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So, in short I need a new car.
I am only on my second ever car, the first was a Fiat Panda 1.1 which my gran gave to me when she gave up driving a few years ago and I was moving house/job so was in need of a car anyway. This was written off just over a year ago (someone hit me at a roundabout) and a friend offered a newer Fiat Panda Dynamic 1.2 (a decent upgrade, meh) for exactly what the insurance paid out. It has served me well over the past 16 months and I’ve done about 22,000 miles in it up and down the country many many times, and is fairly ok for carrying my bike(s) on the roof even though it struggles a bit going up hills.
Apart from a few stone chips it's in decent nick.
But I just want something with a bit more space, bit quicker, ideally with cruise control and a tow bar for a bike carrier on the back instead of the roof. Wouldn’t mind an estate - doesn't necessarily have to be, but would be good for long weekends away, sleeping in the back etc. Estate cars on autotrader seem to have >100k miles which I'd be reluctant to get, don't really have that much disposable income for any repairs etc.
I have an 11 personal reg which I'd love to use but suspect I am a few years away from being able to get a decent enough car for the money I have.
The problem is that I don't have much cash (prob £1k after next payday, maybe more if someone buys my road bike). But I've never really bought a car before.
Am I right in thinking that if I was to go into a garage and part exchange my Panda, for say £2.5k (it's worth £3k), and offer them £1k cash, I'd be looking at a car worth £3.5k? Is it that easy?
Any advice appreciated. I've been reading all the recent car threads with interest but trying to avoid it...
You won't get 2.5k p/x for your panda if it's worth 3k private sale.
easy option but £1000 will be about the dealer's margin so you will end up with the same value car (or less) if you trade in, better value if you sell and then buy privately.
Agree, if you can do without a car for a week or so, sell it privately and then buy privately, just take someone knowledgeable to check it out (mechanic mate or at the least an AA type check) if you really are a 'dummy'
Don't be afraid of high mileage either on modern cars - just make sure someone who knows whats what checks things like cambelt etc for you before you buy
Buy and sell privately, how do car dealers make money?
FSH is your friend.
Meet the vendor, you'll get a feel for 'em.
Don't be afraid of higher mileage.
I'd go on ebay, put your price range (say £1,500-2,500), then choose.
I'd look at:
Unfashoinable Japanese hatch backs, maybe a Primera if you want something a little larger?
Golf?
Petrol focus?
Good luck
APF
Estate cars on autotrader seem to have >100k miles which I'd be reluctant to get, don't really have that much disposable income for any repairs etc.
Generally, a bigger car will be cheaper for you to buy than a smaller one. With the trade-off being that they'll be more expensive to run. Petrols anyway. Bigger cars will likely to have done longer trips too, whereas your average super mini will be used around the doors, doing short trips and often driven cold, which is not good for the engine. That's without going into the fact that the smaller engines will feel more strain and in many instances have a shorter lifespan. Look for a good service history. Any car will be a dog if it's been neglected.
Older, well used cars will inevitably develop some niggles regardless of mileage, and whilst I'm always bleeting on about how old cars are often just about as good as much newer ones, it does help if you don't mind getting your hands dirty. Some of those niggles could take some diagnosing and fixing in a garage, but very often can be fixed relatively easily by yourself. That applies to anything more than 4 or 5 years old though really.
The best thing about buying a car these days, is there's a wealth of information online. If anything catches your eye, look it up, you'll probably find all of the common faults pretty quickly (all cars have their weak points), then you know the first things to look at when buying.
Thanks for the advice chaps. Looks like I'll have to hang fire for the moment and save up a bit more cash and wait till a time when I'm not away most weekends.
On Friday I was getting P/X deals offering me £4500-4600 for my Kia Soul. 5 different dealers in the south, highest one came in at £4700 without seeing.
I went on webuyanycar.com and they came in at £4985. I took it there 20 mins later as they have an office 8 miles from me... I walked out 20 mins later without a car, but with £4940 in the bank... He knocked me down but then put back up as they can 'give back' if they choose to a certain value... Added to a £24.95 for faster payments....
Gave me £250 more to take to buy the new car and no messing about with trade ins etc.
Only downside was, I was 8 miles from home with my 7 year old and no car to get home ! hahahaha. We had to kill an hour and wait for the wife to finish acupuncture and come get us.