First car purchase, need some advices.

[Wolvie]

Hi all,

I’m planning to buy my first car. I know it is not a good time when it comes to buying vehicles these days but after waiting years struggling to collect money now Im finally there and I really need a vehicle. Found this forum recently so thought this is a good place to get some advices from experienced people. I don’t have much experience with vehicles as this is going to be the first car in the family too, so please be kind when advising if I’m being stupid 🙂.

To be honest I will not have to drive this car daily. I’m a Software Engineer and I work from home. So mostly I will drive this car in short distances regularly but plan to go on trips with the family so reliability is important.

My max budget is 4.5M. And as this is my first car I’m planning to go for a small car so my choice is a hatchback. So far I have done some research and my choices are Swift (beetle) & Mazda Demio. I know these cars are old but with my small budget this is what is there. Maybe I can go for a 2014 wagonr? But I don’t like the look. But yeah fuel consumption and maintenance cost is also must be considered but as far as I got to know Swift is not good in fuel economy even though that is my 1st choice. Some says Demio does better in fuel consumption and I already read some threads here but Swift still feels like it has more features than the Demio (Please advise if I’m wrong).

So guys, What are your opinions on my choices and do you think there’s a better car for my needs?

 

[matroska]

Hi And welcome to the forum. 

On 2/18/2024 at 7:22 PM, Wolvie said:

I know it is not a good time when it comes to buying vehicles these days

Well you're quite right - however it should be noted that inflated prices apply to certain vehicle types and models. 

On 2/18/2024 at 7:22 PM, Wolvie said:

I’m a Software Engineer

Ah the joys  approving a pull request from the comfort of your home at 10.30 PM after a heavy dinner still beats spending hours in the traffic right? 

On 2/18/2024 at 7:22 PM, Wolvie said:

My max budget is 4.5M. And as this is my first car I’m planning to go for a small car so my choice is a hatchback. So far I have done some research and my choices are Swift (beetle) & Mazda Demio. I know these cars are old but with my small budget this is what is there. Maybe I can go for a 2014 wagonr? B

May I know why in particular you are going for a 'small car' ? Because due to Sri Lankan's preference for small cars they are just grossly overpriced. I used to recommend Swift Beetle and Mazda Demio for potential buyers in this forum but these are just ridiculously overpriced nowadays. Since you do not drive to work daily and you mentioned travel why don't you consider a Sedan?  It's a misconception that hatchbacks are super fuel efficient. Hatchbacks make sense if you have limited parking space. have to drive a lot daily in tight city traffic, nipping in and out and dropping kids off at school etc. Your usage pattern seems to align nicely with a sedan.  Wagon R - is tiny and not at all suitable for long distance trips etc. Plus they are now 10 years old - constantly running at high RPM's and used as rental cars and taxi's are potentially problematic. 

[amsandun]

On 2/18/2024 at 7:22 PM, Wolvie said:

So far I have done some research and my choices are Swift (beetle) & Mazda Demio

Swift (Beetle) is a widely used car in SL but hardly see them now. I'm not sure whether Demio is a good spacious car. From what I've seen (I've not used one), it looks a little cramped. But it depends on your needs. And about other Hatchback options, the famous Vitz (2007/08) is there but being a Toyota, highly overpriced and could also be highly hacked. I saw some listed above 5 mil and some between 4.5 - 5 mil. Have you checked Japan Alto?

 If you are looking at Sedans as mentioned above, there maybe some options like Honda Civic ES5, ES8, Mitsubishi Lancer 2007/2008, but better find a car that is well taken care of. Toyotas being Toyotas in SL are highly overpriced such as the Yaris 2007/08 etc. 

Whatever it is, they are highly overpriced now and you will need some extra money for necessary repairs and touch-ups 

[iRage]

Since you are not using it as a daily....I would say fuel consumption would be towards the bottom of the list of your priorities. So...why not go all out ? for a 4mil budget (keeping a side 500,000 for miscellaneous expenses) you should be able to get a B15 Sunny, T200 Carina/Corona, Galant that have been well taken care of. If you are lucky you might even be able to find one of those rare one or two owner Galants imported by the agents. The 4mil budget is usually the upper end for these kinds of cars which typically are the ones in good shape. If you go newer then you are going to be looking at cars in the lower to middle spectrum in terms of price and condition. Lancer CS are an option too but I think for your budget you are looking at a CS2 with a 1.3L engine which might not be the most efficient. But you do get agent imported cars in really good shape too. Saw a single owner car advertised on the quick site a few days ago.

I would stay away from the Wagon R. Too small...under powered and really ineffective and impractical on long journeys. The Swift (Beetle) is a nice car but you really should be getting a Japanese market variant or a fully loaded Indian variant with all the safety options (quite rare). Thus, I think you really should be going for the older and larger sedans. 

[matroska]

21 hours ago, iRage said:

B15 Sunny,

This is actually a good choice - despite the crazy quoted prices some cars get sold for much less - I'd say around 3.5-4.0 range  would get OP a facelift model  with all the bells and whistles - being a common car parts are fairly common and the car is relatively uncomplicated to maintain.  OP can also consider the Tiida if he is ok with the looks. Those go for 4.5-5.0 range. 

21 hours ago, iRage said:

T200 Carina/Corona, Galant

Regarding the T21X series - the Corona is a lot cheaper than the Carina in Sri Lanka - it seems to have a less appeal among the masses. A corona would be well well below your budget and carina's price varies largely on Si/Ti , facelift is more sought after. This being Sri Lanka the number plate series is more valued than the actual YOM  

21 hours ago, iRage said:

you are looking at a CS2 with a 1.3L engine

(1.3 = CS1 right?) CS3 would be ideal but might be above budget. 

[iRage]

1 hour ago, matroska said:

1.3 = CS1 right?

Yes !

[MenukaD]

Hi

Reposting on this as Mazda demio thread isn't that active now. Did post this there also yesterday 

I was on the lookout for a Mazda demio and I came across a Mazda 2008 de3fs,with fog lights, rpm meter, climate control and double din player. Drove about 160k. However the catch is it's at mazna motors under open papers. Guy is quoting 4.9m. market price is around 4.2-4.4m. This has most of the options and he had done all repairs, paint job, new tyres and etc. car check report has a score of 97.

 

 

 

 I only found demios with lesser options which are of satisfactory condition for around 4.3m, with some repairs here and there. which would cost me less than 400k hopefully in the long run. 

 

Mazna gives a warranty for 5000km and repairs are done by then foc. 

 

 

 

Any thoughts?

 

My first vehicle and by budget is 3.5m to 4.9m. I regularly drive my father's and father in laws cars but this I'm going to buy for myself.