Hi All,
Hope everyone is doing well.
Planning to get my first car and wanted to have some advise from ozbargainers :)
I work in the city and commute to work everyday, so will be mainly used over the weekends/holiday period.
or what criteria should i be looking at if a used car:
min year, max odometer, insurance …
Cheers
Edit: to rephrase, what would be an ideal car for an ozbargainer.
Budget, love. Budget direct car insurance
Less than 50k. Would you recommend new or used?
LESS THAN 50K?
how much less?
my first car cost 8k.
I think budget would depend weather i should get a new or second hand car. If new car i'd say max 80k if second hand i'd go max 30k.
@Sudo rm -rf:
0) Set a realistic budget ($5k-$15k is the range of Best Value / Bang for Buck)
1) Go for Used
2) Go for a model with Parts Availability (ie Popular, NOT rare)
3) Get a Well-made product for reliability and safety (Japanese Build are Best Quality)
4) Get one that's 2009 or older
5) Get one with less than 100,000km's
Here's some good options:
Small: Toyota Corolla (Conquest)
Mid-sized: Mazda 3 (Maxx Sport)
Large: Honda Accord Euro
SUV: Nissan X-Trail (TS)
*Subaru also makes great cars in each of these segments, not the winner, but its high-up there and the brand is more of a Japanese jack-of-all-trades just so you're not disheartened. It's simply because those specific models up there are the masters in their respective classes.
@Kangal: Thanks for the list. Do you have an recommendations on websites to use to check for parts availability and reliability/safety?
It's hard to say exactly, but the more sales = more parts, generally. Unless it is a car manufactured in Germany. They have quite the inflated egos that they refuse to stock parts, even known-faulty ones, so WHEN you need a replacement it's a slow order, wait, and pray deal which is also costly in terms of the proprietary part, shipping, installation, and ECU reprogramming.
I think American cars are better at the Stock Issue, but there are so few of them hence understandably there are virtually no parts here. The only problem is that GM/American cars are lower quality than Japanese or European models.
Japanese cars are the best, because most are built for purpose and based on standards…unlike European cars that are full of gimmicks and head-scratching proprietary parts. American cars are definitely not as well-designed, but it changes model to model. Korean cars were a distant runner in this field, but now, they're contending with Japanese quality (depending on the model, of course).
I found this website to be overloaded with info, just remember some issues/recalls are not bad, compared to major design flaws:
http://australiancar.reviews/reviews.php#!content=recalls&ma…
Audi - 80K
Maintenance cost?
cheap
Average monthly cost?
go church or some local newspaper, always have elderly person try to sell the low kms car, look at the log book and if you have a mechanic friend, bring him when doing inspection.
Sounds like a good idea and kind of makes sense
will be mainly used over the weekends/holiday period.
and
If new car i’d say max 80k if second hand i’d go max 30k.
but
wanted to have some advise from ozgargainers :)
Are you sure you’re asking the right people?
I think am still unsure about my requirements atm. What would be an ideal first car for an ozbargainer should be my question
Personally for me?
A used Yaris would be a good first car, should be under 10k and last you 5+ years, cheap and easy to maintain/insured, holds its value well, no need to worry about dings/paint chips on a used car.
If you feel like splurging, then maybe a new Mazda 2/3 for couple/small family, or CX9 (used/new depends on how deep your pocket is) if you really really need a big SUV.
Thank you!! Regarding maintenance cost of a used car, would you still recommend a used toyota over a new mazda 3?
@Sudo rm -rf:
I reckon the new car would cost slightly more to maintain as you need to take it to licensed mechanics for services otherwise you’d void your new car waranty.
After that 3-5 year waranty both cars should cost more or less the same in upkeep if you can do your own services.
I own a Mazda 3 that I bought new, and got a 6 year-old Yaris for my wife as her first car.
I’m not mechanically minded at all but manage to keep both cars running well with regular DIY oil & filter change. ($70 for 10-12L of good synthetic oil that I stock up during sales, around $30 for 2 oil filters, maybe $25 a pop for air filter every second service)
Assuming you haven’t gotten much driving exp (since this is your first car), the biggest difference in cost would be insurance, I (stupidly) paid just under 2k per annum to insure the new mazda when I bought it (had 2 yr driving exp at the time). If I could do it again, I’d have kept on driven my trusty ‘93 121 til it kicks the bucket.
$80k? Gotta be a used Hummer. Economical, easy to park, strong resale, great brand image.
Make sure it's the H1. Would be 12 years old at best though.
Retro classic
And 12yo just means the servicing and maintenance are cheaper!
“I want you to choose me a car I’m hardly going to use with a budget between $30k and $80k”
No, go away and do some more research and narrow down your choices and come back and post again.
Work out what size car you want, what you will use it for, wether you want New or used, set a budget with a range of around 20% (ie 30k give or take 6k, or 10k give or take $2k) then come back.
Trolling for sure
Get a ppsr report done and get adequate levels of insurance.
If you're only using it on weekends/holidays, why not just be part of one of those car share clubs? Seems very wasteful to pay rego and insurance on a car you'll rarely use.
+1 to this - unless you hv kids where it becomes tricky w/o a car
$80k will get you a nice investment car for your Westpac Analyst role
Be prepared for depreciation, check motoring mags for 1st 4 years depreciation, the results may surprise you, especially $80k cars, some may only be worth $54k…expensive weekend driving, cheaper to take a taxi EVERYWHERE!
Great point!!! At say $2000 a year for rego/insurance/servicing, that's a cost of $34,000 over 4 years. You can spend up to $163.46 on taxis each weekend and be better off than having that car. And that isn't including if you need to make an insurance claim and pay an excess, or any parking or car washing costs.
Looks like a troll post. 1st car budget 30 - 80k, no specific requirements, wants to know what ozbargain recommends but doesnt look at any of the exact same threads already posted…
I mean, step one would be don't spend 80k on a car that you're only using very occasionally.
If you're serious, and money isn't an issue, the ideal weekender car to take on long trips is going to be something big ish and relatively comfortable. Again, if you're not needing it every day, just don't even think about spending that much on it.
You're not worried about money, obviously so I won't bother suggesting things that are purely fuel-efficiency based. I think your best bet would be a later model Mazda (CX5), Subaru (Forester or XV) or Toyota SUV (Rav 4/Kluger). I have placed them in descending order of luxury. They are all very reliable. They are all comfortable. They all come in a diesel or petrol (barring the XV and perhaps the Kluger, I'm not 100% sure). You can get all of them for under 30k. They are Japanese so servicing won't be prohibitively expensive.
An SUV is the right answer here if you only want to use it for weekends or travelling, as it allows you to have a big space to put things in the back, often you can get one with AWD and a higher ground clearance, allowing for light offroading, and you can potentially tow things like a camper trailer, boat, motorbikes, or jetski.
A lot of these things could be done almost equally well in a wagon or sedan if you are not interested in an SUV, and I would recommend, again, recent models of the Mazda (6, or higher trim levels of the 3), Subaru (Liberty or Outback), Toyota (Camry Hybrid will allow you to have extra good fuel economy too) or Honda (Accord). My suggestion if you do want a sedan would be the Accord for comfort and luxury.
Do your research on the trim levels, go test drive one of each, pick which one you like and then take your time finding one with low kms and service history, and few blemishes, and buy it. You have the luxury of time and money on your hands evidently.
Despite your generous budget, I do not recommend buying brand new. I would have stick with a second hand Japanese or Korean car. Maximum of 6 years age and 60,000 mileage.
Budget?