First car to learn in - Fiat 500?

[pendodave]

Worst car I have ever driven.
The pedals seemed high so you can drive in heels.( not me by the way they were only rumours)
Gives you cramp in your calves
People look at you and your thinking “ why are you driving that”
I am 6’1” and it was my daughters not mine.
To be fair it never let her down, just not a tall man’s car imo

I learned in a 1970s mini now they were small.

We had a fiat 500 as a hire car last year. Like you, I'm quite tall. Like you, I found it very uncomfortable. I've had small cars (old 205, Toyota iq) and they've been much better to drive.

 

[chico]

As a general rule of thumb never ever buy a Fiat. Don't even take one for free.

 

[Deleted member 31467]

Fix It Again Tomorrow

 

[jim8flog]

As a general rule of thumb never ever buy a Fiat. Don't even take one for free.

That reminded me

Back in the 1980s I bought a Fiat Chroma the garage gave me a Fiat 500 free with it.

 

[Jimaroid]

I've had a Fiat Panda 100HP as our general runabout for over 10 years. Bought as second owner, it's been the lowest maintenance and best value car I've ever owned. Fewer faults than the Fords and Beemers we've run as the family car in that same period.

We keep getting enquiries about selling it and I could just about still get the same money I paid for it if I wanted. Crazy.

 

[GB72]

If i were looking at a small car again, I would go with a Fiesta. Not driven a newer model but all the pervious ones are just simple and reliable.

 

[pendodave]

As a general rule of thumb never ever buy a Fiat. Don't even take one for free.

We had a multipla for 10 years. It was bloody fabulous.

 

[SteveW86]

If you do look at Fords, be aware of the issues with certain eco boost engines. Well documented in the press, but can be a pain to get a replacement out of ford.

We have a 1.0 Eco boost focus (2012) and the engine went pop after 30k. Luckily, we didnt have much trouble getting a free new engine out of Ford.

 

[spongebob59]

If you do look at Fords, be aware of the issues with certain eco boost engines. Well documented in the press, but can be a pain to get a replacement out of ford.

We have a 1.0 Eco boost focus (2012) and the engine went pop after 30k. Luckily, we didnt have much trouble getting a free new engine out of Ford.

I had a 1.0T eco boost focus and the turbo blew on that, luckily it was just in warranty.

 

[Imurg]

A tip for buying smaller used cars....
Check under the passenger side dashboard
When dual controls are fitted it's not unusual to have to remove trim, padding etc to get the rods in around the back of the console to the driver's pedals
There may be drilled holes for the fixings too.
Knowing what my lot do to a car I'd be reluctant to buy one if I knew it had been an instructor's car.
The AA and BSM get through thousands of cars a year between them, they may only be on the road for 6 months but can still rack up some mileage with, potentially, double the amount of wear.

 

[SteveW86]

I had a 1.0T eco boost focus and the turbo blew on that, luckily it was just in warranty.

I believe that the warranty is irrelevant regarding this issue. Ours was the coolant return pipe from the turbo which failed and caused the engine failure. Ford recognised the problem and changed the design of the pipe, but this was an issue for 1000's of cars. Ours was out of warranty and didnt have full ford service history, but we still got a replacement FOC.

 

[ADB]

We have a VW Polo and it was perfect for my son to learn in - good size so felt sturdy enough but not too big.

 

[spongebob59]

I believe that the warranty is irrelevant regarding this issue. Ours was the coolant return pipe from the turbo which failed and caused the engine failure. Ford recognised the problem and changed the design of the pipe, but this was an issue for 1000's of cars. Ours was out of warranty and didnt have full ford service history, but we still got a replacement FOC.

It was the 12 month used car warranty rather than a ford warranty, so I didnt have any stress getting a repair, other than having to go to another dealer who could do the work, traded in as soon as it came back anyway.

 

[golfbluecustard]

A tip for buying smaller used cars....
Check under the passenger side dashboard
When dual controls are fitted it's not unusual to have to remove trim, padding etc to get the rods in around the back of the console to the driver's pedals
There may be drilled holes for the fixings too.
Knowing what my lot do to a car I'd be reluctant to buy one if I knew it had been an instructor's car.
The AA and BSM get through thousands of cars a year between them, they may only be on the road for 6 months but can still rack up some mileage with, potentially, double the amount of wear.

Many thanks, great tip

GBC

 

[chico]

We had a multipla for 10 years. It was bloody fabulous.

Just a rule of thumb, exceptions to ever rule but generally speaking they're crap.

 

[Brads]

Why a small car ? They are no easier to learn in or drive.

If it was my daughter she'd be in an old BMW X5, or a Shogun lol.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

Why a small car ? They are no easier to learn in or drive.

If it was my daughter she'd be in an old BMW X5, or a Shogun lol.

Running costs, easier to park?

 

[greenone]

We had a multipla for 10 years. It was bloody fabulous.

I suppose if you are in it you don't have to look at it.

 

[Brads]

Running costs, easier to park?

Possibly but not really. Fuel economy maybe but some big motors are cheap to run.

Anyhoo, it was a slightly throw away comment.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

Possibly but not really. Fuel economy maybe but some big motors are cheap to run.

Anyhoo, it was a slightly throw away comment.

It's okay, it's just back and forth stuff. A guy I knew wanted to do what you suggested for his son, for his first car. He thought he would be safer in a big car but he was over ruled by his wife. He had a good grumble about it to me once ?