Need some Car Help!!!!?

[Happygreengirl65]

i have recently passed my driving test so im looking for my first car!!! i have no idea what to look for in a car, so can any one tell me what is good for a first car- like the voltage, milege, etc. the most i have to spend is £3000 so i think i should be able to get a decent car to get me from a to b!!
Thanks
oh and this probably sounds stupid but do you buy the car first and then after you have purchased it you get insurance???? i havent a ckue about these things!!

 

[sbdfhs]

UK?

NEVER buy an expensive car as a first car. Buying an expensive car is asking for trouble.
Buy a small car like an Astra or Fiesta or Ka as these will cost less insurance. Spend about 1500 at most.
You buy insurance after you buy the car and the larger the engine and the more powerful or up-market the car is, the more you will pay.
Don't forget that any car over 3 years needs an MOT certificate and all cars need road tax. If you add this and insurance to the 1500 you spend on the car, most of your 3000 will have gone!

Car insurance can be third party - the insurance will pay anyone you hit!
If they hit you and it is their fault, you get paid out. If your car is stolen or damaged through your fault - tough!

Third party Fire and Theft as above but it is covered for fire and theft, too.

Comprehensive. you are covered for everything.

Most new drivers cannot afford comprehensive insurance. You may have t o pay over 1000 Pounds a year for it!

GOing ofr one of the low emission cars can be very good as the tax etc is lower, but you will pay a lot more in the first place for one of these cars.

 

[Angellita]

You want something 1.4 or 1.2 litre. Dont go over, it increases your insurance a crapload and dont go under, the fuel economy on 1.0 and under is crap

Average car does about 10,000 miles a year, so if you find one, work out its mileage a year, if its below 10,000 its a good sign. My cars 2001 and has done 47,000, about 5,000 a year, which is pretty darn good. Lower the mileage the better.

Look for something with service history, indicates its been looked after.

Voltage doesnt matter a damn. if youre refering to the "v" you find sometimes, that refers the amount of valves the engine has, this doesnt matter either.

you want something with long MOT and Tax

Good first cars are vauxhall corsas, fiat puntos and suzuki wagons. Im hankering after a suzuki wagon, their insurance is amazingly cheap.

Suprisingly renault clios, ford fiestas, volkswagon golfs insurance is pretty high, despite their small engine sizes.

Buy from a dealer. Try and spend under your budget and then use the rest to buy a years warranty. first cars never seem to go for long so its good to have them covered.

Regarding insurance, if you go see a car, put a deposit on it and then go to collect it a later date, then you can get insurance for the day of collection. if you buy it the same day you view you will need someone able to drive it home for you. UNLESS you buy from a dealer, they often do free 7 days insurance, but that depends on the dealer. always good to ask when you phone up.

ALWAYS do an insurance quote for the car youre looking at before you phone up or buy or anything.

a helpful tip: on my fiat, thrid party fire and theft insurance was £900+. i had my mum be the registered keeper of the car, and me go on her insurance for it as a named driver. it then cost me £300 lol

 

[Jessica]

Once you know you are going to buy a car and you know what car it is, you would call and tell your insurance company. That is what I do at least. I got myself an Elantra recently actually. It was a 2001 and not much over your price range. It is a great car! I absolutely love it and there was only 45000 miles on it too, as well as automatic transmition and Electric windows too! So maybe you can find something similar somewhere. I would definitely recommend Hyundai for a brand as well as a Toyota or Honda. They are all really reliable cars that can last a long time if taken car of right.