My future step daughter has a very tired '96 Clio 1.2 petrol, held together with rust and run on a wing & a prayer. Tyres are nearing their legal limit, the sunroof leaks like a sieve, starting is a lottery even with a newish battery, the exhaust will perish shortly and it is a very sorry sight! I could go on & on.
Her job involves visiting some 12/15 people a day in her capacity as a healthcare worker and I doubt it will pass its next MOT on bodywork alone.
The 'Bank of Mum' budget is £750 and it has to be cheap to insure ( a long story involving a Bradford taxi which is a 15 month as yet unsettled claim) so should I look for a petrol or diesel replacement when it finally expires?
Advice please...thanks..
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Petrol, you will find it tough to find a diesel with a ticket in that price range.
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Oilrag looked at this in some detail when replacing his wifes car and concluded that petrol was the answer, as with that sort of use only the first start of the day is truly cold. For the rest of the time the engine remains warmish.
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At that budget, either, if Diesel it will be old school probably mechanically pumped...a 106/Saxo 1.5 NA Diesel would be a good car for this...Yaris the bees knees but not a hope in budget.
Given the daily short journey grind, a Diesel (NA would be best for this type of running) will probably cover twice as much ground as a petrol on the fuel put in...if you recall Lady Oilrag had a NA Punto Diesel for a long time on similar work till the fuel pump died, Oily didn't replace it with a modern CR DPF'd Diesel for obvious reasons....still miss the old chap, are you there Oily?
However when the time comes just be prepared to snap up that well cared for car, regardless of make or fuel.
Looking at less fashionable...Accents/Daewoo/Proton/Chevvy's etc might find a real bargain.
Edit..AW we both thought of Oily.;)....if he could have found an old school Diesel again he would have gone for one i'm quite sure...it was CR, turbos, DPF/DMF's etc he wanted to avoid IIRC.
Last edited by: gordonbennet on Mon 28 Feb 11 at 20:33
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I've risked a virus to have a look on Autotrader.
How about a 2005 diesel Fiesta, two owners, including one elderly gentleman.
Only £650, but there's a big hole where the radio should be, so you might need the £100 change for some sounds:
tinyurl.com/655exnv
Or make an offer on this 2004 diesel Rover 25:
tinyurl.com/676jlg9
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Fiesta is not 2005! despite the advert. Y regn
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£750 diesel cars are scrappers and anyone contemplating buying one as a 15 drop a day user needs to think wisely
op needs to find a small as possible petrol mainstream car like a 1300 ohv fiesta or even better an old 8 valve 1.2 corsa breeze with power steering
ignore the doom mongers who say they are all rotten now its rubbish,just look for a good one but be warned they get snapped up fast
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Those 25 diesels have the L-series - now thats old tech, very suitable for stop-start.
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you cant seriously say you can find a good one for £750 though can you
because i can tell you i wouldnt be able to
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The 25 is much cheaper than average atm although nothing wrong with the 220 D that came before it, its basically the same.
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How many miles per day does she cover, and does she not get a milege allowance?
The carers around our way seem to be supplied with Citroen C1's - I'd be thinking about getting one of those or a Kia Picanto etc on a cheap PCP (unless she does a lot of miles).
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>> The carers around our way seem to be supplied with Citroen C1's - I'd be
>> thinking about getting one of those or a Kia Picanto etc on a cheap PCP
>> (unless she does a lot of miles).
>>
Is the Op's daughter an NHS district nurse / health visitor? - cars can be leased through NHS for buttons (assuming her business mls are sufficient).
Or is she a carer working for LA Social services / Private contractor?
Locally some private contractors pay a minimal milegae allowance way below the HMRC rates
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>> you cant seriously say you can find a good one for £750 though can you
1.4 Clio Auto - M reg, had it two years now and its fine... Also 1.4 Polo R reg, even less and the same... They are out there BB!
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>> >> you cant seriously say you can find a good one for £750 though can
>> you
>>
>> 1.4 Clio Auto - M reg, had it two years now and its fine... Also
>> 1.4 Polo R reg, even less and the same... They are out there BB!
Are those diesels? I think BB was talking specifically about oil-burners.
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At £750, you want a small car that is unloved but OK.
Wife drives Matiz: dirt cheap, unloved, great around town... Too small on motorways..
Watch out: lots of neglected ones around but also genuine low mileage loved ones for peanuts...
68 nationally under £1k.
www.autotrader.co.uk/search/used/cars/postcode/st87dr/radius/1500/keywords/matiz/price-to/1000/sort/priceasc
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Thanks for all your input.
She is a low paid carer, working for a private contractor, and driving relatively few miles, probably no more than 20 a day.
She has never mentioned getting a mileage allowance from her employer, and any sort of paperwork is not her strong point. I shall make enquiries.
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>> She has never mentioned getting a mileage allowance from her employer, and any sort of
>> paperwork is not her strong point. I shall make enquiries.
>>
Even if she doesn't get a mileage allowance, she could claim tax relief on her work mileage. It's a really easy form (P87) and, based on 100 miles per week for, say, 46 weeks, she'd get a £368 tax rebate. Not massive, I suppose. For following years they'd probably adjust her tax code. so the £30/mth would get lost in the noise.
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>> Are those diesels? I think BB was talking specifically about oil-burners.
>>
Sorry, thought it was general... Though we used to have a cheap 1.4 Metro diesel which was fine... As someone else said the old idi small diesels, especially the PUG 1.4/5 and Vauxhall 1.5s are pretty bomb proof and there are plenty around... Also the VAG 1.9 SDi so beloved of Taxi drivers, but also found in the VAG superminis...
Last edited by: hobby on Tue 1 Mar 11 at 10:44
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>> VAG 1.9 SDi so beloved of Taxi drivers, but also found in the VAG superminis...
>>
There's a thought. Old SEAT Arosa?
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Fabia, Ibiza?
The old 1.9 idi VAG engine seemed to kn as well... older Polos, Ibizas and Felicias...
Last edited by: hobby on Tue 1 Mar 11 at 10:49
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>> .. They are out there BB!
>>
You usually hear about them just after they're sold!
A girl doing this kind of job wants a car that she can just get in and go. OK, you might be lucky with an old car but I've been there when we first got married and we ran two bangers - we needed two cars as only one was ever working at a time.
Oh, how I miss the winter evenings I spend rolling around under the car!
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I too ran bangers, back in the 70s and 80s... Horrible things they were... But one advantage with the better build quality seen from the mid 90s onwards has been better and more reliable 15 or so year old cars... I really don't think that average cars of the 60s to 80s come anywhere near the reliability of mid 90s onwards cars...
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Cheap small car, short journeys, petrol or diesel? - Zero
