Out of the following in your own opinion which is the best new car buy and why?
Corsa 1.0
Fabia 1.2
Polo 1.2
Yaris 1.0 or 1.3
Fiesta 1.25
Looking for something cheap to run and insure, ie insurance GP 1 or 2, 50 mpg, cheap to buy, tax and reliable. And where would be the best place to get a GREAT deal with no part ex?
auto
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Yaris for sure if your not put off by its styling.
Japanese reliability, VVT engines - meaning responsive power and great fuel consumption, flexible accomodation (has a moving bench in the back which enables good leg room or a big boot depending on circumstances), excellent residual values, good packages available from new.
Second choice would be a fabia - VW in drag, modern styling and smart interior, german build quality, querky engines, nice specifications available.
third choice - Fiesta 1.25 Zetec. 1.25 engine is very quick for its size and willing on the motorway (i learned to drive in one of these). These were also built in germany, solid build quality.
4th - Polo - a bit dated now to be honest, but still rock solid, sterdy cars. Tend to be expensive though. Engines dont tend to be the best in terms of power either unless your talking diesel.
5th - Corsa - Ok, quite a functional interior but this car is very drab and boring, needs a facelift and revision really, 1.2 is slow too, however you may bag a bargain on a site like jamjar.
Just my opinions, but I would go for the Yaris.
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Probably the Yaris.
I love my 1.4 Fiesta to bits, but wouldn't want one with less power at all. I'm sure the 1.25 does a fine job (it did in my older, lighter Fiesta), but I'm happy to live with group 5 or 6 insurance and just 35mpg in favour of a more rewarding drive. :-) The quality is good though, mine has taken a pounding since I got it and seems to be coping well.
My gran's Yaris is what I would call a "nice" car, it's got a nice, comfortable interior, it does 50mpg, it's cheap to insure, quiet, and not too powerful. If that's what you look for in a car then it's perfect, she loves it. Personally I'm not sure that a Yaris would suit me though unless it was a 1.5 T-Sport. You may have gathered that nice, cheap, and comfortable doesn't do it for me ;-)
Oh, and the Yaris is ultra reliable as well. Given your requirements, I'll say definately the Yaris, then agree with Carmad that the Skoda would be second choice.
Blue
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I've just noticed that you mentioned the 1.0 Corsa.
I'd say make that your last choice, it's supposedly very, very slow.
Blue
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I'll get this post right eventually!
I would normally say somewhere like Trade Sales is a good place to go without a Part Ex, I did, and I saved about £3,500 off list on my last Fiesta. I was really pleased with them. When I traded in at a main dealer I disclosed the import fact and it didn't even affect the value. :-)
Blue
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If you choose the Fabia, bear in mind that there are two 1.2 engines, one more expensive (and powerful) than the other.
Not sure about Carmad's comments about the Polo being dated. It's based on the same platform as the Fabia and appeared much later. It's actually very similar car in appearance.
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Corsa 1.0 - smooth but very slow - very uncomfortable seats
Fabia 1.2
Polo 1.2 - these two pretty similar - comfortable and refined but the 12v engine is needed and even then progress is modest.
Yaris 1.0 or 1.3 - 1.0 again a bit slow - go for the 1.3
Fiesta 1.25 - very awkward footwell - make sure you take a good test drive.
I bought the Polo, but on reflection and now that the price has come down I think the 1.3 Yaris would be the one
As regards the best deal - have you tried the internet brokers - I used ukcarbroker and saved a packet...
CF.
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Put the Yaris top of your list.I'm sure Trade Sales or Motorpoint will do you a good deal although we bought a demonstrator from the local main dealer who are very helpful ( if slightly expensive).
SWMBO has the 1 litre Yaris and its fine for her daily commute but a bit underpowered.
She will probably get a 1.3 next time.
I drive it occasionally and it is very nippy and responsive.
It gives around 50 mpg on a daily commute on back lanes of around 40 miles.I'm over 6 ft and I have no problem with headroom and the rear seat on runners allows versatility for boot space or rear seat legroom.
Its a Toyota so nothing should go wrong with it. Oh - and HJ recommended it which is why we bought one.
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We are very happy indeed with our 1.3 5 dr Yaris. It's not great for "enthusiastic" driving on twisty roads, but I can't think of any other chink in its armour.
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What about the base model SEAT Ibiza?
Great spec, engine-good value all round really. I think it is What Car? car of the year at present. Cheaper than the Polo.
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hey,
Sorry, i thought you were talking about the previous Polo, not the new one.
