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A friend's daughter aged 19 at University asked me for advice about buying her first car. Absolute top price is £3k. She was staggered at the potential cost of insurance. I suggested a Fiesta, Micra or Nova because of relatively cheap running costs but there is the problem of street cred! Such vehicles do not provide the right image. She may eventually see sense when confronted with the running costs of older Clio's, 206's etc. but I would be grateful for any other suggestions. Are there any cars at this price that combine image and economy?
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You might get an early Toyota Yaris for just under £3000 but there won't be many about, or not that I like them : KA,Corsa, Polo, Ibiza, Arosa, Lupo. I think HJ said Fiat Punto with 1.1 or 1.2 8v (Fire Engines) are OK.
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No easy way to say this bert but she's going to pay a LOT for insurance. I'm 18 and have just got rid of my first car after a year's use. Third party only was close to 2 and a half grand on a Fiesta. I was told this was because it was 16v and a Ghia which is a load of rubbish. Must be that fake wood that makes the car so unstable on the road. Anyway.. to help a little I'll describe what a few of my mates have.
One has a Punto which at 2k I'd steer away from. (I presume she has 3k overall which means a lot will need to be spent on insurance)
The other has an M reg Polo. Apart from needing a new exhaust last week, it has given her trouble free motoring for a year. They are very solid cars even a '95 example with close to 100,000 miles on the clock. I think she only pays around £1100 for insurance as well.
The other has an R reg Fiesta which doesn't look too bad. It's an LX and again I think he pays a lot less than 2 grand - somewhere ITRO £1500.
I'd look at Polos if you have the budget. I know they are more pricey than the Fiesta of the same and even newer age but they are solidly built. Personally I think a Punto with the same miles and even a Clio is asking for trouble and you are right - not necessarily running costs but the inevitable repair costs are going to be a lot.
I could be wrong with some of the above figures but they are roughly correct from what I can remember being told. If you can get a Mark 4 Fiesta I can't see it being that "uncool" but I'm bound to say that...I had one.
Hope that helps
Adam
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What about a fiat cinquecento or seicento? Group 1 insurance, 50 mpg, and (arguably) a better image that fiesta, nova etc. Also very cheap to buy. GF ran a cincequento for a few years without major problems. Major downside is safety (or lack thereof).
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If you do low miles then use classic insurance to drive that price down. Add a 1950's Land Rover to learn some driving skills. Depreciation and car theft should not be a problem. Now that has a certain style some student may like.
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I have been researching insurance costs for my 17-year old son, provisional licence, and am looking at Meganes, Astras and Puntos. 1.4 8v Meganes (OK, no street cred) insured in his name are £1874 with Tesco online, which sounded pretty good for group 4 insurance. The upside is that you can get a 1997 Megane with electric bits and metallic paint for around £1600. As my budget is around this mark, it's the obvious choice for me - particularly in light of it's safety record (all three cars above have 4 star NCAP rating - the Megane for years 1996-98, but the Astra and Punto only for 1999 onwards which pushes them beyond my budget).
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there is the problem of street cred! Such vehicles do not provide the right image.
But does that *really* matter when most of the time it's either gonna be stuck in some university car park next to all the other battered Nova's, Fiesta's, Micra's, ect, or left at home on the drive or roadside while she's at uni?
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Car-with-street-cred parked near student accommodation probably equals car-promptly-nicked. Few campuses provide secure parking for undergrads, and in many universities students live off-campus in downbeat neighbourhoods, where a car left unattended for days on end provides an easy target.
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my first car while a student was a rover 213 - insurance was 1,307 quid.
from my experience cars which are over 12 years old have cred from the aged design and are alot cheaper to insure. the car served me well, proved reliable and was very nippy.
street cred was never an issue as when it came down to performance, friends in 1.2 novas with spoilers, crome exhausts and fog lights where no match for my quick 1.3 honda engine!
how i miss that car.
how i miss that engine - my hyundai accent mitsubishi 1.3 unit while being more modern is nothing compared to the honda one found inside my rover 213.
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Thank you very much for all the comments and suggestions. I think she might be buying a bicycle instead!
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As insurance will be the killer, get something that only has to be insured third party. Fiat Punto will give sufficient newness, P/R reg for under 1,000 if you're careful, not to look like an old banger. (Depreciation is atrocious on these, so don't expect to get anything back!)
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I think she might be buying a bicycle instead
Would that be a top of the range mountain bike with full supension, Shimano Brakes, etc - or a humble folding shopping bike with a basket on the front to carry her books in? ;o)
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>> I think she might be buying a bicycle instead Would that be a top of the range mountain bike with full supension, Shimano Brakes, etc - or a humble folding shopping bike with a basket on the front to carry her books in? ;o)
The former would get nicked even quicker that a nice car would. I think every Uni in Britain has a problem with bicycle thefts.
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Why go for an overpriced underspecified little shoebox just becuase you are a student?
I am also a full time student and I currently drive a Mondeo 2.0 Ghia X RSAP. It's a great car, was fantastic value for money, cheaper and better specified than the equivilent Fiesta and insurance is only £1200 a year (Which is the sort of money most things cost at our age).
Before that I had a Citroen Xantia 1.9 TD SX which was great on fuel, reliable, comfortable, and cost half the price of the equivilent Saxo or what have you.
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"I think she might be buying a bicycle instead!"
How much transport does she need? Would a small scooter be sufficient? Just a thought.
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Might I suggest that she goes for an older Polo, say 1990 odd, that has been reasonably maintained, and stick the rest of the money in the bank?
These cars are tough and you should be able to get a good one for a few hundred. With the small estate boot they can be very practical for all her gear as well.
H
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