Hatchbacks

[CJ]

Hatchback options under 7 grand, 1.4 - 1.6, Mazda 3, Astra etc.

Discuss.

CJ

[Dilogoat86]

Corolla van, very cheap, diesel goes forever and van insurance is very cheap also.

[Wildhound]

Can't beat a nice '99 Punto Sporting 16v with a little spoiler and some Mk2 alloys

[Dilogoat86]

Can't beat a nice '99 Punto Sporting 16v with a little spoiler and some Mk2 alloys

Well well...that was a car I had enormous fun in.

[CJ]

Corolla van

Hatchback vans not in the scope.

Can't beat a nice '99 Punto Sporting 16v with a little spoiler and some Mk2 alloys

G'wan outta dat, you're havin' a giraffe, sensible discussion please!

I'll throw the 147 (even though I have an innate distrust of Alfas, thats another discussion though) and the Golf into the mix. French cars out of the mix.

CJ

[TopCat]

Focus, A3's?

What are the requirements, could a saloon be considered? Either way, you've a LOT of choice out there for €7k!

[CJ]

Focus, A3's?

Yep, why not.

What are the requirements, could a saloon be considered?

Saloon outside of the scope.

Requirements: Frugal, reliable, safe, reasonable boot space, looks half decent and last but not least, is an OK drive.

Models flagged so far:

Mazda3
Astra
Alfa 147
Golf
A3 (see Golf)
Focus

Colm, get in here!

CJ

[Bernard]

Have you decided how you'll make room on the driveway for a hatchback?

[Dave]

Civic

[Muad_dib77]

I quite fancy the Astra and The Golf myself... and they work both in petrol and diesel.

[Dilogoat86]

New shape Astras are rather fuel efficient. And the 1.7cdti is a good engine. I think they're Japanese made now too.

04+ Nissan Almera 1.5.

This is harder than it looks when you read the Ts&Cs first.

[Wildhound]

Yeah I hate to admit it, but the current generation Astras are pretty decent. Not in anyway exciting to drive, but very comfortable and sturdy. They don't look terrible either.

That said, you could pick up a lovely Golf for 7k.

Personally I'd probably steer clear of the Mazda 3. I've no first hand experience, but having worked for a certain motoring magazine I noticed a lot of people were trying to sell them and nobody was buying. One of the girls drove one as well and hated it.

[Myfeckin FTO]

Just sold an absolutely spotless '05 facelift 147 sportivo (55K miles) with a tasteful kit, red leather interior, elec sunroof for 5.5K to my sister. Cost 32K new (we had it from new). Absolutely flew through the NCT last week and never gave an ounce of trouble - lovely car to drive and much better looking than Golf/Focus etc

[colm_mcm]

I dunno,
A3's are nonsense
Golfs are flakey and nowhere near as good as people make out
Corollas are overpriced

I'd be looking at a Civic, Astra or Focus.
A Civic 1.4 SE would probably fit the bill. They're faultlessy reliable, very well equipped, high roof makes getting the chislers in and out easy, they're also not especially expensive outside of the Honda network.

Mazda3 is decent enough but some aspects of it were done on the cheap, base models are very basic, and the 1.4 is a dead duck. Not as sharp as the Focus but on the plus side, they're pretty big and quite refined. Horrible plastics.
Bargain hard - they're not exactly sought after (which is a good thing) nothing to worry about reliability wise, parts can be pricey.

[CJ]

Just sold an absolutely spotless '05 facelift 147 sportivo (55K miles) with a tasteful kit, red leather interior, elec sunroof for 5.5K

I would have taken your arm off at that price, that was a really nice example.

All good comments so far. My thoughts:

Golf \ A3 - agree with Colm, not as reliable as people make out. The number of Golfs on the road outnumbers the population of Dublin 5:1.
Almera - not bad design (but starting to get dated), Jap reliability but doesn't do it for me somehow.
Mazda3 - gets good reviews but first hand feedback isn't great. 1.6 (UK only IIRC) would be a better option than 1.4. Interior made from melted down Lidl bags, as per MfFTO, main dealer Mazda parts expensive.
Civic - its Jap and it probably won't break. Need to get over the look of the thing first.
Astra - leads the pack in the looks dept. Never driven one so can't comment on driving experience. Reliability?

