First time car buyer

googoodoll

googoodoll

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Ok so where do I start?
I bought my first car from my mom for super cheap but since it was confiscated off private property by South African wealth redistribution agents I require a new vehicle.
I only have a very small deposit and will need to get finance / a loan for the rest of the cost.
I have no idea where to begin looking. I need to know how much I can afford to spend and what models to look out for. It will most likely be a second hand car.
 
1st step - how much can you afford bearing in mind repayment, insurance, maintenance and petrol? You should already have an idea. Preferably all 4 should be less than 1/4 of your take home salary.
 
Brawler said:
1st step - how much can you afford bearing in mind repayment, insurance, maintenance and petrol? You should already have an idea. Preferably all 4 should be less than 1/4 of your take home salary.
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R2k at the most... And thats more than 1/4 of my take home salary...
 
Brawler said:
1st step - how much can you afford bearing in mind repayment, insurance, maintenance and petrol? You should already have an idea. Preferably all 4 should be less than 1/4 of your take home salary.
Click to expand...

R2k at the most... And thats more than 1/4 of my take home salary...
 
What type of driving do you do?

I think a good 2nd hand Polo would be a good idea. Go petrol rather than diesel as some models had turbo issues, and you also don't know how the previous owner treated it. I'd stay away from the new Polo Vivo's though...I have heard a few stories about the build quality not being up to scratch.

If the Polo doesn't do it for you, maybe a Ford Figo or an i20 would be more to your liking? Toyota Yaris? They can be had for very cheap as well. When the time comes that I want to buy my first car I think I might settle for either the Figo or the Yaris :)
 
can i recommend a figo or polo vivo.
they're relatively cheap, services are cheap, parts are cheap.
you get aircon, power steering, abs, airbags and a bunch of features.

i bought mine new for 130k, and the monthly costs are 2200
second hand you will prolly end up cheaper
 
wabbit16 said:
What type of driving do you do?

I think a good 2nd hand Polo would be a good idea. Go petrol rather than diesel as some models had turbo issues, and you also don't know how the previous owner treated it. I'd stay away from the new Polo Vivo's though...I have heard a few stories about the build quality not being up to scratch.

If the Polo doesn't do it for you, maybe a Ford Figo or an i20 would be more to your liking? Toyota Yaris? They can be had for very cheap as well. When the time comes that I want to buy my first car I think I might settle for either the Figo or the Yaris :)
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Her vehicle was just stolen...
VWs are at the top end of the theft list.
 
Venomous said:
Her vehicle was just stolen...
VWs are at the top end of the theft list.
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This I think is a myth. I have been driving vw's since the 90s and never had 1 stolen.

Just found out recently that a friend of mine had his Toyota Yaris stolen from a shopping centre in less then 15 minutes that he went in and came back.
The assessor told him that the Yaris is high risk


Go figure
 
Was your car insured? As some of the posters say, a Polo or a Yaris is an excellent economical car. Personally I prefer Japanese cars due to reliability, but there is little difference

The important thing is to take a knowledgable person along with you to inspect any used car, or else have it checked out by a motor repair place. The last thing you want are nasty surprises afterwards
 
chrisc4290 said:
The important thing is to take a knowledgable person along with you to inspect any used car, or else have it checked out by a motor repair place. The last thing you want are nasty surprises afterwards
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+1000. Doesn't matter what car you prefer.... ^^^^ this is the extremely important
 
Shiraz said:
This I think is a myth. I have been driving vw's since the 90s and never had 1 stolen.

Just found out recently that a friend of mine had his Toyota Yaris stolen from a shopping centre in less then 15 minutes that he went in and came back.
The assessor told him that the Yaris is high risk


Go figure
Click to expand...

It's not a myth. Toyota and VW are both top of the theft stats. You even pay more insurance because of it.
 
R2k for repayment, insurance, petrol and maintenance per month and you guys are recommending R130k cars?

Tazz would be a safe bet.
 
Brawler said:
R2k for repayment, insurance, petrol and maintenance per month and you guys are recommending R130k cars?

Tazz would be a safe bet.
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Haha ja I think my budget would be less than half of that...

Isn't a Tazz also popular for theft?

I'm thinking of looking at a Ford Fiesta
 
Where do you live? Off street parking? If so you should be fine and if its stolen that's what insurance is for. My 25yo girlfriend has an immaculate 2005 model and insurance is only R280 or so pm. My first car was a piece of **** Citi golf which was stolen and it was parked next to her Tazz. Obviously though if you live in a dodgy area and park in the road chances are it will be stolen in a month and the same can be said for any budget car.

If you are on a tight budget a Tazz really is the best. Its extremely cheap to maintain. Ford Fiesta definitely not as reliable and is a bit more expensive to maintain.
 
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Brawler said:
Where do you live? Off street parking? If so you should be fine and if its stolen that's what insurance is for. My 25yo girlfriend has an immaculate 2005 model and insurance is only R280 or so pm. My first car was a piece of **** Citi golf which was stolen and it was parked next to her Tazz. Obviously though if you live in a dodgy area and park in the road chances are it will be stolen in a month and the same can be said for any budget car.

If you are on a tight budget a Tazz really is the best. Its extremely cheap to maintain. Ford Fiesta definitely not as reliable and is a bit more expensive to maintain.
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We live in a decent suburb in Pretoria with security patrolling the neighbourhood 24/7. With this, and my car being parked behind a gate, they broke the palisade fence, broke the gate motor open, took the car while we were at home and awake and we didn't hear a single thing... So I suppose if they want any car they'll take it... Insurance is the only otion. And then the cheapest decent ride I can find.
 
Scooter while you save up some more money for what you want?
 
garyc said:
Scooter while you save up some more money for what you want?
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I was considering that but then I need a licence. And exams start next month so I'm hoping to be sorted by then.
 
Hey hey, I saw a white 2001 Fiesta for R40 000 at a dealership in Gezina today, didn't see kilometres and such.

So with the financing fees added and at 12% interest it would be around R972.14 per month over 60 months.

Looking with google maps now to see if I can find where it is, wasn't really paying attention, looking for a Ford Figo.
 
Maybe it was SMC motors from what my minds eye sees compared to what streetview shows? Anyway, the area I saw it was between Naude and De Beers streets. On the left side if you come downhill.

1,3l size so should be light enough on fuel.
 
supersunbird said:
Hey hey, I saw a white 2001 Fiesta for R40 000 at a dealership in Gezina today, didn't see kilometres and such.

So with the financing fees added and at 12% interest it would be around R972.14 per month over 60 months.

Looking with google maps now to see if I can find where it is, wasn't really paying attention, looking for a Ford Figo.
Click to expand...

Can I actually get finance on such an old car??

And thanks , I'll have a look around there :D Planning on doing the old Voortrekker road shopping trip...
 
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