Axel Posted May 23, 2006 Share Posted May 23, 2006 I'm at the stage where I'm ready to upgrade from my Ford Fiesta 1.1 to something a bit meatier. Natural progression seems to be the cars I have suggested above in the 1.6l - 1.8l range. Right now I'm interested in knowing the opinion from you guys on what car I should choose. Weighing up some points: *Focus - Cheap, Practicality, Reliability *Civic - Looks, Reliability *Leon - Looks! Reliability Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outlando Posted May 23, 2006 Share Posted May 23, 2006 I'd definitely go for the Ford Focus if I were you. The Honda will be expensive to repair (as most Japanese cars are), and I've never heard anyone have a good word to say about Seat. My wife has driven a Focus for several years now, it's a great car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilsbury Posted May 23, 2006 Share Posted May 23, 2006 From what I have read, the new Focus isn't meant to be anywhere near as good as the previous one. To me, it also is rather ugly (I notice you didn't list looks under it's good points!) I'd go for the Civic if you are going for a petrol engined one, as it's the one that is most likely to hold it's value well, it's probably going to be the best built and most reliable. If you are going diesel, the Seat is probably the best option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samg Posted May 23, 2006 Share Posted May 23, 2006 Humm... out of all of them, the SEAT. But, can i suggest a mini cooper or even a cooperS? They are so fun to drive and you can make them individual to your self (not stupid body kits etc) colours etc. Its like a big gokart, and its a smooth ride. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beastage Posted May 23, 2006 Share Posted May 23, 2006 The Seat is my first choice out of that bunch, the Focus is 2nd choice and I'd stay away from the Honda The Leon is the best looking car of the 3, all have good reliability with leon and focus being the better handeling cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerm Posted May 23, 2006 Share Posted May 23, 2006 My mum's got a Leon, and i've been driving it for 6 months now. Absolutely brilliant car. Nice ride, gorgeous interior, looks nice from outside, fast, fuel efficient, etc. I'd go for Leon first, then that sexy civic. It looks so nice. I'd forget the focus because it's just so boring, and a mini cooper will snap your spine its ride is that bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
majortom1981 Posted May 23, 2006 Share Posted May 23, 2006 What no Toyota Corolla? Lol I would pick the honda civic. I have a toyota corolla and I love the car. So the closest choice to it would be the honda civic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S.MULLA Posted May 23, 2006 Share Posted May 23, 2006 are u talking about the old honda civic or the new one? either way hondas are very reliable.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Axel Posted May 23, 2006 Author Share Posted May 23, 2006 Okay to be fair I didn't clarify what kinda price I'd be lookin at. They would all be older cars so I'd be lookin at between ?3500 - ?5000 preferably towards the lower price range since I'll be at uni next year. The Mini is a great suggestion but unfortunately it's gonna be about ?7000 minimum so it's a little out of my reach. And sorry Major Tom, I'm sure it's a great car but I'm not all that keen on the shape of the corolla. Cheers guys, keep the comments, suggestions, and alternatives coming. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Axel Posted May 23, 2006 Author Share Posted May 23, 2006 My friend's just suggested an MG ZR as another alternative. How do we rate those? I mean.. it's a Rover but it's fairly cheap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S.MULLA Posted May 23, 2006 Share Posted May 23, 2006 i'm currently driving a rover 25. fantastic car.. my first car just to up my insurance no-claims and cheap to run/fix/ quick availability of car parts.. u can get a really good deal on a R25 for around 3k. or get the MG zr which is basically the same as the R25-but with body kit and alloys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shibby Posted May 24, 2006 Share Posted May 24, 2006 The thing about rovers is sure they are cheap and have great engines and parts no matter what will always be out there. But i notice when looking in some rovers they do look abit outdated in side. How about an Audi A2? they are rare to get some good one but still a fun car My dad had a 1.1 basic petrol it was fun, light and looked really cool. But we got rid of it because of the poor service from local audi dealer and well the petrol models had a major problem cutting out on the motorway. BUT the 1.4 TDI or the 1.6 FSI on the other hand! The only thing you would have to pay is probley slighty higher insureance but the engines should be pretty good and since Audi is also VW parts shouldn't be a major problem Price wise it depends on the model and engine but it's probley best to go for the diesel version. http://www.parkers.co.uk/choosing/carrevie...el_id=57&page=8 Your looking at 73bhp min top speed of about 107 0-60 min of 11 on a basic 1.4 average of 40+ mpg with an insureance group of about 6 But i'm sure with some tweeks it will go faster i thought i just throw something differnt in to the works Also another one is a Mercedes A-class 200? It's a 2 litre turbo diesel i think and it should be