CJ

[colm_mcm]

Re: the Almera. The 2000 on model isn't any way near as good as the model that ran from 1995-2000. They give engine trouble in that the timing chain stretches, also the camshaft position sensors and gearboxes may as well be made of cardboard. The stereos are also notorious on them for just dying, as is the climate control (which doesn't include actual air conditioning) on the post 2003 models. Also the bulb holders in the headlights on the 03-05 models melt, most owners didn't notice till they NCT'd their car, by then it was out of warranty.
The interior is dire (worse than the Colt), driving position is low, plastics are dreadful and on a modern car I've never heard a door like it to clang when you close it
Also, they don't drivenearly as well as the old Almera (which was actually quite decent), the handling is crap, the gearstick has inches of play when in gear, and the gearbox is so vague it's not even funny.
But the nail in the coffin for the Almera is safety. ABS wasn't standard on them till late 2006, side airbags are a rarity, they never got curtain airbags here.

Do I like the Almera? Not really.


RE: Astra, Much better proposition. 5 Star NCAP, good driving position, decent looks, Club/SXI models nicely specced.
1.4 has issues with rattly timing chain though and is dog slow. 1.3 CTDI a better option.

RE: Civic, you're looking at the old model for your budget,

Have you considered a Focus?
http://www.carzone.ie/search/Ford/Focus ... annel=CARS
1.4 very very slow

[colm_mcm]

VRT on this is €1600, works out around €5500 plus VRT plus travel if you pay asking price

05 Astra 1.4 Club

[Myfeckin FTO]

Both of my sisters had 04 Astras for the past couple of years and they have both had a lot of trouble with electrics. Has cost them a lot of money over the past couple of years. Both sold them for 5.2K recently - and were glad to be shot of them.

[Dave]

I had a 06 Astra, it was the basic model, 1.4 Life! I have to say, I HATED it, dog dog slow and the seats gave me back pain and I've never gotten that in any other car I've driven!!

[RussMan]

I've had both the 1.4 Mazda 3 and 1.6 and was really impressed with the comfort, genreal interior look and space except the 1.4 is a pig and has no power what so ever.
I'd contimplate buying one as I'm now looking at second cars and holding onto the Z due to the lack of interest other that looks whilst driving it!!

My Hatch's

A3 - 1.9 or 2.ltr diesal only
Mazda 3 - 1.6
Liking the Volvo C30 but are they any good? 12K 07's about

[fatboyfat7]

Probably going to be shot here, but what about the newer model Leon'? I think they look very good and although you have have to stretch the budget slightly or haggle, it could be done. The interior is still a bit of a let down but its got good looks and importantly for you a good NCAP rating. You'd probably want a bigger engined one though. I suppose Seat reliability maybe an issue but I compared the Leon to the Astra before posting this and its about the same. Only came into my head cause my uncle is here after getting one and he seem to like it. (he's had about 4 Golf's previous) Go on now colm, cut it apart!

[Dilogoat86]

Have you considered a Focus?
http://www.carzone.ie/search/Ford/Focus ... annel=CARS
1.4 very very slow

They are VERY slow. The 1.25 Zetec is a lot faster by comparison. Can't be got in the Focus though...at least I've never seen one. You can run faster.

And about the Almera, I don't particularily like them either, but now you've destroyed any change of me buying one...hope you're happy

[Wildhound]

Agreed. I had a 1.4 Focus for a month last year when the FTO was in for repairs and it was the worst car I've ever driven. Incredibly slow, handled like muck and wasn't comfortable at all. It was less than a year old and yet everything seemed rattly and the construction generally came across as tacky and cheap.

They gave me a Vectra the following month and it was an order of magnitude nicer to drive, despite being a bigger car with the same size engine.

[TopCat]

It was a while ago, but I remember driving a TDCi Focus a few years back and being pleasently surprised by it power and handling wise. Think it was the 1.8 though. Thought the handling im them is generally ok, but the 1.4 is painfully slow.

[Myfeckin FTO]

never mind spending 7K on a family box - heres what I'd buy - http://www.carzone.ie/search/Saab/9-3/C ... annel=CARS