Cheap Run Around
Discussion
Hi all, I am hoping for some help.
I am looking for a cheap run around that does pretty much everything! The car will only do about 10k miles a year at most and 99% of that will be round town driving. It is indended to be a sensible car, cheap road tax, cheap to run and cheap to buy + reliable if possible, always a positive.
So far I have come up with a few options but wanted to see what people think or if anyone has any other suggestions:
Tesla Model 3
MG Model 4
Volvo V60
BMW 320d
All of which are around £10 - 15k with less that 50k miles and around 3-4 years old.
So what do you think?
P.S - I never thought id buy an electric car but they depreciate so badly it makes them appealing for a sensible option.
I am looking for a cheap run around that does pretty much everything! The car will only do about 10k miles a year at most and 99% of that will be round town driving. It is indended to be a sensible car, cheap road tax, cheap to run and cheap to buy + reliable if possible, always a positive.
So far I have come up with a few options but wanted to see what people think or if anyone has any other suggestions:
Tesla Model 3
MG Model 4
Volvo V60
BMW 320d
All of which are around £10 - 15k with less that 50k miles and around 3-4 years old.
So what do you think?
P.S - I never thought id buy an electric car but they depreciate so badly it makes them appealing for a sensible option.
Based on your criteria I would think a Nissan Leaf might be a potential?
For your budget you can get a pretty new one like (example)
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202502048...
If you are willing to go a little older you can go for the bigger battery one - however you said mostly round town driving so I did not think power etc was that important for that style of driving (although extra range might be nice I guess).
For your budget you can get a pretty new one like (example)
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202502048...
If you are willing to go a little older you can go for the bigger battery one - however you said mostly round town driving so I did not think power etc was that important for that style of driving (although extra range might be nice I guess).
I'd say that mostly town driving rules out the 320d or any other diesel.
On the face of it you need a small petrol supermini for that job. Something like a Fiesta or Yaris etc. But I'm guessing you would still like a bit more luxury which a bigger car can offer?
10k miles at around 40mpg would be about £1500 in fuel. If you can charge at home then that cost comes down to maybe a couple of hundred quid on a cheap overnight tariff. Plus 0 tax on older EVs adds to the incentive. Are all EVs going to pay VED or just new ones (I don't know)? So an EV could work really well.
Many people say the Tesla is best if you can live with the image. I've not tried one. A 4 year old model 3 with under 50k miles is slightly above your £15k limit but not much. It'd be standard range but that would seem fine. I'd be wary of the MG as reliability and dealer backup appear quite sketchy.
I'd probably throw £10k at something like an e208 or a Corsa E. Or spend half that on the petrol versions.
On the face of it you need a small petrol supermini for that job. Something like a Fiesta or Yaris etc. But I'm guessing you would still like a bit more luxury which a bigger car can offer?
10k miles at around 40mpg would be about £1500 in fuel. If you can charge at home then that cost comes down to maybe a couple of hundred quid on a cheap overnight tariff. Plus 0 tax on older EVs adds to the incentive. Are all EVs going to pay VED or just new ones (I don't know)? So an EV could work really well.
Many people say the Tesla is best if you can live with the image. I've not tried one. A 4 year old model 3 with under 50k miles is slightly above your £15k limit but not much. It'd be standard range but that would seem fine. I'd be wary of the MG as reliability and dealer backup appear quite sketchy.
I'd probably throw £10k at something like an e208 or a Corsa E. Or spend half that on the petrol versions.
Nissan Leaf is a great suggestion.
Go a little older and save even more.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2025011680...
Nice bright yellow e208
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2025022093...
Must admit this MG4 looks quite smart.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2025031903...
Others might comment on the reliability.
It is amazing how much EV you can get for your money these days. I'm not surprised you're tempted.
Go a little older and save even more.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2025011680...
Nice bright yellow e208
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2025022093...
Must admit this MG4 looks quite smart.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2025031903...
Others might comment on the reliability.
It is amazing how much EV you can get for your money these days. I'm not surprised you're tempted.
ChrisH72 said:
I'd say that mostly town driving rules out the 320d or any other diesel.
On the face of it you need a small petrol supermini for that job. Something like a Fiesta or Yaris etc. But I'm guessing you would still like a bit more luxury which a bigger car can offer?
10k miles at around 40mpg would be about £1500 in fuel. If you can charge at home then that cost comes down to maybe a couple of hundred quid on a cheap overnight tariff. Plus 0 tax on older EVs adds to the incentive. Are all EVs going to pay VED or just new ones (I don't know)? So an EV could work really well.
Many people say the Tesla is best if you can live with the image. I've not tried one. A 4 year old model 3 with under 50k miles is slightly above your £15k limit but not much. It'd be standard range but that would seem fine. I'd be wary of the MG as reliability and dealer backup appear quite sketchy.
I'd probably throw £10k at something like an e208 or a Corsa E. Or spend half that on the petrol versions.
EVs registered post 1st April 2017 will pay VED from 1st April @ £195 / year, only ones registered pre April 2017 will pay £0.On the face of it you need a small petrol supermini for that job. Something like a Fiesta or Yaris etc. But I'm guessing you would still like a bit more luxury which a bigger car can offer?
10k miles at around 40mpg would be about £1500 in fuel. If you can charge at home then that cost comes down to maybe a couple of hundred quid on a cheap overnight tariff. Plus 0 tax on older EVs adds to the incentive. Are all EVs going to pay VED or just new ones (I don't know)? So an EV could work really well.
Many people say the Tesla is best if you can live with the image. I've not tried one. A 4 year old model 3 with under 50k miles is slightly above your £15k limit but not much. It'd be standard range but that would seem fine. I'd be wary of the MG as reliability and dealer backup appear quite sketchy.
