First car?

A Mk1 Fiat Punto! It was my first car...it taught me a lot about mechanics to say the least :bonk:
 
ChrisMClark said:
A Mk1 Fiat Punto! It was my first car...it taught me a lot about mechanics to say the least :bonk:
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In the same vein, my first car was an old style Fiat Panda - group 1 insurance, lasted me 8 years, fantastically cheap to run and it didn't need much in the way of repairs but even they were cheap (£25 for a tyre!). Great budget motoring.
 
Just get something like a 1.0 Micra. You'll fall in an awful downward cycle of debt if you want to get anything better
 
CatB said:
In the same vein, my first car was an old style Fiat Panda - group 1 insurance, lasted me 8 years, fantastically cheap to run and it didn't need much in the way of repairs but even they were cheap (£25 for a tyre!). Great budget motoring.
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My Punto was a nightmare at times, but there's still something about Fiats...I've got a Stilo now, had it nearly 3 years and it's never let me down. Ever. Not once in 3 years of...shall we say 'enthusiastic' driving.
 
30psi said:
Just get something like a 1.0 Micra. You'll fall in an awful downward cycle of debt if you want to get anything better
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May i add, that driving a micra is like driving in a bubble of glass. You can see ALLLLLLL round you,virtually no blind spots, no A/B pillars in the way either.

It's something i miss when driving my car, and my last few cars, is the visability that a nissan micra gives.

They're not too brilliant on the fuel though... Mums 1.0 litre micra does about 38mpg.
 
just listen for ratles on 1.0 micras. prone to top cam chains rattling or even breaking.
my daughters got a 1.0 micra. nice motor and cheap insurance.
paid £350 for a 93 . try liverpool victoria for insurance. and diamond do some good deals for girlies.
 
Top tip for micra owners.
They have a wicked tendency to flood the engine. If it cranks over and doesn`t start, try the usual solution of holding the throttle to the floor, if that doesn`t work, pull the fuse for the fuel pump and turn the engine over. I guarantee it`ll start. Once it fires, pop the fuse back in, whilst it`s still running. Saves taking the plugs out!

I`ve done about 70-80 roadside jobs like this.

Other than that, they`re solid little motors. Not a lot to go wrong, I think I only really attended silly things like the flooding issue or wheelchanges or flat batteries.

Much better than a 106 IMO. Bit of an oldies car granted, but very reliable.

I learnt most of my formative mechanics on minis, we used to strip them apart all the time. My parents really enjoyed that..... lol.

I don`t envy young drivers these days, Re the insurance issues.
 
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30psi said:
Just get something like a 1.0 Micra.
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No don't do it, there's more to life than cheap insurance.

That said my son, currently having driving lessons, wants a Fiesta Zetec S for his first car. I keep telling him a 1.25 or 1.3 Fiesta or a KA for his first years motoring would be better.
Is car insurance for teanagers really that expensive or is it all relative.
My first car was a 6 year old Mk3 Cortina 1600L, cost me £500 if I remember rightly (28 yrs ago) and insurance was £350.
 
ChrisMClark said:
My Punto was a nightmare at times, but there's still something about Fiats...I've got a Stilo now, had it nearly 3 years and it's never let me down. Ever. Not once in 3 years of...shall we say 'enthusiastic' driving.
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I agree, I flooded the Panda more times than I can remember (manual choke!) but I still loved it and was gutted when at the age of 20 it finally had to go to the great scrapyard in the sky. I've got a Toyota Starlet at the moment and although it's fine the next car will more than likely be a 2nd hand new style Panda (even Clarkson liked it :) ).
 
My first car cost me £150 (a 3 year old Datsun :lol:) and insurance (third party fire and theft) was £400 :thinking: :shrug:
 
nilagin said:
No don't do it, there's more to life than cheap insurance.