Motorpoint are ok but I would probably stick with trade sales. My mum brought a scenic from Motorpoint a couple of years ago and she was quite happy with the car but the paint quality was terrible- even though she had the 'silver seal' protection on it. I also placed a deposit on a Ford Fiesta Zetec S just over a year ago, and due to exceptional circumstances a day later I decided not to go ahead (a close relative passed away). The car hadnt even been delivered to the site (there was a choice of 8 cars)so I told Motorpoint the situation and asked for my £250 deposit back. They were very unhelpful and refused. considering they had the deposit for such a short length of time, I was a bit miffed, but i guess they were legally entitled to. However, i wouldnt buy from them again.
Have you considered a new Citroen C2 - they are supposed to be good cars. Also they are doing no VAT deals and free insurance on their range at present so maybe its worth a look? All also have 4 out of 5 from whatcar
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Oh and one other obvious choice is a Ford Ka. They have excellent dynamics and are fun to drive. I personally dont like the looks but there are some great deals around. You can have a nearly new one with only a few thousand on the clock for under £5,000!
Look at this from trade sales.....
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Ka 1.3 COLLECTION 3DR, HATCHBACK, MANUAL, SILVER, 7386 miles,
£4,999
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There are probably more similar offers nearer on autotrader.co.uk
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Very happy with our 2002 1.0 litre Corsa. Fantastic build quality, very comfortable inside (& I'm 6ft 4in), great to look at and exceedingly economical. Also CD player, aircon & alloys on such a cheap car. No wonder its the UK's best seller for September '03 & January '04 according to the Telegraph and probably Oct / Nov / Dec too.
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Yaris - though I'd have the new 1.3 if I were driving any distances at motorway speeds; plus I believe the 1.3 is Japanese made, unlike the French 1.0 ..
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Fabia or Polo 1.2 with the 4-valve engine (64bhp) - the Fabia has just had a price drop/spec increase, btw. Get the Fabia AS CHEAP AS POSSIBLE via brokers - the residuals will be lower than the Polo. Check out www.broker4cars.co.uk/ ....
3.
None of the others - especially the Corsa !
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You've posted this question many, many times before but here goes anyway, in reverse order of ability IMO.
Corsa 1.0 - don't. Not as truly awful as the old car but still feels way behind the competition. (A mate has a 53 plate one courtesy car - trading up from a Y plate 1.2). You might get one reasonably cheap but the 1.0 is phenomenally slow. The only one of the list without standard ABS.
Fabia 1.2/Polo 1.2 - as are these with the 6 valve engine. At least get the 12 valve and only if it's a good price. TBH the Ibiza is probably the best value of any of the three cars built on this platform as it has the best standard spec and about the lowest price, plus there is no six valve engine to ignore.
Fiesta 1.25 - Not bad but needs to be cheap. If it is, it won't be as laughably slow as the first two choices and is quite stylish, has a nice engine, will be cheap to service and now comes with standard ABS. The Ka also has to be worth considering for £5k-and-a-bit - decent performance (but no ABS) and basic inside, but good to drive, fairly spacious and very cheap to run.
Yaris 1.0 or 1.3 - Cheap to insure and buy, very reliable, low depreciators. Not to everyone's taste but such a good car that you can't overlook them. The 1.3 is also pretty fast.
I also like the Clio very much, but everyone else seems to think they're hugely unreliable. I know about six people with them, ranging from S to 53 registered, and none has had any problems but still...
I would also consider the C2 very seriously as it's a good, modern, pracitcal car that is very similar in concept to the Yaris. Although it's too new to say what reliability will be like, I can't imagine anything being much cheaper to run than one of these.
Prices
Corsa 1.2 SXi £7495 from www.motorprovider.co.uk or 1.0 Life £6599 from www.buymynewcar.co.uk
Clio 1.2 Expression 16v - £6960 from www.newregcars.co.uk (£6400 for the 1.2 Authentique, free insurance offers may be available)
Ibiza 1.2 - £6995 from www.newsouthgateseat.co.uk on the A406 in North London; pre-registered, one only in red
Yaris 1.3 T3 - £7299 from www.newregcars.co.uk or 1.0 T2 - £6199
Fiesta 1.2 Finesse - £6649 from www.buymynewcar.co.uk
Not the most thorough search for all of those and I'm sure I could shave a couple of hundred by looking harder in some cases.
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now you guys have really got me curious do you and Arnold2 really mean that the VW Polo has a 4 or 6 valve engine option??
How many cylinders is that? If it really is less than 2 valves per cylinder how does that work?
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The 1.2 engine in the Polo/Fabia/Ibiza is a three cylinder unit with two (6v) or four (12v) valves per cylinder. No real mystery there.
Incidentally, the 1.0 in the Corsa is also a three cylinder unit.
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Thanks David I could just about get my head round a 3 cylinder engine with 6 valves it was arnold2's 4 valve engine that confused me
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valves per cylinder, of course !
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