AIBU to buy a 'cheap' make of car?

[Newcarwhatcar]

I have about £10k to spend on a new/ nearly new car. I currently drive a tiny old banger but want to replace it with something newer and bigger which can do longer journeys, we can take on holiday etc.

My plan is to buy a Dacia Stepway, or something similar. However everyone I know is telling me I will regret this, and that I should buy a smaller car, some are saying I should go for either a Ford or Vauxhall as repairs are cheap, generally reliable etc. Others are telling me to go for a BMW or Audi. However any of those makes (esp the prestige ones) I'd have to get a car that was years old to get in my price range which isn't what I want.

So If you were in my position what would you do? Go for a new cheap car, or not?

Skoda Octativa! Everyone loves them. Runs like a dream.

Lol! They’re mediocre at best.

We have a Skoda Octavia. It hasn't broken down once in 14 years.

My boyfriend’s first car was a 15 year old Skoda, absolutely no problems with it at all until the last year he had it when it started dying it’s natural death (18 years old by that point). His current car is a brand new Vauxhall and it’s been in the garage about five times in the space of two years, thankfully all under warranty

I have had a lot of cars over the years, Seats, VW's Renault, BMW, Ford, Peugeot's Vauxhall's and had problems with them all.

The one make o have never had an issue with is Citroen.

They just quietly do their thing, I even did 80k in two years in one and it went over 200,000 miles.

700 miles in case be day once too.

Such good cars

I have a Toyota Verso. Bought it 9 years ago when children were younger & had lots of clubs to ferry them & their friends to. Now that they both have their own cars (55 reg Corolla & Polo) we still sometimes cram sister, BIL, mum in it with us for short journeys.
It’s been problem-free even though I’m not the best at keeping to the service schedule.
It’s not too big & does have some height so you have good visibility.
Which? are very good on cars in terms of reliability/safety & will tell you if certain models/years have more problems.
When I was deciding what to buy I went to a car supermarket so that most makes were under one roof rather than visiting separate dealerships. Sat in them etc. Did the same when buying for DC2. Then bought elsewhere as the warehouse prices were higher than elsewhere.

@reddington interested what you mean when you say the Octavia is ‘mediocre’. I mean, I don’t necessarily disagree, but I’m very much of the opinion that my car is a means to an end rather than a prized possession. Is it just that you enjoy having a better care or am I missing something?

(Hope this doesn’t come across as snarky genuinely don’t mean it to!)

Diana - it’s almost the epitome of the average car. Does everything OK, scores almost exactly average for reliability etc. Just the standard dross turned out by VAG.

My last car was ace. 12 month old Focus bought from Ford dealer.

Was 7K less than list price for a new one but had been fully serviced and came with balance of manufacturers 3 year warranty (ie. 2 years).

It got sold last year after 8 years having never had a big or expensive repair.

At your price point I would look at manufacture approved used - my choices would be skoda, seat, Vw, or Ford. Kia are meant to be good but I've never really looked at them.

I drive a skoda now and really like it.

My SIL drives the equivalent VW to my skoda (Polo vs fabia). We bought our cars at the same time.

Hers was more expensive than mine even though it is a year older, with consequently higher mileage and a lower trim level.

My brother (her husband) and I strongly suggested she just buy another one of the batch I was buying from (skoda dealer had done a whole batch pre-reg and was clearing them, there were even colour choices!) but she was not for budging.

I personally don't understand why you would pay 1k more for an older car identical in all ways except for the badge on the front.

Reddington - but, so what?!

We've always had cheap 2nd hand Fords and have never had any trouble with them. As for "holding their value" that's not really a concern as we run them until it becomes uneconomic to get them through the MOT; then we trade them in for another.

Look at Seats and Skodas, which are basically much more upmarket cars under the bonnet, but with a cheaper badge on.

Personally I'd avoid Fiats, after two different (modern) Fiats had ongoing electrical problems and despite only being a couple of years old, they had the AA out so often we started being charged extra.

I’d second and third the Skoda, we’ve got both an Octavia and a Fabia and they are great. The Fabia will be too small for you but you won’t get a much roomier car than the Octavia. And the boot is massive.

I test drive the Ford Ecosport today and wasn't 'wowed' by it tbh. Going to look at 17 plate pre reg Citroen C4 Cactus this weekend. They come in under £10k, some with free road tax!

I've always driven cheaper brand cars, could never see the point of more expensive brands.

I drove a Volvo just to see and my eyes were opened. It's a million miles better than previous cars. Smooth, quiet and feels very, very safe. Will run forever, the garage tells me. And cheap on the secondhand market (can highly recommend Car Giant for all brands): www.cargiant.co.uk/car/volvo/xc60/NL14LJZ

@KingIrving: I do appreciate that you got a lemon, but I had a Barina and never had a moment's problem with it. I only got rid of it because I wanted an automatic, and got a Kia Rio.

The Kia Rio, by the way, for anyone with bad knees, has a driver's seat which can easily be adjusted to a good height so that your hips are higher than your knees, which make getting out much easier. Also terrific warranty and fixed price servicing for eight years.

Never had a problem with my Fiat, also used to have a Ford which was great, would never touch an Audi or BMW though. For 10k I'd also be considering a 2nd hand VW Golf or Seat Leon.