Small automatic car for young driver

[JeepJeep]

I've had DSG and 7G and back in a manual.... Most of my mileage is 150 mile round trips no bother. Cruise at 80 and jobs a goodun.

I worked down in London for a while back in the day.starting at 4.30am no Traffic... 10 Minutes commute.

Coming home rush hour would take 2 hours in a MK2 Golf GTI with a HD clutch.

Left knee was funked.. Picked up a MK3 Cavalier GLS cheap... Auto Box.

Revolutionary

 

[Exfarmer]

I will ask some Q’s;
What is the ‘ting with auto’s? Unless you commute from the home counties into London on a daily basis or are old and incapable of operating a clutch they are a complete waste of space, more cost in fuel to the point where it becomes embarrassing and total lack of any ‘umph’,
particularly in the smaller cc’d motors.
A manual car of indeterminate Hp will do 120,000k before a clutch is needed.
Plus an automatic driving test will be like having one hand tied behind ones back so really a complete no-no!
SS

Sorry SS but you are way behind time a modern auto is far more economical than any manual

 

[ACEngineering]

For a New driver dont rule out a new/newish car.

The more saftey gizmos on it such as adaptive cruise control, assisted braking radar thingy, blind spot detection, cameras and parking sensors and assist etc etc you may actually find there insurance alot cheaper than say an old banger with non of the above!

Old 2008 Qashqai 1.5DT swapped to a 2019 pug 3008 GT Line diesel, cost additional £70 to insure. (£40 of that was admin for switching)
Returned it within 24hrs as was not as expected, bought Seat Alteca ex demo 2022 the following day cost to switch insurance from old Qashqai to the seat? Zero actually had the £30 refunded so was just the one admin fee dispite switching 3 times in 48hrs

 

[smcapstick]

I will ask some Q’s;
What is the ‘ting with auto’s? Unless you commute from the home counties into London on a daily basis or are old and incapable of operating a clutch they are a complete waste of space, more cost in fuel to the point where it becomes embarrassing and total lack of any ‘umph’,
particularly in the smaller cc’d motors.
A manual car of indeterminate Hp will do 120,000k before a clutch is needed.
Plus an automatic driving test will be like having one hand tied behind ones back so really a complete no-no!
SS

Things have moved on since 1992. Autos are better and oftentimes more reliable than manuals.

My MX5 manual has 5 gears. My Sprinter auto has 7.

 

[trebornella]

There are three or for one man band Driving schools around here, so I doubt they can afford more than one car, and I think Bill Plant is a Franchise job, so likely not there either.

We'd a chap worked part time, helping in the greenhouse with plants for the farm shop, one day I asked him to bring some eggs from the grading room to the shop, he said 'I can't drive a manual gearbox, he had an auto Fiesta, and had spent 30 odd years driving buses, and I didn't know at the time, that they could take and pass a PSV test without needing a car licence to start with.

My late Father never took a car driving test. He passed a motorcycle test in the late 1940's, and at that time it allowed him to drive a car as well. He even taught a youngster in the village to drive, who later became a driving instructor !!!!. He passed his HGV in early 1960's and drove the farm lorry (Ford D series) for many years.

 

[2wheels]

Sorry SS but you are way behind time a modern auto is far more economical than any manual

oh no they are not. my 7 speed auto which replaced a 6 speed manual ( exact same car and engine ) is about 4mpg worse off.

 

[suffolksmallholder]

120000 miles on a clutch? I'd expect a lot more than that.

Average clutch lifetime for a petrol motor is as I wrote.
Honda, VW seem to pretty much the same. I’d respectfully throw the ball back to you.
SS

 

[Lincsman]

My wife had a little accident in the village and the nfu sent us a hire car while ours was being repaired they sent a vw sharan which is a big people carrier bus type thing but that was auto as it was the only thing they had. Both of us hated the bloody thing revving about it put me off autos big time I thought vw were supposed to be market leaders

That boat sailed long ago, I bought a galaxy thinking it was ford, turned out to be 95% VW, the only car i have had to need recovering, its so called really good diesel engine had most problems. The only car i know of that the wiper spindles would seize if not lubricated every 6 months.
They couldn't make a clean diesel engine for a while without cheating.

 

[Lincsman]

What is the situation these days with driving school cars, do they have three / four options, manual, auto, hybrid and electric? If so, if you take a test in an all electric, can you drive an auto as well? What about the under bonnet checks, oil dipstick, water etc, hard job to find a dipstick on a Honda E.

All the ones i know of are standard gearboxes, why wouldnt they be? it covers all bases.

 

[trebornella]

120000 miles on a clutch? I'd expect a lot more than that.

Clutch life is purely down to the driver, treat them with respect and they should last the life of the car. 0 to 60, full revs and drop the clutch and you can wreck one in a few 100 miles. Just see what Clarkson and co. used to do on Top Gear test track.

 

[ollandroverman]

Average clutch lifetime for a petrol motor is as I wrote.
Honda, VW seem to pretty much the same. I’d respectfully throw the ball back to you.
SS

Well, I've run several cars , land rovers and vans up to and beyond 200k miles, and never needed a clutch. Looking after several family vehicles as well, I regularly have vehicles apart for other reasons and have yet to see a clutch that showed any significant wear, even on my transit which spends a big percentage of its life heavy towing.

 

[ollandroverman]

Clutch life is purely down to the driver, treat them with respect and they should last the life of the car. 0 to 60, full revs and drop the clutch and you can wreck one in a few 100 miles. Just see what Clarkson and co. used to do on Top Gear test track.

There are exceptions to every rule or standard. Some fools can break anything.

 

[Farmer_Joe]

That boat sailed long ago, I bought a galaxy thinking it was ford, turned out to be 95% VW, the only car i have had to need recovering, its so called really good diesel engine had most problems. The only car i know of that the wiper spindles would seize if not lubricated every 6 months.
They couldn't make a clean diesel engine for a while without cheating.

Agree with this mrs parents had a galaxy and the faults were with the vag bits, I’ve had 2 a4,s both poor reliability, I’m no fan of vag stuff at all, one I have now I’m gonna sell.
Much rather Ford.

 

[asm]

My wife is going back to a manual after having a golf auto as company car. She finds it slow to change gear and makes an awful clunk when changing gear from time to time.
The golf was her first and last auto so it seems.

 

[Lincsman]

My wife is going back to a manual after having a golf auto as company car. She finds it slow to change gear and makes an awful clunk when changing gear from time to time.
The golf was her first and last auto so it seems.

As on a tractor, if you press less hard on the throttle it will change up faster/earlier

 

[Wurzeetoo]

If you can find one the older Toyota Corolla saloon type had a lovely smooth auto box and aren’t strong money, failing that if your boys blessed enough to not need a chick puller how about a micra?

 

[Wurzeetoo]

 

[smcapstick]

My wife is going back to a manual after having a golf auto as company car. She finds it slow to change gear and makes an awful clunk when changing gear from time to time.
The golf was her first and last auto so it seems.

Golfs are not automatics. They’re DSG - a power operated manual. They’re often clunky.

 

[Lincsman]

Golfs are not automatics. They’re DSG - a power operated manual. They’re often clunky.

Most are, and have been for some time with or without flappy paddles. I think most lorries are the same??
When you see the lump of tech on the end of a fiesta auto box its frightening.

 

[maen]

Am interesting post. What was your ‘First Car’ Mine Triumph 13/60.