to much to buy one now with all the new models out. We had a 1.6 petrol LWB (There is a Long Wheel Base and Short Wheel Base, LWB is a better ride) we only god rid because of the value had droped of about 5.5k and it was just my dad driving it so we got a Smart For Four instead. But the 1.6 was a bit gutless i thought and didn't have much power, but the diesels version again are alot better. Seems that diesels are getting ten times better then petrols, well they are with the cars we buy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linsook Posted May 24, 2006 Share Posted May 24, 2006 type r if you can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheElite Posted May 24, 2006 Share Posted May 24, 2006 come on! no golf? a golf mk4 is better than all of these? they are practical and good lookin. and you sure cant beat the germans in luxury and the reliability for a golf is excellent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Axel Posted May 24, 2006 Author Share Posted May 24, 2006 come on! no golf? a golf mk4 is better than all of these? they are practical and good lookin. and you sure cant beat the germans in luxury and the reliability for a golf is excellent. I wouldn't get a golf, my friend and I have a feud going on in that sector, if I were to get one it would be like conceding to his argument - petty? Hell yes! But it's principle damn it! Besides that I'm not so keen on the overall shape. Solid car though. The Audi A2 and the Merc A-Class are not really cars I would consider down to the general shape and the fact the insurance will probably be fairly high. Thanks for adding them into the equation though. Civic Type R would be lovely, however I think it may be a little overboard since I'm gonna be a student next year! Just to add another car myself, I took a look at the Ibiza which also looks fairly nice (in black) and they also dont cost too much which means it could be a relatively logical choice for me. What do you guys think about this as an alternative to the Leon? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Veteran Posted May 24, 2006 Veteran Share Posted May 24, 2006 Seat. They contain Volkswagen engine and parts. But why not a Volkswagen? Or an Audi (if you want to go that far). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Axel Posted May 24, 2006 Author Share Posted May 24, 2006 Seat. They contain Volkswagen engine and parts. But why not a Volkswagen? Or an Audi (if you want to go that far). Just not keen on VW, can't fault the quality of the product, it's more of a badge thing. Audi's are nice but only the more expensive models (and lets face it, I'm not going for anything like that til I'm out of uni. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shibby Posted May 24, 2006 Share Posted May 24, 2006 Well the ford value wise you'd probley be able to chop it in a few years time but the price wouldn't be to great. Honda well costs really Seat well not really heard much or even been in one. If your after looks then skodas are out the frame, sure there are VW and Audi but seem the cheaper counterpart. There is also Vauxhall astras. we had them and didn't have no sort of problems with em, but they seem a bland brand but i'm sure they have some sport engines, probley look nice in a black or white. with a few mods. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speedemonV12 Posted May 25, 2006 Share Posted May 25, 2006 i voted for the civic, there are a lot of things you can do to that car to make it fast, very customizable. or you could go with a 66 chevy corvette stingray with 400 hp :) around 20,000 on ebay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Echilon Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 I'd go for the Civic. What's a Seat Leon doing in the list with the other two? It's a bit of a girls' car isn't it ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shibby Posted June 1, 2006 Share Posted June 1, 2006 i just rememberd seat is just a spainish VW? the leon i think may be based on a VW Polo! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Montage Posted June 1, 2006 Share Posted June 1, 2006 Seat Leon = VW Golf. VERY sturdy, speedy and sexy cars! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomwarren Veteran Posted June 1, 2006 Veteran Share Posted June 1, 2006 Leon isn't bad, fairly reliable. I wouldn't bother getting a Focus unless it's an ST as they're just ugly without a decent body kit on them or sporty look. And I can't really stand the 2006 Honday Civics but it will be the most reliable out of all 3. I'd say the Focus will be the most unreliable. Unlike everyone else I'd advise against anything MG/Rover. Yes yes Honda do their spares but the cars are starting to get into that stage where spare parts will be expensive to purchase even though you'll still be able to get parts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
=NickJ= Posted June 1, 2006 Share Posted June 1, 2006 I'd definately go for the Civic, being a student you want the least running costs and the Civic's reliability is easily the best out of the three, depends if you're happy with the stick on the dashboard or not ;) My Dad has a Civic type S and its rapid, kick it up to 5000rpm, let VTEC kick in and feel it suck you into your seat :D I'd say power wise VTEC has a greater effect than Zetec on the Focus too, and I dunno if the Seat has any fancy engine tuning techniques. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts