Went out to look for a "new" car for the wife today to replace her 12yr old micra.

Was looking for something for 2-2.5k.

Looked at a

w reg Astra 1.6

w reg Vauxhall Agila

51 citroen xsara estate.

51 fiat punto

Thats about it.

None of them really impressed me much.

Looking at Autotrader it seems if i get out of the Hull area and head for Leeds, Doncaster, Rotherham area ie 60 miles or so away there seems to be a much better choice.

If anyone can recomend a good buy for 2-2.5k then i would like to hear about it.

Fabia?

Did you really look at a Vauxhall Agila!!!

They remind me of Postman Pats van!

How about a VW Golf. May be a bit older but they go on forever, nice size, fairly easy to maintain.??

Hyundai Accent, lot of car for little money?

Seat Ibiza...plenty around at this price.

Just a few fresh ideas for you mate

beat me to it, Lil..

seats ibiza's aplenty normally for this kind of money..

Golfs too..

or even Polo's..

Did you really look at a Vauxhall Agila!!!

They remind me of Postman Pats van!

How about a VW Golf. May be a bit older but they go on forever, nice size, fairly easy to maintain.??

Hyundai Accent, lot of car for little money?

Seat Ibiza...plenty around at this price.

Just a few fresh ideas for you mate

I agree with you on the Agila. But the wife says she quite likes it for nipping around town with the kids in. I told her what i thought but it is her who will be driving it, not me, i will just be maintianing it :(

Hyundai Accent?? Don't know much about them. Do they come with 5 doors?

The only Fabias i have seen have been the old 1.4 8V, i didn't think this engine is up to much.

Golf would be a Mk3 then i guess?? Any particular engine to avoid or go for?

I think the smallest engine was a 1.4 Golf which is a bit gutless. The 1.6 was the favourite petrol engine...which is probably the best bet for your wife and price range. The diesel was a 110 IIRC but these gofor a bit more money. Bu you may get a higher mileage one

All I know really:D

The 1.4 8V Fabia I thought was good, though it would be an older model as you say. They are about 75bhp I think

Daft as it may seem.. have you looked on somewhere like Pistonheads? if you enter the price-range it gives yuo quite a few 'options'.. here Ive set it as £2,500 just to see how it goes... Gallery of Search Results

another Micra?

Older Yaris, Fiat Panda, MK 5 Fiesta or as suggested another micra.

If you can stretch to 4k you can get a year old one of most of these in petrol form.

Failing that should be plenty of most of these as the hire companies use them, although the Yaris is less so.

Otherwise things like the citroen C2/C3 come in pretty cheap now too.

Daihatsu Sirion? Cheap as chips & very reliable.

Hyundai Getz? Cheap, long warranty, reliable.

Can't see me getting a yaris, panda or C3 for 2-2.5k surely??

Look at a Felicia - you will still have money in your pocket if you get a later one, and there are plenty of spares around

looking for car for wife today - a swap ?? ( retreats to corner,before wifes union beat him up)

Maybe off to look at a 1.2 Punto on wednesday. 2000 W-reg FSH, 1 owner, 64k

Found a Yaris up the road in Colton, if that helps? That's what I'd put my money on:

1999 V Reg TOYOTA Yaris 1.0 16v VVTi GS

3 Doors, Manual, Hatchback, Petrol, Red. Adjustable seats, Adjustable steering column/wheel, Central locking, Computer, Driver airbag, Electric windows, Head restraints, Folding rear seats, Immobiliser, Passenger airbag, Power assisted steering, Radio/Cassette, Rear headrests. Insurance Group:2, £2,495.

Doesn't mention mileage, which could be an issue then.

Colton's about 40 miles up the road from Hull...

EDIT: And there were quite a few more examples, if you stretch the search radius to about 60 miles.

Steve

Found a Yaris up the road in Colton, if that helps? That's what I'd put my money on:

1999 V Reg TOYOTA Yaris 1.0 16v VVTi GS

3 Doors, Manual, Hatchback, Petrol, Red. Adjustable seats, Adjustable steering column/wheel, Central locking, Computer, Driver airbag, Electric windows, Head restraints, Folding rear seats, Immobiliser, Passenger airbag, Power assisted steering, Radio/Cassette, Rear headrests. Insurance Group:2,

found this felicia Classic for

Really trying to get something with 5 doors though. I reckon she would go for a yaris though, nice cars if you ask me.

They do offer a 5dr version, but can be tricky to find - I think most were bought in 3dr. Worth an Autotrader scan though?

To me, a decent car that fits the bill is worth travelling for, so I'd always search nationwide - but maybe that's not possible/appropriate here.

Steve

Found what looks to be a tidy one over in Bradford:

'99 TOYOTA YARIS 1.0 16v VVTi GS 5dr Hatchback

Manual, 54,500 miles, 5 Door Red with colour coded bumpers, Central locking, Drivers airbag, Folding rear seats, Front electric windows, Front head restraints. One lady owner from new. £2,495. ono

I'll shut up about Yarii now

Steve

Fiestas are pretty cheap, common and generally solid, and reasonable to drive at that budget (if you get one with power steering)

Yaris generally have a good reputation but I've no experience of them... but probably a decent buy too.

Fiat Stilo????

I wouldn't touch anything Italian at this money, personally.

Steve

I agree with Steve. Japanese is probably the way forward.

Nissan Almera/Toyota Corolla? Very underatted imho.

Been looking at some Peugot 306's on autotrader

Aren't these supposed to be pretty good?

Tom's response got me thinking - I remember seeing pretty tidy looking Almera GTi's at the 2k mark!

Terrific for the money, but maybe not wholly suitable for this challenge :P

Steve