My dad is thinking of getting this for my brother as his 1st car:

". ." (xllx)
05/09/2016 at 16:18 • Filed to: None

What do you reckon, Oppo? I think it’s slightly overpriced, but the owner is willing to negotiate. My brother doesn’t give a crap about cars (unfortunately), so it might be a decent starting car for him. Those massive rims and low profile tyres probably aren’t the greatest idea though. Does anybody know what they’re from?

!!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

DISCUSSION (35)

Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:26

I mean... It’s not a Fiat.

Autohaus Derp > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:26

I used to have a 2006 9N3, it was a great little car. Mine had the 130bhp 1.9TDI though, was a proper rocket ship. Loved it!

OCD-CO > Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap
05/09/2016 at 16:28

As I am an American I say no, but yes for the wheels. So there is my answer.

RyanFrew > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:30

Those wheels look great on that car. I also suspect they might be worth as much as the car.

TheRevanchist > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:31

If he doesn’t care about cars, get him an automatic. It’s not an insult. It’s just the right thing to do.

Aaron M - MasoFiST > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:31

Do a quick check against stock size on a tire calculator to make sure that odometer is vaguely near correct.

. . > TheRevanchist
05/09/2016 at 16:34

Automatic cars are quite rare in that segment and can be more expensive. Not to mention being more prone to expensive bork.

Klaus Schmoll > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:36

Price seems ok to me, if there is a little room to negotiate. The wheels look nice and will probably get curbed to death (a good lesson to learn?) by a new driver. What about service records and most important, isn’t that an engine with a timing belt? Was that done already?

Patrick Nichols > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:38

The lights on that make it look like the ugly offspring of a mk 4 golf and an E-class from the same time period.

Svend > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:41

A friend has a late 2003 of the same car. It was bought for her as a first car back in 2008 and it’s still going strong other than a mysterious ingress of water in the front passenger footwell that came about in the last couple of years.

I’d certainly remove those large wheels and replace them with smaller ones so they last longer. The large wheels will cover the cost of getting smaller ones.

duurtlang > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:42

Buy the car, take some decent pictures of it as-is, sell the wheels/tires (215/35/17? Hell no!) and replace them with standard 14 or 15 inch Polo-appropriate and new-driver-appropriate wheels from a junked car. The car will be cheaper that way.

. . > Klaus Schmoll
05/09/2016 at 16:44

We’ve not looked into it that deeply, but the ad mentions complete service history and a service booklet. And yeah, I reckon those wheels won’t be long for this world with a newbie behind the wheel.

Shady Balkan Subject, Drives an Alfa > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:44

I was looking at this gen Polos, before getting my 147. It is definitely a car I would drive without shame. Yeah they are kind of cutesy and lack powah, but the interior is nice and it is a perfect city car.And somehow pack a bigger boot than my Alfa...

Why I didn’t get one, well I decided I need dual climate control, leather seats and Bose audio for less than what one of those cost in decent condition, even if I am stuck with a car that need something fixed every month.

MultiplaOrgasms > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:44

There is nothing inherently wrong with Volkswagens from car perspective and shitty hatchbacks like these are cheap to run, but I seem to recall that the engines in these have numerous issues, the 1.4 for instance has a habit of freezing to death in cold conditions and a quick search reveals that the 1.2 is prone to cylinder head issues. The front suspension bushings also wear very quickly (about 60-80.000kms).

Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap > OCD-CO
05/09/2016 at 16:44

I’m pretty sure that reply was for Borsq but......

. . > duurtlang
05/09/2016 at 16:45

I think 1.2s came on 13" rims, so somebody uprated them by 4". Bonkers!

. . > Svend
05/09/2016 at 16:45

I think 1.2s came on 13" rims, so somebody uprated them by 4". Bonkers!

. . > MultiplaOrgasms
05/09/2016 at 16:47

Yeah, I’ve heard about head issues in pre-fl 1.2 Polos. That kinda sucks.

. . > Aaron M - MasoFiST
05/09/2016 at 16:48

Total diameter is just .1" off compared to original 13" wheels. That’s .1 mph off per 20 mph. Not bad.

