I'm a Holden girl always have been and have always liked my 'big' cars, but in reality this may not be an option any more, due to petrol and when I am working full time I would fill up my car 3 times per week (with the tank now costing at least $70 to fill)

I've been researching small cars, trying to find out what is good and reliable, what looks nice (not keen on the way many small cars look), don't want it to be too light, good on the road in wet weather, and able to fit at least two car seats. Would also like to have a boot with enough room for a large pram and of course shopping

I've been looking at the Astra but not 100% convinced, probably because holden's have lost my love a little over the years.

TIA for suggestions

Mel xx

Hi mel, Can't speak highly enough of the Mazda 3, I fill up every 2 or 3 weeks. I have 2 seats in the back and a pram in the boot! Cheers Mel

HI Mel,
Don't know if its any help to you at all but we have a 2005 Nissan Pulsar and it great! Boot big enough for pram and shopping and can fit rear facing seat and forward facing seat. They stopped making them last year but there may still be some around. Good price too.
Cheers
Nat

How much driving do you do per day? I know mine goes through a lot of petrol anyway, but I could be doing 200-500k's per day

Thanks Gagsmissus happy to find a used car that's not too old with low k's so will check it out

Mel xx

Why not a small 4WD, or All Wheel Drive - Subaru Forrester, Nissan X-trail, Toyota Rav4, Ford Escape, Landrover Freelander, BMW X3, Hyundai Sante Fe. I believe they all come in a 4 cylinder option. I had a Rav4 before my Mercedes ML350, loved it.

Plus, they are able to tow a dog trailer and fit a large dog in the boot

I think Subaru was listed as the most popular for small cars at the moment, can't remember where I heard about it.

We have thought about 4WD's but maybe for hubby? I don't know, are they easy to get in and our of? get children in and out of?

Mel xx

I adore my small car! I have a Peugeot 307 (5 door hatch, 2L 4 cylinder). It sits beautifully on the road (doesn't feel like a small car, which is part of the reason I bought it), handles well, looks great. The two carseats easily fit in the back and the world's hugest pram sits nicely in the boot.

It's quite fuel efficient, but if it's not good enough there is also a diesel version which does around 5L/100km I believe.

Love it, best car I've ever had the pleasure of driving

What about the HYUNDAI, GETZ or HYUNDAI, ELANTRA?

Mel xx

We had a look at this recently since DW's old Corolla is too small to put anything in the boot (its anchor points are at the BACK of the boot so the straps perfectly BISECT the bootspace! ).

We looked at Mazda3 & 6 and were impressed but thought that the 3 was probably big enough for 2 car seats, pram and groceries so wouldnt need to spend for the '6'. Its a bit "Zoom Zoom" wannabe a sports car with the interior but nonetheless comfortable.

Next we checked out the latest Toyota Corolla and found although the space is improved and competes well with the Mazda, the level of refinement and specifications just didnt match up. The new Camry had a better offering in terms of features - but just looks like a tank and has fuel conmsuption figures to prove it.. It looks heavy and unimpressive (actually looks like its been designed by Chrysler/Pontiac for the American market) - So after that we found ourselves dismissing the idea of looking any further at Toyotas!

Holden was a brief visit (theres always a bitter taste at buying anything by GM and the whole skanky-bogan reputation doesnt do them any favours in terms of Austalian branding - but I grew up driving Vauxhall Astras and Cavaliers so we had a look).. The lastest Astra had a boot that was just WAAAAAY too small to hold anything - and the Vectra, which looked ok has just been canned - expect to wait a couple of months before its replacement (cant remember what it'll be called)!

Next stop was Honda and the Civic was great to drive and cheaper than a similarly specc'd Mazda3 - it had the space required and the only real downside was the gimicky LCD speedo up by the windscreen... We were almost convinced until we saw that the entry level Accord had the same spec level as the mid-level Civic for only a $2K more (and had loads more space)..

So for now - it looks like "Honda Accord" is on our shopping list! (Just as soon as someoone buys our old Corolla from us)



2 car seats and shopping? You are joking!

I haven't seen a Getz in person, just noticed the nice price range

Had a Hyundai once as my first car - the gear box fell out and I had no end of trouble with it. Admittedly the brand has come a long way since then but I still couldn't recommend. As you can tell from the posts everyone is very passionate about their personal preference. I look forward to hearing you raving about your choice. PS to answer your question - I drive about 40-50kms a day in my Mazda 3 in peak hour traffic. My husband drives about the same distance in the new RAV4 and fills up every 6 days!

Thanks

I will give my latest Holden credit though, no matter what I put him through, he keeps going

I have heard a lot of good things about Hyundai now, never would of touched them or thought about them back when, if you know what I mean?

Mel xx

DH has a getz.

You will easily fit 2 carseats in the back but the boot is not huge, maybe squash a standard pram in there but you wouldn't get the shopping in as well.

The elantra is a nice sized car, we recently rented one in QLD, we fit everything in nicely, although as has been mentioned the anchor points for both are at the back so the straps of a car seat interfere with the boot space, although if your kids are in boosters this is not an issue.

I quite like Hyundais, we have owned 2 and have never had an issue with them, they are priced well, fuel efficient and run well (least the ones we owned did)

I love my Ford Focus. It's small but not TOO small, if you know what I mean. Did well in the crash ratings too if you care about stuff like that.
It's the second one I've owned and am really pleased with how it handles and cost of fuel.

We have a Renault Scenic and are very happy with it. They are still under $30K I think. We have 3 carseats across the back and the boot is very large (it's a 5 door hatch). I can fit the pram plus shopping and still have more room for junk (reminds me the car is a mess). I fill it up every 3 weeks and it takes about $60 for 700km from memory (they do reccomend using premium petrol with it). I'm just driving around the suburbs though.

