Ford Fiesta 2010-2014

[dddave]

I need to get 4 wheels under me instead of two.  Just for around town, no road trips.  Tight budget, I'd like to keep it under B125,000. Something small, preferably hatchback.  

A lot of 2010-2014 Ford Fiestas in that price range: 100,000KM-130,000km.  The reading I've done mentions transmission and cooling system recalls. 

I'm also looking at a 2012 Chevy Sonic.  My sister has it's smaller version, the Chevy Spark and it's proved to be a great vehicle.

Just seeking opinions on these or any other cars, positive or negative that I'm likely to see in this price range: B100,000-125,000.  Im seeing some Mazda 2 & 3s, MG-3s.  Most Hondas and Toyotas in that price range 175km+

[khunJam]

Reliability: 1) Mazda. 2) Honda. 3) Toyota. The problem with Mazda is getting parts but rarely needs repair. Honda feels a little cheap in the interior but very reliable. Toyota is a solid choice due to the abundance of parts and durability of the vehicles and relatively inexpensive. I would buy a 20 year old Toyota before I’d buy a 10 year old ford fiesta. 

[DavisH]

46 minutes ago, dddave said:

I need to get 4 wheels under me instead of two.  Just for around town, no road trips.  Tight budget, I'd like to keep it under B125,000. Something small, preferably hatchback.  

A lot of 2010-2014 Ford Fiestas in that price range: 100,000KM-130,000km.  The reading I've done mentions transmission and cooling system recalls. 

I'm also looking at a 2012 Chevy Sonic.  My sister has it's smaller version, the Chevy Spark and it's proved to be a great vehicle.

Just seeking opinions on these or any other cars, positive or negative that I'm likely to see in this price range: B100,000-125,000.  Im seeing some Mazda 2 & 3s, MG-3s.  Most Hondas and Toyotas in that price range 175km+

Perhaps check out the earlier mazda 2 (around 2012-2014)- especially good in the manual version. There were gearbox issues with the fiesta resulting in a class action in Thailand (unless you get the 1.4 liter version. We have a 2013 suzuki swift that is very cheap and reliable to run. My son is drives it daily to go to his university. We've not had any significant problem with it, aside from having to change the air cond evaporator several years back.

check out facebook market place. Plenty to choose from there.  

[mran66]

Google ford powershift problems and you likely skip fiesta, fairly high risk of expensive repairs or loss of the car. 

 

Mazda2 almost same car with different sheet metal and normal auto trans. Far less likely for expensive repairs. 

 

Also, I would avoid cars with CVT trans (like later Swifts) unless you have oil change history at about 50k intervals for the gearbox. 

[MicroB]

I have a 2014 Fiesta. Yeah, it needed the clutch doing, about £2k at a Ford dealer on the island, about what I paid for it. But clutch aside, its a very good car, so I felt it was worth repairing. Toyotas might be better, but for the same age, cost twice as much. And 20 year old Toyotas do break down.

 

Ford revised the parts somewhat over the years. If you find one with all the receipts for a recent clutch pack by a main dealer,  Sometimes, the clutch problems are all down to a faulty earth strap. I think it will be a very good buy. Its still a very modern looking car.

 

The Power shift is basically an electrically actuated manual box. It was a good idea, but Ford skimmed corners, but eventually addressed the issues. On mine, the signs of it failing was the car started to judder in heavy traffice, just like on a normal manual car someone riding the clutch. Eventually, it failed to go into reverse. The diagnosis was straightforward, and there were a few Fiestas in getting the same work. The parts are a similar price to the UK, but obviously the labour cost was a fraction.

 

[dddave]

Thanks for taking the time to respond to my question.  I ended up buying the 2014 Fiesta's chief rival, a 2014 Chevy Sonic with 100,000km on it.  My sister in the US has a Chevy Spark, just a bit smaller than the Sonic and it's been a very reliable car.  Also the price was right at B90,000.