Need advice - Used Car purchase - Budget 14K - open to suggestions.

Lrey on 06/02/2015 - 13:18
Last edited 06/02/2015 - 14:55

Hi guys,

I need your help - I'm looking to purchase a reliable, economical car that's close to or better yet under $14,000. I can drive manual and wouldn't mind it, any big differences in terms of running costs and servicing between auto and manual?
As i have little knowledge of cars, i would love some of your expert advice on what to choose.

Can you please recommend me a Make, Model and Year of a car that fits my requirements above?

At the moment I've been looking at the following.

  • Toyota Corolla accent sedan 2011
  • Ford Focus 2013 Manual
  • Ford Mondeo 2010 Auto
  • Mazda 3 Neo 2010 Manual

I really like the interior design of the Fo(R)d vehicles, but i don't know how they compare in terms of reliability, servicing costs and fuel economy against the other above mentioned models.

I am open to your thoughts.

Thanks.

Automotive

Comments

  • jzx100 on 06/02/2015 - 14:04
    +1

    Go with the Toyota as they are very reliable and then followed by the Mazda. My friend had one of the Ford's, interior was very nice (with all those display lights), car drove well but didn't seem as well built as the Corolla. I would assume servicing and fuel consumption to be similar for all four cars.

    • frinik on 06/02/2015 - 15:46
      +1

      i dont like the fords interiors..theyre butt ugly.
      each to their own…funny thing is i have one.

      • Colombian on 06/02/2015 - 18:29
        +2

        Don't like it either, it is a shame because I think they are very nice cars outside.

  • QuickToThePointless on 06/02/2015 - 14:06
    +5

    Whatever you get, be sure to check under the bonut things. If the big thing is leaking, avoid the purchase!

    • rey on 06/02/2015 - 14:49
      +4

      writes down big thing leak = bad. Got it.

    • TheOneWhoKnocks on 07/02/2015 - 21:09
      +1

      Bonut?

  • QuickToThePointless on 06/02/2015 - 14:13
    +2

    for your budget, you couldnt go wrong with any of those - if you plan to keep for the longer run, ford parts will be cheaper if you need to replace small things like radiator, alternater etc. if you plan to keep for 10 years or more, probabaly go the corolla for overall longevity that toyatas have.

    • rey on 06/02/2015 - 14:51

      Thanks for the tip, I'll keep this in mind when i make a decision.

  • badarz on 06/02/2015 - 14:20
    +1

    Food vehicles are pretty good, but check out some turbo diesel options which are good for economy whilst still providing good torque (funner to drive). VW Passat/Jetta/Golf TDI 2007-2010 in your budget or Holden Cruze Diesel ~2010.

    • QuickToThePointless on 06/02/2015 - 14:25
      +1

      Food vehicle as in hot dog van , mr whippy etc?

      Turbo diesels at that price will have a lot of kms, and will cost more to fix when they inevitably break down in the shorter term

      • badarz on 06/02/2015 - 14:39
        +2

        OP likes the interior of food vehicles :)

        • QuickToThePointless on 06/02/2015 - 14:39
          +1

          Always a snack within reach i guess!

        • rey on 06/02/2015 - 14:47
          +2

          what can i say, i love my food.

  • iampoor on 06/02/2015 - 14:53

    Lots of reviews put Suzuki Swift in the not quite good enough bracket but I encourage you to test it out.

    I bought one about 5-6 years ago and it ran really well, was quiet enough (not like the Mazda 3 I drove for about half of last year) and really economical.

    Paid about $15k for a demo, only got rid of it because a P plater ran a Commodore up the back so hard that the boot (not the largest to begin with) got even smaller.

    Impact probably about 70-80 km/h but occupants no issue at all (other than being pissed off). Didn't help that after we pulled over to exchange details it began to hail.

    • QuickToThePointless on 06/02/2015 - 15:04

      So although you got hit from behind, the hail made sure there was damage to the bonut too

      • iampoor on 06/02/2015 - 21:07

        Haha…no…no damage to the bonut..just hail on the head isn't very fun while trying to exchange details.

