Alow

Here goes. Im finally going to start with my driving licence and im already saving some money up for my first car. But, i dont have much money to spend so i need to get something cheap and durable. But there are some things im a bit afraid of. Also, i would need some recommendations.

I was thinking about Ford Escort GHIA ENDURA-DE 1.8 TD 51 kW. Im not quite sure what this ghia endura means, but this one seems to have a good price&condition ratio.

Few things ive been told, not sure if theyr "that true". Ive heard that cars with over 200k km's milegage should be avoided at all costs. I know that low mileage is always better, but at this price point its hard to find something with less than 200k km.

Are there any basics i should look into? Also, recommend some other cars. But with a diesel engine and obviously it has to be less than 100kW.

People who are planning to tell me that i should get a V6 supra - just go back and find urself another thread. Im looking for a first car that would bring me from point A to point B.

Edit: Price point, less than 1000€ / 900£.

Don't buy a car with over 200,000 km? Pffff, that's only about 125k miles... I just got my little Honda a few months ago with 179k miles on it complete with a blown head gasket. It now has 184k on it and is still running strong with that blown head gasket. It is easily the 2nd best running vehicle I've owned (again, this includes it with the current blown head gasket.) The best running was an 89 Toyota pickup truck that ran like I just drove it off the assembly line when I was involved in a wreck at 139k miles way back when.

3rd best running vehicle I've had was an 88 Toyota 4Runner. I sold it with 189,000 miles on it and it ran great. It was even totaled not once, but twice.

Worst running cars I've owned was a Ford with 49k, another Ford with 89k, a Chevy with 130k, and my wife's current vehicle, another Ford with 51k on it now that was purchased new.

Point is, choose the car for the car it is, not for the mileage it has. Mileage is only relevant after pointing out what the car actually is. 200k miles of car X can very well be a better car than 50k miles of car Y.

Oh i see.

Well see, it will all come clear once i will test drive the vehicle. But as ive not owned much cars yet, i might not see if its not "strong" enough or anything like that.

Also, what do you guys think about imported cars? Like for example, some are imported from germany. And when i think about the autobahn's in there then im afraid that i dont want these cars. Dont know, just my opinion and i think cars from germany are abused on the autobahn. I mean the ones that are imported, maybe they dont want to sell them in there.

Overall, i dont know. I just want it to work and not break down very often. Im not very amateur at engines, but im pretty sure i wouldnt figure out the problem when the car stops on the road.

Edit: I mean, high mileage cars may have average/high torque loss? Dont know.

Get a Japanese car, it will last and work great for many years to come. Don't get an American car, it will break down.

Quote from shiny_red_cobra :

Get a Japanese car, it will last and work great for many years to come. Don't get an American car, it will break down.

I was thinking the opposite by the way.

Quote from shiny_red_cobra :

Get a Japanese car, it will last and work great for many years to come. Don't get an American car, it will break down.

The Japanese have taken not stopping too far... Can't even get the buggers to stop when you want them to!

To add to previous advice, don't buy a car because of the nation it is made in or the mileage, every car is individual. My grandma had a new Lexus with more issues than the 19 year old Oldsmobile Cutlass I got for free.

If it is in good condition, and running fine, it probably will continue to if you take good care of it. Which considering the forum we are in, I would hope you do.

All things considered, I wish I would have had that as a first car, instead of the crap heap I got. I don't know what other options you have, but that doesn't seem like too bad a choice to me.

Get a Toyo..

wait,

yeah, get a Toyota.

Autobahn mileage (aka motorway mileage) is the BEST.

Clutch and brakes not used for miles at a time, just cruising. Little tyre wear, good road conditions, nice and gentle on the car. Yeah you could drive for miles and miles flat out but it's really not practical - driving over 90 for any significant length of time not only rapes the fuel consumption (sub-30 MPG) but also gets very noisy very fast.

Certainly nothing wrong with a high mileage car *if* its been looked after - that Escort looks high mileage, but it's only done ~13,000 KM a year, which is actually on the low side, really if the car had done 65,000 KM, then it would be just 5,000 KM per year which would be so low there may be issues.

Diesels eat miles much better than petrols - I certainly wouldn't really want a petrol with over 120k on the clock.

Quote from Jakg :

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Diesels eat miles much better than petrols - I certainly wouldn't really want a petrol with over 120k on the clock.

I would! I'm not only saving for a fanatec set, also I put a bit of money aside for my 5th car, which will be sportscar, german, old, high mileage and a looker with 20-30 years of age! Porsche 924S (the one with the proper porsche engine). Those things go over 300000 miles easily if you take care of them, which people did because it's a porsche.
I wouldn't want to get a german car (or a car imported from germany that is) if I was in estonia. Over here people buy loads of dead, totalled, dented cars for cheapasf*ck, bring them to eastern europe, get them fixed the cheapest way and sell them, sometimes back to germany. Those cars are the worst you can get for your money, be careful!

greetz

der butz

Quote :

Diesels eat miles much better than petrols - I certainly wouldn't really want a petrol with over 120k on the clock.

