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el_guapo3291

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Hey fellow Carbies,

I'd like some advice on a few different vehicles I'm looking at. So to make a long story short lost my job when covid arrived and had a bit of a rough patch. I've recently been employed again and am looking to invest in a vehicle. My budget is lets say 150k. I am currently working from home in a small town about 50km north of Durban but the company is based in Cape Town and my manager has already asked if I would consider relocating to Cape Town.

NP200:

2016 1.5Dci safety pack 80557km, service history not listed - Dealer: CMH Nissan - R149990 (Bonus: Has Canopy)
2012 1.6 16v SE 87526km, service history not listed - Dealer: Reputable 3rd Party - R109990
2019 1.6 Safety pack (Not sure if 8v or 16v), 74000km , service history not listed - Dealer: Kia Durban South - R149995

Pros: Practical and can carry pretty much all my stuff to Cape Town easily
Cons: Sucks to drive, might have been abused by previous owner in a business scenario. Service history not listed so usually a red flag but can follow up.

Polo Blue Motion 1.2 TDI:

2014 105000km, full service history - Dealer: Reputable 3rd Party - R139990

Pros: Decent driving experience, extremely fuel efficient
Cons: Possible expensive maintenance parts

Ford Fiesta:

2013 1.0t Trend, 107000km, service history not listed - Dealer: 3rd Party (Uncertain of reliability) - R129990
2016 1.0t Ambiente, 85000km, full service history - Dealer: Reputable 3rd Party - R149990

Pros: Excellent performance while still being very economical
Cons: Possible expensive maintenance parts


Hyundai Grand i10:

2017 1.25 Motion, 33000km, Full service history with balance of 7 year/200000km warranty - Dealer: Hyundai dealership - R149990
2018 1.25 Motion, 55000km, Full service history - Dealer: Reputable 3rd Party - R149990

Pros: Excellent interior and decent performance, low mileage/age combo, no potential for expensive turbo replacements
Cons: Small, will be a struggle to carry my stuff to Cape Town

Notes:
* At the moment leaning towards the Polo that fuel economy is enticing but I have concerns about potential maintenance costs in the near future, does anyone have experience to share?
* Grand i10 like it, only concern is luggage capacity, motor should be very reliable and cheap to maintain
* Fiesta very nice performance when considering the economy, but same concerns as for the Polo.
* NP 200 its a workhorse, not thrilled because its boring and has almost no creature comforts but if its a good option then I can go for it it also makes practical sense since I may need to load appliances etc when I eventually relocate to Cape Town

* Also good to know once in Cape Town I'll be most likely working a hybrid scenario where most days at home with 1 or 2 days at the office as needed, distance from home to office will likely be within 5km max so some of these options may not do so well with such short trips, let me know if you guys know of any known issues.

Please help make the right choice 😅
 
A con to add to the Polo and Fiestas - they are very quick to steal and always in high demand at chop shops. So if in your life you ever park on the street, that would be a risk.
 
A con to add to the Polo and Fiestas - they are very quick to steal and always in high demand at chop shops. So if in your life you ever park on the street, that would be a risk.
Also a Polo is bound to get your mirrors 'renovated' if you drive it like the rest of these Polo drivers around Cpt...
 
2016 1.0t Ambiente, 85000km, full service history - Dealer: Reputable 3rd Party - R149990

That's a lovely car, probably the one I'd go for.

Incidentally, have you considered a 911?
 
So not a mechanic, just a pissed off ex fiesta owner, but be careful with these 3cylinders.. from what i understand (again not a mechanic) the engine parts are molded together and if shit goes wrong they cant strip and put the motor back together 100%.

Little back story:
My 1.0 fiesta ecoboost, popped a water hose from the res to motor. Ford couldn't get compression, said these motors cant be stripped, R110K
Took it to a legit workshop who apparently had rebuild other 3cylinders like mine before they too couldn't get it back together. Kept giving kak.

Also is this list your only options? Not such a fan of Renault but know lots of people who love theirs. Also the new Figo's are pretty bad ass too- hired one a few years ago and was surprised with its 1.5
 
2016 1.0t Ambiente, 85000km, full service history - Dealer: Reputable 3rd Party - R149990

That's a lovely car, probably the one I'd go for.

