Small car high mileage

[Dinnie]

Pammy,

I presume you meant to type 6' (six feet) rather than 6" (six inches).

Tony

Now we know what she was really thinking when she was typing this post!

Haven't read the whole threat so sorry if I'm repeating this but how about a Clio? For £1500, you can pick up at least a 1999 shape (the newer versions). They seem quite fresh for the money, good spec available and quite chic

 

[glojo]

Now we know what she was really thinking when she was typing this post!

Haven't read the whole threat so sorry if I'm repeating this but how about a Clio? For £1500, you can pick up at least a 1999 shape (the newer versions). They seem quite fresh for the money, good spec available and quite chic

Thanks Dinnie but this picture and the very unfavourable response by Renault has made the selection a non starter

Regards
John

 

[Geezer]

Just buy her a SLK and be done with it!! :bannana:

 

[barryj]

buy her my wifes old CLK:

http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=49056

 

[scumbag]

renault do seem to have an issue with bonnets flying up.

My old english teacher had a renault Fuego, that did it on the morotway. And the following year, the head of our year had a 19 i think, his did exactly the same, and he made a great song and dance about during the daily assembly. I recall that being the first time I was ejected from such acitivites and having to report to his office for some further venegeful, unreasonable and possibly over reaction about him possibly having his last moments on a motorway, and was I proud of my mirth over it!

My reply to that shortened my school days considerably!

Can't say I have ever regretted it either. Maybe I should have taken his advice and Grow up?

I never bought a renault though. So I did learn from it, unlike him!

 

[glojo]

Can't say I have ever regretted it either. Maybe I should have taken his advice and Grow up?

Ouch!!! Mega ouch

By refusing to grow-up we have all seen the results

Sorry about that my little:

 

[scumbag]

By refusing to grow-up we have all seen the results

]

No point crying over spilt milk. There is no going back, may as well play with the hand you were dealt and do the best with that! Yesterday is just History!

I am in the half full category. You make a mistake, move on. Not make a mistake and blame everyone else and bang on about it for years!

My form tutor said on my school report, Mark's Future looks Bleak!

She is dead now!

Hmmm, bleak eh?

 

[glojo]

My form tutor said on my school report, Mark's Future looks Bleak!

Open your blooming window....

Is she right, or is she right?

John

Still waiting for the sellers to get back to me

 

[scumbag]

Open your blooming window....

Is she right, or is she right?

John

Still waiting for the sellers to get back to me

No, she is so wrong. And unable to change her inaccurate legacy either!

I do remember an old collegue of mine had a 306. It had some expensive faults regarding the immobiliser and some other thing. He did drive it like an animal and it had been to the moon and back.

I learnt to drive in a polo. Have liked them ever since. Just never bought one!

Would do if they stuck a V8 in one!!

 

[jaymanek]

 

[mkindy]

Ford Focus. They can rack up the miles if looked after, cheap to repair and get a small engine cheap to ensure. The best bit is that they have good safety for the age/cost. Mine was hit by a small Jap hatch from behind. The Jap car was a complete wreck...suspension hanging off, loads of panel damage and only fit for the scrap yard. Mine had a broken plastic bumper, a dented inner steel bumper and I drove off and still drives perfect. Secondhand parts to fix £35 and 2hrs! I would not let my kids drive anything smaller. The other good thing is that they do handle very well so the chances of it crashing in the first place is reduced. I wouldn't knock Fords, my Focus has done 145,000 miles and is totally reliable. I also use a Ford engine in my track car and if looked after they really are very good...and I can still see the clock OK in the LCD display!

 

[scumbag]

Ford Focus. They can rack up the miles if looked after, cheap to repair and get a small engine cheap to ensure.

Why do they skimp on only one reverse light, and Who chose the place to put it?

