first time car buyer advice
So banking on that i pass my driving test i will be needing a car in the next few weeks.
Ill be honest i know almost nothing about cars and whats the best option, like should i get a car on finance? or just by an old one?
any advice?
Ill be honest i know almost nothing about cars and whats the best option, like should i get a car on finance? or just by an old one?
any advice?
Original post by Spanx
Check it has 4 wheels and an engine...
So helpful thanks boss
Original post by Foreverconfu
So banking on that i pass my driving test i will be needing a car in the next few weeks.
Ill be honest i know almost nothing about cars and whats the best option, like should i get a car on finance? or just by an old one?
any advice?
Ill be honest i know almost nothing about cars and whats the best option, like should i get a car on finance? or just by an old one?
any advice?
How old are you. If you are under 25 the insurance will be prohibitive. There are some dealers that include insurance for a year. So shop around
Well for my first car I spent £3000 on an Mk5 Volkswagen Golf 1.6 FSI SE from 2004-08. It has a decent amount of power for a starter car (0-60 in 10.2 seconds) but It's a very good car to drive but I'm only going to keep it for a year and a bit before upgrading to a better car like a BMW 3 series.
But getting the first car depends on the budget for the car and insurance as well. Just avoid a Ford Ka, Peugeots and Citroens and Hyundai cars as they're unreliable and basic. Japanese cars and German are the most reliable cars you can get and Ford cars.
Here are some started options if you're spending £1000+
Make sure it is 1.4+ so you can have power on the motorway.
Mk4 VW Golf
Ford Fiesta
Vauxhall Corsa (You'll get judged if you buy this but they're super reliable and cheap to run, Just stay away from maccies)
Vauxhall Astra
Ford Focus
VW Polo 1.4
Mini Cooper S
BMW 1 series
Audi A1
Fiat 500
Toyota Aygo
Nissan Leaf
Vauxhall Adam
Those should be good options on the table.
Make sure you get a car that's in the acceleration range of 0-60 mph in 11 seconds max
6 Gears is a bonus for efficiency
5 doors (People hate crawling in the back with fold-down seats)
100lbs of torque is good if you want a bit of a fun drive
2004+ Cars only. Don't get a shitbox from 1987
75000 Max miles on the meter
Try and get normal insurance unless you don't mind having a black box and driving slow AF for 2 years.
Do Pass Plus scheme for cheaper insurance.
Hopefully, this helps and use this website to help you. Don't PCP a car because you'll pay more than the cars worth in the end. Pay large sums first for the overall cheapest price.
https://autotrader.co.uk
But getting the first car depends on the budget for the car and insurance as well. Just avoid a Ford Ka, Peugeots and Citroens and Hyundai cars as they're unreliable and basic. Japanese cars and German are the most reliable cars you can get and Ford cars.
Here are some started options if you're spending £1000+
Make sure it is 1.4+ so you can have power on the motorway.
Mk4 VW Golf
Ford Fiesta
Vauxhall Corsa (You'll get judged if you buy this but they're super reliable and cheap to run, Just stay away from maccies)
Vauxhall Astra
Ford Focus
VW Polo 1.4
Mini Cooper S
BMW 1 series
Audi A1
Fiat 500
Toyota Aygo
Nissan Leaf
Vauxhall Adam
Those should be good options on the table.
Make sure you get a car that's in the acceleration range of 0-60 mph in 11 seconds max
6 Gears is a bonus for efficiency
5 doors (People hate crawling in the back with fold-down seats)
100lbs of torque is good if you want a bit of a fun drive
2004+ Cars only. Don't get a shitbox from 1987
75000 Max miles on the meter
Try and get normal insurance unless you don't mind having a black box and driving slow AF for 2 years.
Do Pass Plus scheme for cheaper insurance.
Hopefully, this helps and use this website to help you. Don't PCP a car because you'll pay more than the cars worth in the end. Pay large sums first for the overall cheapest price.
https://autotrader.co.uk
Original post by James_Noot
Well for my first car I spent £3000 on an Mk5 Volkswagen Golf 1.6 FSI SE from 2004-08. It has a decent amount of power for a starter car (0-60 in 10.2 seconds) but It's a very good car to drive but I'm only going to keep it for a year and a bit before upgrading to a better car like a BMW 3 series.
But getting the first car depends on the budget for the car and insurance as well. Just avoid a Ford Ka, Peugeots and Citroens and Hyundai cars as they're unreliable and basic. Japanese cars and German are the most reliable cars you can get and Ford cars.
