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Need a used car. Have been looking at things like Toyota Auris or Skoda Fabia both in hatch and estate models. Need a bit of extra space for ferrying kids and picking up international students we accommodate so suitcase space would be useful. Have about 11k to spend. My last car was a Polo 2012 from new.
Should I consider anything else? As title details I just need a reliable runner. I really don't enjoy driving so any 'experience' of more luxurious or nippier faster top end motors is lost on me.
I commute to work three times a week which are journeys between 12-20 miles then on those days several shorter journeys. Ideally would like something to last ten years. Annual mileage probably around 10k.
Thanks Singletrackers.
At a glance, it looks as though Auris at that budget are hybrids. I *personally* would avoid the added complexity of a hybrid system if your aim is to minimise the possibility of big bills on a car you're hoping to get many years out of.
If your already looking at the Auris, I'd look at the Corrolla - which is essentially the newer version of the same car with a name change. You can get a 10 year warranty when you get it serviced at Toyota -£300ish a year for peace of mind, and the battery warranty is 15 years regardless.
They're VERY boring cars, but they just go and go and go.
Our old Skoda Octavia estate finally started getting cranky (and expensive) after 130,000 miles. It blew a turbo and lunched a timing chain in quick succession (Early VAG 1.4 Tsi engine, for the motor nerds). I had a look around at reliability, size and cargo capacity to replace it with something similar. I thought it would be nice to try something different (Our car before that had been a Golf - basically a hatchback version of the same car with a different badge on).
To my absolute annoyance, the answer that came back was: another Octavia estate. Now I WFH, we don't really use it for anything other than when we need a second car, hauling bikes and long journeys. Touch wood, after five years, it has only cost us consumables.
Parkers, What Car, Honest John et al all do reliability surveys - I'd suggest aggregating those together to find which ones are regularly at the top of the list: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=car+reliability+ratings&ia=web
Bear in mind this is retrospective; the 1.4Tsi timing problem only emerged over time, and while Volkswagen warrantied 1.4Tsi engines in its cars, Skoda actively tried to duck the whole thing and weasel out of taking responsibility in a particularly sleazy manner when I spoke to them.
Another thing to consider (and we're doing this actively at the moment as Mrs Udder is commuting five days a week) is a smaller EV, as they should, in theory, be even more reliable. Someone will be along shortly to correct me on that, I'm sure....
[EDIT] Also, are you buying new or used? The above sort of only applies with used, which is how we've always bought ours.
I'd be looking at Kia's and Hyundai's. 7 year warranties and for the money you have, you should get one with a chunk of that left. They're not exciting cars, but they seem to last and there's loads about so when they do need parts they're readily available and cheap.
Plenty of small EVs on Auto trader in that price range - leaf, zoe, corsa, pug e2008. Far less "stuff" to go wrong than an ICE, battery shouldn't take a hammering from your usage and they'll generally be cheaper to run than an ICE as long as you've got access to sensibly priced charging.
If your already looking at the Auris, I'd look at the Corrolla - which is essentially the newer version of the same car with a name change. You can get a 10 year warranty when you get it serviced at Toyota -£300ish a year for peace of mind, and the battery warranty is 15 years regardless.
I test drove a CR-V which I think uses the same powertrain. It was lovely to drive at low speeds, and I was quite convinced by the warranty angle too. AFAIK Toyota and Lexus generally come top of the reliability rankings, and they both use the same engines.
There's a reason every taxi driver round here drives a Corolla or a CRV!
I suspect doris5000 above means Toyota C-HR, not Honda CRV. Its their SUV, rather than the Corolla which is hatchback/estate.
Look at what your local taxi drivers are driving.
I bought a 3 year old Fabia estate from a Skoda dealer last year for similar money. I'm very pleased with it, in a boring no fuss, cheap to run kind of way. The estate has been effectively replaced by the Scala now, which is well in budget.
1.2 Corolla Icon Tech.
Next.
I suspect doris5000 above means Toyota C-HR, not Honda CRV.
You suspect correctly! It was the C-HR.
Stupid acronyms
Something made by honda that is not an HRV
CRV- their SUV or civic if it's big enough
Thanks for the replies, food for thought. I'm actually considering an estate now. I see lots of 1.0 engines which seem like they would fit the bill as 90% of the time the car will be lightly laden.
Thinking petrol Octavia 1.0 or is this totally gutless? Any others?