  • shaybisc on 06/02/2015 - 15:04
    +1

    Strange place to ask. There is a huge amount of info online. I would start here: http://www.drive.com.au/

    Here, for example, is a used car review of the Focus.

    http://www.drive.com.au/used-car-reviews/ford-focus-used-car…

    • rey on 06/02/2015 - 15:14

      I've been looking at youtube reviews actually (shows how lost i am). Thanks for this, helps a lot.

  • ESEMCE on 06/02/2015 - 15:04
    +1

    Depending how long/far you keep it, a manual ought to be a bit cheaper to maintain.
    Manual Gearbox shouldn't ever need servicing (provided you don't drive too stupidly), but an auto will no matter how cautious you drive.
    Should also be a bit cheaper to buy upfront, but will also be a bit harder to sell.

  • phynnd on 06/02/2015 - 15:07

    I see that your options are somewhat similar in terms of reliability and size, and assuming they all have similar mileage, I'd usually go with the latest build. If the car still has the warranty from the previous owner, it will be another plus.

  • modsec802 on 06/02/2015 - 21:33
    +2

    I bought a 2014 Mazda 2 last year for 14.5k driveaway brand new.
    If you don't mind a small car that's good value and has 3 year warranty and capped price servicing.

  • blitz on 06/02/2015 - 22:59

    Fo(R)d

    What is with the Fo(R)d bit

    • rey on 09/02/2015 - 09:17

      I accidentally wrote "Food" before, hence the comment above in regards to OP liking "food" vehicles.
      I have now fixed it ;)

  • subydooby on 06/02/2015 - 23:08
    +1

    How about a Hyundai i20 or i30, they will probably still have some warranty left and are much better than you probably think. Also it will be easier to sell an auto in the future as no one wants manuals anymore. I also agree with the Suzuki Swift recommendation. Great little car but boot is very small, I also had a Suzuki SX4 which had a huge boot and all the extras but not so pretty…

  • Bobruub on 07/02/2015 - 07:22
    +1

    A couple of years back I brought my wife a car, came down to a choice between a Corolla and the 3. Ended up with the Corolla, most boring car on earth, but runs on the smell of an oily rag and super reliable.

  • Davros on 07/02/2015 - 07:33
    +1

    How many klm/year do you do?
    I don't do many (approx 400klm/week)so have a $5000 commodore and plenty of money left over for fuel and repairs, but all I have spent in repairs in the last 5 years is the usual servicing and a rather expensive set of plug leads.
    Personally, I see no value in spending much more than this on vehicles even though money is not an issue to me.

  • batfastard on 07/02/2015 - 08:23

    Hayabusa

    You know it makes sense

  • Euphemistic on 07/02/2015 - 08:29

    You really need to provide more info on your car needs other than manual is ok and under $14k.

    How many passengers do you carry. Do you need child seats? Do you travel only city or use it for driving holidays? How many kms, do you need load space? How long do you plan on keeping it?

    Get the smallest car you can for economy. Get the biggest car you need for space, load carrying etc.

    Ultimately if you don't travel much and like space a bigger, cheaper car (commodore for $5k) could be cheaper and more comfortable. If you do lots of km and don't need space a mazda 2, Ford Fiesta, Suzuki swift might be better but won't cope as well if kid seats/prams etc are needed soon.

    A few years ago I got a 1991 Corolla. Cheap as chips to run, but ultimately not big enough for carting kids and gear around. Up sized to a forester which is a much better size for me. The fuel costs aren't as big a factor when you are only filling the tank once a month like I do so aside from depreciation the difference in cost was only a couple of hundred per year in fuel.

  • [Deactivated] on 07/02/2015 - 14:54

    Somebody I knew, recently died in a car accident.
    Given the nature of the trauma sustained, side-curtain airbags may well have made for a survivable accident.

    Forgive me for not doing any specific research for you, but I think that in the price-range of used that you're looking at, there would be a fair number of models available where side bags were standard, or where the car was optioned with them.