That said my son, currently having driving lessons, wants a Fiesta Zetec S for his first car. I keep telling him a 1.25 or 1.3 Fiesta or a KA for his first years motoring would be better.
Is car insurance for teanagers really that expensive or is it all relative.
My first car was a 6 year old Mk3 Cortina 1600L, cost me £500 if I remember rightly (28 yrs ago) and insurance was £350.
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As I posted earlier, car cost £3500, I paid £1000 fully comp at 17, so actually reduced in ratio since your day!

Seriously though, I can't see any 17 year old wanting a Ka - really is a girls car. A good car I agree, but girly all over.
 
apkent said:
Seriously though, I can't see any 17 year old wanting a Ka - really is a girls car. A good car I agree, but girly all over.
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Better that, than a Micra or Peugeot. I know loads of blokes who drive KA's. All the girls KA's I've seen have been decorated with pink trimmings. Oh Dear!:gag:
 
This one belongs to a lad.....

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I dread to think whats been spent on it, probably enough to buy a proper car :lol:

I'd say Corsa or Fiestas are far better first cars, but then I had a Corsa so would agree with myself :)
 
apkent said:
Ah well, now an MX-5 is a strange beast. Girly, yes but a fantastic drive and derserves a lot more credit than it gets. I still wouldn't have one though :lol:

Couldn't really see the same tempting a young lad to a Ka.
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MX5, only driven by women or men in their late 50's who want an open top sports car but more modern than an old MG or Lotus Elan.

My son also keeps talking about wanting a MK3 Capri, preferably a 2.8i. Yeah right.:lol:
 
I'd say if you could get a 1.0 Y reg Corsa for around a grand then that would be the best bet. It's a far more modern car than the others suggested, quite nippy and not a lot goes wrong with them, well nothing that can't be fixed at home with a set of spanners ;)
 
nilagin said:
MX5, only driven by women or men in their late 50's who want an open top sports car but more modern than an old MG or Lotus Elan.

My son also keeps talking about wanting a MK3 Capri, preferably a 2.8i. Yeah right.:lol:
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Why? Does he have an aversion to going round corners?
 
My first car was £300 and cost £1k to insure. Was just a 1.6 Orion.
 
Flash In The Pan said:
I'd say if you could get a 1.0 Y reg Corsa for around a grand then that would be the best bet. It's a far more modern car than the others suggested, quite nippy and not a lot goes wrong with them, well nothing that can't be fixed at home with a set of spanners ;)
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You thinking the newer shape (Corsa C if you google it) or the older one (Corsa B)?

Corsa Cs came out on the Y reg I think, but I reckon you'd be better off with the slightly older 'B' model.....
 
Flash In The Pan said:
Why? Does he have an aversion to going round corners?
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They can be tamed and quite easily too. I had a Capri although only a 1.6 but very entertaining to drive. I did pull out of a side turning at work once rather sharpish, rear end shot right round almost 180 degress. Dropped the clutch, it straightened up and shot off up the road. Frightened the life out of the bloke driving the car behind me though.:lol:
I'd have another, no hesitation, but preferably a black 3.0 S with x-pack body kit and triple webbers.
 
nilagin said:
MX5, only driven by women or men in their late 50's who want an open top sports car but more modern than an old MG or Lotus Elan.
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But quite a good drivers car apparantly...
 
Ant said:
May i add, that driving a micra is like driving in a bubble of glass. You can see ALLLLLLL round you,virtually no blind spots, no A/B pillars in the way either.
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That's all wasted when you have to wear a paper bag on your head though ;)
 
CatB said:
the next car will more than likely be a 2nd hand new style Panda (even Clarkson liked it :) ).
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The guys on the Fiat forums I'm on all love them too. They're supposed to be better off road than most of the new land rovers, certainly better than the top-marque's attempts at off roaders.
 
apkent said:
Ah well, now an MX-5 is a strange beast. Girly, yes but a fantastic drive and derserves a lot more credit than it gets. I still wouldn't have one though :lol:

Couldn't really see the same tempting a young lad to a Ka.
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A Ka with wider wheels and stiffer springs handles extremely well ;) just sticks to the road. Go kart handling just a shame the engine could be a little bigger.