Incidentally, have you considered a 911?
911? as in a Porsche? well I'd love one if someone is willing to sponsor 😆, agree the fiesta is lovely only worried about when the turbo might need replacement and also believe it has direct injection which might lead to expensive injector replacement down the line (or so claims the internet)
 
So not a mechanic, just a pissed off ex fiesta owner, but be careful with these 3cylinders.. from what i understand (again not a mechanic) the engine parts are molded together and if shit goes wrong they cant strip and put the motor back together 100%.

Little back story:
My 1.0 fiesta ecoboost, popped a water hose from the res to motor. Ford couldn't get compression, said these motors cant be stripped, R110K
Took it to a legit workshop who apparently had rebuild other 3cylinders like mine before they too couldn't get it back together. Kept giving kak.

Also is this list your only options? Not such a fan of Renault but know lots of people who love theirs. Also the new Figo's are pretty bad ass too- hired one a few years ago and was surprised with its 1.5
No just a few options I found and shortlisted, limiting the search to within KZN though there are too many fly by night operations in Gauteng but this unfortunately cuts out a massive selection of cars. So completely open to other suggestions if anyone can find anything :)
 
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No just a few options I found and shortlisted, limiting the search to within KZN though there are too many fly by night operations in Gauteng but this unfortunately cuts out a massive selection of cars. So completely open to other suggestions if anyone can find anything :)
A couple of other nice models in that price range (I think? Been a while since I looked in detail) are the Honda Jazz and the Suzuki Swift. I've had experience with both of these, they perform nicely and will be reliable, and are not on the high-theft list. The Jazz has the benefit of more interior room than cars of similar external size.
 
I'll be the very boring one and ask if you've considered an Polo Vivo (Classic with boot) or a Corolla Quest? I have an old 2007 Polo Classic and the boot is huge for the class of car. I've driven the Corolla before and while not exciting it also has space. Depending on where you work and how much you like squeezing into parking space there are benefits to a small car here though.

Jazz I have been in (older one anyway) and they also have the benefit of having everything fold down to allow for shitloads of packing space.

I moved to CT in 2008 using my Ford Bantam. A bakkie has lots of space for sure and the canopy certainly adds to the utility but the first sign of a kid and I had to flog it.

On that note doesn't your price range include some basic SUVs too? Older gen Qashqai, Duster etc.
 
I'll be the very boring one and ask if you've considered an Polo Vivo (Classic with boot) or a Corolla Quest? I have an old 2007 Polo Classic and the boot is huge for the class of car. I've driven the Corolla before and while not exciting it also has space. Depending on where you work and how much you like squeezing into parking space there are benefits to a small car here though.

Jazz I have been in (older one anyway) and they also have the benefit of having everything fold down to allow for shitloads of packing space.

I moved to CT in 2008 using my Ford Bantam. A bakkie has lots of space for sure and the canopy certainly adds to the utility but the first sign of a kid and I had to flog it.

On that note doesn't your price range include some basic SUVs too? Older gen Qashqai, Duster etc.
Open to all recommendations, just not finding anything on Autotrader/Cars.coza etc. I suppose I'm being too picky with the filters by not looking at anything above 150000km's, Also cannot pick anything older than 2011 since banks generally won't finance them. I'll look specifically for the options you mentioned though and see if anything decent pops up. Thanks for the recommendations.
 
Open to all recommendations, just not finding anything on Autotrader/Cars.coza etc. I suppose I'm being too picky with the filters by not looking at anything above 150000km's, Also cannot pick anything older than 2011 since banks generally won't finance them. I'll look specifically for the options you mentioned though and see if anything decent pops up. Thanks for the recommendations.
Have you tried Avis Car Sales?

I know nothing revs like a rental but I've had friends who bought via them and some got very solid cars. With lockdown they probably have stock that has sat idle compared to busy years too.
 
Have you tried Avis Car Sales?

