New car

[pandapopadance]

Why is buying a car so expensive and stressful?!
Do other people find it easy?
What car should I buy for £10k?
Reliability is importance and cheap to run.
Something a bit higher up (SUV) about the size of a ford Kuga.

Dacia duster, does everything basic at a low price point

I reckon I’ve got PTSD from trying to find a first car for DD! Buying is so stressful - I agree with you 100%. So many dealerships are far too pushy and just generally unpleasant to deal with.

Very fortunate that I have a 3 yearly lease scheme through work, makes the whole experience so much easier + smoother

Glad it's not just me that it stresses out. I'm normally decisive and competent but I can't get my head around cars!

Skoda Karoq.
I was in your place a year ago. I was initially interested in the Vauxhall Crossland or Peugeot 3008 but before I looked at them in person, the Citroen C3 Aircross caught my eye but the reviews for back seat space were poor so I discounted it. I spotted a Karoq as we wandered round a garage one day and I realised that it was in the budget. I didn't buy the one I saw that day but I bought another one a few days later.

I went to look at second hand cars about three months ago. It was so stressful I gave up although we desperately need a second car. They were all so expensive and I felt really out of my depth.

It's not just you OP!

@TheBelleOfBelfastCity same here! I ended up in tears on Wed because of the stress of buying a car. (nearly 2 weeks of it now!)

Was on the phone to DH explaining that a) the dealer hadn't turned up to let the (££) mechanic in to do a pre-sale check and b) mechanic is saying that we might have to pay a cancellation fee. This is c) on top of the £££ we've paid to look at another car last week which was shit and that d) When he'd started to look he realised i'd given him the wrong no.plate and was assessing the wrong car for half an hour of the time slot and then e) after all that the dealer announced he did do part exchange but not for the make of our old car and so f) we only had about 2 days to sell our car and pay off the finance before the deposit ran out on the one we'd just paid to check up on and we lose it and ... i just burst into tears!

Fucking cars.

Thank you for all making me feel a bit better! I thought it was me being dramatic

I've just had a look at the Skoda. They are about 5k over budget unfortunately.

I wouldn't pay too much mind to age or mileage. Whatever you buy, ensure there is a full service history, look at MOT history for lingering advisories, and if the vehicle is nearing 10 years, check that any parts that need replacing (ie new cambelt after 10 years or 100k miles - info is available everywhere for this) has been done. People get too wound up about mileage and age. I'd rather have a 10yo car that has done 100k of motorway miles and a decent service history than a car that's 3yo and has only pottered around town with minimal mileage. You also need to consider your usage. Do you do a lot of miles? Long distance/high speed? If not, don't get a diesel. Lots of little things to think about really.

It's extremely stressful buying used cars...Arthur Daley rubbing his hands at the sight of a clueless buyer the minute you step foot near his overpriced wheels...Take your chances at the thing dropping to bits 2 months down the line then having to argue about the small print in the warranty not worth the paper its printed on...

Buy German and you can't go wrong. A VW Tiguan.

For £10k, I would seriously consider a Hyundai i20. DH and I had one years ago and it was one of our favourite ever cars. We still love Hyundai’s and only upgraded to a Tuscon when the kids got too big to all fit in an i20. Really great for mileage and very solid.

Can't go wrong with a skoda. Honestly when did car buying get so expensive and stressful

I hear you. I was meant to be changing my car before the MOT was due. But no, now MOT is due tomorrow, so i’m taking a risk. Not really 100% sure if i want to run it into the ground or get a new car. I have looked, was interested in a Peugeot 2008, currently have a Qashqui

I’ve got a Tiguan and it is great but they may out of budget depending on age/mileage you are looking for. I had a Kuga previously and that was also a decent car - particularly liked the heated front window on frosty mornings.

Just popping on here because I'm in the exact same situation and don't know what to do! It really is a minefield!

I could stretch to slightly more 12-15k ish. I'm not into cars so don't really care what it is. Just something practical and reliable.

I’d agree about Hyundai’s, if you’re looking for something slightly taller though, an ix20 might fit the bill. I’ve had 3 of them over the years and I’m really annoyed that they’ve been discontinued ( sort of replaced by the Bayon). They’re solid and practical with good boot space, the higher spec ones even have a sunroof. I was told by my cousin who works for the AA that he considered them “proper” cars, reliable and not too many unnecessary gadgets

A Mazda SUV? DF lives in a rural area and was talking about one of these. Not new - could be around 10k.

You need a spreadsheet and a subscription to Which or a few hours on something like Honest John.

Make a shortlist based on your key factors then go to a garage to test drive.

I did that and came away with a Hyundai I10 2014 with about 12k miles for 7k in 2022.

Our garage says buy Japanese. Japanese cars are well built ,don't go wrong and if anything does need replacing due to wear and tear they are not expensive/difficult to access parts (unlike German cars).

Hyundai I10 - Only downside is the low tyre pressure indicator is always on and the brake pads (may be to do with the short journeys and town driving) are wearing.

Yeah, my friends take the piss but any big purchase gets a basic spreadsheet. Otherwise you completely lose track of what you've liked or not.

I always make sure there's a column for the things important to me-size of boot, has it got CarPlay etc

Then go and have a look round, book some test drives and get a feel for what you like.

I really enjoy the process which I know is probably weird.

Germans expect you to service their cars regularly. Japanese remain reliable if you don't.

Toyota rav4 is a good bet. Otherwise I'd go for a Kia sportage/hyundai tucson/vw Tiguan/audi q3.

You could get a Chevrolet captiva which is a Vauxhall underneath. You get a lot of kit for not a lot of money.

SUVs are in demand so you'd get a much better estate or hatch for the same price and mostly they're the same size inside.

I hate buying cars. I used to do it a lot and I'd spend the first week driving terrified and listening out for noises and bumps etc.

I agree with japanese. If you're not too bothered by age, you could get an older toyota rav4 for £10k and they're so well built you'd not have to worry about reliability.
They have smaller options too if that's too big.
I've had a few toyotas and can't think of anything I've had to do to them apart from the usual brake pads etc.
Also owned 2 mazdas and loved them.
Had a hyundai which was ok but didn't feel as 'nice' on the interior.

Loved mine only got shot because I only used it for a 4 mile round trip once a week. Great kit. Big roomy. Where for less than £19k brand new can you get large car, with a Renault engine and components, parking camera, cruise control, hill start assist, full airbags, I could go on. It's fairly economic and you can pick up a 2020 plate for less than £9k