I NEED A NEW CAR (well not brand new, but new to me)

[turtleschell]

My old heap of junk is slowly dying on me, to the point where it can just turn off and roll at any moment.

It'll just be DD in the back for now, but I intend to have more kids, so space is essential.
Also a big boot.

I need help choosing!

My questions are:

What car do you drive and why?

Are there any particular models I should AVOID?

TIA!

[Oorki Galoorki]

what is your budget? that will guide you more than anything..

[Phteven]

I have a Fiat Punto.
Why? It has a 5 star safety rating from ANCAP and a 5 star green rating - it runs on about a teaspoon of petrol a week. It's also awesome on icy roads and since we plan on being at the snow most weekends in winter that's important to me. It's tiny but the boot is surprisingly roomy - we can ski gear for the whole family in it.

How long are you planning on owning it? There's no point in buying a 7 seater if you're going to be onselling it before you have enough kids to fill 7 seats.

[turtleschell]

I guess no more than $20k would be my budget.. preferably under $15000 though.

[RhiChiChi]

I drive a Mazda SP20. I was originally looking at a Holden Astra, Ford Focus or something similar when I stumbled accross this car. I loved it straight away. It was great to drive, comparable to the Ford & Holden in terms of everything including price. I would buy a Mazda again, no hesitations

[Chocaholic]

We just bought a new car (second hand but new for me!!). It is a Holden station wagon. It is 3 years old and in great condition. Colour is awesome too. Can you tell I love my new car?

DH used the cars guide website to research cars suitable. He went to soooooo many car yards to have a look at different cars. He said that gave him a good idea of what would suit us. We also went to auctions to have a look at types of cars that are available and their prices.

I would suggest you make a list of what you want (i.e. seat numbers, petrol/diesel etc) and think about when you would be replacing the car. That should narrow down your selection.

My personal preference is station wagons. We travel and move houses a lot so need a big car. Also, if you have a bigger family, you can get seats to go in the back (this is what my sister has done).

Good luck

[Miss.September]

There's another thread about this - https://www.bellybelly.com.au/forums...ml?pagenumber=

Will give you a whole list of cars!

The best place I found to research was a site called "Complaints Corner" and I typed in what I was interested in and it lists all the problems that people have had in a forum.

I drive a Ford Territory = enormous, drinks the fuel (get about 500kms from 70 litres) , but suits our needs because we need to tow. Massive boot space, can fit the pram and highchair side by side in the boot and still have room. Can fit the baby seat and two adult passengers in the back too. The price was $17,000 for a 2004 model, but we paid less because we had a trade in.

FWIW, I've also had a Toyota Camry which I loved and it never ever let me down, we only got rid of it because it was a sedan and we needed a wagon with baby and two dogs. Boot space was awesome too, DH had fit three golf bags in the boot. Also had a Rav 4 and while I loved this car too, it was the car I had always wanted, the models between 2002-2006 have massive transmission issues and it will need replacing at a cost of about $5K. Space wise, they're deceiving. They look bulky and roomy, but it's a tight fit. If we had the pram in the boot it had to stand up and nothing else would fit, shopping had to go on the back seat, etc. Only one adult could fit in the back with the car seat and the front passenger seat rested on the car seat because it was just a bit squishy. Broke my heart to sell it though. Hehe pathetic!!

Good luck!

Corelly x

[Malyna]

bought a BMW 5 series - 10 years old - and absolutely love it. Traded from a falcon wagon (which had a large boot but was a scary car to drive) looked at Honda's, Skodas, Golfs, Hyundi's Mazdas (been shopping for 5 years for a replacement car) and nothing caught my eye until I fell for the beema.

Airbags everywhere - it has teh same features that the 60K cars have but it was only 24K (also has a TV inbuilt).

Drove it 1500km and didn't notice the drive - you just put your favourite music in and drive - I've never driven a car that (and I've driven a lot of cars) where you can get out at the end of a long drive and not feel absolutely shattered because of driving the car.

Crap boot space though, but we are only having one kid so it doesn't matter.

[Miss.September]

Congrats on the new purchase Malyna - and love the avi!!

[Malyna]

Congrats on the new purchase Malyna - and love the avi!!

Corelly x

Thanks, love your avi too

[BeautifulMadness]

ah awesome pick,.....my hubby wants a second hand audi....