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I hardly ever drive these days but my wife does and my daughter is learning. Our X-Trail is on its way out so we need something to replace it. I have so much work on now that I can't find the time to go round dealers or private sellers and kick tyres.
So I've done something really silly and handed the whole problem over to wife and daughter. They have the following rules:-
-no Peugeots
-£5k budget
-X-Trail must go either PX or be sold
-car must fit 3 people and 2 bikes with wheels off
-I am not to be involved
Place your bets now on what will be on my drive next week.
Something powered by pixie dust?
Cars - What could go wrong?
Guido could drop a tyre during a pitstop. Could be disastrous.
Macan.
Oh, wait...-£5k budget
... Citroen
They won't know they're basically the same thing.-no Peugeots
I did similar once - she came home with an Isuzu Trooper with nearly 200,000 miles on it.
3.0l td that went quite well, unfortunately had the stupid high pressure fuel system thing that inevitably shat itself.
I swore a lot, fixed it, sold it and bought her a Mitsubishi L200.
I hated that car.
No french cars would be a better rule than no peugeots.
Juke/Qashqai that's been to the moon and back with more warning lights than an Xmas decoration
Not enough conditions to be safe iMO 😉
Fiat 500.
followed by :
I didn't think your bikes were [i]that[/i] big....
Ommission in spec.
2bikes... 2 bromptons or 2 29+ full suss gnarpoons?
Vauxhall Zafira. Good luck.
p.s. My Peugeot is great.
mistake #2 - no rule on "insurable for learner driver"
[i]no rule on "insurable for learner driver" [/i]
this.
Buy two cars.
Let daughter earn her own no claims on something underpowered and cheap.
They seem to be saying "Yaris" a lot
-no Peugeots
-£5k budget
-X-Trail must go either PX or be sold
-car must fit 3 people and 2 bikes with wheels off
-I am not to be involved
[img]
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Honda Jazz
Usually the only input my wife wants when buying cars is on the colour (except when we got her SLK) but my daughter gets a lot more involved.
Are they on STW? Did they see this thread?
[url= http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/mini-possible-to-get-a-bike-in ]Mini - possible to get a bike in?[/url] 😆
ooo what a sexist thread !
You WILL end up with a people mover. Not just any people mover, you will end up with a Ssang Yong Rodius.
And because you couldn't be bothered, you deserve it!
[img] 
[/img]
Yaris isn't a bad shout. Reliable but dull. Auris/Avensis is another route to look at. Mazda 6 are popular on here but some can rust
No french cars would be a better rule than no peugeots.
I was told by an Rac patrolman the most common cars they pick up are anything French & Porsche's so that's probably good advice.
Although Ford & Volvo use Peugeot engines and Nissan use Renault engines so if you don't do your homework you could still end up with something French 😆
Nigel Mansell and a bumper pack of grumble.
"[i]I was told by an Rac patrolman the most common cars they pick up are anything French & Porsche's so that's probably good advice.[/i]"
I've had the RAC out to my BMW more times than my Porsche (1 vs. 0).
Rac have never been out to my Peugeot nor my Citroen.
I don't need them to hit it with a hammer for me to make it work again.
Just get a berlingo or a partner tepee perfect family cars and your daughter will probably be able to be insured on it because they are so uncool. Also means she's unlikely to want to drive it 🙂
MIL has an x trail, the only bit that's went wrong in 200k miles is the (french) engine.
I actually have a renault and tbh its only the build quality that lets it down, its a decent enough place to sit.
I wouldn't buy another though.
Have they seen [url= http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/a-dutch-guy-converts-a-coach-into-camper ]this thread[/url]?
And because you couldn't be bothered, you deserve it!
Harsh. I'm working 15-18 hours a day atm.
I am at no risk from big cars. They are looking at small stuff. I am at high risk of gaudy colours and things with accessories.
-car must fit 3 people and 2 bikes with wheels off
Not sure where a Yaris will fit with this part of the equation!
You should get..
Skoda Fabia (of course)
Ford Focus
VW Golf
You'll probably get..
something else in turquoise
Honda Jazz
KIA Soul
Something powered by pixie dust?
Very good.
im going to bet its a clio
They seem to be saying "Yaris" a lot
I believe the official STW [s]cliche[/s] term is "dodged a bullet".