Here are some started options if you're spending £1000+
Make sure it is 1.4+ so you can have power on the motorway.
Mk4 VW Golf
Ford Fiesta
Vauxhall Corsa (You'll get judged if you buy this but they're super reliable and cheap to run, Just stay away from maccies)
Vauxhall Astra
Ford Focus
VW Polo 1.4
Mini Cooper S
BMW 1 series
Audi A1
Fiat 500
Toyota Aygo
Nissan Leaf
Vauxhall Adam
Those should be good options on the table.
Make sure you get a car that's in the acceleration range of 0-60 mph in 11 seconds max
6 Gears is a bonus for efficiency
5 doors (People hate crawling in the back with fold-down seats)
100lbs of torque is good if you want a bit of a fun drive
2004+ Cars only. Don't get a shitbox from 1987
75000 Max miles on the meter
Try and get normal insurance unless you don't mind having a black box and driving slow AF for 2 years.
Do Pass Plus scheme for cheaper insurance.
Hopefully, this helps and use this website to help you. Don't PCP a car because you'll pay more than the cars worth in the end. Pay large sums first for the overall cheapest price.
https://autotrader.co.uk
But getting the first car depends on the budget for the car and insurance as well. Just avoid a Ford Ka, Peugeots and Citroens and Hyundai cars as they're unreliable and basic. Japanese cars and German are the most reliable cars you can get and Ford cars.
Here are some started options if you're spending £1000+
Make sure it is 1.4+ so you can have power on the motorway.
Mk4 VW Golf
Ford Fiesta
Vauxhall Corsa (You'll get judged if you buy this but they're super reliable and cheap to run, Just stay away from maccies)
Vauxhall Astra
Ford Focus
VW Polo 1.4
Mini Cooper S
BMW 1 series
Audi A1
Fiat 500
Toyota Aygo
Nissan Leaf
Vauxhall Adam
Those should be good options on the table.
Make sure you get a car that's in the acceleration range of 0-60 mph in 11 seconds max
6 Gears is a bonus for efficiency
5 doors (People hate crawling in the back with fold-down seats)
100lbs of torque is good if you want a bit of a fun drive
2004+ Cars only. Don't get a shitbox from 1987
75000 Max miles on the meter
Try and get normal insurance unless you don't mind having a black box and driving slow AF for 2 years.
Do Pass Plus scheme for cheaper insurance.
Hopefully, this helps and use this website to help you. Don't PCP a car because you'll pay more than the cars worth in the end. Pay large sums first for the overall cheapest price.
https://autotrader.co.uk
This was soo helpful thank you !!!!
I bought a somewhat beat-up Jetta Diesel about 5 years ago. I got it for $780, which is more than i usually spend - but i wanted a Diesel + this one had air conditioning too. It has served me fairly well over the years, but i found that lately - it was blowing coolant out the overflow tank. It turns out that they have aluminum heads on these engines [i don't know about the petrol ones]. The head slowly warps over time - and you end up blowing head gaskets - which makes it impossible to keep coolant in it. The dealers around here want about $1200 to $1400 for another head - plus labour. I do all my own work, but the dealer price for a head was still outrageous.
I found a guy on e-bay selling Chinese made heads for $300. Figuring it was worth the risk - i ordered one. It looks very nice. Neatly machined, flat (which is important - otherwise you cannot get it to seal). I installed it, switched all the pieces over (injectors, valve lifters, etc). I have a couple of thousand miles on it so far, and it works fine. It appears to be more ruggedly built than the German head - the web re-inforcements are heavier, and the steel inserts in the alum parts of the head are heavier too. Hopefully this one won't warp.
The best advice i can give, is to learn to work on it yourself! Probably half of the expense of running a car is maintenance, and you can eliminate at least half of that by doing the work yourself. Shop around for parts on e-bay and elsewhere, and the cost goes even lower. Cheers.
I found a guy on e-bay selling Chinese made heads for $300. Figuring it was worth the risk - i ordered one. It looks very nice. Neatly machined, flat (which is important - otherwise you cannot get it to seal). I installed it, switched all the pieces over (injectors, valve lifters, etc). I have a couple of thousand miles on it so far, and it works fine. It appears to be more ruggedly built than the German head - the web re-inforcements are heavier, and the steel inserts in the alum parts of the head are heavier too. Hopefully this one won't warp.
