Right lads and lasses. I'm buying a car, and ideally need to do it fairly sharpish (Saturday) I have 5k to spend. Want something stylish, and easy on the juice. After that I'm not too fussy. I seen a nice 05 Diesel Golf for 5k, and seen some really nice 05 Mazda RX8s for sale. I'm awfully tempted by those. So does anyone know what they are like on fuel, tax, insurance etc Also anyone else have any other suggestions. Every bit of info helps, as I'm trying to do this quickly Thanks in advance!
Why the big rush ? not asking to be smart but surely if you have a look around without as much pressure you could get a better deal ? Had a few golfs over the years and never had too much trouble, Everyone has horror stories about different makes and others will have great stories, all down to personal choice i suppsoe There are a few on here in the car and sales game maybe they will see this and could tell you more or may have suitable ones in stock
05 Mazda RX8s Not gonna be easy on juice <25mpg apparently, or insurance. Did you get your full license? If not then a big engine is gonna hit hard for insurance... Rushing to buy a car is a nightmare too, as you might convince yourself it's the "right car" just because you need it... Golfs are fine, but too girly for me so I won't comment http://www.carzone.ie/search/Opel/Astra/SXI-1.4-/201142205074716/advert?channel=CARS These can be a nice car in the flesh... the 3 door ones are decent... 1.4 engine won't kill you on insurance/tax/fuel More of those: http://www.carzone.ie/search/result...=EUROS&searchResultsView=THUMBNAIL&maxrows=30 Alternatively, buy my car off me... and spend loads on petrol and tax and insurance
I know totally agree Gerry. But I'm currently using my Ma's car to get to and from Arklow/Dublin. But that needs a service, and she needs it over the next couple of weeks, so leaves me in the lurch. That and I'll end up spending the money Also any info on the mileage a car can do, whats standard for a car to do a year, anything I should check/look out for when I'm inspecting the car etc. Pros/Cons of Petrol vs Diesel I probably will take my time, but ideally would like it sorted the weekend as to cause minimal hassle to myself,lol (Yes I am a lazy basstid)
Yeah I like the Astra alright, but it has to be a certain type,the ones that look sleek and sporty are nice.
Golf would be ideal but at €5k i think theres something up, what mileage is on it, do a check on it to see if any finance/clocking etc. I work in car sales and sold a 04 mark 5 golf with 90k miles plus full history just before christmas for €6500 and that was cheap enough (could have sold it 5 or 6 times over) so just wary of it. If that doesnt work out I have an new model 04 astra 1.7 diesel club (alloys, air conditioing, multifunction steering wheel etc.), just had new timing belt, service and new brake pads along with a valet, can be viewed on www.mldautos.com. also will give a 6 month warranty for irishkoppers hehe http://www.carzone.ie/search/Opel/Astra/CLUB-1.7/413234544512700/advert?channel=CARS
An ideal car would be doing less than 10,000 miles per year, it's not a bad thing if it has done more... but it's good if it has done a bit less... So e.g. a 05 car I would expect to see no more than 60-70,000 miles on it... Petrol and Diesel are similar on price now, so it comes down to MPG... If the diesel version can do more MPG than a petrol, go for it. Diesel's are slower than petrol though... Ideally if your splashing 5k on a car, bring a mechanic with you... all I know to look for is NCT and make sure the car feels tight on the test drive... when you brake there should be no wobbles what so ever... loosen your grip on the steering wheel and brake... easy way to test. Also, open the bonnet, and take off the oil cap, if there's any sign of white stuff around the cap, walk away... If the car has aircon, see if it works, it should blow really cold air within seconds, if it's not working find out why Ehm, not too sure on any other advice as I'm fairly clueless... just listen out for bumps and rattles when driving, turn off the radio / air to give a good listen ^_^
OH BTW stay away from RX8's, a buddy had one couldnt give it away, he stalled it at the lights one day and couldnt start it, ended up flooding the damn thing and had to get it towed away.
if you are buying a diesel car be very careful. buy it at low mileage and make sure its perfect. have it checked over from top to bottom. diesel engines are very complex so plenty of things can go wrong and they get expensive. turbos egr etc have to be right. a turbo will set you back over 1000. also they need to be serviced a lot more than petrol. there great and cheap to run but be careful!
