What is life like with your car? Let us know and win £500 in John Lewis vouchers | No thanks
what am I looking for ? - Lrac

I may look to be changing my car in the next year not in any hurry. What do I want?

Petrol / manual / 4 cylinder 1.4 or 1.6 region engine / not Direct injection / No dual mass flywheel / no particulate filter / no electric hand brake / space for a spare wheel / fiesta size / not German / no panoramic sunroof / no low profile tyres.

plenty of older cars fit the bill , I am getting so fed up with finding small turbo engines that I am considering buying an older car in preference (immaculate 1.6 Auris with low mileage 10 reg) Otherwise I would be looking for something up to about 3 years old that doesn't have to be exciting. I tend to buy most of my cars at auction as I find it convenient and usually cheaper. I probably only want to spend up to about £11,000.

Edited by Lrac on 10/03/2019 at 15:29

what am I looking for ? - badbusdriver

Hyundai i20 or Kia Rio, 1.4 petrol (about 100bhp) versions of each. I don't know if they come with a spare wheel, but it is an option. Only thing is, i think it would be a space saver as opposed to full sized. There are versions with low profile tyres, but there are also versions with 'tall' tyres. N/A 1.4, not sure about di, dmf or pf, but they do have a manual handbrake. £11k would get you into a 2016-2017 car which in the case of the Rio, could have as much as 5 years warranty left.

www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20190308569...1

what am I looking for ? - Engineer Andy

The current Mazda2 mostly fits the bill as well in 1.5 petrol form except that it is a direct injection engine and doesn't come with a space saver spare as standard. When I was looking for a direct replacement for my 13yo Mazda3, I did ask (2 years ago) about which Mazdas can accommodate a space saver spare in the usual underboot area, and they said all of them aside the MX-5 and certain high spec models with uprated ICE in that area.

Note that if the current Mazda2 does come with an option for a space saver spare, it may not have one on a seconda hand example as Mazda use a Mazda-only cutout in the underboot area and that kit plus the wheel and tyre costs £395 in the gen-3 Mazda3, so many people don't get it when buying new. If you wanted it, you' dlikely have to pay for it from Mazda.

The Reviews section don't appear to show any GDI-related issues on the current version though (check the Good & Bad sub-section), but it has had some issues:

www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/mazda/2-2015/

The previous generation car was a port injected engine, but the (different) 1.5 was only available in the Sport versions with lower profile tyres. The lower and mid-spec cars were available in both standard profile (50 and above) and lower profile tyres, so you'd need to check each to see if they were ok.

www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/mazda/2-2007/

The latest generation car (from 2015) comes in two flavours as regards the tyres - again, the low SE and mid-range SE-L (Nav) specs with standard profile 15in tyres; the Sport grade with lower profile 16in tyres. For a car with a decent amount of poke, the 1.5 petrol SE-L (Nav) has 90PS and is quite nippy; those below it only have the engine in 75PS form, ok, but nothing special. They have changed the spec recently so that newer SE-Ls with no Nav don't have the higher output engine.

The gen-2 Mazda3 (2009 - 13) will fit the bill in 1.6 petrol form and has a space saver spare, and is proven as it is more of an evolution (rather than a completely new car underneath) of the gen-1 car I have, especially on the mehcanicals side. It may be a bit large for you - it is essentially the same size as the Auris though, which is a decent enough, reliable, but dull car.

I personally would worry too much about GDi and small capacity turbo engines if you stay with the better Japanese and South Korean makes: Toyota, Honda, Suzuki, Mazda and Hyundai/KIA. As long as anything you buy second hand has a full service history in line with the manufacturer's requirements, preferably from a main dealership (especially when in its warranty period), then you should be fine. The Hyundais and especially KIAs could still come with some of their manufacturer's warranty left if that is the case.

what am I looking for ? - daveyjp
Our Yaris meets the specification. A 12 month old 1.5 will be in the budget. Its why we bought it! Nice and simple and well proven.
what am I looking for ? - Lrac

All good suggestions from people on my wave length. I do like Mazda's and would consider one with out direct injection. Definitely would buy the Yaris and would consider the former options.

I would be prepared to compromise with a space saver if it was the only option.

I do not know the details but have an idea that Suzuki Dual Jet may well be direct and indirect injection in which case this may also be an option although I may be wrong.

Some Corsa's appear to fit the bill but I believe the suggestions previously offered have superior reliability records.

Thank you

what am I looking for ? - SLO76
You can relax about direct injection it’s not a problem in more modern incarnations. Early examples like Mitsubishi’s GDi’s had carbon buildup issues but later designs have sorted this other than in countries where the fuel quality is more variable. A modern Skyactiv Mazda is unlikely to be unreliable. But there’s nothing to be concerned about on a Yaris or an Auris petrol either.
I am looking for that too - MikeM100

What do I want?

Petrol / manual / 4 cylinder 1.4 or 1.6 region engine / not Direct injection / No dual mass flywheel / no particulate filter / no electric hand brake / space for a spare wheel / fiesta size / not German / no panoramic sunroof / no low profile tyres.

Can I add some other things I do NOT want:

'Elastic band' cambelts

Built-in Sat Nav with expensive and outdated map updates

Tyre Pressure monitoring

Keyless entry system

Over-complicated In Car Entertainment systems

Could even dispense with electric windows !

But I would like:

Easy basic home maintenance

No fancy engine oil requirements

Simple to change bulbs that do not involve dismantling the car

Off the shelf replacement wiper blades

But above all else:

Decent agents/dealers who charge reasonable prices for service and repair

I am looking for that too - Avant

You were born several decades too late, Mike! - but you're not the only one who has a sensible set of priorities.

Perhaps the nearest you'll get is the Dacia range - Sandero, Logan or Duster.