The best advice i can give, is to learn to work on it yourself! Probably half of the expense of running a car is maintenance, and you can eliminate at least half of that by doing the work yourself. Shop around for parts on e-bay and elsewhere, and the cost goes even lower. Cheers.
Original post by Foreverconfu
So banking on that i pass my driving test i will be needing a car in the next few weeks.
Ill be honest i know almost nothing about cars and whats the best option, like should i get a car on finance? or just by an old one?
any advice?
Ill be honest i know almost nothing about cars and whats the best option, like should i get a car on finance? or just by an old one?
any advice?
What age are you?
What is your budget?
Do you have a regular income (ie a job)?
Why do you need a car?
PS. Moved to Cars & Motoring
Posted from TSR Mobile
(edited 5 years ago)
Original post by Rabbit2
I bought a somewhat beat-up Jetta Diesel about 5 years ago. I got it for $780, which is more than i usually spend - but i wanted a Diesel + this one had air conditioning too. It has served me fairly well over the years, but i found that lately - it was blowing coolant out the overflow tank. It turns out that they have aluminum heads on these engines [i don't know about the petrol ones]. The head slowly warps over time - and you end up blowing head gaskets - which makes it impossible to keep coolant in it. The dealers around here want about $1200 to $1400 for another head - plus labour. I do all my own work, but the dealer price for a head was still outrageous.
I found a guy on e-bay selling Chinese made heads for $300. Figuring it was worth the risk - i ordered one. It looks very nice. Neatly machined, flat (which is important - otherwise you cannot get it to seal). I installed it, switched all the pieces over (injectors, valve lifters, etc). I have a couple of thousand miles on it so far, and it works fine. It appears to be more ruggedly built than the German head - the web re-inforcements are heavier, and the steel inserts in the alum parts of the head are heavier too. Hopefully this one won't warp.
The best advice i can give, is to learn to work on it yourself! Probably half of the expense of running a car is maintenance, and you can eliminate at least half of that by doing the work yourself. Shop around for parts on e-bay and elsewhere, and the cost goes even lower. Cheers.
I found a guy on e-bay selling Chinese made heads for $300. Figuring it was worth the risk - i ordered one. It looks very nice. Neatly machined, flat (which is important - otherwise you cannot get it to seal). I installed it, switched all the pieces over (injectors, valve lifters, etc). I have a couple of thousand miles on it so far, and it works fine. It appears to be more ruggedly built than the German head - the web re-inforcements are heavier, and the steel inserts in the alum parts of the head are heavier too. Hopefully this one won't warp.
The best advice i can give, is to learn to work on it yourself! Probably half of the expense of running a car is maintenance, and you can eliminate at least half of that by doing the work yourself. Shop around for parts on e-bay and elsewhere, and the cost goes even lower. Cheers.
I forgot one item - it's a 1982 Jetta Diesel. Cheers.
Original post by Doonesbury
What age are you?
What is your budget?
Do you have a regular income (ie a job)?
Why do you need a car?
PS. Moved to Cars & Motoring
Posted from TSR Mobile
What is your budget?
Do you have a regular income (ie a job)?
Why do you need a car?
PS. Moved to Cars & Motoring
Posted from TSR Mobile
im 18, have a monthly income of just over 1000 £ and i just need a car to get to work.
Original post by Foreverconfu
im 18, have a monthly income of just over 1000 £ and i just need a car to get to work.
Price up some options for a small starter car at, probably, the £3-4k mark and see what the insurance will cost you. Insurance is a very significant cost for new, young drivers. Do you have a parent you can add as a named (not main) driver? It can help reduce the premium.
Owning a car as a new young driver is very expensive and, frankly, might not be realistic for you.
One of the major costs for car owners on this side of the pond [and i suspect that side too], is maintenance. This exceeds insurance in some cases. If you buy an older car, you not only save money on the purchase price, but on insurance too. This is particularly true if you only carry liability, and a low (or no) collision coverage. Insurance companies will only pay the 'salvage' value for a vehicle if it is totaled, and for a 10 or 12 year old vehicle, the premium for that coverage will total up to the salvage value in 5 to 7 years. If you have a loan on the vehicle, the lender will require you to carry collision, because they want to get their money back. If you buy the car outright, or with a personal loan (from your 'rents say), you can skip collision coverage.