SportKa perhaps?
 
This thread has gone a bit of a tangent, with the requirements forgotten:

Want something under a grand.

Something that is cheap to insure.

Something that it doesnt matter if I wrap it around a tree.

Matt - Is image important to you? Or do you just see a car as a means of A to B transport?
 
30psi said:
This thread has gone a bit of a tangent, with the requirements forgotten:

Want something under a grand.

Something that is cheap to insure.

Something that it doesnt matter if I wrap it around a tree.

Matt - Is image important to you? Or do you just see a car as a means of A to B transport?
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Let me put this way. I am considering a Volvo of some sort. Relaible, safe and plenty of room for camera stuff.
 
Get something with a small engine, you don't want anything over 1.2 if it's petrol or 1.8 if diesel. The insurance will still be the most expensive part of driving, btw. My first quote was over 2 grand on a Citroen AX 1.1 :gag:

Matt Sayle said:
I will start driving in October (God help us).

I dont know what to get for a first car.

Want something under a grand.

Something that is cheap to insure.

Something that it doesnt matter if I wrap it around a tree.

Was thinking MX5 (Hairdresser) but what about insurance?
I quite like the idea of a Fiesta or 106!

Any ideas?
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Sounds to me like the volvo a reasonable option. Think they do them in 1.4, 1.7 and 2.0 (i think)

The 1.7 is the best engine, and also the car is rear wheel drive. Due to the librarian/school teacher type of image they may also be cheap on insurance
 
30psi said:
Sounds to me like the volvo a reasonable option. Think they do them in 1.4, 1.7 and 2.0 (i think)

The 1.7 is the best engine, and also the car is rear wheel drive. Due to the librarian/school teacher type of image they may also be cheap on insurance
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Hopefully!!
 
Now, don't laff.........................

How about an old Land Rover? Under a grand, free road tax, cheap insurance, easy to fix and, suprisingly, the birds love 'em. There are quite a few 17/18/19 years olds who drive them.
 
old landrovers?
huge lumps will fall off it regularly.
it'll loosen your fillings cos the ride is so harsh.
unless your a good mechanic , it wont stop, go or corner.
if yoru ARE a good mechanic , it will go (slowly) , stop (eventualy) and corner (scarily).
you'll freeze in winter and cook in summer.
and it'll do buggerall to the gallon.

they are cheap to insure ***. been there, done that. several times.:bonk:
 
JumboBeef said:
Now, don't laff.........................

How about an old Land Rover? Under a grand, free road tax, cheap insurance, easy to fix and, suprisingly, the birds love 'em. There are quite a few 17/18/19 years olds who drive them.
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I will look like a farmer. :lol:

Tbh dont really want a Four-be.
 
inaneredstripe said:
old landrovers?
huge lumps will fall off it regularly.
it'll loosen your fillings cos the ride is so harsh.
unless your a good mechanic , it wont stop, go or corner.
if yoru ARE a good mechanic , it will go (slowly) , stop (eventualy) and corner (scarily).
you'll freeze in winter and cook in summer.
and it'll do buggerall to the gallon.
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Er, no. They run forever, hardly ever need fixing, toasty in the winter if you get one with a good heater and converible in the summer if you get one with a tilt (canvas top). The ride on leaf springs is fine if the spring are working well.

I owned one old one (a 1963) which was fitted with a V8 and could leave most rollerskates for dead, but it looked standard from the outside.

I've owned lots of Landys and current own three. I could never bring myself to drive a euro box and look like everyone else.
 
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Rather than keep going through car insurance quote websites to look at what the insurance will cost you, you can look up the insurance group of a car directly here http://www.thatcham.org/abigrouprating/index.jsp?page=343 - that will give you an idea of how they will compare to insure.
Fiat Pandas - Group 1 or 2
Vauxhall Corsa - 2, 3 or 4 (except some 2008 models which are a 1)
Volvo - around 6, 7 or 8 for a 1.7l up to 12 depending on model
 
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