Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection

Honest John Back Room » Motoring discussion
What is life like with your car? Let us know and win £500 in John Lewis vouchers | No thanks
View Threaded
Sun 20 Jan 2013 13:29
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - kedar301

hi all,

i am totaly confused which car to get,

Follwoing an accident my Toyota Avensis T3-x D4-D written off, and i am now looking at a new car,

Third party yet didn't accept the liability so i am looking for a car with lower insuarance as my premium will go up at least for next six months,

we are parents with a 15months old baby, so a car should be able to carry a big push chair along with shopping, so a decent size boot is a must,

I will be using this care for 85% motorway drives which will ve 70 miles a day. and in town for weekends.

I recently got 3 points on my licence carying more than 5 people and had 3 points while talking on mobile 1 and half year back.

So.....please help my budget is £2000

I was looking for Ford Focus/Estate 1.6 Zetec Diesel but looks like they will have alsmost same insurance group as Avensis T3-x 2.0 D4-D. But need some help on selection.

Thanks in Advance

Kedar

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 20 Jan 2013 17:20
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - Avant

You need a smaller car, cheaper to insure, with plenty of room. Try a Skoda Fabia estate or an Octavia estate, but shop around online for insurance as the Focus ought to be cheaper to insure than the Avensis, and could still be a possibility.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 20 Jan 2013 18:49
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - kedar301

is Skoda Fabia or Octavia cheaper than Focus? thye have bigger engines than Focus 1.6 right?

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 20 Jan 2013 19:11
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - Avant

No, you can get Fabias and Octavias with 1.2 or 1.4 petrol, 1.6 diesel as well as 2.0 in the Octavia. Insurance groups depend on other things as well as engine size anyway.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 20 Jan 2013 20:13
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - kedar301

just looked at Skoda Fabia 1.4 diesel, seems very nice but will it have as good specs in it as Ford C-Max Zetec, both sounds same price at abour £2000.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 20 Jan 2013 20:28
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - sandy56

for this low budget you should buy on condition, not on the basis of a badge.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 20 Jan 2013 23:19
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - Avant

I agree entirely with that, Sandy, although Kedar is looking for somethiong with a big boot and a lower insurance group, which narrows it down a bit.

Kedar - a Fabia Elegance probably has more kit than a Zetec-badged Ford - but think in advance what particular bits of equipment you want and check that the car you're looking at has them.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 21 Jan 2013 12:09
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - kedar301

www.gumtree.com/p/cars-vans-motorbikes/skoda-fabia...1

Skoda Fabia

www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20130112489...p

Ford C Max Zetec

Which one should be better?

Time to decide

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 21 Jan 2013 16:36
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - corax

Kedar - how did your Avensis stand up to the accident? I drive one myself, albeit a petrol one, and they seem to be very strong cars bodily.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 21 Jan 2013 17:27
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - kedar301

without avensis u would be in my funeral, it happened at 65mph and the other car was 85mph my gear box had some damage n the door smashed but still after the incident i drove home

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 21 Jan 2013 18:14
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - corax

That is impressive - Glad you survived intact.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 22 Jan 2013 07:07
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - kedar301

so anyone can help me to choose between these two cars please?

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 22 Jan 2013 11:46
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - kedar301

took a plunge and bought this Ford Focus CMax 1.6 TDCi Zetec with 3 previous owners.

Edited by kedar301 on 22/01/2013 at 11:47

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 22 Jan 2013 19:35
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - gordonbennet

Phew, thank goodness its manual.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 24 Jan 2013 07:54
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - kedar301

at the end i rejected the 3 owner Ford C Max and planing to buy another same spec and same milage, 1 owner ex-mobility vehicle without any special changes. this has full ford service history without any fault.

Manual again. i hate auto.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 24 Jan 2013 16:28
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - Bilboman

I am quite surprised that anyone is seriously recommending a second hand diesel. As countless letters from HJ reveal, a s/h diesel of 3 years' vintage or more is a ticking time bomb in terms of imminent replacement parts (DMF, DPF, ECRG and miscellaneous other woes) and some hefty three and even four figure bills.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 24 Jan 2013 16:52
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - RT

I am quite surprised that anyone is seriously recommending a second hand diesel. As countless letters from HJ reveal, a s/h diesel of 3 years' vintage or more is a ticking time bomb in terms of imminent replacement parts (DMF, DPF, ECRG and miscellaneous other woes) and some hefty three and even four figure bills.

Buying a 3-year old diesel and running it for 3 years, can't be any worse than buying a new diesel and running it for 6 years.

DPF is only an issue for those who shouldn't have bought a diesel in the first place.

It's not like 3-year old petrol engines are bullet-proof.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 25 Jan 2013 08:53
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - kedar301

guys this one is 2004 model and it is ex-mobility with full ford service history its not the £ YEARs old car.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 25 Jan 2013 11:22
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - notmyname

HI

Please can someone enlighten me on the issues of buying a auto cmax as mentioned above?

I was looking at a 2008/9 mondeo or octavia auto diesel arround the £7/9k mark, should i rethink?

Also how much cash do you tink i can get off at an independant dealer on one of these?

Any opinions on car giant?

Thanks

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sat 26 Jan 2013 10:30
Ford/Toyota/Honda?VW?? - Family Car selection - Galad

I have to agree with Bilboman. Buying a used diesel is a lottery. I watched my neighbour's son 'drive' her new beloved Golf TDi for 8 months racing it from cold and screeching into the driveway on two wheels shutting down the engine with the turbo still spinning gasping for oil. As I said, it lasted 8 months before the engine blew - it's none of my business so I haven't told her why her car was written off!

There's also the risk that a used diesel has been mis-fuelled of course and the seller is hardly going to tell you!

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

We give you the low down on how to save on insurance, little-known tricks and tips, what insurance groups mean and how to use insurance aggregators to beat insurers.

Insurance group finder and how to save on insurance

From which small car to buy at which price point to the best UK-built cars, our Top 10s have the lot. Click now for your shortlist.

Unsure of what to buy? Our Top 10s are here to help you....