MultiplaOrgasms > Shady Balkan Subject, Drives an Alfa
05/09/2016 at 16:51

You’ve made the correct decision.

Svend > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:52

Sorry. Tasha’s Polo is a 2005, not a late 2003 as I said.

Kinja'd!!!

A silver 1.2 Polo Twist. With standard alloy wheels.

duurtlang > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:53

I get 165/70/14, but I might be wrong. Anyway, if I’m right with that tire size they did pick the right tire diameter with these new wheels. No significant speedometer or odometer difference (<1%). Having said all this, is this the base 1.2? The 8 valve 1.2, the one with 55 hp? That’s slow as molasses already stock (17.5s 0-100 kmh), with these much wider tires it must be even slower.

. . > duurtlang
05/09/2016 at 16:55

The ad says it’s got 65 hp, so it’s probably the 12v.

duurtlang > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:57

That’s a relief. Still slow though, at 14.9 seconds.

Klaus Schmoll > . .
05/09/2016 at 16:58

So what? It’s just a set of wheels, and they make a rather boring car look nice. Your brother will probably like the overall look and oversee the fact that it doesn’t have enough power to get him into trouble. Win-win!

. . > Klaus Schmoll
05/09/2016 at 16:59

I’m more worried about them getting bent by my brother hopping kerbs and not dodging potholes than kerb rash.

Aaron M - MasoFiST > . .
05/09/2016 at 17:01

That’s not bad at all. They look big enough to be blingy, for certain.

Probenja > Shady Balkan Subject, Drives an Alfa
05/09/2016 at 17:06

I am also looking at a Polo (9n3 1.4 16v) or a 147 (1.6 Twin Spark) but as a first car, I’m thinking more Polo as I really don’t want to deal with Alfa Romeo’s reputation, even if that isn’t the car enthusiast’s right choice.

How has it been owning the 147?

Cé hé sin > TheRevanchist
05/09/2016 at 17:30

Not in Poland...not many automatics, slower, use more fuel, more to go wrong.

Shady Balkan Subject, Drives an Alfa > Probenja
05/09/2016 at 17:31

Twin Sparks are not bad engines at least from what I have seen, little on the expensive side when you talk maintenance like oil and plugs, well you need 8, hence twin spark. The Alfa is a car you buy knowing it will need attention and overlooking some stupid problems that pop-up and are rather unexpected. I got mine, because it is the most refined, best specced and most powerful in this segment(I have a diesel), on top of the great looks, but I made the imformed decision I could land in big trouble. 6 months of ownership and I still will not choosen any different. Top tip for the Alfa, just try searching for one that is maintained by a person that cared and is not high on kms.

Cé hé sin > . .
05/09/2016 at 17:31

You couldn’t find something better, like a Yaris or a Micra? Dull but they don’t go wrong much.

. . > Cé hé sin
05/09/2016 at 17:38

An acquaintance of my dad’s is selling it. That’s how we found out about it. We weren’t actively looking for a car for my brother.

Dr.Kamiya > TheRevanchist
05/09/2016 at 17:46

Nah dude. In many other countries stick is the norm, and everyone learns to use it from the get-go whether they’re interested in cars or not. For Poland I think the breakdown is something like 80% stick.

Smoggi - powered by 3 cylinders > . .
05/10/2016 at 01:12

I drive a Skoda Fabia with the same engine. Basically the same car in a different body.

Car has been very reliable. Most issues have been related to our LPG conversion. Engine is at 123k now and still going strong. Nothing has broken so far and believe me when I say I drive this thing hard. Has a timing chain as well so no expensive belt replacement there.

Things I had to do besides general maintenance have been a new flexpipe for the exhaust at 120k as well as a new tierod end. They probably have the same VAG problem of fading headlights.

Brake service is cheap as fuck because of tiny brakes. Tires don’t cost the world (I run 14").

Any other questions just hit me up.

OCD-CO > Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap
05/10/2016 at 12:08

Indeed, wrong recipient.