# Reliable 2nd hand car - £1,000-£1,500 - Recommendations?



## fishchicken (Aug 18, 2013)

Hi all,

Any recommendations for a decent car at this low price range? I am buying for my partner, as hers died this week, and this is all I can afford right now.

She really loved VW Beetles, and I can get sub 100K, 02ish 2.0litre, 12 month MOT version for this price; anyone got any experience of these cars of this age?

Alternatively Im looking at Seat Ibizas (1.21.6), similar age, mileage etc.

Or Ford Focus (I had a focus years ago was great)/KAs (hate the look of these)?

VW polos (would be older, more miles)

Yaris?

Any ideas please?


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## J•RED (Feb 10, 2013)

mk4 golf 1.9tdi (mechanical injection), sold mine for £900 last year with 160,000 on the clock and it was still going strong. It didnt look too nice but it was solid and probably good for another 100k or more.


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## Blade_76 (Aug 11, 2004)

Ford Puma


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## neilc (Aug 8, 2011)

Blade_76 said:


> Ford Puma


Like your thinking  But also consider Clio and if reliability is key then dare I say it a MICRA..


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## fishchicken (Aug 18, 2013)

neilc said:


> Blade_76 said:
> 
> 
> > Ford Puma
> ...


The car that died was a Clio, we wont be going anywhere near a Clio (or any french cars) in the near future!!


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

Hi, Vauxhall Corsa C. 2002-2006.
Hoggy.


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## fishchicken (Aug 18, 2013)

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. She's out of work at the moment hence why we're scrapping the barrel with this one. She had a Corsa for her first car so doesn't want to go "backwards"...

I saw some rubbish cars today for this price. Im tempted to actually just get hers fixed and hope it passes its next MOT to last out a year till she's back on her feet and able to get a decent car again; the clutch has gone, how much do you think that should be for an 02 Clio?


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## Mark-TT (Mar 29, 2014)

Would a VW Lupo be an option or too small?


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## fishchicken (Aug 18, 2013)

Mark-TT said:


> Would a VW Lupo be an option or too small?


Id rather she had a small VW than a crap Renault!


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## TheVarix (Apr 3, 2013)

Had a Puma 1.7 before my TT and I loved it. Reliable and great fun to drive. In fact I would still have it had it not been written off by a work colleague at my workplace's car park...


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## red3.2 (Jun 30, 2008)

I'm a bit biased towards VW/Audi but if you are thinking of buying a Beetle be aware they lie in a high group of VED tax especially the 2.0 Ltr ( same group as my TT ) and a bit greedy on oil but within manual limits, fuel consumption isn't the best either, but having said that we loved it. Now sold but replaced with a 2013 Beetle Convertible, which is a vast improvement over the old one.


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## fishchicken (Aug 18, 2013)

red3.2 said:


> I'm a bit biased towards VW/Audi but if you are thinking of buying a Beetle be aware they lie in a high group of VED tax especially the 2.0 Ltr ( same group as my TT ) and a bit greedy on oil but within manual limits, fuel consumption isn't the best either, but having said that we loved it. Now sold but replaced with a 2013 Beetle Convertible, which is a vast improvement over the old one.


Yeah starting to go off the Beetle idea rapidly!


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## t'mill (Jul 31, 2012)

SEAT Arosa. Same car as a Lupo without the slight VW 'brand tax'.


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## badbob (Apr 15, 2014)

Mx5!


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## Paulj100 (Mar 24, 2009)

Another for Ford Puma. Still got mine after 6 years now. Very reliable and a great blast to drive around.

Paul


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## Mark-TT (Mar 29, 2014)

The trouble with Fords of that age is rust issues. A few people get lucky but you see so many rotten examples out there now. I'd have thought a similar age Polo/Lupo would be in better shape. A Skoda Fabia could also be worth a look.


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## Smeds (Oct 28, 2009)

How about a classic Golf? viewtopic.php?f=41&t=624481


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## ryanmtt (Sep 13, 2010)

vw polo


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## ag (Sep 12, 2002)

For that kind of cash you are talking a banger so condition is far more important than make or model. That said, some cars are generally treated better by their owners than others. For this reason I would suggest an early Skoda Fabia. Not exactly fun, but cheap to buy and run with good comfort. Often run by older people that have minor scrapes rather than big crashes and have them fixed properly. £1500 should get something as reliable as £1500 gets.


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## brian1978 (Jul 10, 2013)

Going to be a little different and suggest a rover 25 diesel or mgzr diesel if you want a little more sporty.

They have most luxurys going on them, the 2.0 L-serise turbodiesel lump runs forever, they dont have tge rust issues of the older rovers and get 55mpg.

You can also mod them for more oomph by bunging some cheap 2.0 NA diesel injectors in them, and upping the boost by fiddeling with the wastegate actuator (very easy to do). Its about the same power and torque gains as a remap, but for £20 at your local scrappys.


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## Smeds (Oct 28, 2009)

Still got my MK3 golf for sale :lol: Had my A3 off the road on Saturday so had to insure the Golf for the day, it's a cracking little car. Gave it a little run down the motorway and through the lanes. Didn't skip a beat, really relaxing to drive. Yours for £600.


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## tictacs (May 7, 2014)

for sure the puma is a great car 1.4 or 1.7

a car i drove that impressed me with its practicality its ergonomics economy reliability is, drum roll please.........










you may be able to find a higher mileage 2006 for your the top end of your budget


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