What car to replace son's fiesta £6k?
Discussion
I've been mulling over posting as I suspect this topic has been covered ad infinitum. I spent some time looking but came up short of accurately covering my need.
My son is 23 and has had a fiesta mk 7.5 (2013) tdci titanium for the past 7 years. Bought with 125k on it and now on 160k. He loves the car but never, ever maintains, checks or services it.
Anyway it's due an MOT in Mar and I suspect its likely to be a huge failure. If there is likely to be big bill we will WBAC it and plan to splurge about £6k on a replacement but unsure what to buy.
Needs:
120ish BHP
Hatchback
Small (ish)
High mileage for the vfm
From 2017
The obvious choice is another, perhaps high mileage, fiesta 1.0 ecoboost. However there is the obvious timimg belt issue which puts me off.
Then comes a 208, again the 1.6 issues and his lack of caring about maint puts me off.
Corsa 1.4i - no idea
DS3 - 1.2 performance
Kia?
I know the astra Coupe will come up and I genuinely like them and they appear to be bargains. But it might be too large
What's the best option?
My son is 23 and has had a fiesta mk 7.5 (2013) tdci titanium for the past 7 years. Bought with 125k on it and now on 160k. He loves the car but never, ever maintains, checks or services it.
Anyway it's due an MOT in Mar and I suspect its likely to be a huge failure. If there is likely to be big bill we will WBAC it and plan to splurge about £6k on a replacement but unsure what to buy.
Needs:
120ish BHP
Hatchback
Small (ish)
High mileage for the vfm
From 2017
The obvious choice is another, perhaps high mileage, fiesta 1.0 ecoboost. However there is the obvious timimg belt issue which puts me off.
Then comes a 208, again the 1.6 issues and his lack of caring about maint puts me off.
Corsa 1.4i - no idea
DS3 - 1.2 performance
Kia?
I know the astra Coupe will come up and I genuinely like them and they appear to be bargains. But it might be too large
What's the best option?
If you're happy with high mileage and don't care enough to do maintenance, might as well get any cheaper car than looks worth taking a punt on.
A lot of small cars are quite tired by 100k, but there's plenty of low mileage older ones in fair condition.
Obviously insurance, tax, ULEZ will matter.but 5k miles a year isn't much. So for someone young, insurance is key.
The cars with good reputations which people on here will recommend often seem over priced, or at least their reputation is priced in, so being a bit open minded might open the field to some bargains. You can buy a turkey of any model.
People need to make up their own minds and own their decisions, if nothing inspires then just get something cheap with a year's MOT that feels like it will do a couple of years.
A lot of small cars are quite tired by 100k, but there's plenty of low mileage older ones in fair condition.
Obviously insurance, tax, ULEZ will matter.but 5k miles a year isn't much. So for someone young, insurance is key.
The cars with good reputations which people on here will recommend often seem over priced, or at least their reputation is priced in, so being a bit open minded might open the field to some bargains. You can buy a turkey of any model.
People need to make up their own minds and own their decisions, if nothing inspires then just get something cheap with a year's MOT that feels like it will do a couple of years.
When I was your sons age we wanted girls and the cars they liked the best were big ones. So do him a favour and get him the Audi A8. He would be the only one in his peer group as the small 3-door hatch is the typical form factor. I just remember there was one guy who had a big car and the rest of us were driving around in titchy hatchbacks, he seems like the clever one... even if he wasn't.
Chainsaw Rebuild said:
Without meaning to be rude - the lack of maintenance is presumably why his car has a big bill looming? This seems like his problem - and it might teach him to service his car.
Yeah tried that multiple times. He is autistic and only cares when something goes wrong.TheDrownedApe said:
Chainsaw Rebuild said:
Without meaning to be rude - the lack of maintenance is presumably why his car has a big bill looming? This seems like his problem - and it might teach him to service his car.
Yeah tried that multiple times. He is autistic and only cares when something goes wrong.Are you not in a position to help him care for it?
mikeiow said:
Also wondering why you think it will fail.
Are you not in a position to help him care for it?
Are you not in a position to help him care for it?
fflump said:
Why do you think it will be a huge failure? Is it not currently roadworthy?
The suspension is super woolly and was an advisory last time around. The car just feels very tired now.We are and have bailed him out every time. We are sick of playing nice and want to shock him into changing his priorities to look after what he needs, not wants. "entitled" would be perfect adjective to use here.
Anyway in pure PH tradition we segway in a different direction. What car/engines to buy or avoid please.
It seems every engine i look at provides a cacophony of potential problems.
Probably not a cool choice, but a Yaris must be about perfect. Can just about get a 2017 in budget and being a Toyota should be pretty reliable even being abused. A million Uber Eats drivers can’t be wrong.
