car for beginner?

ninty9er

It sounds like you're in a rural steeing, so I wouldn't be putting a learner in anything that size. If she CAN drive your Primera, but finds it a handful, maybe something only SLIGHTLY smaller is the right job. I find with girls in particular, when they have a small first car they become afraid of driving bigger cars (my mam being an example, though not too bad these days).

An Astra of that vintage is a heavy, solid, steady car (I have one) that's not too powerful even in 1.6, so a 1.4 would probably suit her needs, or maybe a Golf (overpriced).

The trick is to get something where the back window is LITERALLY the back of the car to make it easier to park.

http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/Opel/Astra/N.C.T-2010/1000536/

http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/Ford/Focus/car/1041717/

Definitely not as fast as it looks, but slightly overpriced. Don't let looks deceive you. It may well be a cracker of a car and isn't actually a complete shed.
http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/Toyota/Corolla/vvti-Terra/982918/

http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/Peugeot/306/1.4-MERIDIAN/886815/

snickerpuss

I'm a girl, 21, learnt to drive in my dad's primera, hated it, too big!
I got a Yaris and I love it! Can't drive my mate's fiesta, I don't understand the fuss about them, they're horrible to drive.
Fully recommend the Yaris, it'll hold its value too!

ninty9er

snickerpuss wrote: »

can't Drive My Mate's Fiesta, I Don't Understand The Fuss About Them, They're Horrible To Drive.

+1

snickerpuss wrote: »

Fully Recommend The Yaris, It'll Hold Its Value Too!

+1

Biro

angelfire9 wrote: »

Get real here, we're talking about an 18 year old!
As for getting an older car, the older the car the more problems you're going to run into, as for one thing and older car tends to have more mileage so apart from rust and ordinary wear & tear cars over 10 years old have parts that will need to be repaired/replaced sooner rather than later
Which is why i picked a 00 model, 8 years old, not too old to be falling apart but old enough not to be too expensive
With the Micra you'll save on Tax, Insurance and petrol (more fuel economy on a 1l) you can't really argue with that point cos it's the truth, even with the insurance you found almost €100 of a difference

But, because you said the insurance difference was down to car type than Engine Size i went onto chill.ie (used to be insureme.ie) for a new quote,

female driver, DOB 14/01/1980, full irish licence for 1year, zero no claims bonus, no penalty points, kept & used in Clare, insurance for insured only, immobilzer fitted, no alarm, mileage of 10k, parked on property at night value of car €5k


Nissan Micra 998cc 5 door, petrol, 93-00 model Cheapest quote was €793

Corolla 5 door hatchback, 1398cc cheapest was €868

Micra still cheaper, though not by as much as Hibernian, and this is down to the engine size & nothing else!

I am real. I know what we're talking about here. Saying an older car is going to be less reliable is kind of like saying green cars are bigger than red cars.
Seeing as Ireland is all about the year and little else, that lends itself to bargains due to a car being a certain age. A 4 year old abused and neglected car with 100,000 miles is hardly going to be more reliable than a 10 year old minded car with 75,000 miles. Rust isn't a concern these days from a structural point of view.

snowman707

ninty9er wrote: »

It sounds like you're in a rural steeing, so I wouldn't be putting a learner in anything that size. If she CAN drive your Primera, but finds it a handful, maybe something only SLIGHTLY smaller is the right job. I find with girls in particular, when they have a small first car they become afraid of driving bigger cars (my mam being an example, though not too bad these days).

An Astra of that vintage is a heavy, solid, steady car (I have one) that's not too powerful even in 1.6, so a 1.4 would probably suit her needs, or maybe a Golf (overpriced).

The trick is to get something where the back window is LITERALLY the back of the car to make it easier to park.

http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/Opel/Astra/N.C.T-2010/1000536/

http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/Ford/Focus/car/1041717/

Definitely not as fast as it looks, but slightly overpriced. Don't let looks deceive you. It may well be a cracker of a car and isn't actually a complete shed.
http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/Toyota/Corolla/vvti-Terra/982918/

http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/Peugeot/306/1.4-MERIDIAN/886815/

Thanks for all comments,

It is not the size of the primera that is the problem, ( this lady also drives a 100HP tractor, although usually in the fields) she seems to have an issue with the gear change, & if she stalls it being a 01 diesel one has to go through the 'cold start' routine to get going again, (not very safe at a busy junction!!) she took a few lessons in a micra and liked it,

As I said she is presently doing her Leaving & as soon as she is finished I will pass on all your comments & will leave the final decision to her.

I suppose safety & realibilty are the main issues,

I don't mind the odd repair as long as you get a warning , I have been driving Nissan for 20 years & while I have had problems I have never been left at the side of the road. I service regurally drive the s*** out them & usually get well over 200K miles fairly trouble free.

PS just as an after thought ,, any comments on automatics would be grateful or would that be going in the wrong direction??

ninty9er

snowman707 wrote: »

Thanks for all comments,

It is not the size of the primera that is the problem, ( this lady also drives a 100HP tractor, although usually in the fields) she seems to have an issue with the gear change, & if she stalls it being a 01 diesel one has to go through the 'cold start' routine to get going again, (not very safe at a busy junction!!) she took a few lessons in a micra and liked it,

If it's not the size then maybe a petrol car of that size is feasable given the safety consideration, if insurance is affordable. People here will bitch about the tax but the €263 difference between a 1.0 and 1.6 is negligible when taken into real consideration. After all it's only 72c a day:rolleyes:

snowman707 wrote: »

PS just as an after thought ,, any comments on automatics would be grateful or would that be going in the wrong direction??

