NEW CAR

I'm currently a second year student who's set on getting a new car. Been driving around in a corsa since 17 and its time for a change. Thinking either an Audi, Mercedes or BMW however I'm open to suggestions. The main things I'm concerned with is a nice exterior, interior and as reliable as possible as the lack of a full time proper job could be problematic in the case of expensive and regular repair bills. The Budget is around 5k however I can push this to around 6 or 7 for a "perfect" car.

Cheers

Volvo! For 5k you'll get something relatively new: They absolutely fly, are insanely comfortable, and cost nothing to insure. One with a good service history is unlikely to break, just make sure it's had preventative maintenance done beforehand eg. Cambelt etc

Or an e class? could get something from 2013 for that price

For reliability mercedes and BMW seems a bit meh to me. They always seems to get issues but it's random. With any car as long as it's been taken care of (Don't take the sellers word for it you'll see it through reciepts) you should be ok.

My opinion is if there's less parts you'll be better off. So getting a car with no turbo and is very simple, not too much tech etc. Which is why i love my yaris! Toyota and honda do seem the best, but the problem are people stealing exhaust parts off of them. Not much of an issue on toyota, as long as it's not a hybrid. For complete reliability for cheap a petrol toyota non hybrid would be the best imo, followed by a diesel toyota and honda. Diesel seems to be stronger than petrols. My uncle recently passed his mot on a 2014 diesel yaris and it's got 275000 miles on it. From a reliability perspective if I had £5000 but could stretch to £7000 I'd get a euro 6 diesel civic, would cost you peanuts to run, in fact might even be cheaper to own than your corsa if you keep it for years.

As with most cars, you'll have clutches and alternators and head gaskets etc. Just make sure it's in good condition. Check under the oil cap for any mayonnaise, it should be at the fish and chips, not in your engine. See if you could pull off in 2nd gear just using the clutch on a flat surface. Check tyres.

I know I mentioned reliability a lot but I'm just speaking from what I've seen. I'm doing a level 2 course to become a mechanic and I do work on cars in the college workshop. Out of the many fords and vauxhalls there are, the r reg honda civic BY FAR is the easiest to work on. And I personally drive a yaris and so far it's been good.

You've mentioned you're a second year student with a "lack of a proper full time job". Given we're in the middle of a pandemic and the future is uncertain, it would probably make the most sense to drive your corsa until it falls apart. If it's an old one worth less than 1k then drive it to it's death. If it makes it to it's next service buy a socket set and you could probably service it yourself. Saves you labour charge and you get tools to keep.

However if you do want a German car I think the best would be a 320d!

Also something to bear in mind. Cars usually have a timing chain or timing belt. A belt is made of rubber and not as strong as a metal chain. Typically will last 70k miles but could be less. If that snaps your engine is finished. So if it hasn't been done on a car then make sure you knock the price down or budget it in soon etc. Would cost you roughly £300 to change. With a timing chain it's supposed to last forever but it can have problems with being loose, especially if the engines not been serviced on time or infrequent oil changes. Vw FSI petrols sometimes have timing chain issues but on my yaris so far it's absolutely fine and my yaris has 118k miles.

That's all I can think of, probably not been much help but I've tried my best and thought all that I could think of

Also something to bear in mind. Cars usually have a timing chain or timing belt. A belt is made of rubber and not as strong as a metal chain. Typically will last 70k miles but could be less. If that snaps your engine is finished. So if it hasn't been done on a car then make sure you knock the price down or budget it in soon etc. Would cost you roughly £300 to change. With a timing chain it's supposed to last forever but it can have problems with being loose, especially if the engines not been serviced on time or infrequent oil changes. Vw FSI petrols sometimes have timing chain issues but on my yaris so far it's absolutely fine and my yaris has 118k miles.

That's all I can think of, probably not been much help but I've tried my best and thought all that I could think of

Thanks for the advice really appreciate it. Yeah all it is with my corsa is I've been driving it nearly 5 years and theres only so long you can go with a car before you get bored of it and I think I passed that point 3 years ago haha. Also I want to get as much for my corsa as I can to fund my next car as its worth around the 2.2k mark give or take or I would run it in to the ground tbh. I do have the money to get a new car and live relatively comfortably although I will do some saving in the meantime to make sure I'm more than comfortable when it comes to buying it. Cheers though I'll have a look. Just looking for an upgrade really to get me through uni and the first year or so of work so only the next 3 years really. So I'll take all your suggestions on board thanks so much.

Could I ask about the milages by the way. I've heard the life of a car is 200,000 miles but then I've heard varying opinions on this being more or less but their more so statements and never a reason to as actually why.