I'd probably throw £10k at something like an e208 or a Corsa E. Or spend half that on the petrol versions.
As per a couple of other quotes, my idea of a cheap run around was in the £1k-£2k bracket rather than £10k-£15k...
We've got a Honda e:Ny1 on one of the cheap PCPs that Honda were throwing big money at last year, the biggest surprise / shock has been the range in winter which has seen it drop from 250m to 160m and that is without having the heater on... Although saying that if we needed to go much further we take our ICE car.
bmwmike said:
LightweightLouisDanvers said:
Amazing that some describe a £10-15k car as a cheap run around!
I was expecting a thread looking for something like £1500.
Exactly my thoughts; i subscribed to this thread looking for some gems as i need a little runabout to keep my ncb going.I was expecting a thread looking for something like £1500.
but I did find this, its in budget and should be cheap to run
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/146155155359?_skw=bentl...
LightweightLouisDanvers said:
Amazing that some describe a £10-15k car as a cheap run around!
I was expecting a thread looking for something like £1500.
Same here I was expecting a thread looking for something like £1500.
I bought a Duster new in 2021 for £10,500. I considered that a cheap NEW runabout.
Now, only 4 years later, they are almost £20k for the base model. I don't call that cheap, but maybe the OP would consider one.
I'd recommend the Dacia. Frugal on fuel, easy to look after and not complicated with loads to go wrong.
I used mine to drive the length and breadth of the UK in comfort, dump runs, removals, kid duty, bit of soft roading and after all that, easy to clean out.
Sold mine for almost what I'd paid for it, but wish I'd kept it now.
Such a useful car.
bmwmike said:
Exactly my thoughts; i subscribed to this thread looking for some gems as i need a little runabout to keep my ncb going.
Run a quote through one of the online insurance tools saying you have no NCB and you might be surprised how close to the 'discounted' price it is (even before thinking about the cost of paying a year or more of insurance just to retain it, let alone buying a car for the purpose).Truckosaurus said:
Run a quote through one of the online insurance tools saying you have no NCB and you might be surprised how close to the 'discounted' price it is (even before thinking about the cost of paying a year or more of insurance just to retain it, let alone buying a car for the purpose).
Thanks, yeah, but i'm reluctant to give up 14 years NCB and i'm at 2.5 years already since i last insured in my name, so my pool of insurers has diminished already as most only go to 2 years. It might not make much difference as you say, but psychologically it does. Do get your point though, by the time purchase cost, tax, insurance etc.
bmwmike said:
Thanks, yeah, but i'm reluctant to give up 14 years NCB and i'm at 2.5 years already since i last insured in my name, so my pool of insurers has diminished already as most only go to 2 years. It might not make much difference as you say, but psychologically it does.
Do get your point though, by the time purchase cost, tax, insurance etc.
Could you use the NCB on a 50cc scooter? Do get your point though, by the time purchase cost, tax, insurance etc.
bmwmike said:
Truckosaurus said:
Run a quote through one of the online insurance tools saying you have no NCB and you might be surprised how close to the 'discounted' price it is (even before thinking about the cost of paying a year or more of insurance just to retain it, let alone buying a car for the purpose).
Thanks, yeah, but i'm reluctant to give up 14 years NCB and i'm at 2.5 years already since i last insured in my name, so my pool of insurers has diminished already as most only go to 2 years. It might not make much difference as you say, but psychologically it does. Do get your point though, by the time purchase cost, tax, insurance etc.
An EV will be perfect for your use case. Lots of choice under £15k.
A 2021 or later Chinese built M3 will be the most reliable but probably out of budget, or a lexus Uxe.
Id avoid VW, audi, citroen (or anything stellany) and MG, far too many issues with their EVs
But if it's just for around town, as mentioned an older leaf or zoe for under £10k will do the job. I3 is interesting too, I've never actually driven one but do like the looks. The S model is better but probably overkill given you'll be town driving
A 2021 or later Chinese built M3 will be the most reliable but probably out of budget, or a lexus Uxe.
Id avoid VW, audi, citroen (or anything stellany) and MG, far too many issues with their EVs
But if it's just for around town, as mentioned an older leaf or zoe for under £10k will do the job. I3 is interesting too, I've never actually driven one but do like the looks. The S model is better but probably overkill given you'll be town driving
Edited by Pickle_Rick on Tuesday 25th March 21:05
_Hoppers said:
How about a BMW i3. Aluminium chassis and carbon fibre shell! I’ve just picked a 5 year old model with 25k miles for £11.5k. Keeping my 320d for longer journeys etc
How do you find it. I've been considering one - took a non-S version for a test drive and thought the ride was bone-shakingly bad. The i3S must be grim. Edited by _Hoppers on Tuesday 25th March 14:53
Perhaps a change of suspension components would improve things.
Otherwise its a fairly compelling proposition compared to a new EV.
rlg43p said:
_Hoppers said:
How about a BMW i3. Aluminium chassis and carbon fibre shell! I’ve just picked a 5 year old model with 25k miles for £11.5k. Keeping my 320d for longer journeys etc
How do you find it. I've been considering one - took a non-S version for a test drive and thought the ride was bone-shakingly bad. The i3S must be grim. Edited by _Hoppers on Tuesday 25th March 14:53
Perhaps a change of suspension components would improve things.
Otherwise its a fairly compelling proposition compared to a new EV.
From the reviews I wouldn't consider an i3s although they do look a bit better. I also considered the Honda E, crap range and a bit more expensive than the i3 and a Mazda MX30, cheap but crap range. The i3 seemed like a little gem when considering the alternatives.
PS The work commute on Monday I got 4.8miles/kw going and 4.9 returning. Currently averaging 4.3 which seems decent considering it's still a bit nippy in the mornings?!
Edited by _Hoppers on Wednesday 26th March 09:05
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