It is a fallacy to think that new cars are 'trouble free'. Usually, there are a flurry of problems with 'new' anythings. Then, as the assembly, wiring, and other problems are fixed, there is a 'honeymoon' period of 5 to 10 years with few problems. Then you enter the 'wear out' stage, when various things begin to reach the end of their useful lives. For many vehicles, the basic structure is good for 200,000 miles or more. Used and rebuilt parts are readily available for most vehicles. On most repairs, the labour amounts to half to 2/3 of the repair cost. Take an 'adult education' course in auto repair. Many 'high schools' in the states (or the equivalent where you live) run these, under the guise of 'teaching the unemployable' a skill. I have taken several of these, and most of the 'students' were employed professionals [engineers, dentists, one solicitor], who wanted to get into fixing their own cars. The cost was minimal [under a quid an hour for a lighted, heated shop, with a qualified instructor]. Best of luck! Cheers.
It is a fallacy to think that new cars are 'trouble free'. Usually, there are a flurry of problems with 'new' anythings. Then, as the assembly, wiring, and other problems are fixed, there is a 'honeymoon' period of 5 to 10 years with few problems. Then you enter the 'wear out' stage, when various things begin to reach the end of their useful lives. For many vehicles, the basic structure is good for 200,000 miles or more. Used and rebuilt parts are readily available for most vehicles. On most repairs, the labour amounts to half to 2/3 of the repair cost. Take an 'adult education' course in auto repair. Many 'high schools' in the states (or the equivalent where you live) run these, under the guise of 'teaching the unemployable' a skill. I have taken several of these, and most of the 'students' were employed professionals [engineers, dentists, one solicitor], who wanted to get into fixing their own cars. The cost was minimal [under a quid an hour for a lighted, heated shop, with a qualified instructor]. Best of luck! Cheers.
Original post by Rabbit2
One of the major costs for car owners on this side of the pond [and i suspect that side too], is maintenance. This exceeds insurance in some cases. If you buy an older car, you not only save money on the purchase price, but on insurance too. This is particularly true if you only carry liability, and a low (or no) collision coverage. Insurance companies will only pay the 'salvage' value for a vehicle if it is totaled, and for a 10 or 12 year old vehicle, the premium for that coverage will total up to the salvage value in 5 to 7 years..
UK insurance is different. The major cost factor is the third party risk, and the insurers reckon an ancient banger in the hands of a young new driver is a bigger risk to third parties than a new car. They are more worried about the costs incurred when a new driver hits an expensive Merc and/or a pedestrian, than the repair cost of the banger (which will get written-off anyway at minimal cost to them).
In other words it can be cheaper to insure a new car than an old one.
Original post by James_Noot
Do Pass Plus scheme for cheaper insurance.
Respectfully disagree - Pass Plus is useless for discounts nowadays.
Start running some quotes for insurance on some cars from Autotrader or Ebay. You'll probably lean towards a car then after learning what sort of cars are cheap to insure for yourself. People will say get a Polo or a Corsa but the insurance quotes may come out at 3k+ for yourself. If you see something you like, have a look in person and see if it's for you.
Would never recommend a car on finance as your first car as you're probably going to curb it, scrape it and other little things which would end up costing a lot.
Would never recommend a car on finance as your first car as you're probably going to curb it, scrape it and other little things which would end up costing a lot.
(edited 5 years ago)
Quick Reply
Related discussions
- car insurance!
- Been sold a written of car
- Sold my car to someone dogy
- Candlesticks and marubozu question (TRADING)
- Should I consider buying a used car with failed mot tests in the past?
- Will I ever get on the housing market?
- Vinted
- Are Bmw 1 series cheap to run
- National Grid Graduate Scheme
- Panda buy declaration
- what to do if you're scammed by a Vinted buyer?
- jaguar land rover graduate scheme 2024
- fashion buyer or a fashion marketer,which one is better in the UK fashion industry?
- Need help with some Alevel business multiple choice question
- PR/Advertising short courses or experience in Northern Ireland
- Head gasket and cylinder head advise needed please
- Is it possible to buy a house before it is valued and then sell it after valuation?
- first mock test
- cheaper insurance after a write off?
- New car
Latest
Trending
Last reply 5 months ago
Where is my car parked during the day? Advice for first car insuranceLast reply 7 months ago
Will paying £1,900 a year for insurance as a new 21 year old driver be a lot?Trending
Last reply 5 months ago
Where is my car parked during the day? Advice for first car insuranceLast reply 7 months ago
Will paying £1,900 a year for insurance as a new 21 year old driver be a lot?