We got our Honda Jazz when from dad when he stopped driving. It’s auto which I’m in 2 minds about. But they are definitely boring and reliable. Worth looking at just to see the interior. The space is just amazing. The seats also fold to create a large flat floored van too
Toyotas are a good shout as are Kia
Avoid Renault
I've mentioned this before, but I bought a (new) Suzuki S-cross seven years ago. I'm just coming up to 150,000 miles and it hasn't missed a beat. Starts first time every time and runs until I tell it to stop. Other than brakes, tyres and a few suspension bits the only thing that has failed is an ABS sensor (which didn't stop me driving). Still on the original clutch, exhaust etc and it's chain driven so in theory that doesn't need changing either. It's pig ugly I'll admit, but it's a useful estate shape (with a bit of extra ground clearance for mud/snow) and just keeps on trucking. Mine is the AWD version but presumably the 2WD ones are even more reliable if that's possible.
The newer ones are a bit less ugly although (like almost everything these days) they do have a mild hybrid system which may not be quite as reliable. Mind you, we were impressed enough with the S-cross that my wife got a (hybrid) Ignis and that's done over 100,000 miles now without any serious issues.
Honda, Toyota, Kia/Hyundai
Watch out for peculiar tyre sizes on smaller wheels it limits choice. Ideally one with a spare wheel for max boringness
Kia Ceed Estate or Skoda Estate (Fabia or Octavia), all in petrol fuel versions (modern diesels can be finicky as they get older IME).
I had a first generation fabia Estate for 9 years and 130,000 miles. No major issues, it just worked.
Now have a 15 1/2 year old Kia Ceed that I acquired from family. It is very boring but works fine. I'm thinking of replacing it with the estate version as more boot space is it's only major flaw. Fine on long journeys too. We drove to Denmark in it. A bit cramped with 4 people, camping kit and bikes but driving it is comfy and it it's not noisy at 70 mph.
I see lots of 1.0 engines which seem like they would fit the bill as 90% of the time the car will be lightly laden.
Thinking petrol Octavia 1.0 or is this totally gutless? Any others?
Both of ours have been 1.4. The 1.0 is supposedly pretty gutless, so if you're doing motorway miles I'd be a bit wary, simply because sometimes you do need to use the loud pedal. Bear in mind our other car is a three pot sub-one-litre Fiesta. It's a fun drive on B roads, not so much on motorways and is far lighter than an Octavia.
The other thing to bear in mind (and I've nothing but my own biases to back this up) is that smaller engines may be a bit more prone to wear and tear. All kinds of kit is bolted onto them to make them perform, so there are simply more bits to fail. Our old 1.4 ultimately ended up sold for the new one because the turbo blew. It still drove, but didn't accelerate terribly well. A new turbo would have been about twice the cost of the value of the car.
Here's a decent thread on the oddities around the (old) 1.4, FWIW: https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/493926-14-tsi-engine-experiences-and-problems/
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202411266762163
Something Like this MG5. 7 year manufacturer warranty to 80k miles, so you have that peace of mind and plenty out there with big miles on them. Not much to go wrong compared to modern ICE egnines.
Bought my Auris 2013 estate hybrid at 18 months with 20k on clock. Had it almost 10 years - now has 135k. It’s had a hard life, frequently loaded up with growing children, bikes, kayaks, camping stuff etc.
Not had a single issue, not even a puncture though I did buy a spare wheel. 10000 mile service interval is quite short and it’s not got a massive amount of space in back seats but that is only downside. Don’t be put off by the 1.8 petrol hybrid drivetrain - it’s boringly reliable. Returns around 55mpg fairly consistently except if driven hard (80mph) on motorway - we get around 45mpg then on continental road trips.
will get a Corolla when this one needs replacing but hopefully that will be in at least a couple more years!
I'm on my 3rd Kia, boring but reliable
SIL has a 59 plate Prius, and they have had no trouble with the hybrid system. They also have a new Yaris Cross hybrid. They are reliable and reasonably economical. Some of the newer Corollas have a much more punchy 2.0 hybrid.
You should get a Corolla for that budget. Decent looking car and reliable.
My work colleague has had a Kia Ceed estate 66 plate from new. It was completely reliable until about 6 months after its 7 year warranty ran out and since then seems to be developing new faults at an alarming rate...he is getting rid asap.
Kia ceed estate is a good shout, anything boring is priced accordingly. I have a kia and in 11 years nothing except routine maintenance, even pollen filter and air filter is cheap at gsf. Watch high peak autos on yt for honest review of what you decide. I d personally avoid wet belts, diesels, hybrids, just keep it simple and probably Korean.
I've loved the boring owner experience of a Passat. Mainly because no matter how much stuff you pack in, there is always space for one more thing.