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Do a search on Autotrader for what is available locally as you buy on condition, not brand.
I've done one and have found a 55 reg Corolla with 55,000 miles for £1500. Private owner, clear MOTs for 12 years, current one runs out in December.
That's 90% of the work done. A quick call and after that I'd happily drive the ten miles to go and see it.
Edited by daveyjp on 25/03/2021 at 22:31
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I need to buy a second-hand 'runaround' that serves the purpose of picking up the kids from school while our 'main car' is doing the commutes. So I need it to be safe, reliable, cheap to run and under £1,500. Is that realistic and, if so, what should I be looking at? Always liked VWs but happy to deviate.
All of these are possible, whether or not all are realistic will depend to a degree on luck.
£1500 really is not a lot of money to spend on a car you want and expect to keep your family safe. That isn't to say it is impossible, but IMO, keeping your kids safe should be a priority and as such I'd suggest replacing the 'commuting' car with something of a lower value and spend a bit more on the car your kids are going to be traveling in most of the time. For example, if your commuting car is worth £10k, replace it with something between £5 and 6k (plenty for a reliable, efficient and comfortable car) and spend £4-5k on the runaround. But as I said, that is just my opinion.
If you choose to stick to the idea of a £1500 runabout, as Davey says, it really is going to depend on what is available locally as nobody is going to be travelling hundreds of miles for a car of that price. And there are a few problems there in so far as, to get the most reliable option, you need to be sticking to the KISS mantra (Keep It Simple Stupid)!. Which, in automotive terms means, naturally aspirated petrol engine, manual gearbox and a relatively low trim level (less stuff to go wrong). Which is not necessarily going to get you into the safest £1500 car. My brother is very much into the 'bangernomics' scene and to illustrate my point, he recently bought a Volvo V70 for well under £500. Now if it doesn't break down, it won't prove that expensive to run, but if it does, its going to cost a lot to fix. Thing is though, if he were in an accident, he will arguably be much better protected than were he in a Fiesta sized car or a Focus sized car, especially if the impact was from the side or the rear.
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Definitely need to check out private cars at this money. I'm not sure about the safety aspect at this price, £1500 is MK2 Focus money which is NCAP 5 and got all sorts of air bags in the cabin. Get the 1.6 petrol as it's the Yamaha designed engine. Check for cambelt change. Like any car there are some known faults such as water leaking into the boot but the fix is easy and involves no more than a bit of gutter mastic.
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Thanks everyone and all noted especially re the safety of the car.
My commuting car isn't flash - bought for £5,500 last year and has problems as noted on another post so replacing that with a cheaper car may not be easy.
I could probably stretch up to £1,800 ish I reckon if that's the difference of keeping them safe etc. An old estate sounds reasonable - which is what we've already got with the commuting car. So maybe the commuting car should be the one that we get for £1800 and the estate is the runaround?!
Wll look at Focus estates too. On the surface, based on what you previously said re Focus's, would something like this have something problematic at this price then? www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202103240521483
Edited by JamesBro on 26/03/2021 at 10:35
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Same model as mine, even down to the colour. That's the Yamaha engine so good news. It looks like a nice tidy one from the photos.
I can't see from the photos but I think by this age the sills have the extra plastic guard/trim along them as early MK2s suffered corrosion. They are still not immune to it, so check the bottoms of the wings and sills on the front and at the back.
Also check the washers work as if they're blocked it's a right pain to sort as the reservoir is buried in the wing.
It should have had a cambelt change by now as despite being under 100,000 miles it should be done every eight or ten years, I can't remember which but that time has passed anyway. If it hasn't been done then you want to budget £350+ (independent) and best to do the water pump at the same time.
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For children, buy the biggest you can afford. I cannot think of a more unsafe car than a tiny Hyundai loaded to the gunnels with humans and their cargo. I'd look for an old Focus estate.
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would something like this have something problematic at this price then? www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202103240521483
Shouldn't be as it is an inherently reliable car. But, with cars of this age and value, how it has been looked after or not, can make all the difference. Even the most reliable car can become unreliable after 15 years worth of uncaring owners.
But buying a car at this price from a dealer is not likely to be a great purchase. Remember, the dealer is making a profit on this, so any problems are likely to be bodged disguised rather than fixed properly. Even ignoring that, he will have paid a lot less than he is asking for it. Buying privately from someone who has owned the car for a number of years is likely to net you something nicer for the same money, or cheaper in the same condition.
Where in the country are you?
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Thanks badbusdriver.
Funny as I always was under the impression that buying privately was a no-no but would be great not to deal with dealers after problems with my last car.
I guess I just need to go the extra mile when buying privately to check its condition?
I'm in Sheffield.
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However well a car has been looked after it will wear out eventually. 300 oil changes won't stop an ABS unit going bad.
There are slim pickings in this market at the moment as everyone who used to get the bus has gone and bought such a car already.
Be realistic that nothing will be perfect and to a degree is a disposable car. Don't worry too much about make or model and judge it how it drives as much as anything else.
There is a big element of luck with cheap cars no matter what you buy or how carefully you choose. They are all one bill away from the scrap yard.
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. Buying privately from someone who has owned the car for a number of years is likely to net you something nicer for the same money, or cheaper in the same condition.
Sometimes, yes, but a lot of the most dishonest sellers are private ones as well. Also - in the case of long term ownership the reason a lot of long term owners suddenly decide to finally get shot is a garage has told them it needs £2k of work.
I'm never convinced about long term owners. You actually want someone selling the car because they get bored with cars and are selling it because they want something different. Be wary of someone who keeps their cars for 12 years suddenly deciding that is the moment to get shot and question their motives.
