Buying a new car

[captainharris]

Or maybe the title should be "Buying a used car!"

 

Looking for some recommendations -

 

I recently passed my test so I'm looking at picking up a little runaround. The problem is, i'm a complete novice when it comes to cars.

 

Insurance costs are probably the biggest factor - Initally I've been quoted almost £3k to insure a small 1.4l Kia. With a few tweaks here and there i've gound that I can only really get a 1.0-1.2ltr car which still comes in anywhere between £1100-1400. Still really high, but I need to start somewhere to build up some no claims.

 

So, after scouting round over the last few weeks i've found that this is roughly the car i'm looking for:

 

1.0-1.2ltr (maybe 1.3 at a push)

5 Door

1-4 (max) years old

Budget of £5000

 

So far it's been a Toyota aygo and Citroen c3 that best seem to match what i'm looking for. Any other suggestions - or even hints and tips how to deal with car salesmen / auctions etc.

[Guest davelfc]

Auto Trader online has a feature that will give you a rough estimate of how much it will cost to insure a given vehicle so by looking at ones in your price range you'll see pretty much the cheapest.

 

Some people suggest you go to the auctions, buy ex rental, disability or lease cars. You might be able to get a car a couple of years newer with your cash and know it's been looked after, well ok serviced on a regular basis.

 

i don't envy you though, it's a jungle out there as two exact cars can be so different depending on how they've been treated.

[captainharris]

cheers Dave,

 

Ive been using my original insurance quote and just changing the registration number for each vehicle i've been looking at. Currently the C3 is the cheapest at £1150. But i'm not even sure if that car is actually any good? Whatcar reviews just seem to give everything 3*.

 

I've been thinking about going to the auctions. Would anyone recommend auctions as a good place to go - what things should I be looing out for/wary of?

[zigackly]

I picked up a 5 door 1998 Fiesta 1.25 Zetec for six hundred quid on the weekend. Very little rust, 51K on the clock, decent boots, twelve months MOT and tax. I was quite chuffed with that; I'd expect to get another 49K out of it before the bodywork starts to mean passing an MOT is prohibitive. No way I will be spending 5K on it in the time we have it!

[melons]

Why not just get a heap of shit to get you a couple of years no claims? You could even check out third party insurance then as replacing it won't be a big deal?

[zigackly]

Why not just get a heap of shit to get you a couple of years no claims? You could even check out third party insurance then as replacing it won't be a big deal?

 

That's sort of what I was getting at with the Zetec, although I will probably keep buying them because the engines are lovely and they've served us well for the last couple.

[melons]

Woops, sorry. I thought you were just bragging about getting a car of that age with only 51k on the clock.

[captainharris]

Why not just get a heap of shit to get you a couple of years no claims? You could even check out third party insurance then as replacing it won't be a big deal?

 

Because a heap of shit actually costs me far more in insurance.

 

The insurance company already see me as a risk as i've only just passed, if i'm driving round in a piece of shit with hardly any safety features then the risk of an accident goes up. On top of that the insurers know that it's a piece of shit and therefore i'm less likely to look after it which again means i'm more of a risk. It's a false economy. I'm actually better off buying small and new(ish).

 

Also, it's far cheaper for me to go fully comp than it is for 3rd party. With comprehensive I can add voluntary excess which again brings the costs down. I can't add excess on 3rd party.

[zigackly]

Woops, sorry. I thought you were just bragging about getting a car of that age with only 51k on the clock.

 

Maybe just a little bit.

[Phoenix]

Go for the toyota Aygo between those two. Good little car. Not too sure on Citroens.

[god knows]

Being in car sales for more years than I care to remember, I have sold cars and given advice to quite a few members on here. If you have have limited budget, go for something that won't cost you the earth if it goes wrong. Go for a Fiesta 1.25 Style or Zetec. Group 3 insurance and everyone knows how to fix them if they go wrong. Steer clear(see what I did there?) of French cars. Too many electrics which go wrong all the time.

[Pony Princess]

I'd always go for Japanese or German brands, so the Aygo over the C3 although I've had a C3 as a repair car during an insurance claim - not a bad car, just unspectacular.

 

How about a VW Polo or a Suzuki Swift if its small hatchbacks you are after? Both good looking, reliable and well-thought of cars and cheap to insure.

 

Buying 2nd-hand is always a gamble but you can swing the odds in your favour. You've got a fair amount of money to spend so look for full or almost full service history, lowest age/mileage, one owner (preferably, you can see this in the registration document), check everything on the car, seriously, each electric window, electric mirror, under the carpet in the boot - even if you are non-technical, you are looking for anything broken or not quite right.

 

If there is anything, walk away or (if you like the car and the issue is minor) demand to have it fixed before you'll even consider sticking a deposit on it. Obviously if you have a mate who is good with cars, take him along with you.

 

Don't buy the first car you see and don't agree on a price without haggling. It's a buyers market right now - just before christmas is a bad time for vehicle dealers and they will bite your hand off for a sale.

 

Good luck!

[JohnnyH]

Yeah, I'm in the market now also.

 

I've had my car for 9 years, which considering I used to change my cars almost every year is quite a long time. I'm going to show around during Christmas and then see what I can get in the January with the 2012 regs are out ansd the 2010s are a year older.

 

Not sure what to get though and obviously the pocket is a little emptier then it was this time 3 years ago so my choices will be a bit restricted.

[bigbak]

Get one of your parents as a named driver on the quotes if you haven't done so already. It tends to bring the quote down if there's a second driver.

