Cars...

[Rummy]

I passed my test 2 weeks back(woo!) but now I have the problem of actually driving. I was gonna get insured on a '05 1.1L Getz, but insurance prices are fucking mental. They want like £200 for my mum, but if she puts me on as a second driver WHAM! £1700!!! So what I'm trying to do instead, is buy myself a little old car(<£500, small engine so it's cheap to run, and not 2/3 doors cos I hate them) and insure myself 3rd party so I can build up some no claims rather than be spending two grand a year on insurance.

My problem is though, I don't really know where to start looking, or what cars actually fit my demographic of small engine(1.0-1.4) and on top of that it seems small engine 4 door cars were rarer 10+ years ago. It all seems rather daunting, I dunno what to look for in buying a car, what to beware of etc etc. So basically, I'm after any advice from people who have bought cars, about good places to look(ebay, autotrader etc) and things to be on the lookout for. I find it all quite overwhelming. I'm keen to actually get driving soon, rather than forget all I've learnt.

[That Guy]

I bought a Vauxhall Corsa a few months ago for £4,300 and my insurance now that I've passed has gone up from the original £1500 to £2200. Really pissed me off, and insurance is a joke in the way it all works.

 

I would definitely recommend autotrader as they have good deals on there.

 

Although I will warn you, don't expect to get low insurance just because it's an old car. Because you're inexperienced you're a high risk. It's not just about your car. If you crash into someone and you're at fault, it'll come out of your insurance.

 

What I basically did was buy a decent car that was going to last me a few years and was going to be reliable, and just paid for the high price of insurance. It's annoying but after a year of no claims it'll go down by 40%.

 

So thats my advice to you if you can afford that.

[Kirkatronics]

already a thread :p

from when i passed lol

http://www.n-europe.com/forum/showthread.php?t=18044

i have a red clio btw 2001

1.2 litre, and insurance is around £2000 cos i have a penis..

[Charlie]

My first car was a 1.1l Peugeot 106 which I loved even though it was pretty dead. It was good to drive though, especially as a first car. You should be able to pick one up for about £1000 I would think.

 

I think, although not 100% sure, the insurance cost us about £1200 (using More Than) a year with my mum being the first driver, dad being the 2nd and my elder brother being the 3rd and that was 3rd party only. It didn't actually go up at all when I was put on it.

 

We traded that in recently for a 1.2l 2007 Renault Clio. I think we're on Direct Line now and its £1300 for fully comprehensive, same arrangement for drivers. Only difference being that we all get a no claims bonus which is a massive thing. Come the end of May we're hoping for a massive discount on the price.

[Shorty]

At our age you gotta be prepared for ridiculous insurance. Best quote I could get was £1.3k fully comp, I'm with provident, no idea what they're like because I don't drive very often so nothing's gone wrong yet. *knocks on wood* A silly price really when the car was only (lol *groan*) £2k itself.

 

Just drive sensible... after a while the cost will go down. In the 21+ bracket it's a little cheaper, and when you don't screw up, that helps. I live in a very high risk zone and park my car on the street which is why I can't get a decent price, but if I had a house and a garage in a town it would probably be about 1/3 the cost.

[Tom]

not meaning to sound boring but i actually work as an insurance underwriter, so if anyone wants any advice, just send me a PM.