A 4 grand 156 would be a very very bad idea. Passats are nice but again, not sure what 4k's going to get you.
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Adam
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I completely agree, I don't think modern alfas are much good when they are older than 3yrs. They are quite complicated unreliable cars which can become very expensive to maintain- avoid!!
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I disagree about Alfas - I think they are honorary French cars, in that a good one is very, very good (see NoDosh) but a bad one can be very bad indeed. Of course, you could argue that a good one would be held onto by an enthusiastic owner...
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Don't get me wrong David, I'd have a 156 in a shot - beautiful cars but I wouldn't pay as little as 4 grand for one.
(I don't have 4 grand but if I did, I'd be saving it for something else!)
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Adam
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I think the backroomers will need a bit more info Carnovice.
It would help to know is how many miles per year your wife is likely to drive.
The most important thing to work out your priorities, it sounds like reliability and running costs are near the top of your list. I would try and avoid "impulse cars" as it would not be hard to end up with a £4K banger
Don't forget that "obvious" cars like the Ford Focus and the Vauxhall Astra would make good buys at that sort of money. Lots about and that helps keep the prices down. A Nissan Almera might suit as well.
And finally make have the car properly inspected if you don't know your way cars before finally parting with your cash.
Hope this helps
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Thanks very much for your help everyone.
Basically she will just be going into town, or to the supermarket and picking up the kids from school - which is a 3 mile round trip.
But apart from that, never going onto the motorway, or ever doing that much driving.
Reliability is very important, and running costs are quite important. But she basically wants more space than her Nissan Micra, and she also says she wants a posh car.
She now says, she also quite likes tha Sabb 93 (I looked on autotrader and a saw a S reg 9-3 2.0 with 66k for £2.5k) or 9-5, along with the Passat or that type of car.
What other suggestions might you have?
Thanks again for all your help everyone.
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She's looking at all the wrong kind of cars for that type driving.
Saabs can be very unreliable and are expensive to service. Look in the other backroom technical section for all the queries about Passats.
The Corolla would have been a very good car for her. However the Honda Jazz is superb and much more roomy than it looks. I would avoid most European cars for the sort of money you are looking to spend. Try to find other Civics, or Almeras (the Almera Tino is very popular).
For a little extra she could have a brand new Hyundai Getz with five year warranty. Perfect for the school run.
For something different but with supreme reliablility try a Subaru. They are thirsty, but if she only does 5,000 miles pa - so what?
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Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive?
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That sounds quite good.
What kind of a Subaru would you reccommend?
(Briefly, whilst on the topic of Saabs, would you reccommend one of them for me (9-5), or should I save a bit more and buy an A6 (Budget £6-7k). I do quite a lot of driving, roughly 10-12K miles per year. This is because I might need to change my car soon as well)
Thanks again
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Reliable? Posh? Bigger than a Micra? Low running costs? Budget of £4000?
That's pretty tough. Perhaps a 4 year old Honda Accord?
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10k -12k miles pa is not a lot. Forget Saabs and Audis - only fleets or self-employed people have them. They are money pits to those on fixed wages.
Tyro's suggestion of an Accord is very helpful. Lots of them around, very reliable, good value second hand. Also Toyota Avensis and Nissan Primera are good value and the Mondeo or Focus are the best European models to look at as well.
For Subarus, look at the Forester or Imprezza (not Turbos). Solid reliablity.
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Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive?
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I think the old model Volvo S40 would be a good compromise, its not "posh" but it is going to be relatively cheap compared to some options. You could get a 99 model at a dealer for the money quite easily. The Accord is still the best option, but as that has been mentioned I offer the s40 as an alternative.
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I've had a look on the Great Trade Centre website, because they're in London, easy to find, and have a good selection of cars you might reasonably expect to find, but without particularly endorsing them.
With my utterly sensible hat on, and a budget of about £11k total (I hope) I would suggest:
For you, a 2001 51 registered Honda Accord, which is the closest equivalent to a Passat from Japan, and so should have very low running costs. They have a 2001 51 registered Accord 1.8 Sport in silver, a saloon which to my mind looks better and is actually cheaper than the hatchback, with a very good spec, 50k miles (low for this type of car) and up at £5,999.
For her, a 2001 Y registered Honda Civic Max, which has air con, alloy wheels and loads of space, but is a 1.4 manual so should be pretty comfortable, and looks new/posh ish. This one has done 75k, but at only 4k miles per year (if she does the school/supermarket trip 3 times per day), it'll take her 6 years to get it past 100,000 and even that mileage isn't a problem for a car like this. That's £4,799.
I haven't deliberately gone for Hondas at the exclusion of everything else, but they are usually very reliable, more characterful than a Toyota, have a better image than a Skoda and cheaper than a Lexus. In other words, if you don't really know what you're doing, they're a safe bet.
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Reliability is very important, and running costs are quite important. But she basically wants more space than her Nissan Micra, and she also says she wants a posh car.
I suspect that from her list of 3 attributes (cheap, reliable and posh) she will have to choose two.
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Now then, carnovice ... having sorted out cars, perhpas we could addresss your meat problem? :-)
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"she wants a posh car"
I think she might change her mind after a few school and supermarket runs, where nippiness and good visibility are likely to be greater assets. Given that she likes her Micra, I think the Almera might be a sensible move. 4k should buy a nice one.
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If it is only going to be used for the school run and going to the supermarket then it might be wise to take out once a month or so and give it a good gallop on a fast country road. Cars used for stop start wear quickly because they don't get a chance to warm up to operating temperature. You should also change the oil more often than the manufacturers recommended changes. Maybe once every three months or so. A life of 3 mile runs is hard on a car.
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A non-turbo Impreza would be a good buy, ultra reliable and good value because everyone wants turbos.
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For your application I would buy the Japanese car that is the 'right size'. The Almera probably fits the bill OK. The Primera is a great car, but note that it has quite a large turning circle (as does the Passat) which can be a bit of bind in urban motoring.
Agree that a non-turbo Subaru would be fine - but note that it will be a little heavier on petrol than, say, the Nissan. I wouldn't bother with any turbo'd or 'performance' car - you'll never use it properly.
Buying a 'prestige' brand for 3-mile runs is very much a luxury and could be a bit of bind in the longer run when the higher bills for running costs start to arrive.
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