 

[glojo]

Ford Focus. They can rack up the miles if looked after, cheap to repair and get a small engine cheap to ensure. The best bit is that they have good safety for the age/cost. Mine was hit by a small Jap hatch from behind. The Jap car was a complete wreck...suspension hanging off, loads of panel damage and only fit for the scrap yard. Mine had a broken plastic bumper, a dented inner steel bumper and I drove off and still drives perfect. Secondhand parts to fix £35 and 2hrs! I would not let my kids drive anything smaller. The other good thing is that they do handle very well so the chances of it crashing in the first place is reduced. I wouldn't knock Fords, my Focus has done 145,000 miles and is totally reliable. I also use a Ford engine in my track car and if looked after they really are very good...and I can still see the clock OK in the LCD display!

Just found this one but a bit suspicious of its history. No reason why though.

Any thoughts compared to the others I am interested in.

Insurance
Fully comp under 21yrs of age and the 2ltr engine £931

 

[grober]

Good cars with excellent safety. At that age can get a bit tatty round the edges. Can knock out their rear wheel bearings and the rear control blade suspension can wear leading to a £700+ bill to replace both units. Pretty bullet proof otherwise. Smaller engine sizes tend to sell better on the second hand market due to perceived better economy but not much in it. High mileage diesels can develop problems. Anyone can service them tho. For £2k I would expect a good history and 2/3 long term owners max. Any more spells trouble IMHO. http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/index.htm?md=116&

 

[MBManInKen]

It's no secret that I'm no Ford fan , but I have driven the Focus more than once, as a hire car on trips abroad and the one that a family member owns and they are dreadful IMHO. Plastic look and feel (admittedly that's perhaps more perception), quite noisy and I wasn't too impressed with the engines or gearbox. Lacks the Teutonic feel of robustness.

Compared to a Polo, even though that is a smaller class car, I'd go for the VW anytime - although I'd probably go for the Golf.

Then again, I'm probably making a not very factual judgement here - it's more about "feel", I'm surprised about my own lack of scientific objectivity .

 

[scumbag]

And people have been known to complain about the high throttle pedal making the leg ache in fords. And the pedals are a bit closer together.

I find the seats in the Focus a bit too hard and the doors too tinny!

I also don't like the petrol flap that opens the wrong way and the cord on the cap isn't long enough so it gets under the nozzle and just serves to annoy you.

I coulg go on about attention to detail. But it is the little things that matter.

They don't have much low end torque either.

 

[glojo]

The Ghia X Focus has been sold, but there is a 2.0ltr Ghia at Plymouth with 114,000 miles on the clock and a three month warranty. The Polo we are looking at is at Exeter with 104,000miles but a private seller.

My daughter likes the colour of the Focus but little Scumbag's post has turned her off very slightly. How plasticy is the Ghia Focus compared to the lesser models?

The warranty is a significant issue although we all know the weaknesses of these.

I reckon I may well do an HPI check on at least one of these (the Focus)

I have taken on-board Grober's excellent points and can they be easily noticeable? has

 

[rlowy]

My wife has had a Seat Ibiza 1.4 SE for 5 years from new covering 32,000 miles. It replaced an Ibiza GTi but we needed a car for tree children to learn to drive on.

The Ibiza has never failed to start or complete a journey, it has always failed to excite and has had numerous silly electrical problems with warning lights since delivery until we part exchanged it this week for a new car. Warning lights drive you mad as you never know when they are calling wolf. The dealer in the end admitted defeat and gave me an offer I could not refuse to replace the car.

It was expensive in my view to service at the dealer. Parts also failed sooner than I would have expected. I was also unimpressed about the quality of the plastics. Robust enough inside but they scratched easily and let down the car.

Having been a long time advocate of VW products and owned several personally, VW, Skoda and Seat and run a fleet of them in my business this experience has made me cautious to recommend them so my sister just bought a new Golf last week!

 

[robert.saunders]

How long will this car be kept for? If very short time, parts etc not much of an issue but I assume a Ford will be cheaper to maintain? Just a thought

 

[MBManInKen]

If you intend to have it for a while and if it is a more complex car such as that Focus, perhaps useful to have a diagnostic carried out first?