I’ve had a few Vauxhalls, including the 1.4 and they’re not that reliable even with regular servicing. The DS3 and 208 1.2 would be a Puretech I believe, which have a wet belt and will kill itself without regular servicing. Same with the 1.0 fiestas.
I’ve had a few Vauxhalls, including the 1.4 and they’re not that reliable even with regular servicing. The DS3 and 208 1.2 would be a Puretech I believe, which have a wet belt and will kill itself without regular servicing. Same with the 1.0 fiestas.
My (now) stepdaughter wrote off a Fiesta two or three years ago. While looking for a replacement, we noticed a Nissan Pulsar at one of the used car dealerships.
It seemed an excellent car - very high spec compared to the Fiesta (don't know what is standard / optioned though).
She does about 50 miles a day in it for work - 2017 car we bought with just under 50k miles on it, and I think it's somewhere around 80-90k now. She gets it regularly serviced - the only issue it had was a fractured wire from the alternator which caused low battery warnings (battery was actually fine though).
I've always thought it was a really nice car, and much better than similar money Fiesta.
It seemed an excellent car - very high spec compared to the Fiesta (don't know what is standard / optioned though).
She does about 50 miles a day in it for work - 2017 car we bought with just under 50k miles on it, and I think it's somewhere around 80-90k now. She gets it regularly serviced - the only issue it had was a fractured wire from the alternator which caused low battery warnings (battery was actually fine though).
I've always thought it was a really nice car, and much better than similar money Fiesta.
TheDrownedApe said:
The suspension is super woolly and was an advisory last time around. The car just feels very tired now.
You'd be looking at about £800 for a complete suspension refresh with decent parts on the Fiesta, it's a very easy job when you're literally replacing the whole show.But, in an answer to your question I'd be looking at the Suzuki Swift - great cars, loved by owners, and Suzuki have been topping owner satisfaction surveys for a while now. It won't set your hair on fire but they're great cars.
e.g. https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202412147...
TheDrownedApe said:
My son is 23 and has had a fiesta mk 7.5 (2013) tdci titanium for the past 7 years. Bought with 125k on it and now on 160k. He loves the car but never, ever maintains, checks or services it.
What's the best option?
Let your son make his own decision, it's by far the easiest option.What's the best option?
Robertb said:
How about a Nissan Leaf or Renault Zoe?
Obviously won’t appeal if he’s a petrolhead but given he doesn’t seem to care about his Fiesta maybe electric might be more tolerant of a low maintenance regimen?
Good value too.
Not a bad shout. Does he need to be able to drive long distances? If not, EV might be lower maintenance.Obviously won’t appeal if he’s a petrolhead but given he doesn’t seem to care about his Fiesta maybe electric might be more tolerant of a low maintenance regimen?
Good value too.
Otherwise: what’s the easiest for him (ie, you!) to get serviced if (when) things break?
Fiesta is likely the nicest car to drive at that low end - our daughter had two - & clearly anyone can service a Ford.
mikeiow said:
Robertb said:
How about a Nissan Leaf or Renault Zoe?
Obviously won’t appeal if he’s a petrolhead but given he doesn’t seem to care about his Fiesta maybe electric might be more tolerant of a low maintenance regimen?
Good value too.
Not a bad shout. Does he need to be able to drive long distances? If not, EV might be lower maintenance.Obviously won’t appeal if he’s a petrolhead but given he doesn’t seem to care about his Fiesta maybe electric might be more tolerant of a low maintenance regimen?
Good value too.
Otherwise: what’s the easiest for him (ie, you!) to get serviced if (when) things break?
Fiesta is likely the nicest car to drive at that low end - our daughter had two - & clearly anyone can service a Ford.
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202501077...
Mammasaid said:
mikeiow said:
Robertb said:
How about a Nissan Leaf or Renault Zoe?
Obviously won’t appeal if he’s a petrolhead but given he doesn’t seem to care about his Fiesta maybe electric might be more tolerant of a low maintenance regimen?
Good value too.
Not a bad shout. Does he need to be able to drive long distances? If not, EV might be lower maintenance.Obviously won’t appeal if he’s a petrolhead but given he doesn’t seem to care about his Fiesta maybe electric might be more tolerant of a low maintenance regimen?
Good value too.
Otherwise: what’s the easiest for him (ie, you!) to get serviced if (when) things break?
Fiesta is likely the nicest car to drive at that low end - our daughter had two - & clearly anyone can service a Ford.
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202501077...
You can lease batteries for electric cars?
davek_964 said:
What does this mean in that ad : "Own battery (not leased)"
You can lease batteries for electric cars?
Yes. Nissan & Renault used to (maybe still do?) offer you one price for the car if you wanted to own the battery, or a lower OTR price if you wanted to lease the battery.You can lease batteries for electric cars?
https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/faceli...
https://www.gogreenautos.co.uk/buyers-guide/batter...
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