Recommend a car for my cousin for under £3k (US$4.9k)

[Mr. M]

Hey all,

My cousin is here with me in London and I'm enthusiastic that she's looking for a car to buy here.

Thing is, she has laid me a set of quite restrictive requirements that really narrows down the choices. Yet, as an enthusiast, I want to make sure I don't recommend her something run-of-the-mill and nothing special. Basically her requirements are:

- cheap to maintain
- cheap to insure
- small, a hatchback
- automatic (d'oh!)

I have narrowed down the list to this:

MkIV Golf
MkI Focus
Lexus IS200
Mini One/Cooper
Honda Civic

But I'm not quite convinced of my selections. What do you guys think and recommend?

 

[Kowalski]

If she can afford it, the Lexus is the one to go for. Otherwise, a Focus is pretty much ideal, albeit very common. Did you consider an Alfa 156, as well?

 

[coolraoul]

I had the same kind of choices to make in the past.

After testdrives, I realized I'm much more into the Golf than the Focus: more relaxed, much more modern, very pleasant to drive. The Focus shows its age much more.

The Lexus, well... won't it be substantially more expensive? And rather thirsty in petrol? And it ain't a hatch. But good car though, no doubt.

Mini, why not. Not cheap, but sexy and very much at home in London

I like the latest Civic, but make sure she does too: strange styling. The previous one is cheap but forgettable: good car, not more. Anonymous is the term here.

Don't forget the Astra H, very pleasant and underrated car. I liked it. Astra G, forget it, unreliable.

I might throw in the A2 tdi. The chassis is absolutely not suited for highways, but it's damn economical, rare and sexy. Expensive to repair the alu skin though.

A first gen Merc A is not a bad car, it's safe, practical and reliable. Shouldn't be too expensive. Same for the first gen A3, a sexier Golf.

Depends how much can go into the car.


See, with the very same requirements and a budget of 10.000€, I chose a BMW 118d.
For less than that, I surely would've went either for the latest Civic, or for a cheaper Golf IV TDI 100.

 

[Pekka]

FYI: Older Golf IV often have problems with:

• the automatic transmission
• electric windows
• door locks (microswitch)
• throttle linkage (1400 + 1600cc)
• air-mass sensor
• crankcase ventilation (1400cc MY '98 - '00 only - check if the car was upgraded with a heated one if it's older than MY '01)

 

[coolraoul]

FYI: Older Golf IV often have problems with:

• the automatic transmission
• electric windows
• door locks (microswitch)
• throttle linkage (1400 + 1600cc)
• air-mass sensor
• crankcase ventilation (1400cc MY '98 - '00 only - check if the car was upgraded with a heated one if it's older than MY '01)

True, this is why I recommend a late TDI 100: no problems with the airm-mass sensor (TDI G-IV's pleague) ansd much less with the electric windows falling down in the doors. I dunno about the auto tranny. And the 1.4 petrol tends to freeze indeed, to be avoided.

 

[Mr. M]

If she can afford it, the Lexus is the one to go for. Otherwise, a Focus is pretty much ideal, albeit very common. Did you consider an Alfa 156, as well?

Yes, but I struck Alfas immediately off my list because of their (perceived) unreliability. My cousin is not a very technical person neither does she like much fuss so I don't think an Alfa will suit her.

I had the same kind of choices to make in the past.

After testdrives, I realized I'm much more into the Golf than the Focus: more relaxed, much more modern, very pleasant to drive. The Focus shows its age much more.

The Lexus, well... won't it be substantially more expensive? And rather thirsty in petrol? And it ain't a hatch. But good car though, no doubt.

Mini, why not. Not cheap, but sexy and very much at home in London

I like the latest Civic, but make sure she does too: strange styling. The previous one is cheap but forgettable: good car, not more. Anonymous is the term here.

Don't forget the Astra H, very pleasant and underrated car. I liked it. Astra G, forget it, unreliable.

I might throw in the A2 tdi. The chassis is absolutely not suited for highways, but it's damn economical, rare and sexy. Expensive to repair the alu skin though.

A first gen Merc A is not a bad car, it's safe, practical and reliable. Shouldn't be too expensive. Same for the first gen A3, a sexier Golf.

Depends how much can go into the car.


See, with the very same requirements and a budget of 10.000€, I chose a BMW 118d.
For less than that, I surely would've went either for the latest Civic, or for a cheaper Golf IV TDI 100.

I agree that the Focus feels a lot older. But I read that it handles brilliantly, that is what drew it to me in the first place, despite their ubiquity.

The Lexus is actually not that pricey, perhaps just within the price bracket. But the RWD, inline-6 and the indisputable reliability is making this my top recommendation for her.

Thanks for recommending the other cars, I think the Astra H is worth a good look. Though it has been rather forgettable for me, maybe that's why I didn't consider it!

FYI: Older Golf IV often have problems with:

• the automatic transmission
• electric windows
• door locks (microswitch)
• throttle linkage (1400 + 1600cc)
• air-mass sensor
• crankcase ventilation (1400cc MY '98 - '00 only - check if the car was upgraded with a heated one if it's older than MY '01)

Oh dear, I never knew about this! Will take note - so which is the best version to go for, if not the TDI 100? I'm just afraid that for the turbodiesels, the complication with a turbocharger would make maintenance more iffy when compared to a NA petrol.