good first car?

[Tim Drake]

What would a good but cheap car to get used in Northern Ireland?

I know some of you are car geeks

Taking insurance in to consideration foo

[kristaps552]

I am struggling to find a good solution my self. 

You have only got a few options to keep the insurance down. - Corsa,Polo,Lupo,Fiesta,KA,Grande Punto - you got the idea...

[techswede]

Anything with cheap insurance and good mileage. 

[werto165]

I have a yaris it gets the job done, it's been okay reliability wise, but damn it's fucking slow. Foot to the floor all the time to get anywhere.

[as96]

How much can you spend? Are you looking for a new or an used car? Could you link a reference website to look the prices on (since IDK the prices there)?

[techguru]

lamborgini

[Trik'Stari]

Anything small, with 4 doors and a diesel engine should get you cheap insurance.

[Tim Drake]

Anything with cheap insurance and good mileage.

Plz don't hurt me but how does this milage thing work with used cars?

Never bothered to try to understand.

Is more better etc Plz help

[Tim Drake]

How much can you spend? Are you looking for a new or an used car? Could you link a reference website to look the prices on (since IDK the prices there)?

Um Idk but I know it will be used.

[1Scotty1]

I bought a used Citroen C3 - 89000km on it when I bought it, was like new. Insurance is roughly 72€ a year for me

[Tim Drake]

Anything small, with 4 doors and a diesel engine should get you cheap insurance.

But aren't diesel cars less reliable since diesel is a dirty fuel?

My dad has seemed to have that experience anyway where he has more things going wrong with his diesel than he did his petrol.

[as96]

Plz don't hurt me but how does this milage thing work with used cars?

Never bothered to try to understand.

Is more better etc Plz help

If a car has been used for less Km in theory is better than a car with more, so less is better, but that's not the only indicator of a car in good conditions.

[techswede]

Plz don't hurt me but how does this milage thing work with used cars?

Never bothered to try to understand.

Is more better etc Plz help

It is basically how much fuel the car uses per mile. More miles per gallon is better

[Trik'Stari]

But aren't diesel cars less reliable since diesel is a dirty fuel?

My dad has seemed to have that experience anyway where he has more things going wrong with his diesel than he did his petrol.

Depends on the vehicle, what the owner does with it, and whether or not the owner performs regular maintenance. Generally speaking, diesels can last a hell of a lot longer and have fewer problems than petrol engines. Diesel isn't a dirty fuel either, it just has a lot lower octane rating, which is on purpose because of how diesel engines work, igniting their fuel by compression rather than with a spark plug.

 

The brand of car can also matter as well. Some brands are known to be practically indestructible, like Toyota Diesels of old, or can be crap, like Ford diesels. Turbo diesels can also have a lot of problems.

[Sousuke]

Opel/Vauxhall Corsa was my First Car but I'd recommend anything from a Suzuki Swift, VW Polo/Golf ect. DON'T BUY ANYTHING FRENCH UNLESS IT'S NEWISH. 

 

Get one which is 6-10 Years Old as service parts will be cheap and then its not a car you'd really care about writing off in an accident, Keep the car for about 3-4 years whilst saving for a car you'd really like.

 

The engine is up to you depending on how far you drive day to day, a 1.0L - 1.2L Petrol are good for low insurance or a 1.3L Diesel if you do more than 20 Miles each way to work.

 

Lastly is spec, Avoid sport specs as the insurance will cane you for it also go with a 5/4 Door Model as that will once again lower your insurance premium as 3 Doors are known for being "Sporty" 

 

So thats my outline, My first car was a 2000 Vauxhall Corsa Club Spec which was a 1.2L Petrol with 5 Doors still was expensive to insure but going with an SXI 3 Door would have raised my premium by around 25-30%

[techswede]

But aren't diesel cars less reliable since diesel is a dirty fuel?

My dad has seemed to have that experience anyway where he has more things going wrong with his diesel than he did his petrol.

Diesels are usually more reliable in my experience. Diesel is not a dirty fuel. But the older diesels usually spewed black smoke out of the exhaust and were inefficient. But more modern ones are actually pretty good

[Interfectorem]

But aren't diesel cars less reliable since diesel is a dirty fuel?

My dad has seemed to have that experience anyway where he has more things going wrong with his diesel than he did his petrol.

Quite the contrary actually, diesel engines last a damn long time. Although diesel is more expensive. Also, in used cars, the mileage is how much the car has been driven by the previous owner(s). In theory, the lower the number, the better in condition the vehicle should be, but don't let this be your only deciding factor, also take into account any cosmetic damage or engine problems.

[ShadowCaptain]

Something like a small Corsa/Polo type car

 

Diesels are great but if your  driving is only over short distances, then petrol would be a better option, diesels are better when covering lots of motorway miles generally

 

It depends on your budget but for your first car and how long you intend to keep it, but honestly I would spend  £1k-£2k and just get something to get you started, and if you wreck it then you arent going to lose much money 

 

It will give you a taste of driving and you can save up for a nicer/faster/better car in the future

 

Thats what me and my brother and sister did and it works well

 

Example of a great first car

 

1.2 L Corsa, only 68K on the clock £1295 - Keep it in good condition and in 12 months you can probably sell it for £1000+ and put it towards your upgrade

 

http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/vauxhall/corsa/vauxhall-corsa-1-2i-16v-sxi-2003/4171941

[RevoltTrain]

My first car will be a Honda Prelude:

 

 

 

[terrytek]

Plz don't hurt me but how does this milage thing work with used cars?

Never bothered to try to understand.

Is more better etc Plz help

You want less miles with a used car, because that means parts have been abused less, so that means you wouldn't have to replace parts yet, until absolutely necessary.

[terrytek]

I think either a Mazda 6 V6 Grand Touring, or a Ford Mondeo. Perfect for some fun cruising and driving with friends.

[Wulfgar]

Get something that's affordable, has at least decent MPG, common so that parts are easily found and cheap to buy, and not expensive to insure. A used honda or toyota sedan would do you fine, or perhaps an econobox like a Ford Focus would be a good pick as well. Let your first car be your learning experience, and learn some basic maintenance from the good ole' internets and you'll be fine.

[Misanthrope]

I used to have a 1984 VW Atlantic this was in 2000 so it was already 16 years old and boy it was such a piece of shit: Clutch was mostly busted, sometimes doors would lock, breaks didn't work for shit (so much so that I had to use parking break often, fun times in the rain) the engine could barely make it uphill carrying my fat ass and a passenger, the frame and suspension were shut to hell to the point the car couldn't go over speed bumps without scratching the fuck out of it, a mosquito bite could usually flat my tires which I just kept patching instead of getting new ones, the trunk had a huge hole in it so the exhaust would get into the car through the speaker holes meaning that you could never roll up the windows, not even in the rain.

 

Still I got a million stories about that car that makes me fondly remember it. One time, and this is no joke, a homeless guy stood in front of it worshiping then climbed up inside (because of course the piece of shit didn't lock) Took me a good while to get the thing to stop smelling like piss after that but it was so funny never the less.

[Tim Drake]

Don't forget guys I'm 17 and don't know much of the technical stuff

[ShadowCaptain]

I think either a Mazda 6 V6 Grand Touring, or a Ford Mondeo. Perfect for some fun cruising and driving with friends.

 

The UK is a completely difference place  A v6 for your first car - insurance would be INSANE

 

Don't forget guys I'm 17 and don't know much of the technical stuff

 

gimme a shout if you need help