The thing about sticking with a Kia is that a car of that age and budget will have a DCT automated manual gearbox. And while it may not give any grief at all (and will be covered under the manufacturers warranty for a few years assuming dealer history), I'd still be wary.

I'd actually be inclined to go for the Astra simply because of the combination of T/C auto and turbo petrol engine. Though if you were planning to get another diesel I'd be thinking of something else due to the Fiat Diesel engine.

It is often a flurry of bills which persuade a change from an old car which might well last a good few bill free more years to a much newer car which will have a depreciation cost in one year that possibly exceeds that flurry. Especially if only doing 5,000 miles a year. Had you thought of postponing the clearly unnecessary service for a year? The MoT will ensure it is safe, and also do most of the checks included in the 'service'.

And no Peugeot recommendation from SLO76?

Thanks for the replies. I was already looking at one of the suggestions, so it was nice to get some validation. From a sensibility point of view, the Astra 1.4T estate is certainly great value for money; it seems to have so much power (150bhp) and my budget could probably stretch to an 18plate; on the downside the front of the car looks so dull and the local Vx dealership isn't the best. Like many decisions, one has to balance the practicalities with what one wants!

Seems to be very little choice with a KIA, so would probably have to be the diesel 1.6CRDi (places like available car have the 1.4T-GDi but only on much newer plates costing thousands more. Although I don't do a high mileage, my regular commute takes me on the motorway so hopefully dpf regen should be ok. Wouldn't any issues with the DCT gearbox be handled under warranty... I'll make a note to query this with KIA? After being burned by buying my last KIA from a Ford dealer, would only get one from a KIA dealership and would make sure that the warranty is all good. KIA were very good and I had no problem with making some minor warranty claims despite my predicament, but it left a bad taste.

No, I don't really need an estate but do find it handy for transporting pushbikes without having to take wheels off, and occasionally taking rubbish to the tip and transporting the odd settee for friends! If the Niro was better value, I would certainly consider it, but it works out nearly 2k pounds more, which doesn't make sense to me. I have currently got a tow bar mounted Thule cycle rack, but it is very heavy and so only use that for longer journeys. I previously had a Roomster which was fine for getting bikes in, but it was an unusual shape.

Other than those suggested models I did look at something smaller, a Suzuki Ignis 1.2 DualJet, but I think the bike transporting bit would be too difficult, and it's debatable whether 90bhp on a petrol engine is enough; the 115bhp on my Ceed is plenty fast enough for me, but I wouldn't want anything that was much less responsive. The Picanto we have is very nippy at lower speeds, but seems to lose speed quickly at the same throttle when encountering the slightest incline which I find tiresome, though maybe it's just what I am used to. Am I right in thinking that this characteristic is less of an issue with turbocharged petrols?

And yes, putting back this year's service and hanging onto the existing Ceed is something I have thought about. I don't think that it missing this year's service will likely affect the car's value. In this climate that proper test drives are difficult, probably the only car I would consider without a decent test drive is another Ceed, so hanging onto it for the time being may be the most prudent option.

Thanks again.

it's debatable whether 90bhp on a petrol engine is enough; the 115bhp on my Ceed is plenty fast enough for me, but I wouldn't want anything that was much less responsive.

.

Really?

Your Kia has 115bhp and weighs 1426kg, so each of those 115bhp has to pull 12.4kg

The Ignis AGS (automated manual) has 90bhp and weighs 865kg. So each of those 90bhp has to pull 9.6kg.

0-62mph takes 13.1 seconds for your kia, the Ignis does it in 11.8 seconds (despite the cumbersome AGS).

The Picanto we have is very nippy at lower speeds, but seems to lose speed quickly at the same throttle when encountering the slightest incline which I find tiresome, though maybe it's just what I am used to. Am I right in thinking that this characteristic is less of an issue with turbocharged petrols?

Every car will lose speed on an incline unless you push the throttle further down, laws of physics and all. The only difference is how much more throttle you need to maintain that speed. A turbo diesel or turbo petrol will naturally fair better here having much more torque at lower revs, but a car as light as the Ignis with 90bhp isn't really going to struggle.

Edited by badbusdriver on 19/01/2021 at 18:24

Seems not too much payout compared with buying another car. After all as soon as you change the car the whole cycle starts again.

That's exactly the conclusion I am coming to, at least for another year or so!

I phoned the KIA dealership the other day and my car was valued virtually (by me taking photos) at just over 2k. But they didn't really have anything to sell that I wanted, even looking at trade-ins that are coming up. The newer model of Ceed came in on the 68 plate and the 1.4T-GDi seemed to become more popular at that point, so it would make sense to go for that, but the dealership had nothing at a good price. Another dealer (TrustFord) had one at a really good price and purportedly reduced by 800 pounds, but it seemed too good to be true.

Yesterday I went for a drive in my current car and 'rediscovered' how good it is to drive, and that there is really nothing wrong with it that a bit of money wouldn't fix, a fraction of the cost of changing. Because the Ceed (and KIA) have been so good, I also felt that if I changed for a different make (apart from say Toyota), I might regret that choice.

So after all that, I think I'll stick with my elderly Ceed, and get the suspension arms changed; I can always revisit if something unexpected happens or it becomes unreliable. But going through the decision making process has been very useful, and of course the advice. The ironic thing is that the car being valued at a certain figure made me realise what great value it is to me, well for the moment anyway! Thanks.