Happy Shopping.

Kate

My brother just bought a Honda Jazz. Fantastic fuel efficiency and great to drive. He loves it.

My partner is a mechanic and he says that you can't go past a Nissan. We have a Pulsar and he says that the new Tiida is great. Lots of space and you won't be spending money to get it fixed all the time. Steer clear of Hyundai, Kia and Renault as they are pretty shonky, Especially Kia!!!
I think you are safe with Nissan and Subaru.

We have a new Subaru Impreza,

Love it

I don't have one (I did have a 306 before my current car), but they are great cars. I have driven a 307 and it is a fantstic car to drive and is quite large for a small car - not that expensive either.

How can you not have seen a Getz??? They're everywhere LOL!

You certainly won't fit 2 car seats a pram and shopping in one!

What about a Toyota Corolla wagon? Same engine size as the sedan and hatch but with more boot space.

I have a 5 door Hyundai Getz and I love it....it fits my 2 carseats in it and a smallish person can squeeze in the middle...the only downfall is the boot size, but where possible I forgo the pram when shopping and just use a trolley with DS in the seat & DD in the main part. Works for us

We've just bought a 5 dr Toyota Yaris Hatchback and it has also won the Safest Small Car of the Year. It has 7 airbags!! It has 2 car seat points and is VERY economical to drive. The steering is fantastic.
Edited to add: it's cheaper than the Corolla but got more extras and looks smarter inside.

We have also just bought the new Toyota RAV4 Cruiser - a 4 cyl all wheel drive. it has 3 car seat points and has stacks of room in the back. It is just so lovely to drive! All the perks of a 4WD but without the petrol bill!

Suzanne

DH sells Mazdas and the 3 is a fantastic car. We had a SP23 for a while and had no trouble fitting 2 car seats and tandem pram in it. I don't usually like small cars either but I liked the 3. I think it's the 'zoom zoom'
DH recently did a comparison day and said the only other small car that was any good was the civic.

Do you have this months OPen road magazine? There are some good figures on running costs of cars. If you don't get it let me know & I can give you some here!

I'm a Honda girl!

We had the civic sedan a few years ago. The boot was huge, fuel was efficient etc. I now have a CRV & love it. I've never had to have ANY bit of furniture delivered as I can always fit it in the boot & back seats + I just filled up for $51.00!! We've never had a problem with a Honda. Big thumbs up here!

I 'third' the Peugeot.
Excellent to drive, European style and such good value.

Let us know what you end up with!

I don't usually admire or look at those type of cars

If it's a nice Holden etc then I 'may' but has to be a V6 and upwards

Now that we have been to a dealership I have noticed all sorts. Must admit looked at used Getz and they were good, but yes boot space was small (although overall car was bigger than I had thought), and the new Getz does have a bigger boot!!!!

But...OMG I bought an Accent this afternoon

I had been admiring them online, and even better in person, great size car, not too small and doesn't look like a bubble huge boot, I was really, really surprised

Apparently it's $30-$40 per 500k's

Still a bit in shock as I HATE spending money, but it needed to be done.

http://www.johnhughes.com.au/new-hyundai-accent.php



Mel xx

Four door Auto Just added a picture to my other post

Oh god I reckon I will cry when I have to hand over my Holden

He told me I would get over it quickly!

Mel xx

I Have photo's, must find

Edit: Okay here it is, behind the dog of course



Mel xx

I have a Honda Jazz and absolutely love it. Two carseats fit easily in the back and the boot holds a stroller and shopping, or a pram on its own. The best thing with these high fuel prices is the fuel economy - 6.7L/100km. This is actual use because it has a fuel consumption indicator. The Jazz is our main family car and a tank of fuel lasts more than a week. We also have a Honda CRV, which is great for transporting larger loads. However, we are seriously considering trading it for a smaller car because of fuel consumption.. and it's pretty good compared with some 4WDs, about 10L/100km.

Minyaca

DD March 2003
DS January

I just bought a Toyota Yaris 5 door sedan and it is as big as a corolla, better on fuel efficiency and has heaps more features! If u email me at lullaby2@optusnet.com.au - i can send u a picture......they are such a great drive!
You can fit two car seats in great and the boot is as big as a holden!

I'm not sure if this is true or not as I don't know much at all about cars, and have only had one! But, my car broke down the other day and I was asking the mechanic what he thought was a good car to get, and he said anything japanese, stay away from an Astra and another car I cant remember when I can think of it i'll come back and let you know. He's a mechanic for a big roadside assistance company...

Having driven a few VWs now (old and new), I would buy one in a heartbeat. In fact, we did! Not sure of their cost in Australia, probably exy compared to local cars, but we have found them great to drive, extremely economical, and very reliable.

I also once had a Ford Focus as a rental car, loved it and it would also be on my small car buying list if I was in the market.

Thought I would put my favourite in

Before I had a big family (and it got ruined in a car crash) I had a Hyundai Excel 5 door and I absolutely LOVED IT!!!!
Did'nt have alot of problems with it, it was cheap and it was my little 'zoom' around car!!!
Now I have a big Toyota Town Ace.
I miss my little silver car
heheheheh

I have a Hyundai Getz and love it - I do a minimum of 500km per week and LOVE the fuel consumption. It has plenty of space and because it was so cheap, I am not worried about driving it into the ground.
just my 2 cents
Linds

I love my car! I have a Mini Cooper. I wouldn't drive anything else.

I wanted a smaller car than the Honda Civic I was driving. I feel so safe and comfortable in it.