advice on Peugeot 106/205,Ford Mondeo/Fiesta,Vauxhall Astra

I think you need to decide how big you want it to be, 'cos that list spans everything from a city car up to a large family hatch.

In message , Maigege writes

That's quite a spread of car sizes.

I personally think that small cars are overpriced in relation to larger cars because almost everyone wants a small car. This means that you often get more for your money with a larger car.

I had a Mondeo for five years and loved it. I've just bought another one for my son. You really need to decide what size of car you need and go from there.

The message from Paul Giverin contains these words:

Quite right. My wife has a Clio 'cos she goes to work on her own. I have a 7-seat estate 'cos I have the kids all day along with their hangers-on.

How much have you set aside for insurance? If this is your first car you're likely to spend more than the car's worth just making sure it's legally entitled to be on the road. :-(

Thank you very much for all of your posts.

Yes, this is my first car. I don't mind the size of the car but the insurance must not be too expensive. The most important thing is it must be reliable. I heard that German and Japanese cars are very reliable but i can't afford them. I had the list according the information i got from parkers.co.uk . I think they are not bad at all but i really need your guy's advice cos your guys have much much more experience and knowledge about cars than me.

Well, before you go any further, I suggest you find out roughly what the insurance is going to cost you. Pick a basic car with a 1 litre or smaller engine and either 'phone a few insurance companies/brokers and/or get several quotes from different on-line companies.

Start here and then do a Google search for more references:-

If you've never held motor insurance before, have driven for under a year since you passed your UK driving test and are under 21 years old, then expect to blow all of your £1000 budget (maybe more!) on insurance alone.

The message from "Michael" contains these words:

Cheapest is not necessarily best! If you're willing to learn about cars and how to keep 'em going then there's real bargains to be had, but if you want something that doesn't involve opening the bonnet and knowing where to kick it then you'll need to budget a bit more than that.

Thanks, Ian. i have tried to get a quote online for Mondeo 1.8 LX, M Reg. The cheapest one is about 550 pounds. Actually my budget £1000 was only for car itself. Thanks any way

"Ian Edwards" ???? news:%fJRc.624$ snipped-for-privacy@newsfe2-gui.ntli.net...

Cheers. But i still don't know which one i should go for.

"Guy King" ???? news: snipped-for-privacy@zetnet.co.uk...

Nissan Micra - a grand will get you (looks on Autotrader) a 1995/96 model. Plenty of them about, cheap to insure, cheap to run, very reliable, surprisingly nice to drive.

Old Toyotas, get one with little rust and looked after and wont let you down.

Mechanical side is just about bullet proof and easy to work on.

yes, i am willing to learn about cars but still i want a reasonably reliable first car.Thanks

"Guy King" ???? news: snipped-for-privacy@zetnet.co.uk...

It is to many people. This works in your favour, as it means they cost less than they should. Question is, what do you want your car for?

cheers, clive

Yes,Micra is a great car according the articles i read on the web. but i could not find any 95/96 cars in autotrader though. BTW,honestly (not meaning to offend anybody) Micra is a bit girly to me.

---------- Michael "Carl Bowman" ???? news: snipped-for-privacy@uni-berlin.de...

Is that the whole of it? Then you're not woried by image? This is good.

(my question was actually aimed at what you required beyond the A-B aspects).

cheers, clive

I will mainly use it for work, 60 miles everyday. sometime will do some long journeys.

So far, it seems nobody would recommend Mondeo though. Is mondeo really not good at all?

The message from "Michael" contains these words:

You'll be wanting a diesel then.

In message , Michael writes

Re-read the thread again and you will see that I mentioned that I owned a Mondeo TD for five years and that I've just bought another for my lad. They are extremely comfortable and for the most part, reliable.

The engine is unrefined by comparison with today's diesels but offers the same performance as the 1.6 petrol Mondeo and its very economical. Make sure its got a good service history because if properly looked after they are good for 250k miles.

Ask for evidence of the last cambelt change. They must be changed every

40k miles and they do fail shortly after that if you are unlucky. It will cost about £250 to replace belt and tensioners so bear that in mind and budget for it if buying one which needs this doing.