Haptic Posted June 29, 2010 Posted June 29, 2010 Good people of Edugeek I have a dilemma- to fill you in on the background, my lovely little Corsa died a painful death on a duel carriageway last week; cam belt went going 70mph and has mangled all 6 valves. So after a police rescue and a expensive recovery I’m on the hunt for a new motor, this is where the dilemma comes in... Basically for insurance, cost and MPG I'm having to put the Buccati Veyron on hold for a while and so been looking at some lower end coupes. The issue is that the main one I’m coming back to is the Ford Puma... so my question to you all is whether this is an out and out woman’s car or whether I can survive driving one with my dignity and reputation intact? Your thoughts would be appreciated. Cheers, Mark
rad Posted June 29, 2010 Posted June 29, 2010 There must be others on the list other than that one, what is the budget and what are you looking for engine and MPG wise. The Puma is old and finding a nice one might be a little tricky (plus one of my mates had one that suffered from the electrical fault = fire engines etc)
Ric_ Posted June 29, 2010 Posted June 29, 2010 You are really classing the Puma as a coupe? Admittedly, it meets the low end criteria From someone that likes his coupes, you might want to start looking at German and Scandanavian cars
Sarconia Posted June 29, 2010 Posted June 29, 2010 It's not a Ford KA so it's all good. I hate those heaps, nothing screams "I'm a namby pamby" and "I'm also a useless driver" to me more than a Ford KA..
laserblazer Posted June 29, 2010 Posted June 29, 2010 How much did you want to spend? There was an item on yahoo yesterday about the top ten most reliable used cars for £3000. Top 10 reliable used cars for £3,000 - Yahoo! Cars 2
aerospacemango Posted June 29, 2010 Posted June 29, 2010 Coupes? Two-door screamers? And you say "Puma"? That would be akin to Coupe Lite! If you're talking proper coupes, then you have to look at a Ford Probe, VW Scirrocco, Vauxhall Calibra, MR2 (Does say " I'm a hairdresser though!) or any car of similar ilk is what you want to get! (But, that IS only the opinion of a 41 year old!!!) Depending on how old you are......You could go back to a decent 2.8i Capri, and go all retro on our a**!!!
SYNACK Posted June 29, 2010 Posted June 29, 2010 I hate those heaps, nothing screams "I'm a namby pamby" and "I'm also a useless driver" to me more than a Ford KA.. There was one of those that used to drive around my area and the owner had customized it by getting a hold of another Ka badge and sticking it on after the first one re branding it a Ford KaKa. I'm not sure if kaka is a local colloquialism or not but just in case it is it means excrement.
sted Posted June 29, 2010 Posted June 29, 2010 the puma is basically a mk4 fiesta in a frock (and assuming you dont go for a 1.4) actually quite nippy. The 1.7 (best engine though 1.6 isnt bad but only on later ones) and can do 40+ mpg IF you keep the revs down and dont use the variable cam timing all the time. It is a nice car but if you are tall (and im 6ftish but have proportionally short legs and a long back) its a pain i found going round corners i banged my head on the door. Boot is huge seats are comfy it goes well. As said is a fiesta so parts (except a few engine bits on the 1.7 and body panels) are easy to come by and cheap. I wouldnt regret buying one and if it wasnt for banging my head against the door i would. Suspension is stiff and you'd expect but not uncomfortably so. They are prone to rust around the rear arches/fuel filler cap iirc. If your budget stretches go for a late model puma thunder good spec and new as you are going to get. Unless you do a very limited milage i wouldnt look at the ford racing version that is a pig to get parts for and need brakes servicing often Coupes? Two-door screamers? And you say "Puma"? That would be akin to Coupe Lite! If you're talking proper coupes, then you have to look at a Ford Probe, VW Scirrocco, Vauxhall Calibra, MR2 (Does say " I'm a hairdresser though!) or any car of similar ilk is what you want to get! (But, that IS only the opinion of a 41 year old!!!) Depending on how old you are......You could go back to a decent 2.8i Capri, and go all retro on our a**!!! proper coupe a ford probe pmsl its a mazda nobody wanted iirc. and most capris are now justy rust heaps or cost a fortune
michael2k6 Posted June 29, 2010 Posted June 29, 2010 (edited) I might get shot for this... i had an Astra Coupe which did me sound for a good couple of years. Was a 1.8 on a W plate, and a lovely fairly rare shade of blue. You can get those in a 1.6 which are too sluggish, a 1.8 which was pretty good for the car, about 130bhp i think, unmolested, and was the most i could afford on insurance at 18years of age. You can also get the 2.0 turbo version which is the lump out of the GSi iirc. The only thing to watch out for on those were the headgaskets, if someones ragged it around a bit the head gasket would be known to go. Mine had done about 45k when i got it and 70k when i sold it, i had the timing belt done while i had it and serviced it myself twice, no problems with it otherwise. I remember it feeling fairly spoty because of the 1.8 and the cream clocks, and although the seats weren't buckets they wrapped around quite a bit and were dead comfy. The seats were low and the center console was high in comparison to the seats which made it feel lower. For example: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2000-VAUXHALL-ASTRA-16V-BERTONE-BLACK-/110552756243?cmd=ViewItem&pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item19bd753013 Edited June 29, 2010 by michael2k6
Haptic Posted June 29, 2010 Author Posted June 29, 2010 Budget is realistically £2.5k and downwards, as for engine anything up to a 2 litre (had a look at insurance for a 2.5l BMW 323i- ouch!) and MPG in all honesty not too fussed about it; mileage is greatly reduced as I live 3 miles from work nowadays rather than 20 in the past! Ric- what sort of thing springs to mind on the German/ Scandinavian front? Scriocco's jump out but most I'm coming across have been to the moon and back in terms of mileage... Cracking input Sted, cheers for that- and for once in my life making me happy that I'm 5'10- no headbanging for me! michael2k6- I'd looked at some of the Astra Coupe's but had been struggling to find one with less than 100k on the clock, 130 brake sounds like it could be fun though... Also I'm in total agreement on the Ka though this particular advert did make me chuckle (NSFW or animal lovers): YouTube - Ford's Evil Twin Commercials - Back to Back! Thanks, Mark
FN-GM Posted June 29, 2010 Posted June 29, 2010 After many problems a friend has had with a ford, i wouldn't touch them. I would go for a German or Japaneses car. They are very reliable.
