Car Option #2 in Days of My Destiny

Okay so I’ve since found out that the wonderful little VW I had in mind will be expensive for services and repairs. We have heard this from 2 people and also done a fair bit of research online.

Of course we are after value for money, while still keeping in mind comfort - and a little bit of boot space!

There are two cars that fit my criteria.... each one is better than the other in different ways.

There’s the Hyundai i30 SX. Currently there is a 2010 model for sale, with less than 50,000kms on it, for about $13,500. Its fuel consumption is 4.7L/100kms, which means we could do a roundtrip home for $100. It also means I could do all the driving I would possibly do in one week for $55. (This includes: bus stop and school pick-up/drop-offs; working in the next town two days a week; one fun trip to the other town with Little L once a week; church once a week; PLUS an extra 120kms for the odd day trip we might do here and there.)

And then there’s the Mazda 2 Neo. Currently there is a 2013 model for sale, with less than 20,000kms on it (that’s right), for $12,990. Fuel consumption is 6.4L/100kms, so a bit more than the Hyundai. This means we could do a roundtrip home for $130. It also means I could do all the driving I would possibly do in one week for $76.

That’s a $21 difference I would spend in fuel each week… which means that in the next two years (ie the last 2 years of our time down here), if I get the Mazda, then that would be an extra $2,184 spent on fuel.

BUT… I am thinking that this extra money spent on fuel would be worth it if we sold the car once we moved home.... which is an idea we have in the back of our minds ANYWAY, regardless of the car we buy because with urban driving, I would love to own a hybrid with degenerative braking, which would mean I would use way less fuel to begin with (if at all - or at least I’d rarely need it), thus do my bit for the environment :) And for the world in general, really, because oil wars? No thanks.

And by the time we sold the Mazda, it would only be 4 years old and have roughly 80,000kms on it (based on the fact that we drive around 20,000kms per year on average). The Hyundai, on the other hand, would be 7 years old and have roughly 100,000kms on it.

I looked up 4 year old Mazdas with less than 20,000kms, and currently you can get between $9,500 and $12,000 for them (for a 1.5L engine which is what I’m looking at). Whereas 7 year old Hyundais with less than roughly 100,000kms are worth between $5,000 and $8,000 (that’s a 1.6L).

But then.. if I buy the Mazda right now for $13,000… and then spend another $2,000 on fuel on it… in the end I’ve bought it for $15,000. And then I’d only sell it for a max of $12,000 (based on current figures). So I’d lose $1,000, even if I sold it at the best possible price. With the Hyundai… I’d buy it for $13,500 and sell it for $8,000 at best. So I’d lose $4,500… which is even more lol..... (“obviouslyyyyy cos like, we can all like, count.”)

Really I was quite set on the Hyundai already, and in fact we have sent enquiries on one. We are thinking that perhaps we could trade in the Jeep when we go up to Brisbane next month (because the rego expires the month after that and we’d prefer avoiding having to pay more rego on it!). BUT… I said to L… what if we sit in the Hyundai, take it for a test drive and find that it’s just NOT the car for us???

Out of all the cars in the 5L or less per 100kms category that we have researched, it seems that the Hyundai is the right car for us… but what if it just isn’t? What if it has terrible blind spots in the back of the car like the Jeep does? Because after all, that is the whole issue that has sparked our decision to buy another car!! (But also, why not save some money while we’re at it… money used on fuel is literally money burnt into thin air....)

So I’d like to have some other cars up my sleeve, even if their fuel consumption might be slightly higher. At the end of the day, their fuel consumption will still be lower than what we are currently using.......

The next thing to research is servicing and repairs costs for a Mazda 2 Neo..........
I think a Mazda has slightly more pizzazz than a Hyundai… and seriously, how cool would it be to buy a car that’s only ONE YEAR OLD!!!!

It does also make me slightly suspicious as to why it’s so cheap with such little kms on it and being that new........ so that’s something to keep in mind...... I suppose the VCheck would let us know of any accidents the car has been involved in, which is good (or whatever the report is that does that, lol).

But yes..... I am determined to buy a car after doing ALL the possible research needed, and to make a LOGICAL decision while still being happy with comfort, look and feel of the car. At the end of the day, I’ve driven a Hyundai before and I loved that little car so much, so I know I can drive another :)

Last updated October 29, 2014