Jordan

That makes perfect sense actually as when it turns over it sounds completely healthy then just dies without warning. Thanks

My sister is away on holiday and my Grandad was using her Golf Mk4 GT TDI occasionally. The other day he tried to start it up and the engine turns over but then just dies and a warning light that just looks like a car flashes on the dash. Don't have the owner's manual handy. Any ideas what the light means?

Why don't you just run it through a price comparison site rather than get guestimates from people in completely different situations? Confused.com, Gocompare and Compare the Market (in that order IMO). Just plug in the details of what you expect to have when you come to insure it Are you waiting until you have your first full year NCB first? Probably a good step. Might want to phone your insurance company first for a quote for the GTi.

Anyone have any opinions on buying a Cat D? Slightly worrying that it's not mentioned in the description. I could try to haggle the price down but I'm sure they'd rather sell to an unsuspecting buyer for a higher value... I'm not sure exactly which one B12TH M is talking about, though I presume it's the raven blue one.

Oh, which one was this? The blue or silver one? Will that affect the insurance? Silver! - I remember reading about most of this stuff over my time lurking here - excellent recap

Thanks for all the replies guys, you've been truly helpful Is there anything I should look out for when looking at the cars - any obvious signs of neglect/problems e.g. mayo under the coolant cap? I'm sure there will be a thread on all this so I'll hunt around. This is just one guy and he's his own boss with his own "garage" (old horse stables). He drives an Scooby WRX, if that matters...

Just checked out insurance and tax and the GTi will be about another £400/year for me. I take it VW servicing is vital to keep the value? My current mechanic does great work at an amazing price but no stamp in the book... Is remote central locking standard? How effective are the puncture repair kits? Are the stock speakers the same as standard in my 1.0? Was the standard HU just a single slot? Sorry for all the Qs

Another one not too far from the first on PistonHeads 03, 40k @ £6000

It wasn't aimed at one post, person or even thread, just seems to be every time I come here someone always chimes in with a negative. I was just being a pussie I'm not going to get the scrappage deal whatever happens... so I'm looking at Lupo GTis again Will cost a lot more to run than the iQ though - from road tax, insurance and petrol to servicing and repairs so I need to take that into account. Feel out of my depth! Also looking at C2 GTs and VTSs - former is much cheaper than a GTi while the latter I can get much lower mileage. But then they do break all the time...

Cheers guys I have to say I've always fancied a silver one (goes with the alloys!) then black after that. I'd never seen the blue before but I have to say I'm liking it Dunno why they wouldn't mention it was a 6 speed - it's a feature! Going up that way on Sunday to go zorbing, will see if I can get a viewing. Serious question though - I have half the money for the car and will just take out a loan for the rest, but the running costs? Petrol, road tax, insurance... tyres! Also, all you guys with GTis seem to spend a fortune on servicing and if things go wrong it seems to cost a lot to fix. I'm wondering if I'm going into this with too much naivety... Will that be an issue with speed bumps and the like? I have to say I think the GTi looks perfect as it was intended, I'm not all that keen on any kind of mods.

Link 04, 48k @ £5200 (before haggle ). 5 speed, no air con. Seems a good price for the mileage, obviously without knowing anything else about the car at this stage. Worth checking out? I know nowt about cars but I have a mechanic friend who has done all the work on my 1.0 in the 3 years I've owned it who I trust and would come along to check it out I'm sure. Rarely see these come up in Scotland - was interested in NerdyNeal's black Gti but it's just too long a drive for me (I suffer from back problems).

Ummm. Thanks...

If it were that simple garages would be overloaded with people trying to take the piss out of the system, just like you suggested It's just a pain that although this scheme is supposed to go on until early next year when my Lupo will be 10, the cut-off day stays fixed. I swear this place is the most unfriendly forum I've ever used

The majority of the professional reviews I've read were positive, and likewise for the user reviews. Personal taste will come in to everything, especially a love it or hate it cars like this. In all honesty though, I've heard many people say the Lupo looks ridiculous, silly, chubby etc... Annoyed I missed Top Gear again though!

I know, it's ridiculous. But my plan is/was to run it as a two seater. I think the Lupo looks a little untidy with the seats folded down but the back of the iQ is pretty concealed. There's a compartment under the rear seats to keep the rear headrests so I could just put one or both seats up to accomodate moe passangers, which is rare. It's usually just me and the gf.