chrbb Posted June 30, 2010 Posted June 30, 2010 I had a tigra, which like the puma is a hairdressers car, but tbh although it was basically a corsa it was lovely! I've got a megane convertible, one of the old, old models at the moment, my son's got the coupe version, both would fall into your price range and are decent cars to drive and own.
nikaso Posted June 30, 2010 Posted June 30, 2010 After many problems a friend has had with a ford, i wouldn't touch them. I would go for a German or Japaneses car. They are very reliable. I've got a mondeo estate with 160K on the clock, had some gearbox / flywheel work done that was expensive but that was the first time in it's history at about 145k ! Other than that its been ok, think I am starting to reach the end of its useful life now, can't be worth much and don't want a big repair bill! I'd look at Volvos or Saabs possibly, high mileage isn't a problem if you have some good service history plus they don't tend to attract the price premium that BMWs / Audis / Mercedes do.
jamesb Posted June 30, 2010 Posted June 30, 2010 Budget is realistically £2.5k and downwards, as for engine anything up to a 2 litre (had a look at insurance for a 2.5l BMW 323i- ouch!) and MPG in all honesty not too fussed about it; mileage is greatly reduced as I live 3 miles from work nowadays rather than 20 in the past! Buy a good bike instead? I recommend a Giant Hybrid/comfort with front fork suspension. Not a recommendation for eco reasons, but dropping the daily commute from your driving mileage will reduce the total for insurance purposes. It'll also save you more than you think in petrol, get you exercise, and once you've done it for a few days you'll start to really enjoy the cycle. Of course, since a bike is cheap you'll still be able to buy a car without affecting your budget too much. Unless you're interested in high speed racing I recommend avoiding a road bike - they're fast, but you're sacrificing comfort. A mountain bike would be another option but they're somewhat wasted unless you're spending most of your time off trail. Comfort bikes, or hybrids, are ideal for a commute or a quick trip to the shops.
solitaire89 Posted June 30, 2010 Posted June 30, 2010 I can second the hybrids - that's what I've got, and I love it! If you're going to do that, get one with quick release wheels though, then you can shove it in the boot! And my hybrid copes quite well off the beaten track - it's even been out with me yesterday on a D of E expedition, chasing kids all over the local countryside and fields! 1
witch Posted June 30, 2010 Posted June 30, 2010 Just to throw this in - and I am not implying that anyone who has one of these is going to have problems... When my clutch cable went last week, the guy in the pick-up truck told me that the most common cars he picks up are Renaults, followed by Citroens. He rarely picks up Vauxhalls apparently!
Hightower Posted June 30, 2010 Posted June 30, 2010 Why not get it in pink, then you'll be sure it's a mans car?! (I actually saw a heavily tattooed man driving a pink Jazz last night). I've loved the Fords I've had, but I think if I was looking for a coupe I'd quite like the 406 coupe - they look pretty smart.
CHR1S Posted June 30, 2010 Posted June 30, 2010 If you can see past the badge 3K will get you an 02/03 HYUNDAI Coupe 2.7 V6 hahaha, thats the best comment on here! Shonkey cars! For 2.5k I cant see you getting anything decent in the coupé area. May I suggest you look at a Mazda RX7 - Mazda RX-7 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - for some serious fun if you can find a decent enough one for that money Otherwise just get a warm hatch of some description
difinity Posted June 30, 2010 Posted June 30, 2010 As an ex mechanic, i'd avoid anything French, and for reliability i'd go for something Japanese. German cars are also good but a little pricier.
Gonk Posted June 30, 2010 Posted June 30, 2010 (edited) its a shame that your budget isn't slightly higher or I'd recommend that you try a Mazda RX-8. have a look at: 2001 HYUNDAI Coupe 1.6i or http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201023360827627/sort/priceasc/usedcars/price-to/3000/model/gtv/make/alfa_romeo/radius/1501/postcode/sa611ef/page/6?logcode=p Edited June 30, 2010 by Gonk
Mcshammer_dj Posted June 30, 2010 Posted June 30, 2010 you should be able to get a celica for that budget.
sippo Posted June 30, 2010 Posted June 30, 2010 How about a skoda? If you can see past the badge it's basically a vw.
CHR1S Posted June 30, 2010 Posted June 30, 2010 Far from it. Ran one for 3 years and it never missed a beat, just depreciated faster BPs share prices. But buying used that's not a worry. Also huge tuners scene in the states. So a heavy V6 that only puts out 165bhp while returning 19mpg?? There are 1.4s that beat that nowadays with a hugely better mpg!
Chris_in_notts Posted June 30, 2010 Posted June 30, 2010 So a heavy V6 that only puts out 165bhp while returning 19mpg?? There are 1.4s that beat that nowadays with a hugely better mpg! But remember CHR1S, BHP wins races in the pub and Torque wins them on the track and that V6 will be putting some out lol what is making you want a coupe if you dont have one you like in mind you like except a puma? which tend to me rusty and definately womens cars, get a hot hatch normally return good MPG and have alot of poke
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