New driver first car advice

Original post by Brownclown

I'm looking to buy my first car and was wondering which one I should get.

Age: 18 year old guy
Budget: £3-6k (depends how much I can save up next year)

Shortlist:
- fiesta
- Peugeot 208
- polo
- corsa

^ all 09 plate+ with around 30-40k mileage. Insurance £1.5-2.2k

Or

- 1 series bmw
- Honda Civic

^ older (2005 models) with 50k mileage
Insurance £2.2-3k

Needs: tootling around town mostly, the odd motorway journey.

A 1 series is a bit too much if all you need a car for is tootling around town and some motorway journeys. A polo or golf would be my choice, study, reliable and well build German cars. Corsa, Fiesta and Peugeot are obviously also good choices - being newer means more modern features but generally not as reliable as a VW. Just my two takes on it though. Get a cheap car, use it for a year and for your second year - you can upgrade to a much better car.

Reply 2

OP

[QUOTE=bailfire;58167331]A 1 series is a bit too much if all you need a car for is tootling around town and some motorway journeys. A polo or golf would be my choice, study, reliable and well build German cars. Corsa, Fiesta and Peugeot are obviously also good choices - being newer means more modern features but generally not as reliable as a VW. Just my two takes on it though. Get a cheap car, use it for a year and for your second year - you can upgrade to a much better car.

Yh I probs won't get the 1 series - insurance is too high to be worth it

insurance for a corsa is about £700 cheaper than a fiesta/Peugeot/polo but I hate the interior.

Peugeot is the newest out of all of them (2012+) but i found it awkward to drive

Polo is a bit too bland?

I think I might get a fiesta. Best overall for me in terms of looks and drive.

I'm gonna keep it for the duration of uni (5-6years potentially) before I change cars.

Reply 3

Original post by Brownclown

Yh I probs won't get the 1 series - insurance is too high to be worth it

insurance for a corsa is about £700 cheaper than a fiesta/Peugeot/polo but I hate the interior.

Peugeot is the newest out of all of them (2012+) but i found it awkward to drive

Polo is a bit too bland?

I think I might get a fiesta. Best overall for me in terms of looks and drive.

I'm gonna keep it for the duration of uni (5-6years potentially) before I change cars.

If you're keeping it for that long then its definitely best to get a newer car - you'll retain more value etc. and it should be mechanically better off than others. Just make sure you do your research etc. and if you have ANY doubts just walk away.

Reply 4

OP

[QUOTE=bailfire;58167617]If you're keeping it for that long then its definitely best to get a newer car - you'll retain more value etc. and it should be mechanically better off than others. Just make sure you do your research etc. and if you have ANY doubts just walk away.

Peugeout is definitely the newest car I could get, (62 plate+) but I've seen a few 2013 fiesta's in my budget.

Polo I've only seen 2008-2010 models.

Reply 5

Original post by Brownclown

Peugeout is definitely the newest car I could get, (62 plate+) but I've seen a few 2013 fiesta's in my budget.

Polo I've only seen 2008-2010 models.

VW's are definitely more expensive. I was going to go for one, but I justify the cost of them..even though they retain value and are well built etc. I only plan on having my first car for a year or two anyway.

Reply 6

RoundTrip

14

Get the Civic, it's older and when you ding it won't matter as much and will be cheaper to fix. It is also the most reliable car on this list. The German cars will more than likely give you trouble despite the common myth that they are reliable.

Reply 7

Original post by RoundTrip

Get the Civic, it's older and when you ding it won't matter as much and will be cheaper to fix. It is also the most reliable car on this list. The German cars will more than likely give you trouble despite the common myth that they are reliable.

How is it a myth? And why would he spend MORE money on the car AND the insurance just because its "cheaper to fix" which its really not. The Corsa is the cheapest to fix, simply because of how common they are.

Reply 8

OP

[QUOTE=RoundTrip;58168145]Get the Civic, it's older and when you ding it won't matter as much and will be cheaper to fix. It is also the most reliable car on this list. The German cars will more than likely give you trouble despite the common myth that they are reliable.

With the civic I could get a 2006 model with about 40-50k mileage. I could get a much newer car with a lot less mileage on it for the same price

I want to keep the car for a good 5-6 years so I'm leaning towards the newer cars

Reply 9

RoundTrip

14

Original post by bailfire

How is it a myth? And why would he spend MORE money on the car AND the insurance just because its "cheaper to fix" which its really not. The Corsa is the cheapest to fix, simply because of how common they are.

It's a myth because German cars are some of the least reliable cars on the road. People are convinced otherwise through the power of marketing and sheep mentality.

Reply 10

RoundTrip

14

Original post by Brownclown

With the civic I could get a 2006 model with about 40-50k mileage. I could get a much newer car with a lot less mileage on it for the same price

I want to keep the car for a good 5-6 years so I'm leaning towards the newer cars

The Civic would would easily do that. Also it will lose a lot less money in the process. The Corsa for example will be worthless in that time.

Whatever you do avoid the BMW unless your happy with 4 figure repair bills.

In all honesty though, buy the best example of a car that matches your budget rather than limiting yourself to one. So look at all of the cars and buy the one thats in the best condition.

Reply 11

Cowy97

9

my first car is a suzuki alto, boring i know, 11 plate, 42k miles cost 4.2k but only 1k on insurance through marmalade. it is also in the £20/year tax brand and doesn't use much fuel. only prob with insurance is it is a black box but marmalade are quite cheap to insure cars for new drivers

Reply 12

OP