. Second requirement is 4 doors and I prefer hatchbacks. Toyotas here are more expensive than other Japanese makes particularly Nissan. I assume this is due to tariffs?

Anyone got any suggestions ? My budget is 15k to 20k

If it's just you, I quite like the look of the BMW 1 series. The convertible is a very pretty car. I've never driven one, but I see them all the time, and they are very nippy and look like they drive really well.

My sister hired one when she came to visit and she loved it.

Skoda are also worth a look. They make good cheap reliable cars.

Edited May 9, 2017 by newjez

[newjez]

On 06/05/2017 at 2:20 PM, Home and Happy said:

Personal Contract Hire is the way to go these days, keep your savings in the bank.

That is also the reason why there are lots of very cheap two and three year old cars on the market. With many manufacturers offering longer warranty, what's not to like?

[newjez]

On 03/05/2017 at 1:29 PM, ScottieGirl said:

I need to get a car. My main requirement is reliability.  In Aus I drove a Toyota for 16 years, it just went on and on and on. Second requirement is 4 doors and I prefer hatchbacks. Toyotas here are more expensive than other Japanese makes particularly Nissan. I assume this is due to tariffs?

Anyone got any suggestions ? My budget is 15k to 20k

There are also a lot of ex motorbility cars around which the drivers have been forced to give back as the government has cracked down on disability payments.

These are great cars if they haven't been modified as they are usually very low mileage.

It is a bit sad about the disabled people, but you aren't contributing to the problem by buying the cars.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/disability-benefits-motabililty-rule-change-disabled-people-vehicles-dwp-a7191636.html

[Home and Happy]

15 hours ago, newjez said:

That is also the reason why there are lots of very cheap two and three year old cars on the market. With many manufacturers offering longer warranty, what's not to like?

Indeed, but at £20K+ for a used BMWX3 or Audi Q5, that's a lot of dough to sink into a 2nd hand car which will depreciate at the same rate as a contract hire anyway, plus the hassle of selling an old car at the end of it.  But its your money, invest as you see fit.

[newjez]

5 hours ago, Home and Happy said:

Indeed, but at £20K+ for a used BMWX3 or Audi Q5, that's a lot of dough to sink into a 2nd hand car which will depreciate at the same rate as a contract hire anyway, plus the hassle of selling an old car at the end of it.  But its your money, invest as you see fit.

You have to do the maths on a lease scheme to work out if there is any advantage. I am using one ATM, and there is a good tax advantage to doing it. But the government have removed the tax advantage except for extreme low emission, so I won't be doing it again.

My other car is a scenic, ex motorbility, two years old, four years warranty, under 6000 miles on the clock for around 40% of new price. Too easy.

I did see a three year old x3 for £14500, but it had over 60000 on the clock. I wouldn't imagine it would be a common lease vehicle. Not like a 3 series or a Mondeo or a golf.

[ScottieGirl]

Thanks  for the advice. 20 k is the price of an automatic Mazda 3 or Toyota Avensis. I can see I need to rethink the Japanese cars are cheap idea and start looking at German ones. But first I need to relearn to drive a manual again.