Sorry but you're talking out your arse here, diesel engines have very high fuel pressures and forced induction as standard. Diesel engines cost a lot more to manufacture than an equivalent petrol engine, both in terms of complexity and the amount of material used so a manufacturer will have to work with larger tolerances and generally lower quality. All cars have a design life, usually 5-8 years, of course cars can out live their design life by a long time if they are well cared for and well maintained. Diesels tend to be bought by those on a cost saving mission anyway, who will not service them properly adding to the problem. When major parts do fail on a diesel engine (and they will on any engine at some stage) they are generally not cost effective to repair and end up getting scraped. The cost of parts is high and the engines are complex, in comparison to a typical petrol engine which any DIY enthusiast can rebuild in the shed.

No Alex,

You're mixing old carbureted petrol engines with modern diesel ones. You cannot diy-repair a direct-injected turbocharged and complicated modern petrol engine either, on the other hand take a stinky normal non-injected diesel, like the polo sdi one of my friends had. It would have been easy and quick to repair - had it ever broke down.

Hazaky, just when you found an interesting car, just google some forums (e.g. Ford escord forums), search for your model (mk7 in your case I believe) and look at what causes the most problems. I know many things to be broken on the car I want, and I know how to check for them. If you see that the front wheel bearings on your wanted car are crap, you know where to look and where you can point when you want to save money :-)

greetz

der butz

Quote from hazaky :

Edit: Price point, less than 1000€ / 900£.

Understanding I do not have? Why won't you just do what all other Estonians would, jump on a ferry across the bay and nick a set of wheels?

It's what I love about going to Tallinn, my car is already over there.

On a more serious point why a diesel? You can't seriously be doing enough km to make that worth a while?

Quote from hyntty :

Why won't you just do what all other Estonians would, jump on a ferry across the bay and nick a set of wheels?

Well, i gotta admit that i dont know how that would work out. I dont know how to use paypal or how to order from ebay. Never used this kind of services. Ive been only buyng few electronics and that stuff from local places.

Anyways, i found few cars that run on gasoline. Some of them are in pretty good condition and they looks are in my standards. I know they dont suck my wallet into the gastank but if i take it on what ive heard then there is a big difference between diesel and gasoline. Gasoline doesnt sound like a tractor tho, a good point.

First you have to keep you goals straight: What do you need the car for? Highway communting? Only stuff intown, grocery getting? Burnouts behind McDonalds? Do you have to carry heavy loads, big stuff, trailers? Caravan, saloon, hatchback; two, four, five seats or more?

Based on that you can start narrow down your choices.

Quote from hazaky :

Anyways, i found few cars that run on gasoline. Some of them are in pretty good condition and they looks are in my standards. I know they dont suck my wallet into the gastank but if i take it on what ive heard then there is a big difference between diesel and gasoline. Gasoline doesnt sound like a tractor tho, a good point.

Unless you're doing a large mileage a year, the cost of the extra maintenance on a deisel will outweigh any saving on fuel. Plus old deisels are dirty, slow and as you say, sound like tractors.

Quote from ACCAkut :

First you have to keep you goals straight: What do you need the car for? Highway communting? Only stuff intown, grocery getting? Burnouts behind McDonalds? Do you have to carry heavy loads, big stuff, trailers? Caravan, saloon, hatchback; two, four, five seats or more?

Based on that you can start narrow down your choices.

Well, a good looking car for doing short distances. But im pretty sure i will start travelling around the country and just spend time away with friends. I dont need to carry heavy stuff, it only needs a nice big boot to fit epic overpriced woofers in it.

Overall im a calm driver, i dont like to do burnouts and those stuff. Might be cool, but this stuff doesnt turn me on.

Quote from hazaky :

epic overpriced woofers

Quote from hazaky :

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Don't any advice from Jakg and you should be fine.

When I was looking for my first car I took my brother with me when I went to see them. Moral support, he brought more cars than me and he used to be a mechanic. If you know someone like that grab em by the balls.

....oh and be realistic

First car?, the cheapest you can get away with, because you'll f' it up

Quote from danowat :

First car?, the cheapest you can get away with, because you'll f' it up

I dont get it.

You'll ruin it, so the less money you spend on the first car, the less money you'll end up chucking down the drain.

Quote from danowat :

You'll ruin it, so the less money you spend on the first car, the less money you'll end up chucking down the drain.

I still dont get it, im not planning to enjoy the last piece of metal in my engine if u meant that. Im pretty much going to drive like every other person. I wont drill supreme big holes in the doors to fit speakers in it. The audio system im going to put in it, i can use it in my next car too.

Yes. But it is your first car. You will probably crash.

I think thats what dano is trying to say.

Quote from DevilDare :

Yes. But it is your first car. You will probably crash.

I think thats what dano is trying to say.

If thats what hes tryng to say, im not him. The cheaper car it is, the more balls i have to do stupid moves with it.

I wouldnt get anything with a turbo at high mileage for ur first car as u will rally it alot and end up blowing it up and costing loads to fix... Especially an Escort TD... The 1.6 16v is solid enough if its had the timing belt changed and ok on fuel if u dont thrash it...