New car dilemma

[adamd]

I am looking for some opinions and advice!

Firstly, I am not overly bothered about having a flash car or what others think of what I drive so my decision comes down to a few factors:

- does it look nice, relatively 'sporty'. Well, when I say 'sporty' I just mean it is not really boring and dull.
- how does it drive?
- price and longevity.
- running costs and depreciation.

In my 17 years of driving I've had only 3 cars (5 years, 8 years and 4 years) with the first two being used until no longer economically viable so simply part exchanged in for a few hundred at the time of buying the new one. My current car is a 3 door 2.0 TDci Focus, 2007 plate with 99k on the clock. In the past year it has had a new clutch, water pump, brake discs, starter motor and battery so it is very well maintained. Also had a new cambelt on 80k. Some key items have been replaced which can only help me sell it for a fairly good price. On the flipside, having not long ago incurred these costs if I decide to replace it now I will have no chance of recouping this spend.


I have been offered a 3 year old car which fits my criteria, albeit smaller than my current car, for a good £1,500 less than the general market value (in the family hence the generous price) which has only 9k on the clock and 2 very low use owners. Engine is much smaller which at first was a concern but on further inspection I have found that it is only 12bhp less than my current car, 0-60 difference is negligible. Running cost wise - zero tax, slightly cheaper insurance, probably more economical on fuel (although my research suggests that the mpg figures quoted are very ambitious, shall we say) but worst case scenario I would expect it to be no worse than the mpg that I currently get. Other benefits:
- car is 7 years newer so obviously less chance of bigger ticket repairs in the immediate future
- I could even sell it in 12-18 months and probably not lose much money given the discounted price I am buying it for.


I do like my current car very much but understand that the older it gets, the more that needs to be repaired so it is an inevitability that costs will add up over the next few years and perhaps it is time to sell it whilst it has some trade in value.


I am money conscious so hate the thought of having to Shell out £5.5k (after selling my car) and depreciation concerns me, but this will apply to most cars (classics aside, which I cannot afford anyway). However, common sense suggests that over the next 2-3 years I will have to Shell out 5-7k for a new car anyway so why not take advantage of a car that is some 15% cheaper than MV and I know that it has been very well looked after.

Can anyone think of any other considerations that I may have missed? Advice and opinions welcomed.

[dansallis]

1 hour ago, adamd said:

I have been offered a 3 year old car which fits my criteria, albeit smaller than my current car, for a good £1,500 less than the general market value (in the family hence the generous price) which has only 9k on the clock and 2 very low use owners. Engine is much smaller which at first was a concern but on further inspection I have found that it is only 12bhp less than my current car, 0-60 difference is negligible. Running cost wise - zero tax, slightly cheaper insurance, probably more economical on fuel (although my research suggests that the mpg figures quoted are very ambitious, shall we say) but worst case scenario I would expect it to be no worse than the mpg that I currently get.

Is the car in question a Fiesta 1.0 Ecoboost by any chance?

I have very recently replaced my Focus (04) with a newer Fiesta (15) and am very glad I did! My Focus was beginning to cost me quite a pretty penny each year in maintenance and repairs. 

I have one word of advice (some may disagree):

• I believe it is a very good idea to keep a car in the family if offered the chance to. It gives you the ability to get rid of an older car and therefore not be out of pocket financially. It also means that you know who the car has been driven by and how it has been treated. 

I also agree with your point that if you sold it a year later, you would more than likely make your money back.

Just my $0.02.

[adamd]

13 minutes ago, dansallis said:

Is the car in question a Fiesta 1.0 Ecoboost by any chance?

I have very recently replaced my Focus (04) with a newer Fiesta (15) and am very glad I did! My Focus was beginning to cost me quite a pretty penny each year in maintenance and repairs. 

I have one word of advice (some may disagree):

• I believe it is a very good idea to keep a car in the family if offered the chance to. It gives you the ability to get rid of an older car and therefore not be out of pocket financially. It also means that you know who the car has been driven by and how it has been treated. 

I also agree with your point that if you sold it a year later, you would more than likely make your money back.

Just my $0.02.

It is indeed. Since my original post I have posted in the Fiesta forum as well, looking for advice from all angles!

 

I also agree that maintenance costs will ramp up the older the car gets and have experienced this over the past year (new clutch, starter motor, water pump being the main ones). There is an argument that I've now replaced some bigger, expensive items so perhaps maintenance won't be as bad in the coming years but my feeling is that there is always something else around the corner when it comes to car repairs!

[dansallis]

13 minutes ago, adamd said:

It is indeed. Since my original post I have posted in the Fiesta forum as well, looking for advice from all angles!

 

I also agree that maintenance costs will ramp up the older the car gets and have experienced this over the past year (new clutch, starter motor, water pump being the main ones). There is an argument that I've now replaced some bigger, expensive items so perhaps maintenance won't be as bad in the coming years but my feeling is that there is always something else around the corner when it comes to car repairs!

Yep, you have done most of the big ones, you are correct, and you seem to have kept your Focus well maintained. I think it would easily last you 3-5 more years before more big things started going wrong, but since you are likely to buy a new car in the next couple of years it might not be a bad idea to snatch up a bargain where you can.

[cazxx1]

I HAVE JUST GOT THE FORD FIESTA TITANIUM  1.0 Ecoboost Just aint got a clue what all the buttons are for it don't tell you in the handbook

[AlexBartlam]

2 hours ago, cazxx1 said:

I HAVE JUST GOT THE FORD FIESTA TITANIUM  1.0 Ecoboost Just aint got a clue what all the buttons are for it don't tell you in the handbook

i was a bit confused to begin with when i got mine, but me being me i sat in it for couple hours pressing every button there was, it does take time. you may not of been given all the maulas theres a couple, iv got 2013 and my manual has what they do i there.

as for OP's question

iv got 1.0 zs 2013 i love it very good car i get 38mpg so is good on fuel, mixture of calm collected driving with the added sprinkle of some more spirited driving. 

 

[cazxx1]

can you tell me what the switch is that is above the heated seat switch please when i switch it on nothing happens also the stop start don't work 

[AlexBartlam]

15 hours ago, cazxx1 said:

what the switch is that is above the heated seat switch

unfortunately i dont have heated seats  i had a quick search on google but cant seem to find a decent enough picture with the button in different places, maybe post a pic of the button.

as for start stop mine stopped working a few months ago, but it started working properly now but is now doing this lol it seems to have a mind of its own, if it does stop then it auto starts 2 seconds after going off with no input from me.