An ideal first car? Any ideas? Help a clueless person!

I'd be ecstatic if I could get one for that price, but a quick search tells me it's unlikely :/ In my area, Corsas seem popular with the boy racer types no idea why.





Haha I'll refrain then. That is unfortunate, the bug eyed ones are beautiful. My older sister goes a bit far with hers though, it's basically this car-

Covered with huge flower car stickers, her boyfriend hates it.

Rumour has it that if you say the word "Passat" It will summon Traintracks1995

Such a girly car. It's like it's just asking to have car lashes put on it.

I'd say the newer Micra's are acceptable


And the old one (I had this one :P)

But the bug eyed ones are just too girly haha.

I'd recommend a Yaris as well but they tend to be overpriced for what they are.

No those lashes are just too far

Noo I was devastated with the new shape! It doesn't even look recognizable as a Micra. I imagine that's why they changed the shape though, to please both sexes.
Aw I do like the old shape though, it has a quaintness about it.

Okay I'll look into a Yaris. I've had a few people mention KAs to me, but then I've heard they tend to have problems with rust or something.

I miss those days already, the motoring forum has once again become clinical, boring and soul-less. Just like the rest of TSR, with the removal of neg reps.

OP Yaris, Micra, C1 are all possibilities, but avoid all KA's.

I'd have about £1500- 2000 (although that's pushing it) and I'd really like some advice on an ideal first car.

My main concern is obviously reliability as I'll be commuting back and forth on a placement (about 30 miles a day). My Dad's saying a Vauxhall Corsa whereas my Mum is saying a Micra. Now I am a little in love with Micras, they seem reliable, they have quite a robustness about them, unlike other first car types which seem a bit tinny if that makes sense, and they look adorable

But at the end of the day, it's all about reliability for me, so if you have any recommendations please let me know! And if you can have a rough idea as to whether a Micra or a Corsa is more reliable please let me know.

Thanks.

edit: the budget is for the price of the car, not including insurance...

I'd have about £1500- 2000 (although that's pushing it) and I'd really like some advice on an ideal first car.

My main concern is obviously reliability as I'll be commuting back and forth on a placement (about 30 miles a day). My Dad's saying a Vauxhall Corsa whereas my Mum is saying a Micra. Now I am a little in love with Micras, they seem reliable, they have quite a robustness about them, unlike other first car types which seem a bit tinny if that makes sense, and they look adorable

But at the end of the day, it's all about reliability for me, so if you have any recommendations please let me know! And if you can have a rough idea as to whether a Micra or a Corsa is more reliable please let me know.

Thanks.

edit: the budget is for the price of the car, not including insurance...

I miss those days already, the motoring forum has once again become clinical, boring and soul-less. Just like the rest of TSR, with the removal of neg reps.

OP Yaris, Micra, C1 are all possibilities, but avoid all KA's.

I would say if your a fresh ish driver, £2000 for a reliable, good car + insurance may be quite tight.

My insurance cost me £1500 on its own with me as a named driver.

I got a corsa myself, though the engine is a tad loud for my liking (might be me), there's been 0 mechanical faults so far


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Where you actually just a named driver or the main driver?

Is Traintracks perma banned?

It was getting a bit out of hand but I think the odd troll thread once in a while would be okay.

I miss those days already, the motoring forum has once again become clinical, boring and soul-less. Just like the rest of TSR, with the removal of neg reps.

OP Yaris, Micra, C1 are all possibilities, but avoid all KA's.

Is Traintracks perma banned?

It was getting a bit out of hand but I think the odd troll thread once in a while would be okay.

I was wondering that, because being a named driver when you are actually the main driver is illegal, right?

Yea, this is known as fronting. It's a big problem with young drivers and illegal as it makes your insurance invalid.

I miss those days already, the motoring forum has once again become clinical, boring and soul-less. Just like the rest of TSR, with the removal of neg reps.

OP Yaris, Micra, C1 are all possibilities, but avoid all KA's.

I was wondering that, because being a named driver when you are actually the main driver is illegal, right?

But at the end of the day, it's all about reliability for me, so if you have any recommendations please let me know! And if you can have a rough idea as to whether a Micra or a Corsa is more reliable please let me know.

The previous bug eyed Micra was well known all over Europe to be a very reliable car and surprised many people that it was made in UK where generally the impression is cars from here aren't the most reliable and the stats tend to agree too whether it was published in UK or Germany. Corsas aren't bad but they are not anywhere near as problem free as the Micra and it does suffer from wiring issues as it ages.

As for car suggestions at your budget I'd probably look for a Suzuki Swift from 05 on. Every bit as reliable as the Micra and quite robust since its primary markets were in Eastern Europe and India which was its primary market and any car made to survive conditions of those markets will definitely have to be well made. A bit drab in terms of interior plastics but as a first car with a low budget.

I would also recommend a Fiat Panda, I kept one up until recently and it is now owned by a cousin of mine. Surprisingly well built for a Fiat, never had any issues with it other than the heater motor made some funny noises and was solved by pulling it out and cleaning it with some compressed air. Parts for it aren't expensive and if you know where to get it from can be cheap too. Fairly simple engine and most things on it are easily accessible so it doesn't require any specialist garages to work on. The one I had was a 07 model and did 42k of mostly Central London and Oxford traffic before it was sold. Now my cousin's husband drives it 70 miles each day for his work and so far it hasn't had any issues. Get a 1.2l version or the 1.3 diesel one if you will be driving a lot of long distance.

I wouldn't suggest a Toyota Yaris or Honda Jazz as at your budget the ones you could buy will be quite old or done a lot of miles.

Thank you, that was such a helpful reply.
The only problem I've heard with the Micras around the 2005/6 age is they tend to have issues with the timing chain or something. My sister had to pay out for a new one, I don't think it was very cheap. But I feel like every car has some fault or other if I look into it!


I really like Fiat Pandas to be honest, we had one as a hire car in France before and it was lovely, so glad to hear that.

Out of curiosity, what about a fiesta?

I'd have about £1500- 2000 (although that's pushing it) and I'd really like some advice on an ideal first car.

My main concern is obviously reliability as I'll be commuting back and forth on a placement (about 30 miles a day). My Dad's saying a Vauxhall Corsa whereas my Mum is saying a Micra. Now I am a little in love with Micras, they seem reliable, they have quite a robustness about them, unlike other first car types which seem a bit tinny if that makes sense, and they look adorable

But at the end of the day, it's all about reliability for me, so if you have any recommendations please let me know! And if you can have a rough idea as to whether a Micra or a Corsa is more reliable please let me know.

Thanks.

edit: the budget is for the price of the car, not including insurance...