Ford Escort or Opel Astra?

Toots

Hi guys,

Posting this on behalf of a friend. The timing belt snapped on his car on wednesday, and his quote for repairs is about €2000 best case scenario. He's gonna have to save up for a few months to get that kinda cash together so in the meantime needs to get something to get him from A to B.

He's looking at these two cars

Ford Escort
Opel Astra

and I'm hoping you guys could give your opinions of which one would be better to go for. He's gonna go out and see them tomorrow. His budget is €800 max. Any opinions, tips on what to watch out for, and alternative suggestions would be very much appreciated.

bazz26

I would not fancy either to be honest.

I would be looking at something like these instead:
http://www.driving.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=1419035

Comes with 3 months tax and has an NCT until March 2010.

Toots

Funny you should say that actually, because I pointed out a couple of Mondeos to him too, although he wasn't interested. I think they're a much nicer looking car and seem to be very reliable. I've heard bad things about the Escort, like that it can leak water in very badly. Anyone else heard this?

Buffman

I'm guessing he is limited to around 1.4 for insurance reasons?

Ya can't really go wrong with something like this for around €800.

http://www.gumtree.ie/dublin/53/40143653.html

colm_mcm

I voted "other"

Get something Jap, it'll be so much easier to move on in the future, and it's not likely to give grief. that said, the Escort was getting to be well nailed together by the time the car listed was built. so if it's an either/or thing, I'd get the Escort.

ALso look for private ads, any garage that sells a car for 799 and still makes a profit can't have spent too much on prepping the car for sale - -they are also unlikely to be uber helpful if something goes wrong with the car.

Cormac2791

cant bait a ford escort mk 2

Alz®

Wouldnt be going buying an old Escort or Mondeo myself..

Buy a nice Astra, good reliable and comfy car and im speaking from experience..

bazz26

Alz® wrote: »

Wouldnt be going buying an old Escort or Mondeo myself..

Buy a nice Astra, good reliable and comfy car and im speaking from experience..

A Mondeo of that age will be just if not more reliable than an Astra of similar age.

maidhc

Parts for opels are unjustifiably expensive. Buy a corolla or almera of a similar age.

BrianD3

It never ceases to amaze me how people think that The Brand is a very relevant consideration for a 12 year old banger. The best 12 year old car for 500 quid is any one that has long NCT, isn't in sh1t, has some signs of being maintained and hasn't had multiple owners with the mechanical sympathy of a Gorilla.

I have two old Meganes at home that would be a far better bet than the majority of Astras, Escorts, Civics, Corollas or anything else out there. Unfortunately neither are for sale.

alias no.9

The Astra would have been the better choice of that pair when new. When it was launched (albeit in 1991) it was the class leader, something the Escort never achieved in it's later generations but for €800, you're buying the car, not the brand. To find a good car at that price, you're going to have to take a look at it, drive it and make sure everything checks out. You could find an unfancied model that's in great shape and that will always be better than a more desirable model in rag order.