-car must fit 3 people and 2 bikes with wheels offNot sure where a Yaris will fit with this part of the equation!
Can confirm 3 people and 2 road bikes with wheels off fitted into Yaris with split rear seat folding.
Suprisingly capable from a load lugging point of view. Mostly due to the complete lack of sound deadening / interior trim using up space.
[s]No way will you fit 3 + 2 bikes in a Yaris.[/s]
ok, tiim says you can, but I used to think it a PITA putting one bike and one person in my Yaris 😆
Honda Jazz would fit the bill easily, £5k would buy a nice one. RHS seat down, 2 bikes in upside-down with wheels off and you could seat 4!
Also maybe an older Impreza station wagon/estate?
Well-sorted RX-7?
Honda Jazz is my 1st my choice ... 😛
Or Yaris Verso
Focus but a tatty one with really kerbed wheels and no air con. It will be a nice shade of blue.
Or a Beetle with one of those flower pots in.
That Rodius thing is brute ugly with no cred, but looks like it'll swallow an elephant with room to spare........
DavidB - Member
...So I've done something really silly and handed the whole problem over to wife...
My father made that mistake. Gave my mother a budget figure, enough to buy a new decent spec Mini (back in the 60s).
She came home with a very nice slightly used Jag Mk8. 🙂
Renault Scenic, girls for some reason love that car for some reason.
It will be a Vauxhall zafira and you will die in a fire. Bad move.
Vauxhall Zafira. Good luck.
Nothing wrong with the Zafira, other than the heater issue that causes spontaneous immolation, but I think those are the ones built by Samsung, so best avoided.
Otherwise, the newer models are fine, there's a 63-plate one sat outside at the moment, one of at least a dozen, probably nearer twenty I've driven over the last ten-eleven months, and the more recent ones are comfy, well-equipped, the one I've got at the mo' has DAB, but no satnav, goes like the clappers, it's a 2.0 diesel, six-speed 'box, and just does its job well.
I'd suggest a Qashqai as well, loads about, as they're popular with the Motability crowd, as are Zafiras, are also pretty well equipped, one I drove this afternoon had a heated screen, first I've seen on a Nissan.
The Ford B-Max, C-Max and S-Max are also great cars, especially the B-Max, being Fiesta-based they're really nimble little cars, but the sliding rear doors make a [i]huge[/i] difference to rear access, with the hatch up, doors slid back and front doors open, getting stuff into the back is a piece of piss.
Plus all Fords get heated screens, good seats, great engines, and are just terrific family cars, I haven't driven a duff one yet.
The C-Max gets conventional rear doors, unless you go for the Grand C-Max 7-seater, which is basically Ford's answer to the Zafira.
Got to be high up the list to be looked at.
https://www.carwow.co.uk/blog/ford-b-max-vs-c-max-0414
Place your bets now on what will be on my drive next week.
Something you hate.
What do I win?
3rd shout for a Jazz or Civic , or spend the money on a VW EGR DMF EML MAF or other Vag variant
In seriousness, this:
-car must fit 3 people and 2 bikes with wheels off
and this:
my daughter is learning
Are mutually exclusive. I expect that anything that meets your criteria will cost [s]you[/s] them more than the cost of the vehicle on insurance.
I know you're not being involved, but I'd strongly suggest you recommend they get insurance quotes before buying anything. I think if it were me I'd budget £500-1000 on something with about 50PS for the daughter and the rest on the family car.
Not mutually exclusive. You can get 3+3 bikes in a 1l polo which would be fine for a learner.
Sons 1.6 focus was £800 fully comp @19 newly passed test.
It's not so much about the car(within reason).
They have come home with a red Mazda 2. 2012 30k on the clock and got £2.2k for our shagged out X-Trail
It could have been worse
It could have been worse
Could have been a Berlingo or a Partner... 😉
DavidB - MemberThey have come home with a red Mazda 2. 2012 30k on the clock and got £2.2k for our shagged out X-Trail
It could have been worse
Could have been a lot worse
From Honest John
+Enjoyable and fun to drive. Economical engines. Sensibly priced. Feels well built. Ride harshness over bumps improved for 2011.
-Interior plastics aren't soft to touch. Side bump strips a dealer-fit option. rear seats don't fold flat.
Something with those stupid eyelashes stuck over the headlights....
You best buy a bike rack then.