No problem, wish you luck with your new car! Corsa is a pretty dull car anyways (might get hate for that haha)



Mileage means absolutely nothing. It just means how many miles the car has driven. You could make a car last a million miles if you want but you'd have to replace parts as they eventually fail. My uncle's yaris with 275k on the clock still has so much life left in the engine, starts first time and drives fine. Only problems is the suspension is squeaky but it's expected, over 250k miles on London roads with speed bumps and potholes is going to take it's toll. You could fix it but it's not essential, just annoying if you care about it. As you're looking to spend £5k on a car, you can expect a car with not too much miles. Generally as a rule look at the age of a car and multiply years by 10,000, average mileage is about 10000 miles per year. If you get a 2013 car then expect around 80000 miles. Some will have more some will have less depends how hard they've been used. What you want to see is it's been driven every year and not abandoned on the owners driveway (check mot history mileage and also check mot history whilst you're at it). Also you want to see Service history. SH=Service History. FSH=Full Service History. You want to see it's been serviced regularly.

When you're buying the car use mileage as a tool. Is it around 60k to 100k miles? Has the timing belt (if it has one) been changed. If yes then when and is there proof.

Hope that clears it up for you.

Yes. That helps so it would be appropriate to get a car with around 80k miles give or take 20k. Check the timing belt, service history and mot. Then make sure I regularly service it and that should mean my car will last a good while with no major faults. Am I correct in thinking this from what I've just read or am I completely off?

I'd say that is about accurate. Also take it on a test drive, if something doesn't feel right could be an issue. Unfortunately even then it still depends on luck, but at least now the odds of getting a lemon is lower!

If you do go German, audi is basically a rebadged VW. So an Audi A3 1.6Tdi will have the same engine as a Vw golf 1.6 tdi. So an Audi will probably be the cheapest to fix if it does go wrong. Even with mercedes, you can get an a class with a 1.5 diesel engine from renault! Yes that's right the same engine you'll see in a Renault Clio is powering an a class.

I do think my heart is set on a german saloon but I've just been researching the maintenance costs and it ain't the most promising so perhaps I might have to explore other avenues a bit more. Haha no way thats crazy. Any cheap fixes with BMWs? Fiat 500 engine doesn't power it by any chance does it

Not the biggest fan of volvos to be honest although I will have a look cheers. Furthermore, could you explain these preventative measures a bit more to me never heard of them. Thanks.

Could I ask about the milages by the way. I've heard the life of a car is 200,000 miles but then I've heard varying opinions on this being more or less but they're more so statements and never a reason to as actually why.

In all honesty my Volvo is just a Saab before I can afford a Saab (or a beemer) they’re not that good looking, their only real selling point for a young person is that they’re inconspicuous enough to be cheap on insurance and still carry a lot of power: my most recent quote for a 200bhp v70 was £1000, and I’m 18yrs old with 1yrs no claims, a 320d was £1.2k for like 60 less horsepower.

That said, their mpg isn’t great: I get like 35 on a motorway run, and that’s in a diesel, this could probably be improved to 45 if I went 70. Get 28 in town. They also hate short journeys, so be sure to get a petrol if that would be the case (I made this mistake). You can get BMWs that would be cheaper to run and be just as fast; cooler too.


with regards to preventative maintainance, it’s just things that could go wrong in the future, on Volvos that’s the cam belt which should be changed every 50k or so, and maybe the turbo line seals. In all honestly cambelt is the most important since their engines are naturally aspirated: if your timing belt snaps the whole engine is ****ed. They said, if it’s done on time, they’ll never stop working, those engines last longer than time itself I swear

hard to say about preventative maintainance for other cars, best to check out forums on the internet or Facebook groups, they’re so, so, so helpful

I’d go German tho if you can! Purely bc they’re cooler let’s be real

Edit: Lexus saloon? Could probably insure one at your age; I had trouble

I'm 22 and been driving since 17 and got like 4/5 years no claims so I don't really struggle on insurance for much these days, I'm going to try my hardest to get a 2010-2013 German, cause you're right they are just dead cool haha. Will definitely have a look at this lexus and to be honest speed isn't a key factor for me. I just want to be able to sit in a dead nice car and then on top of that be able to walk up to it and think "sexy" you know what I mean haha.

I'm 22 and been driving since 17 and got like 4/5 years no claims so I don't really struggle on insurance for much these days, I'm going to try my hardest to get a 2010-2013 German, cause you're right they are just dead cool haha. Will definitely have a look at this lexus and to be honest speed isn't a key factor for me. I just want to be able to sit in a dead nice car and then on top of that be able to walk up to it and think "sexy" you know what I mean haha.

Hahahahaha I know what you mean

Ah yea in that case don't go for the Volvo, I've literally never thought that about mine

1009-13 mercedes was peak merc tbh, same with BMW, just a little later.

Good luck with buying a car!