First Car

[Spitfire01]

I'm finally starting to learn to drive, almost 22 now, and i've been looking at some cars on auto traders website and others, but what advice would you guys give on a first car and things i should look out for..looking to get all the help I can. gonna have roughly 2k 2.5k on the car itself leaving enough to get it insured.
any help would be welcome.

[Andy3536]

Corsas and Fiestas are both cheap to run and easy to maintain and get parts for while being cheap to insure.
Unless you have your eye on something specific?

[Barney]

hunt out some group 1 insurance cars and live with it until your 25 with 3 years NCB then you can look at something better

[idlehanz]

First time car buy.

Well firstly you probably need to decided what type of car you want. Small, Family hatch/saloon, Estate, etc Depending on your needs.

Next Look in to what's available, against the type of car you want.
Make a short list of the make n models and then use the car traders / dealers to go test drive the cars your interested in and make few notes of what you like about them and how they compare. Dealers and traders will want you to buy, and if they respect you properly then maybe you'll come back to them when your ready to buy, not when they are ready.

Then read the reviews available and check out the costs, common issues etc and work to make a decision on what you want. It would be pertinant at this stage to also just check what your insurance costs would be.

Then you can start looking for the one that fits the bill, take your time and make sure what ever you decided to buy your 100% happy with.

There are some good deals to be had. Particularly on the less desriable cars. I help a friend recently to buy a car for a max budget of 1500notes. After looking at high millage Skoda octavia's n Vectras. He ended up with a Nissan Primera Sport (1.8) with 57k miles on the clock, good service history for £1400 notes. For him with parts being about 25% cheaper than other 2 options it was a good buy. I dare say now you can get some even cheaper deals as that was some time earlier this year.

But my best advice is to follow your insticts when you get the position when your ready to buy. Whether it's trade or private never be afraid to walk away. In fact if you feel pressured, then often you're better to walk away. Also if you can't get answers on when things like Cam belts have been changed etc. Tread carefully.

Ohh and take a friend with you when you do go to view cars. Often their impartiality in the decision can keep you on the straight and narrow.

[Spitfire01]

thanks alot guys gonna look into it more.. I'm only gonna need a hatchback i'll start doing some research on the sorts of group 1 insurace cars and work from there...i'll keep you posted in here if that's alright with things i've found just to run it by you..

[Jasp]

As previously said Corsas and Fiestas are a popular fav both hatchbacks, i personally wouldn't spend more then 500-1000 on your first car as you will crash it, bump it, scuff the wheels, etc in retro spec my first car was a 2Ltr Astra CDX with full GSI bodykit and heated leather, god i loved it but the insurance was £1600 TPFT, the car cost £250 when i was 21.

[Theo]

1.0l K11 Nissan Micra

There are loads these around in superb condition with relatively low mileage and full/decent service histories. Parts are cheap (if they're ever needed), economy is great. The ride, while not really built for long motorway trips, is quite comfortable and fun around the bends.

Insurance will be pretty good too, on the 1 litre and even the 1.3.

[schmunk]

Nissan Micra

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo...

[breathes]

...ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

[Will404]

Well, I (my dad) just paid the deposit for my (family) first car, an 05 reg, 1.2 fiat punto mk2, 5 door. I am well pleased (although I dont get it till the 19th, and cant drive it till the 21st), but it is in group 3, and insurance with my mom as main driver and dad and me as extra's comes out at £995 from admiral, which I thought was ok

[Mblaster]

For me it's gotta be the McLaren F1. Looks awesome, still performs awesomely against the current crop of supercars, and you've gotta love the central seating position

[MadduckUK]

For me it's gotta be the McLaren F1. Looks awesome, still performs awesomely against the current crop of supercars, and you've gotta love the central seating position

probably should have read the thread

[Theo]

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo...

[breathes]

...ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

I take it that is an impression of a Micra with a sport backbox?

[eshrules]

probably should have read the thread

I think someone confused his tabs and meant to post that here :

your Dream Car?


as for the OP.... the suggested corsa/fiesta whilst obvious, are perfect first cars. Worth considering are the german counterparts, Seat Ibiza, Skoda Fabia & the VW Polo.

stick to an engine 1.4 or smaller and you'll be laughing on all counts. keep your nose clean till you're 25 and you'll have 2/3 years NCB to go for something a bit more adventurous.

Try to steer clear of loans and HP, first car should always be cash bought, I learnt that the hard way.

[idlehanz]

1.0l K11 Nissan Micra

There are loads these around in superb condition with relatively low mileage and full/decent service histories. Parts are cheap (if they're ever needed), economy is great. The ride, while not really built for long motorway trips, is quite comfortable and fun around the bends.

Insurance will be pretty good too, on the 1 litre and even the 1.3.

+1 on the Micra, but only the 1.3, if you want a real hoot, get a 1.3 N-CVT autobox. Anyone that's diven one will tell you these are good for a laugh.

[Behemoth]

The 1.3 older shape Micra's go like stink, 92 BHP, add to that the small vody and the =y are lots of fun

The older shape Fiesta's aren't too bad, I'm borrowing one while the garage that fixed my steering rack on my vectra are straigthening the steering wheel for me. They leant me a 1.3 Fiesta (not a Zetec though) just the normal 1.3 Duratec engine. Same engine they use in the Ford KA, I have to say as I've driven the KA with the same engine (which was a bit faster as its a lighter car) I'd sooner have the Fiesta as it feels a bit more solid, even if perhaps the body is a bit too heavy for the engine.

Still great cars though, found it really fun to drive and it's a doddle to park

[Vimeous]

Last gen Fiesta, current Micra or Fabia are ideal.
Both are safe and cheap to insure on a 1l.
Most mass-market superminis start to wearout beyond about 60k miles. I'm thinking Fiesta, Corsa, C3, Punto, Clio etc. The VW-group cars (Polo,Ibiza,Fabia) seem to last better but are more expensive if they go wrong.

While you do need to consider your needs I'm afraid insurance will still dictate what you can have until your no-claims builds up a little. You may be old enough to get fast-tracked insurance so you gain 1yrs NCB after 10months rather than 12 to help you towards a better car later.

Don't worry too much about performance initially, go with what you can afford to learn to drive and repair. You'll learn plenty about driving quickly even in a 1l (conservation of momentum etc).

Happy hunting