This maybe the last car I ever buy.
I am going to start looking tommorow to replace my diesel Astra and thinking of buying a VW but not set in stone.
I dont have much car knowledge, as I like riding bikes a car has always been just transport.
But sooner or later I wont be able to ride a bike.
my criteria is.
Under 20,000
Petrol
Auto
5 door hatchback
Air con
would be nice to have a
Sat nav
Sunroof.
Any thoughts?
They dont make cars with a sun roof anymore. Do you mean full pano roof ?
A focus is much bigger than a golf interior wise if you want a bit more space.
Just go for a decent trim in either a VW or Ford the base specs are really poor.
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If you are thinking of buying a car to last you dont touch a modern vw with a dsg auto
Isn’t that abit out of date - most pundits seem to agree that they are good for at least 150000 miles if maintained (fluid changed every three years).Originally Posted by Michael 38
They did have issues 10 years ago.
https://www.honestjohn.co.uk/dsg-gearbox/
Im no expert but Ive owned a fair few vws over the years and found them very reliable. None have been automatics though. Id also look at the sister brands like Seat and Skoda, a friend had a Yeti and it was more hatchback than SUV, lots of space and very airy.
I'd recommend looking at the SUV style, such as the Tiguan, if you're getting on a little as they're so much easier to get into/out of and more comfortable on long journeys.
Hard to beat the Yeti if you're happy with something older otherwise I went with the Tiguan over its sister models as the interior was just a nicer place and the spec I wanted was easier to find.
We were looking to replace the wifes Skoda Fabia runabout - so checked What Car reliability reports.
https://www.whatcar.com/news/reliabi...le-cars/n26137
We ended up getting a Hyundai i20 based on these reports, but the previous generation BMW 1 series gets a good score.
Which coincidentally, I run as a daily driver - although I had not seen these reports when I purchased mine.
It may not win on interior & boot space, but we managed 4 adults & (carry on size) luggage for a weekend away.
It also benefits from having a conventional & well regarded ZF 8 speed auto rather than a DSG.
It is RWD though - so pretty much useless in ice & snow on regular rubber.
HTH.
z
Honda civic sport or prestige version with the 1.5 turbo engine would be my choice. I would avoid anything that has a cam belt so this would rule out most VWs.
I would recommend doing some proper research though. Advice on a new car from a bunch of watch nerds is never a good idea.
I put winter tyres on mine from Nov to April.
If you want something that will last and shouldn't be too expensive to run, have a look at the new Honda Jazz - the hybrid drive train is a delight to drive (as far as I am concerned), it's economical and there is plenty of space for a small car. You should be able to get a recent car for your budget.
Personally I wouldnt have a German or French car even if it was free.
Buy Japanese..👍
Toyota
Honda
Mazda
Suzuki
Agree with this 100%
Japanese or Korean, but they have their issues and recalls too
To be fair you'll be pretty unlucky to have any major mechanical with a maintained modern vehicle. Lots of them share engines and major components.
I wouldn't rule our Dacia either to be fair.
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They are still problematic gearboxes and have a sealed for life cambelt which in the real world need to be replaced at 100000 miles my best mate had 2 audis in the last 5 years one that had a gearbox go when it was 3 months old and had problems with leaks on another.
I had a 2015 golf that was 3 years old with full vw service history and done 80000 miles that had a lot of expensive things starting to go wrong including the gearbox not like vws of old, as others have said if you want a golf size car that is going to last a long time buy Japanese or korean
What a stupid comment.
One word.. Kia
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I bought my eighth Golf in March so you can guess my recommendation!
Been super happy with our Polo DSG for the 4 years of ownership. In fact I couldn't disagree more about some of the comments and recommendations, this will be replaced at some point with another Polo.
The cam belt is not sealed for life - it just has an extended service life.
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
How can it be a stupid comment if its true?.
My mate runs an independent garage, so gets to see most brands of cars for service and repairs. He drives a Suzuki.
Just drive along any motorway in the U.K. and see whats broken down on the hard shoulder. More often than not itll be an Audi, BMW or a Renault. I rarely see Far Eastern cars on the hard shoulder. My own 20 year old Yaris has never broken down, and never failed an MOT. Unlike my Brand new Ford Mustang that failed its first MOT on worn front ball joints. Worn ball joints on a 3 year old car with less than 20k on the clock.👎
If I were lucky enough to be given a new German car, Id sell it and buy something I could trust.
Still issues today. I have a Skoda Kodiaq and there's constant posts popping up on the facebook group of failing DSG mechatronic units on 3yr+ old cars. 2-3k fix. General advice on the forum is dont touch a 3yr + DSG with a bargepole without an extended warranty
Doesnt really tell the full story though. You see Audis, BMWs on the hard shoulder because there are so many of them. I think its about 40% of all cars in the road are from the 3 big German brands.
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When I had my golf I was told by vw they are designed to last the life of the car and my local dealer said they have seen them break so advised me to change it at 100000 miles vw wont pay for engine damage if they snap and changing them is expensive because they are not designed to be changed and the have to buy a lot of expensive specialised tools to do the job
if you really want a VAG just buy a seat , same platform and you get more for your money.
Further info that may or may not be useful: the Ford Ecoboost 1.0 engine has an extended timing belt service period - 10 years or 150,000 miles. It's currently about 1000 to replace.
This was very useful info when I was searching for a 10 year old Fiesta for my lad.
That in itself is a big old can of worms for Ford. The "wet belt" saga which is proving to be relative nightmare in engine design.
Heres one that was on the hard shoulder!
My Mrs has this engine in her fiesta regular oil changes are very important apparently
Dont start me on the types of drivers that drive German cars.. Ill be banned🤪🤪😆😆Heres one that was on the hard shoulder!
The timing belt runs in the engine oil, which 'corrodes' the belt. Bits of belt break off, and clog the oil pickup pipe. The engine gets starved of oil, and goes bang. Hence the engine's nickname 'Ecoboom'. Oil changes won't really help mitigate this, and changing the belt on schedule is the important thing.
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