Gav, that's a bit shit. Never take dealership apr on used cars it's a ripoff, especiallywhen it goes into double figures. You'd be better off with a low interest loan from a bank or some other financial provider and buy the var outright and pay the low interest loan back. Or just be patient and save money. You'll appreciate it much more having paid for it yourself.

Dunno what prices your looking at but I'd have though you could pick up a used golf or leon 10 years old for around £3500.

Does it have to be Arnold Clark? Other dealerships might be more friendly. Or what about a bank loan? I bought that Alfa I had with a £5K loan paid back over three years. I think the total I paid back was less than £5.5K so the interest was really quite low.

EDIT: Well I'm too fucking slow it seems.

I'm just going on what I'm being offered via a soft check for personal loans and car finance on ClearScore. It's all ridiculous Apr with very hefty monthly repayments, and only with a 70% chance of being accepted. My mum has 90-100% of being accepted for the same amount with just a few % Apr, and it's within my monthly budget.

When I go to the loans bit of my RBS app it just tells me nah, not for you pal.

Or ask your mum to guarantor - She shouldn't be bothered at all if you make the payments mate.

to be honest cheap cars are usually a false economy.

Best advice is to shop around and take your time to try a few and see what you like. Pick somewhere you trust and don't be scared of haggling.. just be realistic. They can only say no. Most small independent dealers in the uk tell me they don't discount as the internet means you've got to be priced very sensibly now.. I'd still expect most main dealers to knock a couple of hundred quid off.. and don't be scared to compare interest rates if you are going for motor finance.

yeah it's adds value but they don't pay retail so it's something we do.

Some new cars have very little margin on .. it depends how competitive the price is and whether the salesman is on profit retained bonus.

I'd also suggest that you keep the Golf in your head for the minute and pick up a banger for the time being. It's your first car not your last car

It's the Japanese Mercedes!

Interesting that South Korean cars do better in reliability stakes than the Japanese who were the market leaders for reliability

Dinostar77 wrote:

Interesting that South Korean cars do better in reliability stakes than the Japanese who were the market leaders for reliability

I’d suggest that’s probably down to Toyota out sourcing some of its engines and with PSA units

But he already said no to an MR2 or MX-5.

(A Celica would be a good option. Cheap as fuck, relatively simple for an independent garage to fix/maintain for you, tons of fun, etc. Downside is going to be high insurance for you.)

Bob wrote:

last time i checked s2000 values where going through the roof

I had no idea. Why? Lack of production numbers?

afgavinstan wrote:

I'm seeing '08 Mazda 3's for a grand. .

That’s the man for the job reliable we’ll equipped and not uncool

afgavinstan wrote:

I'm seeing '08 Mazda 3's for a grand. They look nice.

Also catching wind of a workmate apparently trying to sell his TT. Had offers for 1k and 800 and both have been no shows. Might chance a 600 offer for the ultimate luls. Can you imagine? It'd be hilarity.

Whatever you buy used, get a mechanic or someone who knows his stuff to look it over for you. You can pay for AA or RAC mechanic to give the car the once over for you. A laptop with the diagnostic software is normally a given nowadays since people can turn faults off on the laptop and you'd be none the wiser. When I bought my wifes golf i took a mates laptop with the VW diagnostic software on it and plugged it into the car and ran it. The dealership was true to their word that i wouldnt find any diagnostic faults, I didn't but it pays to be sure. I didn't take anyone with me to buy her car as I'd owned a golf myself for a number of years so I knew what to look out for. When I bought my first car I took my uncle with me who knew shed loads about cars and he looked over my first purchase to be and gave it the thumbs up.

OR you could get Bob to try to find you a car, then go down to pick it up and meet Bob and Vere as they live on the same island and drive it back up to Glasgow. That sounds more fun.

Last time he mentioned it I'm sure it was a non-runner.