    Something that you may wish to consider.

    • shaybisc on 07/02/2015 - 16:59

      "Head/torso side air bags appear to be very effective in reducing nearside driver deaths, whereas torso-only air bags appear less protective."

      http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/content/159/6/556.long

      "The study did not find any evidence that torso-protecting airbags alone are effective in reducing death or injury. Analysis results indicate that head and torso-protecting side airbag systems in vehicles are a highly effective technology for reducing the risk of death or injury to vehicle occupants in near side crashes."

      http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23499979

      That seems to be the consensus on side airbags. What are the type you get in the average car?

      • [Deactivated] on 07/02/2015 - 17:26

        I believe that the early side-intrusion/torso bags were pretty basic, but that things have moved on tremendously with the various designs of curtain bags.

        Especially in the context of a used car, the extent to which they extend when inflated will vary brand-to-brand, model-to-model, and with the year of build of anything that the OP is looking at.

  • srhardy on 07/02/2015 - 18:22
    +1
    1. Look for a car with manufacture warranty remaining as this can save you a lot of money as problems emerge (and they do, even with new cars)
    2. Second hand you can get auto for the same price as a manual and thats always a bonus over new
    3. A 4 Cylinder FWD car is cheaper to run, register and service but you can get a nice 6C car for the same money FYI
    4. Problem cars like POLO/GOLF DSG need to be approached with car as repair costs may ruin your year!
    5. Avoid diesel, go petrol - bought an oiler and the repair & servicing costs were an eye opener to me!!!
    6. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE FREE & CLEAR TITLE - this is easier if you buy from a dealer than private and ive found private sales to be more trouble than they are often worth but do all your checks before parting with money…
  • Soundwave on 08/02/2015 - 08:02
    +1

    Working at a dealership, if you can push your budget another $3,000 you have the possibility of getting a new car, with some change by a little bargaining -

    Renault Clio
    3 Year Capped Service
    5 Year Unlimited Km Warranty
    5 Year Roadside Assist.

    Toyota Yaris
    3 Year Capped Service
    3 Year Warranty

    Hyundai i20
    3 Year Capped Service
    5 Year Warranty
    5 Year Roadside Assist.

    I saw Hyundai have a manual under your budget. i20 manual for $12,990.

    I am bias towards Toyotas as they are a reliable vehicle and hold their value, but the other two are still great cars.

  • rey on 09/02/2015 - 09:57

    Thanks everyone for the tips and comments. I've learnt so much about cars in a span of a 2 days!
    After considering all of your posts as well as talking with a few people, I've come to settle for a Japanese car. Thank to you guys, I've also now know what i actually need.

    If anyone is interested, this is my new criteria.

    Body - Sedan/Coupe
    Price - Max $14k
    Year - Min 2011
    Transmission - Automatic

    • Will be keeping the car for about 10 years or so.
    • i drive approx 18,000 Km a year.

    Considering the following: (listed in order of priority)

    • 2011 Toyota Corolla Ascent MY11
    • 2011 Toyota Camry Altise/Touring
    • 2011 Mazda 3 Neo
    • 2011 Mitsubishi Lancer SX MY2011

    I'm swaying towards either a Corolla or a Camry. Boring i know but being realistic i think this is the best choice for my criteria.

    Any thoughts on the lancer?

    • Speckled Jim on 09/02/2015 - 10:43
      +1

      Between Lancer SX and Camry, I'd pick Camry as it's larger and better built IMO.
      I've ridden in both, find the Lancer a bit cramped.

    • shaybisc on 09/02/2015 - 16:31

      I don't know if it will make any difference to you but the 2011 Corolla has an outdated, mediocre 4 speed auto.

      http://www.drive.com.au/used-car-reviews/used-car-review-toy…

    • spackbace on 11/02/2015 - 20:58

      Check service intervals, warranty (at least the lancer will have warranty till 2016). Make sure it's not an ex-rental. Drive each, see what you think (especially with the CVT in the Lancer). Compare specs (I think the Lancer is the only one with USB, is that a priority etc).

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