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. Buying privately from someone who has owned the car for a number of years is likely to net you something nicer for the same money, or cheaper in the same condition.
Sometimes, yes, but a lot of the most dishonest sellers are private ones as well. Also - in the case of long term ownership the reason a lot of long term owners suddenly decide to finally get shot is a garage has told them it needs £2k of work.
I'm never convinced about long term owners. You actually want someone selling the car because they get bored with cars and are selling it because they want something different. Be wary of someone who keeps their cars for 12 years suddenly deciding that is the moment to get shot and question their motives.
If we were to say an average back street garage selling cars in the sort of price range the OP is looking at has 20 cars in stock, and the garage owner is bit dodgy, that is 20 cars you'd probably be better off avoiding. Do you think that if you went and looked at 20 privately owned cars, all 20 owners would be trying to rip you off?.
Maybe your view of humanity is more jaded than mine, but I tend to feel the majority of folk are inherently honest, and as such I'd estimate maybe 5 (at most) of those 20 private sellers are actually trying to deceive you regarding the condition of the car.
But there are tools to help, such as checking the MOT history of the car. By no means a definitive indication of whether or not you should buy the car, it is nevertheless going to give a good indication of how well or otherwise the car has been looked after.
Then there is the 'gift of the gab' factor. A salesman's job is to persuade you to buy the car he is selling, and most of them are pretty good at it, so how would the average potential punter see through that?. By contrast, most 'normal' folk are not good liars, so if you ask the owner direct questions about the condition the car, most are going to get a bit squirrely and evasive if they are being dishonest.
Why do you think someone who gets fed up of the car after 6 months-3 years would be better to buy from than someone who gets fed up with the car after 10 years, i don't see your point?. Why would their motives be more questionable?. As has been said above, cars will invariably wear out, and they will do that much quicker if neglected. Someone who has owned the car long term is going to have looked after it better than someone who buys cars on a whim with no intention of keeping it longer than a year. The latter will almost certainly have spent absolutely nothing on the car, or as near to nothing as possible.
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hy do you think someone who gets fed up of the car after 6 months-3 years would be better to buy from than someone who gets fed up with the car after 10 years, i don't see your point?. Why would their motives be more questionable?. As has been said above, cars will invariably wear out, and they will do that much quicker if neglected. Someone who has owned the car long term is going to have looked after it better than someone who buys cars on a whim with no intention of keeping it longer than a year. The latter will almost certainly have spent absolutely nothing on the car, or as near to nothing as possible.
I kind of agree about some private sellers although there are few about these days and not all dealers are dishonest. Most are just realistic.
As for long term owners my view comes from experience. People who only change their cars every 10 or 15 years do not necessarily look after them better. In fact they often "give up" on them and run them into the ground and only get shot when they have had it. I've seen so many cars like this I have lost count. They frequently look after them for 7 years then do nothing but MOT for the last 7.
The point about someone who buys a car on a whim is they sell on a whim. Someone who rarely buys needs a big kick or reason to sell. That is usually that the car has had it.
The "one owner" good thing is from the 1960s and has no meaning in the modern, real world along with rusty Lancias and French electrics.
I'm not saying buy a car with 14 owners but a change every 2-3 years is fine. The truth is the average owner's "enthusiasm" for the car is in the early ownership period. At that point they look after it. Once it becomes an old pair of shoes they tend to treat it in a similar way in my experience.
Edited by pd on 26/03/2021 at 13:25
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The Focus in the ad linked by the OP looks OK. Had a look at the MOT history, particularly the most recent one. The advisories are not too bad in terms of potential cost, with inner front suspension arm pin/bush (both sides) mentioned along with o/s front pads.
Had a look on Autotrader using a random postcode from the centre of Sheffield (up to 30 mile radius) and seen these, all of who's MOT history and current advisories are pretty good.
202103220439223
202103069815960
202103210412194
202103220427229
There was also this, 202103240548086, but number plate obscured in the pics so can't check MOT history.
And this, 202103220463535, One of the advisories is regarding corrosion on what I assume is the sill area and I'd be wanting an expert opinion on that before going any further (MOT history is good otherwise). Very practical, spacious and comfortable family car though.
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My choice would be the 09 Focus, it's a MK2.5 which is nicer than the MK2. More refined and better trim. The mileage is spot on at 88K, the 1.8 is the Mazda engine and I'm 99% sure it's cam-chain so no belt service to worry about. Just keep the oil changed on time and proper spec.
It's priced to sell at £1500 I would think.
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Would concur with the above.
The 1.6 is generally reliable although can suffer with wiring faults on the coil packs leading to misfires but every one I've driven has been terrible on fuel. Barely able to crack 30mpg in the real world and rather gutless as well. Perhaps it's just me.
Edited by pd on 26/03/2021 at 16:48
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Really helpful. Thanks all.
I'm inquiring about the Focus 09.
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Really helpful. Thanks all.
I'm inquiring about the Focus 09.
Fingers crossed!.
Let us know how you get on.
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I will, thanks a lot. Luckily, I'm that side of Sheffield too, so it may even be a neighbour of mine. Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing(!)
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Would concur with the above.
The 1.6 is generally reliable although can suffer with wiring faults on the coil packs leading to misfires but every one I've driven has been terrible on fuel. Barely able to crack 30mpg in the real world and rather gutless as well. Perhaps it's just me.
My records show that our 2000 Mk1 Focus 1.6 Zetec auto estate, in 2017 at around 120,000 miles, used 113.27 litres for 936 miles - my brim to brim calculation (several tank refills to obviate brimming inaccuracies)- which came to 37.6mpg if my maths correct. It might have only 100bhp but the TC autobox spins it effortlessly to the red line through the gears when some gutsy performance is required.
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