Clue Me Up

[CRH00]

Hi guys, posted on here maybe about 5 weeks and still on the lookout! Been looking for a new car for the past maybe 6/7 weeks now and although I have a few cars in mind I would like some advice please. I'm 19 with 2 years NCB and looking to spend max maybe £5200-5500. I currently have a MK6 Fiesta ST which I will be getting rid of, I'm looking for something which is still nippy, bit of power to it however would like it to be (this is the awkward bit) 40/45mpg+. So far I have considered the 1.4 Seat Ibiza FR, 2.0 Ibiza TDI FR, 2.0 TDI Leon FR and 2.0 Audi A3 TDI (with a remap). Does anyone have any experience or advice on these cars or even other suggestions? I'm only just starting to get into cars and being totally honest I don't know very much in terms of the actual mechanics, parts etc. For example, if I was to get an A3 remapped is there anything else I need to do to adjust to it, or are there other cars which could suit me after a remap, is remapping a bad idea? etc. Sorry for the lack of knowledge, but thanks in advance!!

[4U2P]

Audi A3.....really?

[anonymous-user]

CRH00 said:

Hi guys, posted on here maybe about 5 weeks and still on the lookout! Been looking for a new car for the past maybe 6/7 weeks now and although I have a few cars in mind I would like some advice please. I'm 19 with 2 years NCB and looking to spend max maybe £5200-5500. I currently have a MK6 Fiesta ST which I will be getting rid of, I'm looking for something which is still nippy, bit of power to it however would like it to be (this is the awkward bit) 40/45mpg+. So far I have considered the 1.4 Seat Ibiza FR, 2.0 Ibiza TDI FR, 2.0 TDI Leon FR and 2.0 Audi A3 TDI (with a remap). Does anyone have any experience or advice on these cars or even other suggestions? I'm only just starting to get into cars and being totally honest I don't know very much in terms of the actual mechanics, parts etc. For example, if I was to get an A3 remapped is there anything else I need to do to adjust to it, or are there other cars which could suit me after a remap, is remapping a bad idea? etc. Sorry for the lack of knowledge, but thanks in advance!!

How many miles a year do you do? Why do you want to change? Purely based on economy? Bad move, in my opinion.

Boring answer: Keep the Fiesta. £5200 buys a lot of petrol - what are you getting now, 35mpg? You could probably push that to nearer 40 without too much effort - check tyre pressures, unnecessary weight, reduce speed on the motorway by 5mph etc?

Also, remapping doesn't just affect the engine - there are other indirect costs. If you've got the extra power or torque, you will probably use it. I had a remapped car, blew the turbo after a few thousand miles, and cost me a bomb. Also, increasing the power/torque more than 10% would have increased my insurance premium.

A £5,200 VW/Audi diesel would probably have more miles, wear and tear than an equivalently-priced petrol, plus being German it would be priced at a premium. Servicing on diesels can be more expensive. The fuel itself is more expensive. Lots of factors to consider, but just buying a diesel engined car won't necessarily save you any money, or be any more fun to drive than a Fiesta ST...

[CRH00]

OpulentBob said:

How many miles a year do you do? Why do you want to change? Purely based on economy? Bad move, in my opinion.

Boring answer: Keep the Fiesta. £5200 buys a lot of petrol - what are you getting now, 35mpg? You could probably push that to nearer 40 without too much effort - check tyre pressures, unnecessary weight, reduce speed on the motorway by 5mph etc?

Also, remapping doesn't just affect the engine - there are other indirect costs. If you've got the extra power or torque, you will probably use it. I had a remapped car, blew the turbo after a few thousand miles, and cost me a bomb. Also, increasing the power/torque more than 10% would have increased my insurance premium.

A £5,200 VW/Audi diesel would probably have more miles, wear and tear than an equivalently-priced petrol, plus being German it would be priced at a premium. Servicing on diesels can be more expensive. The fuel itself is more expensive. Lots of factors to consider, but just buying a diesel engined car won't necessarily save you any money, or be any more fun to drive than a Fiesta ST...

Actually the Fiesta is regularly jumping out of gear, whether it be 1st, reverse, even happened in 2nd. Also if I drive it for any considerable distance the gearbox seizes up, had it in to the garage and they told me they could see no real faults from a quick check over and reckon it could get costly.

Also in terms of mileage I don't do a great deal, maybe 10k a year but after having been using my mums golf for a few weeks and getting upwards of 50 mpg I realised how good it was to not be running into the petrol stations so regularly, this and the fact that I would like to start saving up some extra money. Truth be told I would love to not worry about fuel consumption but ,my head says I should think about it?