I know nothing revs like a rental but I've had friends who bought via them and some got very solid cars. With lockdown they probably have stock that has sat idle compared to busy years too.
Hmm that's a good idea, I also have a relative that picked up a solid corolla quest for a decent price from Avis, I'll take a look although buying a rental is in general sketchy 😅
 
Buy a toyota, you will thank me later :)

Those fiesta's with 1.0L ecoboost will fail, something will break, its a ford its just how it works.
I drive a ford I will know :)
 
So after having read the suggestions:

JAZZ- Only available with cvt auto from what I can tell, I once read that to neuter a bull they put a really tight elastic band around its balls and which cuts off blood supply, slowly but surely the testes die and fall off. CVT transmissions are the equivalent of the elastic band [emoji102][emoji13]

Duster- 1x 1.5dci dynamique available for R149k 147k mileage and fsh. Mileage is a bit high but not too bad [emoji2369]... Also would it be worthwhile to hold on a bit a save extra for the 4wd variants? they are a bit more from R170k-R200k

Sent from my M2011K2G using Tapatalk
 
So after having read the suggestions:

JAZZ- Only available with cvt auto from what I can tell, I once read that to neuter a bull they put a really tight elastic band around its balls and which cuts off blood supply, slowly but surely the testes die and fall off. CVT transmissions are the equivalent of the elastic band [emoji102][emoji13]

Duster- 1x 1.5dci dynamique available for R149k 147k mileage and fsh. Mileage is a bit high but not too bad [emoji2369]... Also would it be worthwhile to hold on a bit a save extra for the 4wd variants? they are a bit more from R170k-R200k

Sent from my M2011K2G using Tapatalk
I test drove nissan and toyota cvt's earlier this year, can confirm that gearbox is crap. Its not the worst thing, I mean you can learn to live with it. Personally I wouldn't buy a cvt, in fact I rather go back to manual instead
 
I test drove nissan and toyota cvt's earlier this year, can confirm that gearbox is crap. Its not the worst thing, I mean you can learn to live with it. Personally I wouldn't buy a cvt, in fact I rather go back to manual instead
Yeah I'm definitely not keen on an CVT I've never liked them, with rather have conventional auto if its not manual.
 
So after having read the suggestions:

JAZZ- Only available with cvt auto from what I can tell, I once read that to neuter a bull they put a really tight elastic band around its balls and which cuts off blood supply, slowly but surely the testes die and fall off. CVT transmissions are the equivalent of the elastic band [emoji102][emoji13]

Duster- 1x 1.5dci dynamique available for R149k 147k mileage and fsh. Mileage is a bit high but not too bad [emoji2369]... Also would it be worthwhile to hold on a bit a save extra for the 4wd variants? they are a bit more from R170k-R200k

Sent from my M2011K2G using Tapatalk

Only buy 4x4 if you plan on going off road in real 4x4 scenarios. Otherwise, you're buying yourself additional maintenance costs and nothing else.
 
Only buy 4x4 if you plan on going off road in real 4x4 scenarios. Otherwise, you're buying yourself additional maintenance costs and nothing else.
This is true, I'd have to think carefully about how often it would be needed. I do feel I didn't get to live my life in my 20's which I want to change in my 30's so it might make sense to get 4wd variant to do some light trails and go out and experience this beautiful country every once in a while 😎 will see what happens though, thanks for the advice.
 
This is true, I'd have to think carefully about how often it would be needed. I do feel I didn't get to live my life in my 20's which I want to change in my 30's so it might make sense to get 4wd variant to do some light trails and go out and experience this beautiful country every once in a while 😎 will see what happens though, thanks for the advice.
Truth is, you don't need four wheel drive to rough it. Difflock is enough for most folks that drive on slightly more rough terrain. My Bantam has gone to some pretty weird places, and that's just a straightforward front wheel drive.

So yeah, give it due consideration first. Those extra differentials and complex gearboxes really add up to the cost of ownership.
 
What about an Etios?
Fuel efficient. The 1.5l motor provides enough power.
Cheap on maintenance.
Much more space than you think.
 
What about an Etios?
Fuel efficient. The 1.5l motor provides enough power.
Cheap on maintenance.
Much more space than you think.
Will keep a lookout although not a fan of the dash layout :ROFLMAO:
 

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