Cheers Ste, I'll remember some of that hopefully, Yeah a car with no rattles is a must, I need it to be quiet. Noise drives me demented. Golf has 251,000km on the clock. @miked cheers for the info, the Astra you have seems great. But not the shape I'm looking for unfortunately.
On a serious note, as people have said above, take your time buying a motor - seriously! Offer €5k for this. Clean jap import, nice retro wheels on it too (revos I think). Join the mini club Eric The best craic you'll have in a motor...
Not sure if I agree that diesels are more complex than petrol engines or that they need more servicing. I'd be much more inclined to buy a diesel car with 100000 miles than a petrol with 90000. Anyway Elvis, by the sounds of things you are looking for a hatchback? Therefore I'd look at golfs, corolla, almera, focus, 307 or astra in your price range. See which style you like. As regards petrol or diesel, bar my first car I've always bought diesel mainly because I do a lot of miles and it is more economical. However the tax is usually higher as the engine size is generally higher (its only from 08 that emissions come into play) so that has to come into play. While a 1.4 petrol might not be as economical as a 1.9 diesel the tax is up to 300 higher. Regarding mileage, I'd be looking at a diesel with less than 100000 miles or a petrol with less than 80000. You'll have the option of a private sale or a dealer. While a private sale is usually cheaper you don't have the comfort of a dealer where you can possibly get a warranty. And there are some chancers out there. Make sure you test drive the car, not not just a drive around the block, take it for a good spin and at a range of speeds too. A car might not rattle at 30 but will at 100km/h. If possible get a mechanic to check the car for you, lets face it 5000 is a lot of money so you want to be sure. Make sure you lift the bonnet and check for any obvious signs of wear and tear and check to see if the timing belt is marked as being changed. Ideally the car will have a service history with all this reported. Remember that in todays market you could get a car advertised for 6000 for 5000, do not be afraid to chance your arm. People selling cars know that there are loads of options out there so they are willing to drop prices.
Don't know what kind of driving experience you have have but the RX8, rear wheel drive, rotary engine can be a hell of a handful lad. You only ever want to drive that car like you've stolen it because it redlines all the way up to 9000 RPM.
RX8's are lovely but they're not that comfortable to drive and noisy as fcuk. The biggest problem with those rotary engines is the amount of oil they burn through, you have to check the oil just about everytime you fill the tank so a load of them have siezed. I'd worry about picking a second hand one of these up due to the wear on the engine so i'd probably avoid. Avensis are a great jammer and the second hand top end car market has savage value in it. I was in a taxi last week, 08 GS300 top of the range full leather electrics the works and he bought it for €7k with only 50k on the clock! Expensive to run though
Eric, Have a chat with Rev before you do anything mate ... he knows cars, needless to say - If your dead set on buying a second hand car and not adding anything to the €5k, you may get a better car for your money by buying in the UK and importing it. From what I hear, it's easy to do. - Another option, is put the €5k in as a deposit and finance a newer car. Most of the larger car manufacturers are now offering their own finance deals - like Volkswagen Bank for example, BMW, Fiat etc are also doing it and most at very cheap rates.
251K that's over 150k miles. I wouldn't personally pay €5k for a 05 model with kind of milage. A diesel will do way more milage that a petrol engine, personally I won't pay €5k for a golf with >100k milage on a petrol engine. It depends on the driving and the indeed the driver !! if the car belongs to a sales rep who's driving up and down the Dublin road a car can have serious milage ( but it's milage that will be kinder to the car ) but if a car is driving across country roads all Year then it could be completely bolloxed after 100k miles. Personally I just bought a 07 Mondeo petrol for €7k with 72k miles on the clock. I'd say for €5k you could definitely improve on a 05 golf with > 100k miles. Finally, the best value for second hand cars in the Country is Dublin by a Country mile. They simply have the most cars to sell. So by advise is to go to Dublin if you can at all. There's cracking value out there at the minute for second hand cars. Best of luck.
One other thing, after 10 years now you have to NCT the car ever Year which making ownig a 10 Year old car a pain in the arse. An 05 model had only 3 Years before it's 10 years old. Basically a 10 Year car now is worth fcuk all, no matter what it is. You'd be lucky to get €1.5k for it in three Years time. So no re-sale value, you need to build that into your purchase. If you buy a 07 for example you may be able some re-sale value for it if you sell in 2/3 Years time.