[Trumo]

As long as they don't have any claims on their record or points on their licence.

[captainharris]

Get one of your parents as a named driver on the quotes if you haven't done so already. It tends to bring the quote down if there's a second driver.

 

Yeah, ive put my girlfriend on it and that's what's bringing it down to the £1200 mark - otherwise i'm looking over £2k.

 

I tried putting my dad on it, he has points on his licence and it took the price to over £4k. Insurance is the biggest ball ache in the world.

 

There's quite a few companies out there who have offered me insurance for around £1500 except I have £3000 compulsory excess. Cheeky bastards - I pay them all that money yet take on ALL of the financial risk. Sod that.

 

Thanks for the info anyway folks - I was actually in the I was in the citroen dealership earlier and very nearly bought a C3 - it was a 10plate, 5k miles, 1.1ltr for £5750. I stayed firm on my £5k budget and they just wouldn't move hardly anywhere on price. Fair enough if there's no margin in it for them, but it was just a tad over the top end of my budget so I walked out. Got a free cup of coffee out of it anyway, so not all bad.

[VladimirIlyich]

Yeah, ive put my girlfriend on it and that's what's bringing it down to the £1200 mark - otherwise i'm looking over £2k.

 

I tried putting my dad on it, he has points on his licence and it took the price to over £4k. Insurance is the biggest ball ache in the world.

 

There's quite a few companies out there who have offered me insurance for around £1500 except I have £3000 compulsory excess. Cheeky bastards - I pay them all that money yet take on ALL of the financial risk. Sod that.

 

Thanks for the info anyway folks - I was actually in the I was in the citroen dealership earlier and very nearly bought a C3 - it was a 10plate, 5k miles, 1.1ltr for £5750. I stayed firm on my £5k budget and they just wouldn't move hardly anywhere on price. Fair enough if there's no margin in it for them, but it was just a tad over the top end of my budget so I walked out. Got a free cup of coffee out of it anyway, so not all bad.

 

Bet coffee was red hot so you couldnt make a quick exit.

[md1892]

Yeah, ive put my girlfriend on it and that's what's bringing it down to the £1200 mark - otherwise i'm looking over £2k.

 

I tried putting my dad on it, he has points on his licence and it took the price to over £4k. Insurance is the biggest ball ache in the world.

 

There's quite a few companies out there who have offered me insurance for around £1500 except I have £3000 compulsory excess. Cheeky bastards - I pay them all that money yet take on ALL of the financial risk. Sod that.

 

Thanks for the info anyway folks - I was actually in the I was in the citroen dealership earlier and very nearly bought a C3 - it was a 10plate, 5k miles, 1.1ltr for £5750. I stayed firm on my £5k budget and they just wouldn't move hardly anywhere on price. Fair enough if there's no margin in it for them, but it was just a tad over the top end of my budget so I walked out. Got a free cup of coffee out of it anyway, so not all bad.

 

Tell them £5500 with 2 years insurance thrown in.

[Dr Arthur De Sabre]

Buying the car:

1. select make/ model/ extras etc

2. look for the dealers with said spec car

3. call each dealer, tell them you have the money to buy, will be paying cash at 4pm and have 4/5 dealers with same spec, you want his best price, one off no further phone calls, and you will be calling each of the other dealers for their best price. Whoever offers the best price you will arrive to pay for and collect the car, refuse any further calls/offers.

[bigbak]

Only buy a car towards the end of the month. You can get it at the start of the next month and not lose out on road tax. The dealers are likely to be missing their targets and will be desperate.

I bought a car once and told the dealer that another dealer had offered me a price (the price I wanted to pay). They hadn't, but he bought it, matched the price and threw in cruise control.

 

Insurance for young drivers is pathetic. How the insurance industry gets away with sex and age discrimination when everywhere else can't amazes me.

[Guest davelfc]

 

Insurance for young drivers is pathetic. How the insurance industry gets away with sex and age discrimination when everywhere else can't amazes me.

 

Well I believe they can't on sex any more as it was challenged. But as far as age goes, well it's down to risk, young drivers are a high risk and therefore you pay more. Want to pay less? Simply gain your no claims bonuses and prove to them you're not a risk.

 

Overall young drivers take much more out of the pot than any other age and so it's only fair that they should contribute more.

 

That's insurance for you though, live in a high risk area and up goes your insurance too.

 

I suggested a while ago that I think they should remove the personal injury component from car insurance, make it just about the car and the damage to the car. If you want personal injury then that's something you go for on a person to person basis, it would save a fortune and stop repeat passenger offenders from defrauding insurance companies.

[bigbak]

Well I believe they can't on sex any more as it was challenged. But as far as age goes, well it's down to risk, young drivers are a high risk and therefore you pay more. Want to pay less? Simply gain your no claims bonuses and prove to them you're not a risk.

 

Overall young drivers take much more out of the pot than any other age and so it's only fair that they should contribute more.

 

That's insurance for you though, live in a high risk area and up goes your insurance too.

 

I suggested a while ago that I think they should remove the personal injury component from car insurance, make it just about the car and the damage to the car. If you want personal injury then that's something you go for on a person to person basis, it would save a fortune and stop repeat passenger offenders from defrauding insurance companies.

 

I just think the amounts we're hearing are scarey. If they'd been the equivalent of that when I started driving I'd have been screwed. I needed a car for a job, had to borrow £300 to buy a car and paid for the insurance on a credit card.

 

Something needs to change.

 

I'm nearly 40.

[LFCGeorge]

Get a Vauxhall Corsa 1.2 SXI not bad on insurance and good looking