Thanks for the reply though it really is much appreciated, as mentioned before I would just like to be clued up a bit!

[anonymous-user]

CRH00 said:

OpulentBob said:

How many miles a year do you do? Why do you want to change? Purely based on economy? Bad move, in my opinion.

Boring answer: Keep the Fiesta. £5200 buys a lot of petrol - what are you getting now, 35mpg? You could probably push that to nearer 40 without too much effort - check tyre pressures, unnecessary weight, reduce speed on the motorway by 5mph etc?

Also, remapping doesn't just affect the engine - there are other indirect costs. If you've got the extra power or torque, you will probably use it. I had a remapped car, blew the turbo after a few thousand miles, and cost me a bomb. Also, increasing the power/torque more than 10% would have increased my insurance premium.

A £5,200 VW/Audi diesel would probably have more miles, wear and tear than an equivalently-priced petrol, plus being German it would be priced at a premium. Servicing on diesels can be more expensive. The fuel itself is more expensive. Lots of factors to consider, but just buying a diesel engined car won't necessarily save you any money, or be any more fun to drive than a Fiesta ST...

Actually the Fiesta is regularly jumping out of gear, whether it be 1st, reverse, even happened in 2nd. Also if I drive it for any considerable distance the gearbox seizes up, had it in to the garage and they told me they could see no real faults from a quick check over and reckon it could get costly.

Also in terms of mileage I don't do a great deal, maybe 10k a year but after having been using my mums golf for a few weeks and getting upwards of 50 mpg I realised how good it was to not be running into the petrol stations so regularly, this and the fact that I would like to start saving up some extra money. Truth be told I would love to not worry about fuel consumption but ,my head says I should think about it?

Thanks for the reply though it really is much appreciated, as mentioned before I would just like to be clued up a bit!

No worries , we've all been there

I would get the gearbox checked first and find out what the issue is. On a previous car of mine, it was a £15 engine/gearbox mount giving me issues, once fixed the car was transformed.

Doing lots of short journeys may not do a diesel many favours - they only get REALLY economical when they're nice and hot. The cut off before you see any cost saving with a diesel is between 15-18k miles a year, depending on who you speak to. Modern ultra-eco diesels can also be quite temperamental due to all the eco equipment - DPFs, EGR valves etc. One bill from those and you'll wipe out a year's worth of fuel savings.

Lots to think about, but very often it's better the devil you know.

Good luck!

[ZX10R NIN]

With mileage at 10k a year with a 5k budget I'd be looking for a decent petrol with a turbo so you get the same torquey pull from them as you do in your mums diesel & they will average high 40's.

2011 Megane GT Line 48k 130bhp
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...

2012 Clio 1.2 GT Line 50k 100bhp
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...

2010 Alfa Mito 50k 140bhp
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...

[Latters]

CRH00 said:

Hi guys, posted on here maybe about 5 weeks and still on the lookout! Been looking for a new car for the past maybe 6/7 weeks now and although I have a few cars in mind I would like some advice please. I'm 19 with 2 years NCB and looking to spend max maybe £5200-5500. I currently have a MK6 Fiesta ST which I will be getting rid of, I'm looking for something which is still nippy, bit of power to it however would like it to be (this is the awkward bit) 40/45mpg+. So far I have considered the 1.4 Seat Ibiza FR, 2.0 Ibiza TDI FR, 2.0 TDI Leon FR and 2.0 Audi A3 TDI (with a remap). Does anyone have any experience or advice on these cars or even other suggestions? I'm only just starting to get into cars and being totally honest I don't know very much in terms of the actual mechanics, parts etc. For example, if I was to get an A3 remapped is there anything else I need to do to adjust to it, or are there other cars which could suit me after a remap, is remapping a bad idea? etc. Sorry for the lack of knowledge, but thanks in advance!!

I used to have an Ibiza FR 1.4TSI and would get nowhere near 40 mpg from it. I wouldn't put it down to driving style either as it was poor whether I was cruising through average speed cameras at 53mph, booting it a bit on a clear motorway or just pootling around town. I used to have a 90 mile round trip for my daily commute, mostly motorway and A road, and the Ibiza was the only car I could get nowhere near the manufacturer's claimed MPG figures, no matter how hard I tried. My current FN2 Civic Type R is no worse on fuel and a hell of a lot more fun. (As an aside, the Civic would be in budget, but probably not particularly insurance friendly.)

This is a personal thing, I appreciate, but I just couldn't get on with the DSG in the SEAT either. I found it struggled when pulling out at junctions if you hadn't quite come to a standstill, either spinning the wheels, or crawling out at a snail's pace. Definitely give it a good test drive if you do consider one.