If anything it's a better idea, IF she's already passed her test. If not she could always pass her test in her instructors car and just have an automatic anyway. She might or might not like the drive. I would have bought one if I wasn't so desperate to leave the 1.0l behind me in a hurry. At the lower end (up to 1.4/1.6) automatics are kind of wasted, but are still a good option to keep in mind.

What's your budget?

Brianarundel

Well, my beginner's car was a daewoo lanos 1.4. And it's never given me any trouble. Getting around 35 mpg from it, has a little bit of pep and never gives any trouble.Talking to dealers over the past few months about it, the only trouble the cars ever give is with the fuel pump or/and the coil. I bought the 2000 model about a year ago for 1800 and sold it recently for 1750. There's a certain snobbiness about certain cars, and the daewoo is within that category right now. In my opinion it's a perfect starter car: a 2000 or 2001 Black (the other colours look manky on these cars) daewoo lanos 1.4 is a sound enough buy.

zilog_jones

snickerpuss wrote: »

Can't drive my mate's fiesta, I don't understand the fuss about them, they're horrible to drive.

What was so bad about it?

S.I.R

angelfire9 wrote: »

Not if it was the last car on earth would i buy one I'd rather walk!

Suit yourself but there one of the best shooping carts ever made.... more rigid then a micra with less understeer then a civic.... beats most any car asfar as cornering is concerned.


will be taking a S2 106/saxo as my first car... shall be rather happy as ill own it for a year or so then i can get a more comfortable.

ninty9er

zilog_jones wrote: »

What was so bad about it?

The clutch for one....and the driving position for 2. They do it for me anyway

zen15

Hi , I have a durashift 1.4 fiesta Thats the option to drive as an automatic (handy on motorway)or 5 speed (gears)for town driving . picked it up in 03 and have done 80.000 miles and never a foot wrong, service is cheap don't need a franchised dealer can buy most parts in halfords now, 35 miles to gallon, perfect little car

Vertakill

From a slightly biased pov, I'd recommend a Japanese car, mostly for the reliability. I learned in a 99' Mitsubishi Colt 1.3 and really liked it. Comfortable, small, easy to manoeuvre and nippy enough to get you out of harms way if need be. They're also quite cheap nowadays too. You can't really go wrong with most of the small jap cars like a Starlet/Yaris/Micra.
As far as engine size is concerned, she may get frustrated driving a 1.0ltr car after she's comfortable at driving (I got bored of a 1.3, but that's just me), so as the saying goes "I'd rather be looking at it, than for it", regarding power - because you just don't have any in a 1 ltr. 1.3 is grand to learn how to drive in, and there's a little bit of power there when you need it. Also the insurance/tax costs between 1 and 1.4ltr is negligible nowadays.

zilog_jones

ninty9er wrote: »

The clutch for one....and the driving position for 2. They do it for me anyway

Took me a few days to get used to the clutch alright, but this was like after 4 weeks of starting driving. I think it's just because it's hydraulic whereas other cars are cable-driven - there's nothing really bad about it IMO, it's just different.

Don't find the driving position too bad either, given the seats in mine have seen better days. I'm not particularly tall or anything though. Legroom is definately crap in the back - a bit annoying for me because I nearly always have to move the seat forward if there's four people in the car.

The rear windscreen is massive compared to a lot of cars (Polo etc.), which is probably good for starting off.

The Mk. 5 Fiesta (2002 onwards) is a completely different car - none of the above applies to that, except maybe the clutch (didn't notice it myself but I'm used to them after nearly 2 years). The driving position is completely different (much higher up) and you can get adjustable everything. Steering is fierce light in comparison - everything is weird and different compared to the Mk. 4

zen15

Just noticed , on rereading never said the year of my fiesta 2003, also would be willing to sell it , to a good home rather than a good price and before anyone thinks i'm desperate my other car is a mercedes s 280 , other end of spectrum , i know , but love me aul fiesta

Max_Damage

ninty9er wrote: »

The clutch for one....and the driving position for 2. They do it for me anyway

My father has a '97 Fiesta, and it's not a bad car to drive. I do agree that the clutch is quite sensitive, but you get used to that after a while of driving it. The driving position is fine for me (I'm 6' 0"). As Zilog_Jones said, there is virtually no room in the back for passengers, compared to my Micra, you could fit three in the back no bother without the need of moving the seat foreword.

The suspension is a bit spongey though.

zilog_jones

Max_Damage wrote: »

The suspension is a bit spongey though.

The rear shock mounts may be gone - they were in mine along with some bushes (they were quite noisey though) and it made a big difference afterwards. NCT failure AFAIK. Front suspension bushes are known to wear quickly enough too - heard about every 30k miles from someone - can't confirm this, but knowing my luck things started getting squeaky at the front a few months after getting the rear stuff done :rolleyes:.

freakgirl

I have my very first car for now VW POLO 96, got it very very cheep.

Didnt wanted any fiesta, micra, punto, they might are popular but VW better by quality and spear parts not hard to get.

Have to agree window screen is defiantly big and good for beginners.
I keep learning in my area and road observation is perfect. The same about side mirrors.