Hi all, the girlfriend has decided that if I get a new car, she gets one too. She`s keen on a Peugeot 206, and we can afford £2-£2.5k, which would seem to get her one from 1999-2000. Are there any good reasons I should steer her away from this car?
She drives mainly 30-40mph on urban roads, with occasional motorway driving. She`s 22, been driving 2 years so something good on insurance would be nice - these seem fairly sensible.
If you can suggest anything else similar, we`d appreciate it. She`s tried a Corsa, fiesta and Ka as well as the 206, and prefers the drive of a 206.
"Simon Finnigan" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@mid.individual.net:
Never driven a 206. Don't like Corsas. I like the Fiesta/Ka of that vintage (they're basically the same car), but much prefer the Yaris which my wife has. A delightful little car to drive, my only real criticism of it is that I find the steering a little too light for my taste, but this may well be a plus point for many lady drivers. Ride is a little on the firm side, but then we have the T-Sport version so it's bound to be. And, of course, being a Toyota, you'll struggle to get anything as reliable. I can heartily recommend that she at least tries one out.
I can't believe anyone would choose a 206 over any of those myself. I've not driven a very modern fiesta, but I have driven a recent corsa and a 206, and TBH, the Peugot was vile. Cheap trim, soggy ride, gutless, noisy engine (1.4), rattles and vibration. I wasn't keen on the last fiesta I drove, but it made the Peugot look a bit crappy. Some people say the 206 driving position is odd, but I didn't think it was bad in that respect.
Mind, if she really likes how the 206 drives, then maybe she should have that. It is personal taste.
Personally, I'd go Fabia/Polo/Ibiza, but I'm a VAG fanboy. Other choices? Yaris (maybe not old enough?), Micra.
Time to take her car shopping again, OH JOY! I don`t know if we`d get a Yaris for the money we want to pay, I`ll try and steer her towards something else. Wish me luck!
Hmm, it depends on what you're looking for. The 1.1 in the 206 isn't a ball of fire... but then somebody looking at a 1.0 to a 1.3 isn't looking for a ball of fire. That XU (?) donk is relatively smooth, quiet and isn't too bad on fuel either.
The 1.4 offers better performance, especially laden, but it's noisier (I'd write "grittier") and probably more expensive too.
One up, or even two up, the 1.1 isn't as bad as you're making out.
Not really, it depends on how, erm, alert she may be.
The 206 is a bit of a ditch finder if one isn't paying attention. Enter a roundabout slightly too fast, turn in with no power and on cheapo tyres the back end will give way. Then it either swaps ends, hits something, or both.
If she's a little gung-ho then you might want to consider something else..?
They have a good ride, I don't fit very well, the interior isn't well built and they rattle with age, the electrics can be troublesome, but otherwise they're okay. Actually given their faults, they're likeable machines.
I'd take a look at the majority of the machines and try to encourage her to keep an open mind. The previous generation Micra, for example, okay it looks odd and has a bit of a granny image *but* it drives okay, in a sort of, Fisher Price doesn't excel at anything doesn't disappoint either.
The only things I found disappointing about the Yaris was the ride, which is a little choppy at times. The dashboard is strange but funky but there's lots of space and it'll only break down if you're very unlucky. Lots and lots of room in them and if you have the opportunity, show her how the folding rear seat works. You can get an elephant in the back of the original UK Yaris, let alone the new one. The engines are superb for what they are (the 1.0 is pokey for a little 'un but sips petrol, the 1.3 is quicker than you'd expect and almost as good on fuel, the 1.4 diesel will be too expensive). This is one of my top choices. For what it's worth, Charlie (my good lady wife) really rates them and encouraged me to get one when replacing the Accord.
There are the VAG models, they have a somewhat, hmm, straight line-ness about them. By this I mean they're generally great on the motorway but rather lukewarm elsewhere for the cooking models. This may not matter one jot. The Skoda Fabia, Volkswagen Polo and Seat Ibiza are essentially built from the same bits (the Fabia and Ibiza have some Golf bits in there too). Ordinary petrol engines are insipid, the 1999 to 2001 1.4 was available in
60 (yawn), 75 (better) and 100 PS (revvy buzzy best of the bunch) versions.
The Skoda Fabia has an interior that personally I detest, which is a real shame because the rest of the car is excellent. The VW Polo has never lived up to the reputation it earned years ago, I've found them staid to drive and the build quality patchy. The Seat Ibiza is my favourite of the bunch but I still don't like the dashboard all that much...
Oh and you might want to have a look at the Clio. Then again maybe not. :)
She drives mainly 30-40mph on urban roads, with occasional motorway driving. She`s 22, been driving 2 years so something good on insurance would be nice - these seem fairly sensible.
We don`t want a particularly powerful or nippy car, it`s for about 98% urban driving.
She isn`t gung ho at all, and will be getting shown how to drive the new car properly by an ex-police driving instructor. Not driving police style mind you ;-)
I think i`ve managed to steer her towards the older shape micra. not the old one, not the new one, there seem to be a couple of years that she likes the look of, and they fall in the price band :-)
Actuyally, as a means of transport, they're not bad, the handlings better than the engine, which is pretty much what you want. Unlike the Almeira which is the other way round in the non sporty models.
Much better choice. Make sure any car you are looking at has evidence of regualr oil changes. A young but more mileagey car will be healthier than a than a town bound machine- cam chains are a known slight weakspot on cars that go ages without fresh oil (even if its not done the miles)
That`s the main worry I have, a micra is more likely to have been pootling around town for its whole life. I`ve got a pet mechanic who comes with me to help me check the cars out, so we are being careful about what we`re getting her :-)
"DervMan" wrote in news:459f83a4$0$31240$ snipped-for-privacy@news.zen.co.uk:
IME, jap engines seem to suffer less from oil dilution when used on short runs than some other engines, so the problem is maybe a little
*less* pronounced than when looking at other cars. My Volvo has had mayo on the end of the dipstick after a period of short runs in winter (now gone). OTOH, the Toyota, that SWMBO uses on short journeys continously throughtout the year, shows no signs of emulsification whatsoever. Previously, she drove a Fiat and I had a Nissan, and the situation was then the opposite way around.
That's just IME. I have absolutely no further evidence or theory to back up my point of view.
"DervMan" wrote in news:459fc33e$0$32022$ snipped-for-privacy@news.zen.co.uk:
Nope. Nissan & Fiat were both alloy headed iron. Both the Volvo & (I think)Toyota are all alloy, definitely in the case of the Volvo. All are/were multivalve except the Fiat.
"DervMan" wrote in news:459fd6f3$0$27105$ snipped-for-privacy@news.zen.co.uk:
Like I said, no rational explanation, just my own experience and (distorted?) perception.
So does my all alloy and gas-guzzling Volvo engine ;-) Normal water temp is achieved within 2 miles.
Slowest warm-up car I have tried is the 1.8 TDCi Focus. Understandably so, because the engine is the old all iron model, albeit updated with common rail technology. Seems quite a good choice of engine on paper due to the very high fuel efficiency despite the use of more robust (heavy) material. Although the new 1.6 16v alloy oil burner is supposed to be even better due to equal performance and slightly higher mpg!
I've been considering one of these as a more pocket-friendly replacement for my big Volvo when a major repair bill eventually looms, e.g. clutch or PAS rack. Big come-down in terms of performance :-( What makes me nervous is my concern over the reliability of the common rail engine as I've seen the rumours that injection pump failures are relatively commonplace and very expensive to rectify.
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